SRT Barracuda

With the exception of an electric Dodge Muscle car that will arrive in 2024, Stellantis has been awfully quiet regarding any performance models. It seems this might change, as Dodge is rumored to be bringing back one of the most iconic Muscle cars ever made – the Barracuda. Of course, the brand that used to sit under Dodge in the Chrysler portfolio is long gone, so if the Barracuda is making a comeback, it will be as a Dodge model. Here’s what we know so far.

Rumors about a modern Barracuda have been flying around since 2007. That’s 13 years as of 2020 and many of us have lost hope that a revival of the iconic Cuda will happen.

However, it seems that the Barracuda may indeed return for the 2021 model years as a replacement for the Dodge Challenger. And it will do so under the Dodge brand since the Plymouth marque was discontinued back in 2001. Official details about the 2021 Barracuda are still scant, but we gathered all the information there is about the modern incarnation of this muscle car legend.

Dodge was planning some pretty big changes by the end of the decade. Things like building the Challenger and Charger on FCA’s new Giorgio platform, and underpinning the Journey with the same platform as the Chrysler 200 were all on the table. However, these have been pushed forward for now as Dodge rethinks its long-term strategy. Of course, not everything has changed. The Dart will be discontinued later this month, with no successor in sight, and Dodge is still unwilling to accommodate the Viper with the necessary safety features (side curtain airbags), so it’s still on the chopping block as well.

Now that the plans for the Journey to share the Chrysler 200s platform have trashed, Automotive News claims that it will be produced with its current DNA until 2018. The Journey isn’t going anywhere, except for Italy, where it will be built when it is switched over to the Giorgio platform. And then there is the Charger and the Challenger. As far as the Charger goes it was going to be redesigned for the Giorgio platform, but that has been delayed until at least 2018. On the positive side of things, however, it’s said that the next-gen model will drop more than 400 pounds.

Arguably, the most important news is that Dodge is going to introduce a V-6 Challenger with all-wheel drive. The model will be called the Challenger GT AWD and will ultimately be followed by a wide-bodied, Hellcat-powered Challenger for 2017. When Dodge switches the Challenger over to the Giorgio platform, it is expected to drop at least 500 pounds – now that will be a nice drop in weight.

Keep reading for the rest of the story

The next-generation Dodge Charger and a new Dodge Barracuda convertible have reportedly been shown at a Fiat Chrysler Automobiles dealer presentation in Las Vegas. If the rumors coming out of Vegas are accurate, the next Charger will resemble the dramatic Dodge Charger concept car from 1999, while the existence of a new Barracuda is corroborated by a name trademark that FCA recently filed in June with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Formerly a Plymouth product, the new Barracuda will be built on the same rear-wheel-drive platform that underpins the new 2016 Alfa Romeo Giulia, according to Automotive News. It was shown as a convertible, but if it gets the green light, it will likely be available as a coupe as well. It’s also reportedly smaller than the Challenger. It’s not clear if both cars will be sold simultaneously, but the Barracuda could represent both a lighter pony-car alternative to the Challenger and a competitor to the smaller, more-nimble 2016 Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro.

Like the Barracuda, the next Charger will also be built using the Giulia’s underpinnings. That being the case, expect it to be a slightly smaller than the current sedan. The comparisons to the 1999 Charger Concept are interesting considering it’s now over 15 years old, but if the reports are accurate, look for a sleek, coupe-like profile similar to the current crop of four-door coupes.

Both cars (again, if green lit) will probably arrive in either 2019 or 2020 with a range power by both four- and six-cylinder engines, including the 505-horsepower turbocharged V-6 from the Giulia. An even more powerful V-8 Hellcat option could also be offered.

Continue reading for the full story.

Oh there are some really, really savvy spy photographers out and about these days and this time they caught the mother of all shots. The Barracuda has been an on-and-off venture for Chrysler for some time now, but we now have proof — via these exclusive spy shots — that it will debut this year at the New York International Auto Show in April. What’s more, it’s nothing like any of us imagined it would be...

We so happen to have a little "birdie" that works in the printing department at a large monthly automotive publication, and he noticed that the "boss man" was making sure only a select few saw the inside of this magazine. When he happened across a stray copy, he was as shocked as we are to see that the Barracuda will return not as a muscle car, but as a rebadged Dodge Dart.... sigh.... Our dreams are now crushed.

