Ford Thunderbird Landau

Click Here for Full Screen Image - Click Here to Download Image

The inception of the Ford Thunderbird followed a meeting at Ford’s head office in Dearborn in 1953 shortly after the first public showing of the drop-dead gorgeous Chevrolet Corvette prototype, a concept which had come as an unpleasant surprise to Ford's management.

The big three in the US were more at home produding bread and butter sedans, coupes and vans than sportscars. This had been left to the likes of MG, Jaguar and latterly Austin-Healey. Chevrolet had already decided they wanted some of that action while Ford were concerned about the relatively low volumes in the sports car segment of the market, as well as an acknowledgement that lightweight nippy sportscars was hardly their forte. They decided to take a different tack.

The first generation Thunderbird was a sophisticated, clean cut two-door, two-seater coupe/convertible based on a shortened Ford frame and equipped with a range of straightforward V8 engines from their Mercury division. Conceived with comfort and luxury at the core rather than out-and-out performance, the car was an immediate hit, however Ford felt it should do even better, despite outselling the Corvette by a comprehensive margin.

The masterstroke came three years later in 1958 with the arrival of the second generation Thunderbird. Longer, wider, heavier and fitted with a range of larger V8 engines, the new model now boasted four full-size seats, widening its appeal to the family man who craved a bit of glamour at traditional Ford prices. They flew out of the dealerships like they were going out of fashion.

Thanks to the considerable production volumes achieved, Ford were able to introduce regular updates, the third generation arriving in 1962 which included an elegant Landau version featuring faux hood irons and a vinyl covered roof.

For 1964 the 4th generation appeared, with stepped sides, a more aggressive grille and new engines. Initially the 390 cubic inch developed 300bhp, however in 1965 this was increased to 315bhp thanks to a 4bbl carburettor. For an extra $86 you could choose a bigger 428 cubic inch (7.4-litre) unit -  well you would wouldn’t you!

After that, the goal posts shifted as Ford were struggling to keep up with demand for the recently introduced Mustang, another two-door four-seater coupe with more sporting pretentions. In order to differentiate their model line up, Ford moved the Thunderbird upmarket, using Lincoln-style fittings, the model carrying on until 1997 by which time any hint of romance from the model had well and truly flown the nest. In 2002 a retro styled Thunderbird was introduced to capitalise on the craze for such things, remaining in production until 2005 by which time a whopping 4.4 million Thunderbirds had found new owners.

Dating from 1966, this 4th generation example has the stylish Landau bodystyle. It was purchased by the vendor in 2011 from a gentleman who had owned it for the previous five years but had not had the chance to use it much due to ill-health. For sale soley to help fund her other Thunderbird, a 428 cubic inch powered example, it has had a great deal of expenditure over the last few years and runs and drives well – we certainly very much enjoyed our short cruise to find a spot to take the photographs.

The last significant run in the car took it to Sweden for the 'Power Big Meet' near Stockholm where 11,000 cars gathered from all over Europe. It ran beautifully there and back, the vendor adding that she would be perfectly happy to set off in it again for the same journey tomorrow.

During her ownership she has fitted electronic ignition, new plugs, coil and distributor cap as well as a reconditioned steering box, power steering pump, alternator and belts. She informs us that the a/c pump is currently not fitted and that there is a slight weep in the heater matrix which would be her next job on the list. The fabulous sequential rear indicators have also been modified to meet UK lighting regulations. Other than that the car remains remarkably original and is MOTd until May 2014.

With an excellent parts supply (just check out Macsautoparts.com) and an enthusiastic and knowledgeable group of experts in the UK, owning such a car in the UK is not problem, as long as you have a big enough garage!