Nash Bridges Hemi Cuda ...

[Ferrariman]

Just a question: Is my '71 Hemi Challenger the same car as the Cuda? Think so.

Yes and no. Cuda' by Plymouth, Challenger by Dodge. Yes they share a lot of common parts and even though they are both built by Chrysler and look very similar they don't share a single piece of sheetmetal.

[Tom Peps]

Thanks for the quick answer.So they share a lot of common parts (you can see it especially by their seats, the lateral lines, the mirrors and the door handles, the position lights as well as the chromed windshield), I see. But never thought both were built by Chrysler as they are Dodge and Plymouth. I mean, I know Dodge and Plymouth is Chrysler Group. Both cars were built in one facility?!http://www.imagenesygraficos.com/fondos-escritorio/data/media/29/1971-plymouth-hemi-cuda-convertible-fvl.jpg

[Ferrariman]

Separate facilities for sure. There were numerous assembly lines all over the U.S. and Canada. The cars were all manufactured by Chrysler. Just as Chevrolet had sub divisions (Buick, Oldsmobile, Pontiac, etc) so did Chrysler. There was Chrysler, Dodge, Plymouth and DeSoto. The DeSoto line was dropped in the early 60's due to poor sales and Plymouth was dropped at the end of 1999. Even though Dodge & Plymouth both fell under the Chrysler banner, both brands would still heavily compete in all types of motorsports.

[Stinger390X]

Different tailights and tail panel, different grille, different fenders, different doors and quarter panels had slightly different charachter lines. The cars looked very similar as Ferrariman has stated and shared many common "COMPONENTS" such as steering and drivetrain parts, however the Challenger is a Dodge and the Cuda was a Plymouth. They all shared the 318, 340, 383, 426 hemi options. (depending on the size of your wallet) The door handles were unique to each car as well as other things like the door panels however they both came with the famous "Dagger" shifter! (I loved those...) My Road Runner had one of those shifters but my 70 Challenger came factory with a Hurst "Short-Shift" with a white ball. (that was a rare option being a close ratio tranny too!It's kind of the Ford and Mercury scenario if you know what I mean???Chevy and GMC had the same thing too. Chevy's were cheap with rubber floor mats and simple, and the GMC had the carpet and nice interiors and the "fm" radios etc while the chevy's had an "am-8track" :)By the way ... I love the models. Well done!

[Ferrariman]

The shifter was called a "pistol grip"

[Tom Peps]

Thanks for all the infos, guys. :DWished I had the money to buy all those wonderful muscle cars. Especially the '71 "Judge" as a convertible and the '71 Chevelle SS convertible.I first noticed familiar looks, as I saw the '82 Trans Am and the '82 Camaro or the Lumina and Trans Sport. But it's the same here in Germany. All because of cheaper costs, eh.

[Stinger390X]

Funny you mention your from Germany...Ford has been a staple in North America since the beginning but there is also a Ford of England, Ford of Germany and Ford of Australia which all build unique vehicles to their perspecdtive countries. I love some of the German and English fords. One of my favourites is the Mondeo ( I would love to bring one of those into Canada some day.)A friend of mine brought a 72 Falcon into Canada from Australia and built a replica of the "Mad Max" car from the movies.It's funny how the differnt countries put a slight twist on the various models and change them just enough to make them unique but still similar.Holden of Australia and GM is another example. ... similar but different???

[Tom Peps]

It's like Cadillac/Chevrolet, Opel (German) and Vauxhall (Great Britain). :)I remember as my brother in law brought his Golf 4 station wagon to the US. As we were involved in an accident, we drove to a VW dealer and suddenly all the people there stood around the Golf and asked us why it is a Golf and not a Jetta station wagon. lol In Germany we got both. hehe

[Stinger390X]

We used to have Opels here in Canada but that was a long time ago. You can still buy Vauxalls in Kitchener I think as there is still a dealer that sells them but they are few and far between.I know they are huge in Europe and driven all over.

[Tom Peps]

Oh really, Opels were sold in Canada? I thought they're known only south of North America: Mexico and more south then. :)But it's the same with Peugeot and Renault, eh? Or are there still new French cars on the road of North America?

