Lew Bisbing’s 1970 Plymouth AAR Cuda
Professionally built hot rods and restorations increasingly seem to dominate the old car hobby, which makes it especially refreshing when an owner-restored beauty like Lew Bisbing’s ’70 Plymouth AAR Cuda grabs the spotlight. Being a rare model with bright Lemon Twist yellow paint helps, but Lew’s persistence during a restoration that took more than a decade is especially impressive.
“The restoration took 13 years of Saturdays,” Lew says. “Approximately 5,500 hours. Research during the week would easily double the build hours. No portion of this car was overlooked.”
Lew had the benefit of starting with a complete 76,000-mile car and being just the fourth owner. Still, he says the Cuda was in pretty poor shape. Being an AAR model – a performance package derived from Dan Gurney’s All-American Racers team that campaigned Barracudas in SCCA racing – led Lew to decide it deserved a full rotisserie restoration.
Lew rebuilt the running gear himself, which included restoring or replacing the heavy-duty AAR suspension components, quick-ratio steering box, front disc brakes, and 3.55:1-geared Sure Grip rearend. His attention to detail didn’t stop when rebuilding the hi-po 340c.i. small block, which came with a trio of Holley carbs, an Edelbrock intake, and a dual-point distributor from the factory. It’s backed by a 727 Torqueflite automatic. Factory Rallye wheels are wrapped in Goodyear Polyglas GT E60-15 and G60-15 tires.
When Lew says it was a nut-and-bolt restoration, he means it. “The car has all correct hardware and finishes,” he says. “I do my own electro-deposit plating with proper chromates, as well as zinc phosphate for proper finishes.” The attention to detail shows.
Lew did the bodywork on the E-body shell himself but handed things over to Scott Arnold Restoration for final prep and application of the PPG single-stage Lemon Twist paint. “Perhaps coolest is that I made my own stripe after noticing that reproductions do not match factory originals,” Lew says. “My stripe is a one-off patterned from an original survivor car and validated with several survivors.”
Mopar fans might notice the lack of front spoilers normally seen on AAR models. “The build sheet is coded for front chin spoilers,” Lew says, “but fenders are original, and lack of holes means they were never put on. Confirmed with owner number two. So, spoilers are displayed in the trunk the way the factory delivered them to the dealers.”
Like nearly everything else, the interior was restored at home, too, with Lew installing new black vinyl seat covers in his living room. All other elements – from the non-Rallye dash to the three-spoke woodgrain steering wheel – are just as Plymouth intended.
The results speak for themselves and Lew says he has no regrets putting in the time – he enjoyed the process and the friends who stopped by to help during the 13-year build. “The car is just as I imagined, but nicer,” he says.
Photos by John Jackson