He managed to whip out his cell and snap off a few quick pictures, and this was the clearest one he could get, as he worried his boss could come around the corner at any second. We cleaned it up a bit by changing it to black and white, as the colors were a little messy from the poor lighting.

According to our source, the Barracuda features the same Fiat Compact platform as the Dart and Chrysler 200, but with some extra performance goodies. On top of the images, he scanned the page for as much information as he could absorb, and managed to catch that it will feature turbocharged four-cylinder with somewhere in the 250-horsepower and 260-pound-feet range, and that it will debut in New York this year. Unfortunately, that is all the information he could grab in the short amount of time he had alone with the stray mag.

Though the image is blurry, he described it as "a Dodge Dart with SRT aero mods and rims, and a dark grille." He couldn’t tell if it was an SRT model or a Plymouth, but the chances of Chrysler bringing back Plymouth for just this one model are slim to none.

So there you have it folks; Fiat has struck again by releasing another Chrysler icon from the muscle car years as a front-driven sedan, a la the Dodge Dart. We’ll go bury our heads in the sand until the NYIAS is over...

Update 4/1/2014: In case you haven’t figured it out just yet, this is a figment of our crazy imaginations here at the TopSpeed offices. Our rendering artist extraordinaire put a modified Dodge Dart on the pages of some random magazine, blurred the text a little and pasted in a Barracuda emblem and even a swimming barracuda in the background for the added "cheesy" effect. Thanks for playing along, we’ll be here all night; make sure to tip you waiters and waitresses...

With cars like the Mustang, Camaro, Challenger, and to a lesser extent, the GTO, bringing back the nameplates and style of the classic muscle cars of the ‘60s and ‘70s, it makes sense that people will be clamoring for their favorite car to return as well. One of the biggest and the loudest of these groups is the Mopar boys asking for a new Barracuda.

There had been several rumors that Dodge and the SRT team had been working on possibly modifying the Challenger platform to bring a new ‘Cuda to the market (we even made renders), but it now seems those plans are thoroughly shut down.

At the recent Chicago Auto Show, Automobile Magazine sat down with Ralph Gilles, SRT president to ask him about the return of the Barracuda name. In short, he says it won’t be happening anytime soon.

Hit the jump for a full rundown of what Automobile learned, and to hear why Ralph says he won’t be working on a new ‘Cuda.

The newest member in the Chrysler family is SRT (Street and Racing Technology), which was unveiled at the same time as the new generation Viper that bnow bears its name. According to Chrysler, this new extension of their brand will be responsible for the development of the most powerful performance models available.

A lot goes behind setting up an arm such as SRT. Each department has a specific use in the grand scheme of the automotive world. Today, SRT has unveiled a video that explains the essence of this newly created brand and solidifies its purpose for the company: "The SRT family of five street and racing technology vehicles represents the pinnacle of Chrysler performance. Five different ways to get your revs up - all bred from the minds of those passionate about making cars better, faster and stronger."

SRT has already wowed us with their new generationViper, but we have to wonder what other scintillating models they have in store. The next piece of this SRT puzzle comes in the form of the Barracuda, but will it be able to stand up to its German competitors? Only time will tell, but they are sure off to a great start!

The details on the upcoming SRT Barracuda are still very scarce and we aren’t expecting to hear more until sometime in late 2013, at the earliest. There are, of course, the occasional leaks and the inadvertent video evidence of its existence, but nothing too concrete. We all have our assumptions, given the nature of the SRT line, that the SRT Barracuda will be a hulking V-8 powered machine set to rip the fender wells from future 4-cylinder Mustangs and Camaros.

Well, let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. The SRT lineup is a growing brand in itself, much like the Ram lineup. Plus, with Chrysler now being in bed with Fiat, we all know that Chrysler likely won’t build any other cars that don’t have a Fiat relative somewhere. Not to mention that Fiat is in need of a newer rear-wheel-drive platform. This brings us to our point that the SRT `Cuda very well may be a full-line vehicle. By that, we mean one that has a 4-cylinder, V-6 and multiple V-8 options.

According to reports, the SRT Barracuda should come in at a full eight inches shorter than the Challenger it will replace, giving it an optimal size for Fiat to use. With this shorter body, the `Cuda is also set to drop a few hundred pounds, which will make it more even with the Mustang and Camaro that the Challenger is simply monstrous compared to.

