The collector car market, in your inbox
Classic car news, hand-picked vehicles, and auction coverage. Choose what lands in your inbox.
Muscle car spec sheets usually brag about the biggest engine. This one is more interesting because of how many boxes it checks at once. A Sable White 1968 Plymouth Barracuda Formula S with the 383, a four-speed and the notchback body is live on Bring a Trailer with no reserve, and by the production tables Mopar researchers rely on, only 154 Barracudas left the factory with that exact combination.
It is not a fastback, it is not a convertible, and it is not wearing a stripe package. It has a black vinyl bench seat, hubcaps and an AM radio. That is what makes the spec read so well: whoever ordered it checked the right boxes and skipped the glamour.
Why 154 Is the Number That Matters
Plymouth sold the 1968 Barracuda in three body styles. According to Muscle Car Facts, the notchback was the volume model at 19,997 built, against 22,575 fastbacks and 2,840 convertibles. The Formula S performance package was available on all of them, and Over-Drive Magazine lists it at $251 with the 383.
A production table at 440Magnum Network breaks the 383 Formula S cars out by body style. It shows 963 fastbacks, 64 convertibles and 252 coupes, and of those 252 coupes, 154 had a manual transmission. The site notes that its figures are a guideline and do not reconcile perfectly, so treat 154 as a close number rather than a court record. Bring a Trailer's listing cites the same 252 and 154 figures.
Put another way, for every 383 Formula S notchback, there were roughly four 383 Formula S fastbacks. The four-speed notchback is the quiet corner of the Barracuda catalog.
What the 383 Formula S Meant in 1968
The 383 was rated at 300 horsepower and 400 lb-ft of torque in 1968, with a Carter AVS four-barrel carburetor and 10.0:1 compression, per Muscle Car Facts and Over-Drive. The Formula S package wrapped it in heavy-duty suspension, wide oval tires, dual exhausts, stainless sill moldings and special instrumentation. Pair the 383 with the four-speed, a $188 option, and you also got a heavy-duty clutch.
That was also the year the 340 arrived, a V8 exclusive to the Barracuda that made 275 horsepower and took over the Formula S role the 273 had played. It made the 383 the bigger of the two V8 choices rather than the only one. The 1968 cars are easy to spot by their round side marker lights, a change driven by new federal standards.
The Car on Bring a Trailer
The listing says this Barracuda was sold new by Genthe's of Lincoln Park, Michigan, and stayed with the same Michigan family from at least 1969 through 1995. The selling dealer acquired it in 2025. It shows 35k miles and carries a limited-slip differential, 14-inch steel wheels with hubcaps, red-line tires, front disc brakes, a Hurst shifter and an AM radio. Bring a Trailer calls it an H-code notchback, and the chassis number is BH23H8B351197.
It is offered in Texas by Gas Monkey Garage as part of what the listing calls the 2026 Gas Monkey Garage Collection. Gas Monkey Garage is the shop Richard Rawlings made famous on television, and Motorious has rounded up cars from the Richard Rawlings collection. The sale includes a reproduction window sticker, manufacturer's literature, expired registration slips, spare parts and a clean Michigan title.
Bidding stood at $25,000 on the morning of October 23, and the auction ends October 29 at 2:10 p.m. ET.
Why It Is Worth Watching
If you want the broader family story, Motorious Explores The Plymouth Barracuda covers the nameplate from its start. For another Mopar that paired a 383 with a four-speed, see the 1971 Plymouth 'Cuda 383 four-speed that surfaced on Hagerty Marketplace.
Fastbacks get the poster treatment. This notchback has the same drivetrain and a build combination that is far rarer on paper, wrapped in a color and trim that do not shout. The full photo gallery, the seller's notes and the live bid are on the Bring a Trailer listing.
