1966 Plymouth Barracuda

You lying so low in the weeds
Bet you gonna ambush me
You'd have me down, down, down to my knees
Wouldn't you, Barracuda?

The original Plymouth Barracuda could lie low in the weeds better than most cars, as it's based on the tiny 1964 Valiant sedan. But unlike that dull-as-dishwater car, the 'Cuda is a cool fastback with glass-house rear window and was available with a 273 c.i. V-8 making 180 horsepower or more.

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1970 Plymouth Duster 340

These days you usually can't add options to an automaker's cheapest model to create a performance car. But in 1970 Plymouth's new Duster, built on the "compact" Valiant chassis could be ordered with a 340 c.i. V-8 and still cost only $2,500.

thetruthaboutcars.com says,"Speaking of muscle, the 340 had more than plenty. Advertised at an insurance-friendly 275 horsepower, the informed-user consensus had it pegged at more like 325+."

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1973 Plymouth Gold Duster

The Duster is a favorite of mine. This one unfortunately doesn't appear to be getting any use. Note the deep bed of moss growing under it. The base model was just called "Duster". Besides the Gold Duster, there were also the Silver Duster, the Space Duster, and (I'm not kidding) the Feather Duster.

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1960 Plymouth Valiant

It may be a contender for the title of America's Ugliest Car, but the 1960 Plymouth Valiant introduced one of the most successful engines of all time and it was also the foundation of many of Chrysler Corporation's best-loved products of the 20th century.

The '60 Valiant was the first car built with Chrysler's all-new Slant-6 engine. Chrysler would eventually build more than 13 million copies of the Slant-6. It was available in the Dodge Dakota pickup as late as 1987, and the final Slant-6 was built in Mexico in 2000.

From the New York Times,

"Initially available in either a base 170-cubic-inch (100-horsepower) or slightly taller 225-cubic-inch (110-horsepower) version, the cast-iron Slant Six’s main mission was clearing the unusually-low hoodline and relatively short engine compartments of the ’60 Valiant and ’61 Lancer drawn by Plymouth designers. Angling the cylinder bank reduced the new engine’s vertical height, while laterally offsetting its water pump shortened overall length. Additionally, the space created on the driver side enabled longer intake and exhaust manifolds whose nearly-equal length produced excellent airflow through the engine.The engine’s tilt lowered its center of gravity, which contributed to its handling characteristics. The combination of power and handling was so successful, a pack of Valiants won the top seven places in Nascar's compact car race in 1960."

The Plymouth Barracuda and Duster were both derived from the Valiant. A 1970 Valiant was used for the Stephen Spielberg movie Duel.

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