Classic Wheels Spotlight: 1968 Plymouth Barracuda

The story behind Tony Rojas and his amazing 1968 Plymouth Barracuda starts two decades ago when he and his brother traveled to Wisconsin to check out a 1968 Dodge A100 truck. When they got there, the owner said he was selling the Dodge to pay for a deck off the back of his home.

Tony and his brother made a deal with the owner, and over the next two weeks, they traveled back to Wisconsin, along with Tony’s son and nephew, to complete the deck project in exchange for the ’68 Dodge A100. When Tony returned to pick up the truck, the seller opened his garage, and there sat a 1968 Plymouth Barracuda.

Tony made it clear he wanted the ‘Cuda, and the seller generously agreed to hold it for him until the end of the summer. A few months later, Tony returned to pick up the newest addition to his collection and became the latest owner of the ’Cuda.

Originally, the 1968 Barracuda came with a 318-cubic-inch engine and an automatic transmission. That is not the case anymore. Although it looks relatively stock, there is a 500-cubic-inch engine, built by Opel Engineering, under Tony’s Barracuda’s hood. It features a bored and stroked 440, with a roller cam, MSD ignition, and a Holley 750 Double pumper 4-barrel carburetor.

This ‘Cuda has a Bellows aluminum radiator to keep it cool, a 10-quart oil pan to keep it lubricated, exhaust supplied by TTI, headers, and 3-inch pipes with a crossover to help it breathe. The transmission was reworked by Turbo Terry. To put the power to the pavement, there is an 8 ¾ inch rear end with a 3:23 Posi unit. Tony says ome brackets had to be welded in to accept the 4-link rear end.

The suspension has been totally upgraded with a Reilly Motor Sports system. The torsion bars have been removed to install the new system, including a Reilly’s rack and pinion steering setup. Everything is bolt-on, and only a few pilot holes had to be drilled for the installation.

Tony says TTI and Reilly worked together to fit everything nice and neat. he went with a Flaming River steering column for a bit more room under the hood and opted for manual steering. The car sits on coil-over shocks at all four corners. A Wilwood 4-wheel disc brake system was put on to help slow this beast down.

The body is all steel except for the fiberglass hood, which had to be replaced to clear the air cleaner.

Although it has been repainted, it is still in the original color, B5 fire metallic blue. The wheels are custom-built by Billet Specialty. Because of the new steering system, the 17-inch front tires are narrow to avoid rubbing on the body. The rear wheels are 12 inches wide on 17-inch rims. They are the widest possible, without cutting the body in any way.

According to Tony, he likes to take his Barracuda to different car shows around the area, and he has even gone to the World’s Biggest Collective Car Show in Kentucky, a week-long show with cars and owners from around the world. Tony built this car the way he wanted it — and he definitely loves the power!

If you have a car you would like to see featured in Classic Wheels, contact Rudy Host, Jr. at Classic.Wheels.Rudy@gmail.com.