Anyone Besides Me.....

....own a 1970 'U' code Cuda? 4-speed or auto. I don't believe Ma made a 1971 'U' code. I even started a mini blog on FaceBook, but no luck w/ that either. I knew they were scarce, but this is very surprising. I just keep getting crickets!

The 'guru' did this registry sheet for the owner before me. As you can see only 334 four speeds were made. I'm taking a wild guess and estimating half are still in existence. Maybe.

Looking through my books I discovered that for the cuda the 440 4brl was dropped for the 71 model year.

That's what I thought. Thanks for your input!

Cool you got it!

Chrysler was weird.

71 Challenger Convertibles No Hemi's
71 Cuda no 440 4bbls but Hemi convertibles?

Seems like they didn't have a cohesive plan or maybe I just do not understand their prioritization.

No ‘71 Challenger R/T convertibles. Hemi was only offered in R/T. You could get 340 and 383 HP 4bbl in non R/T’s and thus regular Challenger convertibles.

No ‘71 440 4bbl in any E-bodies

See what i mean.. That seems wierd to me.

I can get the no RT convertible. Big power weak frame but that didn't stop the Cuda convertible from having hemi's

Then why were Hemi & 6pack available but not 440-4bbl?

I am not seeing logic but maybe I am blind.

People were buying less and less convertibles in 71. Cutting down combinations saved money. The sales trends from 1960 to 1970 pointed to the writing on the wall. GM ended pony cars convertibles in 1970 and Mid size in 1973. Ford ended in 1974.

I know weird that Dodge went different than Plymouth. But they were separate divisions. You could get a Sunroof in a 1971 Challenger R/T, but not in any 1971 Cuda/Barracuda.

Same thing with motor combinations. The 440-4bbl in 1970 E-body was the only Model (R/T, Super Bee, RR, GTX, Charger) that offered the 383 HP 4bbl AND the 440 HP 4bbl. The 1970 RR and Super Bee, you went from 383 4bbl to 440-6 to Hemi.

2" shorter wheel base = stronger frame?

They were getting rid of the leftover six pack motors and hemi's. The six pack was to get rid of the muti carbs setups and the hemi was being discontinued.

Got a little off topic here. lol. The original question was does anyone on the board own a 'U' code Cuda? Someone? Anyone?

I know of a B7 blue one in the Seattle area, but I also know that’s not what you asked.

A friend has a nice B5 one and I parted one a few years ago.. a u code 4 speeder.

I just saw the tread, the wife and I own one.

It's a project right now that I'm collecting parts for, we're going to the Indy swap to pick up more AMD sheet metal from Stephens Performance.

The car had been a race car for a long time and is currently white, but it was a factory F8 green automatic car.
Supposedly the car on a Pinks All Out.
It won't be F8 when done since the wife HATES F8 Green.

It's going to be FM3 Panther Pink / Moulin Rouge, the car will be lightly modified as in AMD mini tubs with fat rear tires etc.
The original engine is long gone and it will have a RB Stroker motor (roughly 470 inch).

I hope to have the body and paint done in about a year or so.

There were two U code '70 cudas in my hometown back in 1970 according to my dad. I know that's no help now, but nevertheless...both were owned by family members.
Both automatics. One was black, black interior, black vinyl top, no hockey stripe. The other was that bronze color.

Good friend owns the one below. U code '70 Challenger w/ its original shaker. Also sold locally when new.

My friend had a 70 Cuda U code automatic car. LA built,FC7 In violet.

Pick a different color,Pink cars are hard to sell,unless they are original FM3 cars from the factory.

This car isn't being built for future sale.

It's being built the way my wife and I want it, after I'm gone she will still be cruising it.
She's 14 years younger than me and wants it done in a way that makes her happy.
She loves Mopars and loves Panther Pink and so do I, I love obnoxious high impact colors.

It's a former race car that would probably never be turned back into a street car if it wasn't for me doing it.
There's no fender tag or build sheet so it's a a blank slate.

Like I said before, it will have mini tubs and probably going with a coil over setup in the rear (the springs are already moved in and it has a ladder link floater setup in it now).

It's also getting an AAR hood, rear spoiler and paint scheme.
The stripes will probably be custom saying 440 rather than AAR.

It will be built my way because it's what makes me and the wife happy.

I am after all the guy who took a 16K mile survivor small block 67 Satellite and put a 572 Hemi in it.

I'm replacing the sheet metal on a buddy's 72 340 Cuda right now (going to be Viper Red) and once I'm far enough along on it I start doing the sheet metal on the U-Code Cuda.

A little update on these 'U' code Cudas, for those not in the know.
• Only 334 of these ‘U’ code pistol grip 4 speed ‘Cudas were manufactured in 1970. 618 automatics. It was the only year for this code in an E-body ‘Cuda
• The low production number is a result of the ‘V’ code option. For a mere $96.00 you could order the 440 6 bbl (Six Pack) setup. Most 1970 ‘Cuda buyers opted for the eye candy of 3 two barrel carbs and the extra 15 horsepower.
• The ‘U’ code was a single 4 barrel 440 (Super Commando) which produced 375 horsepower and 480 ft. lbs. of torque
• Due rust and the ravages of time; not many ‘U’ codes are still around. One noted Mopar expert claims this is 1 of 55 known to exist.
• This particular example had a rotisserie restoration performed on it in 2020, in its original Tor-Red (EV2) hi-impact paint. This paint was an extra $15.00 option back in '70!
• In addition to the aforementioned notes, this ‘Cuda has a bullet proof Dana rear w/ 4.10 gears and a thunderous AM radio!
• The lack creature comforts, leads one to believe that this ‘Cuda was built as a red light brawler.

There's gotta be more members on this board w/ this particular model. It almost seems like there are more Hemi Cuda owners on Moparts!