1970 Dodge Challenger And 1970 Plymouth Barracuda - Leading By Example

How Do You Teach Your Sons About Mopars? Keep Two Big-Block E-Bodies In Your Garage

By Kevin Shaw

Photography: Jerry Heasley

Mopar Muscle, March 2006

Joseph Kulick of Hughestown, Pennsylvania, is one amazing guy. Sure, we're a little jealous that he and his wife, Mary Pat, can somehow afford two classic, fully restored, big-block E-Bodies on a high school teacher and professional landscaper's salaries.

Joseph is the original owner of this Rallye Red '70 440 Six Barrel, four-speed 'Cuda, picking the car up during the freezing winter of 1970. Joseph kept his foot in the Plymouth for three years before he got married. With the change in his new living conditions, the 'Cuda was then committed to daily driver status. After a three-year stint as a daily driver, the E-Body was then stored in a garage, kept safe from the Northeastern winters and salted roads. After six years, Joseph, a new father by this time, decided to exhume the red coupe from its pen and take it out when weather permitted. For the next 10 years, the 'Cuda became a source of enjoyment for taking the kids to grandma's house for Sunday dinners.

By 1992, the Plymouth began showing its age. A succession of engine failures, oil leaks, a failed water pump, and visible rust convinced Joseph to take it to an auto restoration shop. After five miserable years of little good being done, Joseph and his now grown boys took the 'Cuda back and decided to strip the car apart themselves. After disassembly, Coventry Restoration dove into the body work and paint with professional fervor, while the Kulicks attacked the motor, transmission, and suspension. The engine was rebuilt by Krause Motorsports back to stock specs, re-using nearly everything on the factory engine. The West Newton, Pennsylvania, engine shop exceeded the Kulicks' expectations by even coming to their home to help advise them in the rebuild. Coventry Restorations repaired all the shoddy work performed by the previous shop and replaced panels where necessary. the 'Cuda still wears its original Rallye Red paint in places that didn't required rust repair and panel replacement. The freshly repaired body was then returned to Joseph's garage where he and his boys began piecing the puzzle back together.

So original is Joseph's E-Body that it still retains its factory elastomeric bumpers and Shaker hoodscoop. The Super Track Pack Plymouth wields all its original running gear (taken off earlier for the restoration), restored, repainted, and freshened up. But the 'Cuda wasn't destined to be the only amazing E-Body in the Kulicks' corral.

Underneath the Shaker assembly in Joe's 'Cuda resides a very potent 440 6bbl engine, also built by Krause Motorsports. The 'Cuda has seen some track time, to the tune of a 12.6 at 118 mph.

During the height of the 'Cuda's restoration, Joseph came across another E-Body-the '70 Challenger R/T SE in our double header at the Mopar Nationals in 1998. The unusual color combination of white-on-blue tugged at him until he struck a deal with the owner. The Hemi Challenger was an anomaly, as very few came with as many options as this '70 did. The Hemi was backed with a 727 TorqueFlite and a Dana 60 with factory-low 4.10 gears. Interior accommodations came loaded to the gills . . . well, as much as the massive elephant in the engine compartment would allow. Power steering, power disc/drum brakes, an overhead console, and an eight-track AM/FM stereo came with the SE packaging. As Joseph dug deeper into the Hemi's genealogy, he discovered that only 37 Challengers were built in 1970 with similar pedigrees.

Joseph, with his '70 'Cuda still in the shop, drove the R/T for three years until it was time to switch out the parking space in the garage with the newly returned 'Cuda. The R/T Challenger was disassembled, then sent off to Coventry Restorations. Unlike the 'Cuda, after the Challenger was disassembled, Coventry was given carte blanche with the Challenger's complete restoration. Coventry dedicated two years to the reassembly of the car with the parts that the Kulicks disassembled, labeled, and packaged. The interior now sports all needed pieces with Legendary Auto Interiors material. The body was stripped, prepped, and painted the original B7 Medium Blue Metallic.

By the time the 'Cuda was finished, the Challenger was in the final stages of completion. Once the R/T finally returned home, Joseph had two outstanding big-block Mopars on his hands. His sons-Joe, John, and Jeff-have all learned by their father's example of how to not only treat these machines, but more importantly, how to wrench on them and race them. The Hemi hasn't had the chance to stretch its legs on the 1320 . . . yet, but the '70 'Cuda in totally stock trim and only 46,000 miles on the clock ran a 12.60 at 118 mph. A time worthy of F.A.S.T. competitors!

Both cars are shown regularly at car shows and Mopar meets, but they are also driven, believe it.

With more bells and whistles than most Cadillacs, this AM/FM eight-track still works. now if we could only find that copy of Van Morrison's Greatest Hits.

This fully loaded R/T SE came with an overhead console, but no, it's not a Gran Coupe.

The Challenger carries the largest power plant-426 inches of Hemi. The engine was rebuilt by Krause Motorsports of West Newton, Pennsylvania, to as close to stock specifications as possible.

Fast Facts
Owner: Joseph and Mary Pat Kulick, Hughestown, Pennsylvania
Car: '70 Dodge Challenger R/T SE
Color: B7 Medium Blue Metallic
Engine: 426 Hemi, stock rebuild, all factory specs engine, rebuilt by Krause Motorsports
Transmission: 727 TorqueFlite automatic, fully restored
Rearend: Dana 60, 4.10 gears, Sure Grip
Wheels/Tires: Front/Back: Factory steel Rallye rims, Goodyear F60-15
Quarter-Mile: N/A

Fast Facts
Owner: Joseph and Mary Pat Kulick, Hughestown, Pennsylvania
Car: '70 Plymouth 'Cuda
Color: Rallye Red
Engine: 440 RB block, Six-Barrel intake, fully restored to stock factory specs, rebuilt by Krause Motorsports
Transmission: A-833 four-speed manual transmission
Rearend: Dana 60, 4.10 gears, Sure Grip
Wheels/Tires: Front/Back: Factory steel Rallye rims, Goodyear E60-15
Quarter-Mile: 12.60 at 118 mph