RadiomanATL
Senior Member
10 Cars to Drive Before You Die - Feature - Auto Reviews - Car and DriverPlymouth Hemi Cuda
Our list cried out for a muscle car, but which one? The LS6 Chevelle SS 454 was obvious but a little safe, too. We wanted something that more fully embodied the balls-out brashnessof the first horsepower war. And so we present the 1970 Hemi Cuda, a steroidal demon sled born in the era of flower power but fueled by a million screw yous.
The Barracuda started out as an option package for early-60s Valiants but eventually evolved into a unique model. By the dawn of the 70s, it had come into its own as a rorty sports coupe available in ridiculous colors such as Vitamin C (thats orange), Lemon Twist (yellow), and Sassy Grass (green). The top engine available in the new-for-1970 Cuda was the Hemi, 426 cubic inches of fury and anger that existed solely to rain down great vengeance on air and gas in the interest of riotous self-gratification.
Sitting inside a Cuda feels a bit like sitting in a washtub placed inside a storage containerthe interior is tight, the beltline is high, and theres a lot of sheetmetal around you. Twist the key, and the sound is glorious, sort of artillery-piece-meets-pissed-off-grizzly-bear, and the fuel and exhaust fumes are intoxicating enough to turn Al Gore into a believer. Then you stab the gas, the car rears up on its archaic suspension, and youre the star of your very own Rat Fink posterthe chassis is that flexible, the power is that prodigious. A Hemi Cuda cant corner well, and it sure as hell cant stop, but, man, can it go, go, go.