Plymouth HEMI Cuda de course

Battling it out on France's old, old Monthlery Oval track

Our friend and ASAVE Challenge promoter Alain Goupy sent us this great picture of the 1972 "Coupe du Salon" Group 1 starting grid. As you can see, Frederic Berges Ford Mustang has the pole, but the race was ultimately won by Marie Laurent on one of the two official Chrysler Hemicuda !

First race of HemiCuda at Spa shows cars huge potential

I must say that the guys at the MOPARSHOP did a great job setting up the drivetrain and getting the Cuda ready for its first race at the Spa RMU 2010. The handling is absolutely phantastic! Thanks to some good weight analysis and picking the right parts from MOPAR, the Cuda was a dream to drive. Braking was also great, so coupled with the handling, driver confidence was building up. Best lap time was in the upper part of our CRL field and a couple of GT40s and numerous Lotus were way behind our swift E-Body coupe!

OlyCuda ready for action: testing soon

The guys at the MOPARSHOP did a great job to get the HemiCuda ready for racing action. Testing in on our schedule now before we hit the track. The front spolier is now reinforced and fitted like it should. The dry-sump system is also now fully operational and has been run in the shop. Right here, you can see a video about the initial fire-up and the crackling sound of the race HEMI.

HEMI 426 V8 ready to be fired up!

On time for our coming season, the HEMI has been fitted with the period correct Chrysler Racing "Bathtub" intake! Is this a pretty engine or what? My congratulations for this great looking job go to the MOPARSHOP. Stay tuned, as we'll go Beemer and Porsche hunting soon!

The HEMI 426 feels at home in the Cuda

Here are a few pictures of the 426 HEMI V8, as it is installed by the MOPARSHOP. Sharp eyed readers will notice the racing power steering pump and compact racing alternator.

Hurst Airheart calipers on our HemiCuda

 

The Cuda is coming together nicely at the Moparshop. Here are the latest pictures. As you can see, the HEMI feels at home and the HURST Airheart calipers also found their place. Side glass, made of Lexan, was fitted in order to comply with the FIA Group 2 regulations. Next on the list is the fuel system and the dry sump tank. Stay tuned for the initial fire-up!

Latest WiP report: Cuda Rollcage finished

Bob Fulmer has now finished the 8-Point rollcage of the Hemi Cuda. As you can see by the following pictures, work is now being done on the fuel cell bracing and front stabilizer bar housing.

Let there be rock! Hemi Cuda will be back

Here is the first update on our Plymouth Hemi Cuda build-up! This is the 1970 Plymouth, that we will turn into a recreation of one of the famous four Chrysler France race Hemis. It started life as a 383 4-speed Top Banana Barracuda. To heck with matching numbers, this Barracuda will be a racecar!

Chrysler Hemi Cuda at Belbeuf Hillclimb

Here is an interesting picture of one of the four Hemi Cudas at the Belbeuf hillclimb in Normandy. Judging by the paintscheme and licence plate, it could be Christian Avril in 1972 or 1973.

Photo: Le Tahitien

Hemicuda at Mont de Ventoux hillclimb

Thanks to our fellow reader and Hemicuda owner Pascal Sarazin, we received these two great vintage pictures of the famous MOPAR at the Mont de Ventoux 21 km hillclimb. Pictured above is Gerard Sarazin in 1972 and below Henri Chemin in 1970. As you can see on the early picture, Chrysler France was not sure about its official paint scheme for the cars during its first year of racing!

Hemicuda France weblog launched today!

France is mostly know for its wines, cheeses, landscapes, revolutions, strikes and cuisine but MOPAR Fans also know its HEMICudas! From 1970 to 1974, Chrysler France's motorsports boss Henri Chemin launched a team of four HEMICudas that competed in the hillclimb championship.