Now add in the fact that the EU standards and new CAFÉ regulations are going to force SRT to up its mpg and lower its emissions and you can see exactly why the Barracuda may have more than just a bulky V-8 engine powering it. We will likely see a boosted 4- or 6-cylinder engine gracing the bottom end of the SRT Barracuda range with your typical array of 5.7- and 6.4-liters playing at the top. Without that, all that SRT has to offer up to the CAFÉ standards is the gas-guzzling SRT Viper, and that simply won’t do. Nor will it work for the EU standards that Fiat has to live up to.

We’ll keep an ear out for any more information that we can dig up.

Chrysler’s Viper conversion from Dodge to the new SRT name wasn’t going to venture down the new path on its own. Rumors have been floating around that the company was also reviving the "Barracuda" name as a replacement for the current Dodge Challenger, but Automotive News is adding a side note to those rumors.

Turns out, the Challenger will be replaced with the Barracuda, but not entirely. The SRT Barracuda will take the place of the Challenger SRT8, but the standard Challenger will maintain its branding. This coincides with SRT’s goal of only producing high-performance sports cars; the 305 HP Challenger doesn’t quite fit the bill.

The future Dodge Challenger will be entering its new generation in 2015, so we’ll see the SRT Barracuda around the same time. The new Barracuda will be built on an entirely new platform and will be powered by a new 6.2-liter supercharged V-8 that will debut in 2014.

The 2021 Dodge Barracuda is an upcoming sports coupe Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. Set to replace the Dodge Challenger, the Barracuda will compete in the same muscle car segment as the highly popular Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro. Rumored to make a comeback since 2007, it seems that the Barracuda nameplate will finally return for the 2021 model year. However, since the original Plymouth brand is no longer around, the Barracuda badge will come back on a Dodge. Details as still slim as of March 2020, but we put together a speculative review based on everything we know so far. Check it out below.

If some of you happened to miss 60 Minutes’ interview with SRT Brand President and CEO Ralph Gilles, then you probably missed out on a very strange looking car in the background. The car is undoubtedly a coupe, but the question is: is it the upcoming SRT Barracuda? Some say it is, but when asked about this, Chrysler officials said it was just one of the many concepts they are developing around their studio. Come on, if it was really the Barracuda, would they so openly confess to it?

If it is indeed the Barracuda as many believe it is, it will be brought on as a replacement for the current Dodge Challenger. The car will be powered by a supercharged 6.2L Hemi engine that will deliver somewhere around 490 to 540 HP range. As for the platform to be used for the new Cuda, there are two possibilities: one is a shortened large-car platform (LC or E-EVO) and the second is the new Alfa Romeo D-size platform currently under development.

The new SRT Barracuda is expected to be unveiled somewhere at the end of 2013. We’ll get more details on the development as pass them along!

Last month, it was rumored that Dodge would be replacing the current Challenger with a new Barracuda and now Allpar is offering new details on the new vehicle set to arrive sometime in 2014-2015. They are reporting that the SRT Barracuda will be the maiden SRT car to feature a new supercharged 6.2 liter Hemi engine. This engine will then move on the the rest of the SRT models. Coincidentally, Mopar - the automobile parts and service arm of Chrysler Group - is currently working on a supercharged 6.2L Hemi for Chrysler that is said to deliver power in the 490-540 HP range.

The platform that will be used for the new Barracuda will be one of two possibilities: one is a shortened large-car platform (LC or E-EVO) and the second is the new Alfa Romeo D-size platform currently under development.

Whatever they choose, insiders say that the new Barracuda won’t be as "true to the original" as the current Dodge Challenger. We’re guessing it will be a modern interpretation of the car, similar to the treatment Chevrolet provided for their Camaro.

With a history of over 40 years, the Dodge Challenger is preparing for a long, deserved vacation. With Dodge preparing to use a new rear-drive Alfa Romeo platform for its muscle car, and according to Chrysler design chief Ralph Gilles it might be a little bit difficult to combine the Challenger’s large proportion with such a platform. In order to fill the hole the Challenger will create, Dodge is looking to replace the muscle car with a new model, and it seems that the perfect addition will be a new-age Barracuda.

With a 197.7-inch length and a 116.0-inch wheelbase, the Challenger is the largest car in this segment. However, if built, the Barracuda replacement will be more trim and will be built on a new platform that’s smaller than the current Charger/300’s LY. The same platform will be used for a lineup of Alfa Romeo models, including a sports car, a coupe, and a sport sedan.

Motor Trend also reports that the new Barracuda might also be sold under the SRT badge as the new Viper sports car.