Sixty years ago, Ford and Chevrolet stood grille-to-grille with competing ideas for an American sports car. Corvette evolved into a sexy performance icon while Thunderbird aimed at a more leisurely crowd. Thunderbird won the early sales race, but embarked upon divergent roads that led to its demise in 1997.
A retro-modern Thunderbird coupe took off in 2002 but was grounded by 2005.
Yet eleven generations of the Thunderbird have had a lasting effect on Ford and the American car market.
“American car companies had always wanted to get into the sports car market,” said Bob Kreipke, Ford Corporate Historian. “The Thunderbird turned out to be a great, great car.”
Origins
During the 1951 Paris auto show, Ford vice president Louis D. Crusoe asked George Walker (later Ford chief stylist) why Ford didn’t have a sporty car like those on display.
“We have a job just like that in the works right now,” Walker responded, then quickly called headquarters to ensure one was started. Or so the official Ford story goes.
Others are credited. Frank Hershey, Ford’s then-chief stylist, guided initial designs. Chase Morsey, marketing manager, helped make the business case while Bill Boyer is recognized as the car’s designer. After 5,000 names were considered, stylist Alden Gilberson submitted “Thunderbird.”
“There were a lot of players involved, a lot of stories involved,” Kreipke said. “Ford studied Jaguar and MG and wanted to keep the car around $3,000. We cobbled up some vehicles from ’52 to ’53 to see what we could do.”
Thunderbird debuted for 1955 with a $2,695 starting price.
Design
Although the car’s design was reminiscent of contemporary Fords, details like the roof design stirred emotions.
“The idea for the blind quarter came when Chase Morsey came to the Continental Division for a sneak look,” recounted William Clay Ford for Bill Boyer’s book, “Thunderbird: An Odyssey in Automotive Design.” “We were months ahead of the T-Bird in clay, and he ‘borrowed’ our roof line for a car that was to precede the Mark II by a year.”
Ford was head of Continental Division and de-facto chief designer.
In his own book, The Man Who Saved the V8, Morsey said, “I still feel a little guilty about borrowing one of the Mark II’s major design cues. But the hardtop was gorgeous!”
So was the color pallet that included Snowshoe White, Goldenrod Yellow and Thunderbird Blue.
“If you stand back and look at the car, that vehicle has really, really beautiful styling,” Kreipke said. “It looks nice, like you could get in and drive without it hurting you.”
Styling innovations came from necessity. Spare tires were mounted on rear “continental kits” to free trunk space for golf clubs. Planned square windows to improve hardtop visibility became elegant portholes.
“When the T-Bird came out, it was something,” said Rodney Wake, president of Vintage Thunderbird Club International, Inc. “Thunderbirds were exciting versions of Ford automobiles and they have continued to be that way through the years.”
T-Bird gets its wings
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The Wiz Kids running Ford determined four seats sell better than two so Thunderbird grew for 1958, eliminating Corvette’s domestic competitor. Purists wonder if four seats were a mistake.
“Not for sales, it wasn’t,” Wake said. “Ford sold almost as many ’58s as the prior three years combined. It became a more practical car for more people. In the classics, you can’t pick up a couple and take them to dinner.”
Wake has owned four Thunderbirds including a ’56, two ’61 “bullet birds” and a 2004 “retro bird.”
“I bought my first ’61 in 1963 and brought two sons home from the hospital in it,” Wake said. “When I sold it, I missed it so bad that I bought another. I’ve had the second one 46 years and will never sell it. The ’61 has always been very special to me.”
Ford produced 198,191 of the 1958-1960 models, far more than the 10,000 annual production planned for the two-seat model. Sleeker style came in 1961, but square themes returned for 1964. The larger 1967 model wasn’t available as a convertible, but you could get a “four-door coupe.”
Moving into the ’70s and early ’80s, Thunderbirds were aligned with the Lincoln Continental, meaning they became large cars with long hoods. A more efficient mid-size model debuted for 1977.
Redesigned for 1983 with an aerodynamic body, Thunderbird begat Taurus and set enduring trends, but wouldn’t last. Adrift in an SUV-dominated market, Thunderbird ceased after 1997. The coupe migrated from the American market and Ford already had a proven sports car in the Mustang.
Retro bird
Ford re-introduced the two-seat Thunderbird for 2002 with retro styling that recalled themes from 1955-56. It shared its chassis and V8 with the Lincoln LS and Jaguar S-Type, but thin nostalgia and tough competition limited sales. T-Bird went back on hiatus after 2005.
Given ups and downs, what does the car mean to Ford?
“It means a lot,” Kreipke said. “We brought it back, but it had limited marketability. Young people want something new. It may not have had the sales figures, but it was a real eye-opener. We wouldn’t have T-Bird clubs if it wasn’t.”
Today’s younger drivers prioritize practicality over style, leading them to crossovers and sport sedans. But back in the ’50s, Thunderbird gave Ford a sportier image that was parlayed into today’s Mustang and GT supercar.
Some want to compare Thunderbird’s uneven history with Corvette. Chevrolet has maintained clear vigilance over Corvette’s style and performance while Thunderbird’s image is convoluted. But, Ford’s fatal decision was downsizing Thunderbird during the ’80s and allowing it to encroach upon Mustang’s turf.
“The Thunderbird is not dead,” Kreipke said. “I love the Thunderbird — can’t say enough about it!”
The retro roadster re-established Thunderbird as a comfortable two-seater while evoking the 1955-57 models that defined it. When Ford needs another roadster, Thunderbird will be ready to fly.
“I hope there is a next-generation T-Bird,” Wake said. “I would want it to be a more rakish car designed for beauty rather than satisfy everybody at once. It should be a car that says, ‘Look at me, I’m a T-Bird!'”