Regular Car Reviews turns its trademark mix of mechanical respect and merciless comedy on a 1966 Plymouth Barracuda, a gentleman’s GT car the host says looks best from the rear. Built on the humble Valiant platform and fitted with the largest automotive glass of its day, this fastback beat the Mustang to showrooms by weeks and then watched it steal the decade. It is the strange, earnest origin story behind the legendary Cudas that came later. Watch to see why this odd fish still inspires such loyalty.
There is a certain kind of car that photographs beautifully from one angle and quietly begs you to keep walking from another, and this early Plymouth is the poster child for that particular brand of automotive charm. The reviewer’s verdict is delivered with a straight face and a raised eyebrow: this is a gentleman’s GT car that, in his words, looks its best from the rear. That is either an insult or the highest form of affection, depending on how much you love awkward, earnest first attempts. So what is it about this fastback that inspires such backhanded devotion, and why does a car this odd still have such a loyal following?
The subject is a 1966 Plymouth Barracuda, reviewed in the unmistakable style of Regular Car Reviews, a channel that treats ordinary and overlooked cars with a blend of genuine mechanical respect and merciless comedy. The first-generation Barracuda is the perfect target for that approach, because it is a genuinely important car wearing a genuinely strange body. Built on the humble Valiant platform, it arrived in showrooms in 1964, technically beating the Ford Mustang to market by a matter of weeks, a fact Plymouth fans will remind you of at every opportunity.
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That enormous wraparound rear glass is the car’s signature and its punchline. At the time it was the largest piece of automotive glass ever fitted to a production car, and it gives the Barracuda that distinctive sloping fastback profile that looks like nothing else from the era. Fold the rear seat down and that glass turns the cabin into a surprisingly practical cargo hauler, which is exactly the sort of sensible, unglamorous engineering that Regular Car Reviews delights in celebrating and roasting in the same breath.
Historically, the early Barracuda occupies a strange and important place. It was the pony car that got to the party first and then watched the Mustang walk off with the entire decade, a reminder that being early is not the same as being popular. Later Barracudas, especially the 1970 to 1974 E-body Cudas, would become some of the most valuable muscle cars ever built, but this 1966 model represents the humble, glassy origin story before the legend. Understanding this car is understanding where the whole bloodline started.
Watch the full video and share your thoughts below.
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2+2 = FAST! One of the Rarest Pontiac’s of the 60’s Beats 67 Barracuda w/ 383
Gorgeous 66
We had one, mileage was good,,,,,,performance was terrible!
Awesome
built one from the junkyard in 1987
They were ugly when they were brand new
I had a 64 n a 65
My father – in – law had 66 and 69 both were his Sheriff Patrol cars , Pocahontas Co. W.V.
Kenney McCall,same year as your dad’s
Yep.
Chris Snyder
Rita J Lievens Bowman, didn’t you have one of these in a gold color?
Yes I did Tom!
Aaron Oakes
Barracuda awesome