The following day we made our way to the owner’s home. He had a multi-bay shop and a large barn that looked to be at least 100 years old. The shop was mostly empty from a recent party, except for a third 1967 Hemi GTX. The cars in the barn, though, were a different story.
A small cubbyhole below the main floor of the barn held some parts cars and long-shot projects including a 1970 Plymouth Satellite and a wrecked ’70 GTX that would have been crushed long ago, if not saved by the owner.
The ramp to get into the barn had rotted away, so these cars had been in there for a while. You walk in on a plank of wood, and as you enter, you can see cars and parts everywhere. Fenders, roof sections, some 1968 Dodge Coronets, even a first-generation Mustang. You can’t get more barn find than this!
The coolest cars in the barn were the 1970 ‘Cudas. One was a reddish car with a black vinyl top, but it was buried so close to the door that I couldn’t get to the VIN. Directly across from the red ‘Cuda were two more, a plain white 1970 Barracuda with blue accent stripe along its flanks, and an original Moulin Rouge 340 ‘Cuda. The car was oddly optioned with 340 hockey stripes and fog lights but manual drum brakes.
My heart couldn’t take it anymore. Nor could my calendar, as I still had to drive for hours to Carlisle. I thanked the owner of the cars and his friend for showing me around his incredible collection. When I look back at that visit, it’s difficult to absorb what I saw there. The owner is a busy man running his own auto parts store, so I understand the lack of time to work on the cars. But wow, when he’s ready, he will have a treasure trove to choose from.
(Editor’s note: You can follow Ryan Brutt on Facebook at The Auto Archaeologist, on Instagram at theautoarcheologist, or on You Tube at www.youtube.com/AutoArchaeology.)
You’d never know it from being in the auto parts store, but there’s a trove of Mopar treasure behind a false wall, including this 1969 Dodge Daytona.
A partially restored 1967 Plymouth Hemi GTX waits for its Hemi, which sits across the room. Note the two Superbird nose cones on the ground between the two GTXs.
This A12 Dodge Super Bee has lost its original 440 Six Pack. The owner believes the engine underhood now is a 361.