[Sonny-Burnett]

Actually the engine and intake manifold were the only thing that survived the fire. Everything else was toast as you could see. The engine was drained of all fluids and the oil pan dropped to make sure there was no internal damage.It's been a long road since my car was finished last January. My friend Joe' date=' who worked there, has since moved on. The guy who owned the shop was more concerned with letting everyone know he was the boss than caring about the quality of the work leaving his shop. Joe Luis is a true artist when it comes to custom work and this truly made the shop owner jealous. The relationship between them had begun to go south quite a while ago but Joe promised me he would keep working there until my car was finished. He now works for himself on his own projects and when he asked me to go partners on the '71 340 Duster (not a Demon) I couldn't pass it up. Hopefully in the future the project will appear on his website. As for "Summit Rod & Custom" (where Joe restored my car) I wouldn't let them restore a bicycle for me now.[/quote']Ah ok gotcha on the engine now. Am glad for you it was not damaged. I do like the work done on your car and it looks fantastic. Wish I could find someone like your friend Joe to do some work on mine but that will be a little bit further down the road. When the new project is completed am interested to see it for sure.

[Stinger390X]

Oh really' date=' Opels were sold in Canada? I thought they're known only south of North America: Mexico and more south then. :)But it's the same with Peugeot and Renault, eh? Or are there still new French cars on the road of North America?[/quote']There was a small 4 door sedan (forgot the model) that was rarely available but the famous car was the Opel GT. there were plently of those in the late 70's but they faded away (or rusted away...) and the delaers closed. I know a guy who restored an old GT and unfortunately he put a big block in it and a full frame and races it on weekends at the dragstrip. Not much originality of the vehicle except for the outside curves, but it does turn low 11's in the quarter mile!Nice to see one still around. A lot of people ask "What the heck is that thing?: Not many people know...

[Tom Peps]

I once saw, some years ago, an Opel GT here in town also. Those are really very rare.There's a guy here, who drives this kind of Opel Commodore coupe: http://www.fahrzeugbilder.de/bilder/rekord-commodore-14059.jpg

[Stinger390X]

That car looks great for it's age!I know the sales on the Challenger are pretty good as I have a friend on the assembly line in Brampton Ontario where the cars are made. They are pumping them out pretty steady.I heard Chrysler was toying with the idea of making the Cuda a retro model too???Anyone heard anything new about Chryco making a new Cuda?

[Sonny-Burnett]

It would appear the car is up for sale again, as reported by Fox News:Nash Bridges' 1970 Plymouth Barracuda on sale By Kurt Ernst Published June 27, 2012 High Gear Media Nash Bridges' 1970 Plymouth Barracuda Over the bridge and crossing the virtual block. In the late 1990s, a weekly police drama entitled Nash Bridges revived the struggling career of former Miami Vice star Don Johnson. Each week, viewers would tune in to watch the antics of wisecracking San Francisco Inspector Nash Bridges (Johnson) and his long-suffering partner, Joe Dominguez (played by Cheech Marin).The real star of the show, however, was a car that never really was. Allegedly a 1971 Plymouth Hemi ‘Cudaconvertible, numerous Barracuda variants were used throughout the filming of the series, but none ever really packed a Hemi V-8 beneath its hood.Nash Bridges #1, for example, began life as a 1970 ‘Cuda convertible with a 340 V-8 and a four-speed manual transmission. For filming, the car was converted back from an automatic to a four-speed stick, fitted with a higher-output 360 V-8 and updated with 1971 ‘Cuda bodywork and a Shaker hood scoop to simulate a Hemi-equipped ‘Cuda. Read: Will the Plymouth Barracuda make a comeback?Since the show ended in 2001, Nash Bridges #1 has gone through two complete restorations. During the second resoration, the 360 V-8 was swapped out for a 426 Hemi crate engine, which may or may not have a negative impact on the car’s collectibility, but will certainly make it more fun to drive to Cars and Coffee.Texas Classic Cars of Dallas has it for sale on eBay, and the car comes complete with plenty of documentation to verify its back story and authenticity. It’s even got passenger-side camera mounts and camera cables in place, and comes with the same purposely-misspelled “Califorina†license plate used in filming.We have no idea what the reserve price is, but bids have only reached $58,000 so far. That’s not even enough to cover the cost of a restoration, let alone account for the car’s historical value. If you want it, we’re guessing that it will take a bid in the low six figures to call it your own. Click here for more auto news from MotorAuthorityRead more: http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2012/06/27/nash-bridge-170-plymouth-barracuda-on-sale/?intcmp=features#ixzz1z2kkSrOCHere it is on Ebay:http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Nash-Bridges-1-car-1970-Plymouth-Cuda-Hemi-4spd-Don-Johnson-TV-series-/271003675972?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item3f1913ed44Be Sure to Play the Video on the Ebay listing. The engine sounds very cool .

