In five decades, there have been many attempts to recapture the glory of the first-generation Thunderbirds, although most have paled in comparison.
A half-century ago, The Ford Motor Company's sensational Thunderbird ushered in the modern era of the personal luxury automobile.
Although sporty in appearance and injected with an abundance of horsepower, this cushy beauty was more at home cruising the North American boulevards and freeways of the 1950s than handling fast, making tight turns or stopping on the proverbial dime. Those maneuvers were best left to more exotic, albeit harsher-riding European machinery.
The 1955 'Bird's sole two-seat rival, the Chevrolet Corvette had come to market two years earlier. Although stunning to look at, the 'Vette's poor-quality fiberglass body hid, among other sins, a shortened sedan frame and an inline six-cylinder truck-based engine. Inside, the car was bare-bones basic, lacking most modern conveniences, including roll-up windows. At around $2,900, the Corvette was priced $1,000 more than a base Chevrolet sedan.
Meanwhile, the Ford camp was busy preparing a competing roadster, one that would turn out to be a more substantial offering, both inside the cockpit as well as under the hood.
The T-Bird offered a host of standard and optional amenities including a Mercury-based 292-cubic-inch V8 engine rated at 202 horsepower. Ford claimed sub 10-second 0-to-60-mph (96 km/h) performance, along with a top speed of 110 mph (180 km/h). Buyers could choose between a three-speed overdrive manual transmission, or optional three-speed Ford-O-Matic transmission.
The car hugged the ground like the Corvette, but its softly sprung suspension gave a floating ride that mimicked most family sedans.
The first Thunderbird (the name was chosen as a result of an in-house company contest) rolled off the Dearborn assembly plant on Oct. 22, 1954. By launch time, Ford dealers had already presold more than 4,000 of a planned production run of 10,000 units.
For all its style, comfort and performance, the 2,800-pound (1,270 kilogram) Thunderbird stickered at $2,750, slightly less than the Corvette. For that princely sum you received a decent-sized trunk, tachometer and a removable fiberglass hardtop. A convertible soft-top was a $70 option.
By the end of the car's first year, Ford had sold in excess of 16,000 units, while Chevrolet managed to move just 700 copies of its under-achieving Corvette.
For 1956, the Thunderbird received some of the 'safety' features Ford was touting for its entire lineup, including a passenger-side padded dash, concave steering wheel and optional seat belts. You could also order a 312 V8 that delivered 215 horsepower with the manual overdrive transmission or 225 horsepower when equipped with a three-speed Ford-o-match. The spare tire was mounted to the rear bumper (commonly called a continental kit) to create more trunk room and vent openings were carved into the front fenders to direct cooler outside air into the cabin.
A half-century ago, The Ford Motor Company's sensational Thunderbird ushered in the modern era of the personal luxury automobile.
Although sporty in appearance and injected with an abundance of horsepower, this cushy beauty was more at home cruising the North American boulevards and freeways of the 1950s than handling fast, making tight turns or stopping on the proverbial dime. Those maneuvers were best left to more exotic, albeit harsher-riding European machinery.
The 1955 'Bird's sole two-seat rival, the Chevrolet Corvette had come to market two years earlier. Although stunning to look at, the 'Vette's poor-quality fiberglass body hid, among other sins, a shortened sedan frame and an inline six-cylinder truck-based engine. Inside, the car was bare-bones basic, lacking most modern conveniences, including roll-up windows. At around $2,900, the Corvette was priced $1,000 more than a base Chevrolet sedan.
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Meanwhile, the Ford camp was busy preparing a competing roadster, one that would turn out to be a more substantial offering, both inside the cockpit as well as under the hood.
The T-Bird offered a host of standard and optional amenities including a Mercury-based 292-cubic-inch V8 engine rated at 202 horsepower. Ford claimed sub 10-second 0-to-60-mph (96 km/h) performance, along with a top speed of 110 mph (180 km/h). Buyers could choose between a three-speed overdrive manual transmission, or optional three-speed Ford-O-Matic transmission.
The car hugged the ground like the Corvette, but its softly sprung suspension gave a floating ride that mimicked most family sedans.
The first Thunderbird (the name was chosen as a result of an in-house company contest) rolled off the Dearborn assembly plant on Oct. 22, 1954. By launch time, Ford dealers had already presold more than 4,000 of a planned production run of 10,000 units.
For all its style, comfort and performance, the 2,800-pound (1,270 kilogram) Thunderbird stickered at $2,750, slightly less than the Corvette. For that princely sum you received a decent-sized trunk, tachometer and a removable fiberglass hardtop. A convertible soft-top was a $70 option.
By the end of the car's first year, Ford had sold in excess of 16,000 units, while Chevrolet managed to move just 700 copies of its under-achieving Corvette.
For 1956, the Thunderbird received some of the 'safety' features Ford was touting for its entire lineup, including a passenger-side padded dash, concave steering wheel and optional seat belts. You could also order a 312 V8 that delivered 215 horsepower with the manual overdrive transmission or 225 horsepower when equipped with a three-speed Ford-o-match. The spare tire was mounted to the rear bumper (commonly called a continental kit) to create more trunk room and vent openings were carved into the front fenders to direct cooler outside air into the cabin.