Chrysler Group Rumored to Replace Challenger with Smaller and Lighter SRT Barracuda in 2015

Even before the SRT brand was formed as a separate entity, then Dodge boss Ralph Gilles was already thinking about how to revive the legendary Plymouth Barracuda.

At the 2010 SEMA show, Gilles had told reporters that “there’s a lot of pressure to bring the ‘Cuda back; the customers have been stomping their feet for it.”

Now, Car & Driver reports that the Barracuda will indeed make a comeback. It says Chrysler Group plans to replace the Challenger in 2015 and join the Viper in SRT’s expanding range.

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1960 Plymouth XNR Concept

The one-of-a-kind sports car was penned by Chrysler design guru Virgil Exner, who always hoped Chrysler would include a roadster in its lineup. The XNR featured a powerful six-cylinder engine that pumped out 250 horses and gave the XNR a top of speed of 150 mph. Ultimately, the project never got the green light, and the XNR was shipped back to Carrozzeria Ghia in Italy, where it was built. (autoblog.com)

 

(Photos from autoblog.com)

It Came from eBay Hell: The Plymouth PT Cruiser Limited

While originally conceived by the Chrysler Group as a Plymouth model, the PT Cruiser ended up being launched onto the market as a Chrysler branded vehicle in 2000, following the Detroit carmaker's decision to axe Plymouth the following year. The rest, of course, is history with the PT Cruiser becoming a moderate success for Chrysler. Read more »

1971 Plymouth ViperCuda Packs a Venomous V10 Punch Under its Hood

One of the great things about classic American pony and muscles cars is their simplicity, which pretty much allows you do anything your mind sets out to do, with the only restrictions usually being the amount of time and cash you are willing to spend.

Found for sale on eBay, is this 1971 Plymouth ViperCuda, which as the name suggests, is powered by a V10 engine sourced from the modern day Dodge Viper. But there's more than meets the eye to this creation that started life as a four-seater 1971 Plymouth Barracuda Convertible with a 318 cu.in. (5.2-liter V8) engine.

The comprehensive conversion was performed by Time Machines from Hudson, Florida, which begun by acquiring the intact chassis and V10 engine from a wrecked 2001 Viper with 23,000-miles on the odo.

After stripping the Barracuda's body from the original chassis, they then fabricated a hybrid platform incorporating most parts of the Viper's chassis components including the fully independent suspension.

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