Rear Bumper question for a 1974 Barracuda

Hey, got a question that I know can be done but not sure about the safety of it.
I removed my bumper off my 74 Plymouth Barracuda and there is a steel plate behind it I guess for reinforcement. What I would like to do is to cut out just the section of the steel plate that fastens to the rear mounting brackets and discard the middle part to cut down on weight. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

There's no problem in removing the plate. If you need to off-set the bumper, just stack a couple of washers behind the bumper. Obviously the bumper is not going to be as strong w/o the reinforcement plate.

I also have a 74 barracuda. I removed the bumper and plate. I thought about the safety thing but I could not stand the stupid bumper guards. So I installed a 72 bumper with 72 guards and brackets. To answer your question though, if you remove the center section allowing you to keep the original bumper brackets etc... you really loose all the safety of that system since it bolts into the rear frame rail ends and creates a boxed in structure. One thing to keep in mind though is that the 70 through 72 cars are just as unsafe so your not creating something that hasn't been done.

That steel plate was simply to strengthen the bumper to meet the 5mph crash requirements that were imposed by the Feds back then.
Mine on my 74 challenger are long gone in favor of 70-72 bumpers and brackets.

I removed the plate from mine, front and rear. Then I had a bumper shop weld the bumper guard holes, and the jack slots closed. I removed the rubber spacers that extend the bumpers. I bought a full set of 1970 bumper brackets and bolted them on after re-chroming. They look great. It gives the car a very clean appearance. I have always loved the 73-74 E-body's, but hate the battering ram bumpers.

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I removed the plate from mine, front and rear. Then I had a bumper shop weld the bumper guard holes, and the jack slots closed. I removed the rubber spacers that extend the bumpers. I bought a full set of 1970 bumper brackets and bolted them on after re-chroming. They look great. It gives the car a very clean appearance. I have always loved the 73-74 E-body's, but hate the battering ram bumpers.

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Amen to what you and G_Bob said.. I recessed the bumpers on my 73 Challenger, so that now it looks like a 72. Couldn't wait to shed those huge chrome and rubber bumper guards. Best mod I made to the car.