Image via Bring A Trailer
Hellcat swapping a 1971 Plymouth ‘Cuda Convertible like this is crazy and wonderful at the same time. A lot of other people with deep pockets are going to feel the same way, which is why we expect this Mopar that’s up for auction online right now will go for a healthy sum by the time the hammer falls.
The Hemi ‘Cuda has returned in an unexpected way.
Even without the Hellcat engine, the classic muscle car would fetch quite a lot on the open market. Shod in Sassy Grass Green with black accents and a black interior, it presents amazingly well. This is something you can cruise through anywhere, even ritzy areas, and turn many heads.
What people wouldn’t know just by looking at the thing is this ‘Cuda started life as a hardtop, not a convertible. The seller, who bought it back in 2008 as an unfinished project vehicle, completed what the seller back then apparently couldn’t or didn’t want to.
It also went through a restoration three years ago and was fully repainted a year later. It was at the same time as the new paint job was applied that the Hellcat crate engine was dropped in along with a 4L60E four-speed automatic transmission.
There’s also a Currie 9-inch rear, limited-slip diff, Wilwood four-wheel disc brakes, and power rack-and-pinion steering.
Unlike what we’ve seen on some Hellcat engine swaps, this ‘Cuda doesn’t have the donor muscle car’s dash and gauge cluster. Instead, it utilizes Dakota Digital instruments, Bluetooth radio adaptor, and a Pedal Commander throttle-response controller.
That means the interior looks period-correct at a glance. Combined with the fact the engine is only detectable by the Hellcat logos on the front fenders, and well we wouldn’t call this is a sleeper build by any means. Any classic ‘Cuda is going to get loads of attention, but people might not realize what it really is at first.
At the time this article was written, the high bid was sitting at $68,000. We’d be shocked if it hasn’t increased by a fair bit since. But with a few days left of bidding, we’d expect it to punch well north of $100,000.
See this ‘Cuda’s lot listing here.
Images via Bring A Trailer
