Restored 1970 Plymouth AAR Cuda Flaunts Ultra-Rare Color Combo

What makes this Plymouth special? Well, for starters, it was restored to Concours condition with many NOS parts. The vehicle was judged 9.90 out of 10 at the 2024 Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals (MCACN), where it was featured in the Black and White Mopar Invitational category.

It probably didn't get a perfect 10 due to the clear coat paint, which isn't considered Concours-class. Judges favor acrylic enamel finishes, which are period correct. But like many restorers, Keith went for the more modern solution.

Naturally, the AAR Cuda packs a numbers-matching drivetrain combo. This includes a 340-cubic-inch (5.6-liter) V8 engine with a six-barrel carburetor setup and a three-speed automatic gearbox. This combo found its way into 1,614 cars, but the color layout makes the car much rarer.

Specifically, it's one of only 40 AAR Cudas ordered in TX9 Black Velvet. This number is derived from the AAR Cuda registry, which currently lists 1,713 examples. That's nearly 63% of all units produced, so the actual number of black cars may be higher.

Then there's the white interior, which narrows it down to only 13 units produced (again, we're talking about cars listed in the registry). How many are still around? Well, that's a mystery, but we're probably looking at the finest example in this color combination.

This is all the more spectacular given that this AAR Cuda spent its early years at the drag strip. The vehicle has had four owners since new, and it has been with the same owner since 1994. It's not driven much nowadays, though.

As a brief reminder, the AAR Cuda is a one-year-only model that was offered during the 1970 model year. The car was actually produced for only a couple of months and was born because Plymouth wanted to race the Barracuda in the SCCA Trans-Am series.

The AAR Cuda marked Plymouth's return to the championship after a three-year hiatus. Dodge also entered the brand-new Challenger in Trans-Am, a move that spawned the limited-edition Challenger T/A. Unfortunately, both proved uncompetitive against the Ford Mustang Boss 302, Chevrolet Camaro Z/28, and AMC Javelin.

The road-legal homologation cars hit showrooms with a range of unique features. The six-barrel 340 V8, rated at 290 horsepower, was one of them. The vehicles also had fiberglass hoods with suitcase-sized scoops, side-exiting exhaust pipes, rear spoilers, and exclusive side stripes.

Plymouth produced 2,724 units, a number accounting for 5.5% of the nameplate's total 1970 output.

Hit the play button below for the walkaround and to hear this black-on-white AAR revving its small-block V8 engine.