[alleycat]

I just got that article that the Hemi Cuda is up for sale again.One sweet ride and it was used by Don very

[Kavinsky]

found this video of it a little while back:

I think it was said in the show that the thing had been done in School bus yellow at somepoint to show up better, and might have been more of a lemon twist in the pilot and the early episodes.this could also be one thats just being toted as a fake.

[Ferrariman]

Yes the correct color from Plymouth would be "Curious Yellow" but I also read that they painted the car a different hue so it would look better on film.Fake or not, I wouldn't throw it out of my garage!

[DJAngel]

We attended the Nash Bridges auction (can't remember the date). Here are pictures of the Cuda at the auction. I may have posted these already, but not sure, so here they are.

[Kavinsky]

Yeah I love the 71's, hell an example of the thing made quite an impression on me at a car show a couple of years agoit was a 71` coupe with a shaker hood, black billboards and a black spoiler on the rear with drag tires and dog dish hubcaps in the front in there stock size with the proper I believe 15 inch rims in hemi orange, damn that thing was beautiful mixed in with the black and orange like that, not sure of the size of the motor but I think it was either a 340 or a 383sad thing is though well I've got one on my street a 71' coupe also but the guys had it repainted candy apple blue with oversized chrome rims, like 22 or 24's with the same treatment as the orange one with the billboards and spoiler and the thing just looks horribile, like some kids matchbox nightmare and I think the shaker hood which does actually shake by the way hence its name at 4:47

was also painted gloss instead of matt or semi gloss so it looks like some overdone model of the car rather than the real thing, I dont see it too much though, like once in awhile it comes around.anyways with the Nash cuda though I seem to remember reading that in the pilot Don blew one of the engines up from overreving it, similar to what he might have done on the daytona in vice hence maybe the paint change from the stock yellow to that schoolbus yellow like yellow as it might have been done along with the engine change for the second episodeplus we know that after the pilot of vice car 1 was aquired, the 76 vette for the show and repainted from red to midnight black and car 4 underwent some changes too, so maybe the same thing happened there too, maybe they started out with one or two cars and as time went on they got more, after all I remember reading that for the new mad max film there using 7 interceptors instead of 1 for the first movie and an extra one that was used in the crash sequence in the second film. with the daytona though camera had mentioned there had been a some sort of repair to car 4's engine block, where it might have been a case of Don blowing a valve or something from overreving which given the fact that the rev gauge was rigged up to say it could go to I think 7 or 9 grand when really most small and big blocks go between 3 to 4 grand tops is entirely possibile as he has manually shifted the auto a few times in the first two seasons and maybe someone put on the wrong rev gauge on the cuda or well he was too used to the ferrari and forgot about that.hell the only V8 I know of from the 1960's that could rev to 8 grand was the 427 medium riser used in the GT40 and maybe the bored out from 327 to 377 small block race engine in the C2 grand sport that produced 425 real horsepower vs the 230 and 290 of the 350 and 454's at there peak in stock form before 1975 plus with the big block corvettes they actually had the rev gauges set up wrong putting the redline at 5 or 6 grand instead of the actual 4 leading to much the same problem where the engines had to be replaced under warranty by the factory because of that as apparently people love to shift at the redline while drag racing instead of when it feels like the car needs to shift.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v114/BonitaKS/Nash%20Bridges%20Auction%20July%202001/Cuda.jpg

is it just me or does it look like what I think is the aircleaner section of the shaker is missing in this photo?

[Matt5]

...Will be auctioned off at Barrett-Jackson. It all gets started Tue. night at 7pmET on SPEED Channel. http://www.speedtv.com/programs/barrett-jackson-automobile-auction/

Nice!Most episodes used 4-5 different Cudas

[alleycat]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v114/BonitaKS/Nash%20Bridges%20Auction%20July%202001/Cuda.jpg

You were able to touch this baby.So very ladies.Nash's Cuda,Wow.I am not into yellow or pink as a rule of mine but I do have exceptions and this is one since Don drove it.I got into liking cuda's from the movie Gone in 60 seconds good old Eleanor love that car also

[Kavinsky]

