- According to one designer, the Bugatti W16 could actually fit in this classic Plymouth.
- This wild ‘Cuda has been rendered with exhausts and a diffuser just like the Veyron.
- Joining the new engine is revised bodywork and an overhauled tan-colored cabin.
We’ve seen plenty of wild Plymouth ‘Cuda restomods over the years, from builds wrapped entirely in carbon fiber to others stuffed with Mopar’s 6.2-liter supercharged Hellcrate crate engine. Some swap in modern suspension and brakes, others chase period-correct purity, and a few simply throw money at the problem until the result stops making sense. As far gone as those cars are, one artist has dreamed up an even crazier Barracuda, though it will almost certainly never turn a wheel in the real world.
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When looking at these detailed renderings of this fictional Barracuda from Abimelec Design with its hood closed, it may not look all that dissimilar to some other restomods produced in the past. Sure, it’s a little wider than most, but it certainly doesn’t look over-the-top. Instead, it looks mean as hell. Crucially, the body is just the start of the changes made.
What’s hiding under the hood isn’t a big-block V8, nor some high-revving naturally aspirated V8 or V12 from Italy. This ‘Cuda has been imagined with the 8.0-liter quad-turbocharged W16 from a Bugatti Veyron and Chiron. It goes without saying there’s probably no sane person willing to build a car like this, nor anyone able to source a spare W16 from Bugatti for such a project.
Can It Fit?
Then there’s the matter of actually fitting this behemoth of an engine into an old-school muscle car. According to Abimelec Design, the W16 is two inches shorter than the original Chrysler 440 cubic-inch V8 but roughly 5-6 inches wider, which is why the car’s front end has been widened and the suspension components pushed outward.
Beyond rocking the W16 engine, the Plymouth has also been imagined with a distinctive set of silver wheels and has Bugatti brakes, ensuring it can handle all of the power. As impressive as the muscle car looks from the front, we think it’s even better from the rear, with a single central exhaust like the Veyron. In addition, there’s a massive diffuser that houses a pair of extra tailpipes, again like the Bugatti.
Read: Who Knew The 1970 Plymouth ‘Cuda Would Look So Good With A 911 Targa Style Roof
Unless there’s a Veyron or Chiron owner out there willing to sacrifice their multi-million-dollar hypercar, tear out its W16, and hand it over to a shop crazy enough to graft it into a 1970s Plymouth, this ‘Cuda stays exactly where it is now, locked inside a render. That’s almost certainly for the best. Some builds are more fun to imagine than they’d ever be to actually drive.
