Gen-III HEMI V8-Swapped 1967 Barracuda Salutes an American Icon Before It Sunsets

For our final piece from a remarkably awesome V8 Month here on autoevolution, thirty days where we celebrate all engines with eight cylinders in a V-formation, we'd like to direct your attention to this Gen III 392 HEMI swapped 1967 Plymouth Barracuda. It's for sale on Bring a Trailer out of Waxahachie, Texas, and if there's any custom car to cap off this month, it's this one right here.

For the second-gen Plymouth Barracuda, anything from a 3.7-liter (225-cubic inch) slant-six to the gargantuan 7.2-liter (440-cubic inch) Chrysler RB-block V8. In-between those two, the 426-cubic inch (7.0-liter) HEMI V8. But none of these are under the hood of this restomod. Instead, it's the 392-cubic inch (6.4-liter) third-generation HEMI found in everything from RAM trucks to Chrysler 300s and Dodge Challengers, Chargers, and Durangos of all varieties. Indeed, the entire vehicle is far removed from what it looked like in 1967.

Records indicate that it last received a comprehensive cosmetics package with a spiffy-looking interior to match in 2007. With that in mind, numbers-matching originality is not the name of the game here. Changes on the outside include an added power-operated sunroof, lightweight fiberglass hood with a functioning air scoop, tinted windows, non-decorative metal hood pins, modern Mopar daytime-running lights, and 392 HEMI badging. This car was never intended to be a sleeper. It begs to be beloved by each person who lays eyes on it.

It's not like this Barracuda doesn't have the guts to back the badging. 392 HEMI V8s can jet 485 horsepower easily in the Dodge Charger Scat Pack. Expect it to make every bit of that in this application. With simple push-valve operation and an old-school iron engine block, the 392 doesn't dazzle with high technology because it doesn't need to. Fitting, considering the car this engine sits in comes from the late 60s.

With TTI tubular exhaust manifolds and aftermarket F.A.S.T fuel injection cooled by a BeCool aluminum radiator, two words come to mind when looking under the hood of this car. Those being "heavy duty." Documents present with the car indicate it's been demolishing road trips of 3,000 miles (4828.03-km) or more without breaking a sweat. It's one thing to build a pretty restomod with a nice engine. But making one reliable enough to drive cross country is next-level engineering.

Power is fed to a Silver Sport Transmissions A41 aftermarket four-speed automatic gearbox based on the venerable GM 4L60E. Capable of withstanding upwards of 600-lb ft ( 813.5 Nm) of torque, according to the company website, it's more than appropriate for this application. From there, a Dana 60 rear axle does the job of transferring all that power to the rear wheels via Cooper Zeon RS3-G1 tires. This sticky rubber is mounted on 17-inch Torq Thrust II. Behind which Willwood drilled and slotted front rotors with matching calipers and freshly replaced rear drums ensure this timeless relic stops as well as accelerates.

Because it's no longer acceptable for custom cars to only be good at drag racing, adjustable four-wheel coilover suspension with new front cross members and subframe connectors replace the archaic suspension it left the factory with. Tubular A-arms and a revised sway-bar in the front prevent this brutish American hunk of steel from being a complete lummox in the corners. If anything, it's probably absolutely wonderful to drive like a sports car.

Inside, this car's white leather interior is every bit as quality built as its engine. Everything from the dashboard to the gauge cluster, steering wheel, the gear stick, the seats, and the supple leather on top of them is aftermarket and fully custom. With four-door, central locking, a full selection of gauges, a center-mounted Jensen touchscreen navigation, and an infotainment screen with a wicked kicker amplifier/speaker setup makes sure this 1967 Chrysler product has a similar level of features as the brand new 2023 300C. Apart from maybe some airbags, at the very least.

The price for it all? Well, the auction still has three days left to run as of writing this feature. With a current bid of $10,000 before taxes and fees, it well and truly deserves to sell for at least ten times that. As a final tribute to HEMI engines of all kinds. This one's rather special.

Check the gallery above if you want to see more. Thank you for tuning in all month long to V8 Month here on autoevolution.