You were able to touch this baby.So very ladies.Nash's Cuda' date='Wow.I am not into yellow or pink as a rule of mine but I do have exceptions and this is one since Don drove it.I got into liking cuda's from the movie Gone in 60 seconds good old Eleanor love that car also [/quote']I just remembered something the cuda was based on one of the real Hemi Cuda convertibiles except it had a silver shaker hood.http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2007/12/26/from-snowbank-to-million-dollar-muscle-car/the actual car it was based off of had sold for a couple of million bucks right before the show started hence Don's interest in the car and the famous fogotten hemi car during the vietnam era story that was passed around alot back then, which was what was used for the cars backstory as it belonged to nash's brother Bobby in the show and was passed onto him when he bit the dust in Nam'you see the thing is though that well its the CI that produces more power, the main thing about the hemi that makes it valuabile is frankly the fact that its more reliable, not super powerful and actually I think the 200 mph Plymouth superbirds almost always had a 440 CI motor, not the 426 as many would believe.plus I believe the porsche motors, the ones in the 911's are technically hemi's and I have heard reports of them lasting up to 300,000 miles with basic maintenance before needing a rebuild, but thats probably because the car was often used and the water in the cooling system didnt get a chance to rust the engine out from the inside out from lack of use like it is with most nice cars.and the option of the 426 cost a third of the price of the car back then, some huge amount of money hence why people often went for the 440 ci instead or the smaller 383 or 340 CI motors and why there so damn rare.Plus I've heard from one of the mechanics from Plymouth's T/A racing era in the 70's that the six pack 340 cudas always had a tendancy to break down in T/A racing, something they kept under wraps, but the 3 carb, 2 barrels a piece setup has always been noted for being a pain in the butt to tune so thats little surprisehell the guy who redid my kitchen told me he had one of the old 69/70 road runners with that setup and finally just put a 4 barrel and a 2 barrel on it in place of it when he got tired of tuning it but when it worked the six pack did produce more power.and vette had the same deal with one of there motors called the tri power using the same idea except I think it was 2 carbs, not 3 and the 2 barrel was used for about 0 - 30 percent then the 4 barrel kicked in, probably a messure to make sure you didnt use that much gas while driivng around town.but anyways its really just the collectors bumping it up over nothing but bragging rights when it comes to numbers matching hemi cars when you consider as long as the car has the big block suspension it could easily take a 426 crate motor and be as good if not better with something like the hotchkiss suspension package. although there was some sort of key suspension package my father told me that made those old cars actually handle quite well that was stock on some of those cars and he had it on his 57 Plymouth 4 door Fury, that was also on the 68 GTXtorsion bar suspension I think, Plus if you want a hemi why not go with the old 354 out of the 1950's ones or the 6 clyinder ones ouf of the chrystler valiant of Australiaand also there was a stigma back then over disc brakes, most people thought that it was the discs that were causing the odd braking paterns of the old cars back then, not the drums in the rear where the power goes to the wheels on the old muscle cars, plus the polyglass tires were rather unsuited for the power output of those cars although they did make the ride better than the radial tires.and then you mix in oversized too hard radial tires that screw up the geometry of the suspension, worn rubber bushings and bearings, drums in the rear, discs in the front with a live axel and well now you know why the vette survived the time period retalively intact with its independant suspension, discs all around and added body mounts to make the ride nicer in 73 when they switched over to radial tires and only a 15% powerloss in 75' from the catalitic converteranyways back to the cuda I found this just now too, and at 1:03 its certainly not lemon twist yellow seeing as I think thats what the 71 challenger is in next to it

also the shifter on the cuda is called the pistol grip shifter used on the 440 CI Challenger in Vanishing Point that hurst also makes and can and has been occasonally put on the new dodge challengers and well someone on the vette forums actually retrofitted one of them to a vette:

[alleycat]

also the shifter on the cuda is called the pistol grip shifter used on the 440 CI Challenger in Vanishing Point that hurst also makes and can and has been occasonally put on the new dodge challengers and well someone on the vette forums actually retrofitted one of them to a vette:

I like the pistol grip shifter and also the road runners.I have seen a few at car auctions the road runners.

[Kavinsky]

I like the pistol grip shifter and also the road runners.I have seen a few at car auctions the road runners.

yeah its just always one of the things that's stuck with me as a mopar person, you see the mopars usually spared no expense engineering wise to make good cars back then and while some could be rough around the edges or not too good they were still in the end decent cars.and also well naturally I love the idea of a pistol grip shifter after seeing it in the early part of vanishing point with the challenger.Just thinking something, the seats in the cuda from the back seem to remind me of the pilot seats of the daytona oddly actually, sort of the same width almost.