One of the all-time greats of American muscle car history, the Barracuda has been chosen by Chrysler as it looks for the next step beyond its current comeback cars, the Dodge Challenger, Avenger and Charger.
Early details of the Barracuda plan leak in motown during the Detroit motor show, where Chrysler returns the compact Dodge Dart to its roster with an American remake of the Alfa Romeo Giulietta mechanical package shared with the company's Italian alliance partner, Fiat.
It's likely that a two-door Barracuda will be based on the mechanical package of the latest 300C sedan, but it is not expected until at least 2014 and there is no detail yet.
"There's a lot of pressure on us to bring the 'Cuda back," says Chrysler's SRT performance boss, Ralf Gilles, in Detroit. "The customers have been stomping their feet for it.".
A new Barracuda fits Chrysler's long-term plan to revive some of its classic nameplates, but only for a limited time.
It wants to maximise their impact, but then clear them relatively quickly - less than eight years - to push something new. The Barracuda - usually known as the Hemi 'Cuda because of its Hemi V8 - would take over from the current Challenger coupe as the hero car for the brand to compete directly with the Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro, just as it did when the three cars first went head-to-head in the 1970s.
But, since the Plymouth brand has been dead for a long time, it's more likely to be called a Chrysler. The Cuda move comes as Ford renews its long-term commitment to the Mustang and GM moves towards an all-new Camaro coupe built over the all-new mechanical package of the Cadillac ATS first shown at this year's Detroit show.
That's bad news for Australia, since the current Camaro is twinned with the Holden Commodore. The renewed performance push at Chrysler comes as the company puts more muscle into its SRT vehicles, with plans for a supercar Viper that is only badged - just as Nissan dropped Skyline from its GT-R name - as an SRT.
But there is a lot more to come and the head of Chrysler Jeep Australia admits that even he is not completely in the loop.
"I've not seen or heard anything official on a Barracuda plan. There may be some speculation," Clyde Campbell tells Carsguide in Detroit.
