A 1970 Plymouth Hemi Barracuda with a value of $1.4 million was stolen a little north of New York City. The avocado-green muscle car with a flower-patterned vinyl top was pilfered from a home in Westchester County. Chrysler offered the so-called Mod Top option for a short time to attract more female car buyers.       

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Only one customer chose the feature for a Plymouth car with a 425-horsepower Hemi engine. In fact, any 1970 Plymouth Hemi 'Cuda models including those without the flowered roof are very rare and valuable.

Joe Stephenson is a managing director at Hagerty Insurance that is insuring the Plymouth car. He described the vehicle as a work of art like a Picasso painting, according to CNN. The insurance company is figuring out if the theft was planned or due to opportunity.  

Meanwhile, Steven Juliano was the most recent owner of the Hemi 'Cuda that was stolen about midnight on April 25. It was being prepared for cross-country shipping to Los Angeles. Juliano is the owner of a Manhattan nightclub, according to ABC 7 New York.

Stephenson said it is unclear if the thief knew the value of the collectible car. He also pointed out that it will be difficult to sell the car due to its theft making headline news. The Plymouth car would be easy to identify even if criminals peeled off the flowered top.

An irony is that the flowered vinyl top is the only part of the car that is not original. It is a reproduction of the original covering.  

Stephenson said that the thieves will probably try to sell the muscle car to an honest shopper. Hagerty Insurance has offered a maximum reward of $50,000 for information that results in the safe return of the classic car.

In related news, an Idaho woman's 1992 Honda Accord was stolen from her home's driveway. One month later Tara Lock-Smith's car was recovered after a high-speed chase with police.

However, the local police department did not inform the Lock-Smiths because the vehicle identification number (VIN) number had been changed. They also did not realize the car was stolen.

Impound fees for the Honda car totaled $899. The Lock-Smiths gave up the car for scrap metal and then paid just $50 to the towing company. 

Here's a 1970 Plymouth Barracuda: