Ford Thunderbird (fourth generation)
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The fourth generation of the
Ford Thunderbird The Ford Thunderbird (colloquially called the T-Bird) is a personal luxury car produced by Ford from model years 1955 until 1997 and 2002 until 2005 across 11 distinct generations. Introduced as a two-seat convertible, the Thunderbird was pr ...
is a large
personal luxury car Personal luxury car is a North American car classification describing somewhat sporty, sophisticated mass-market coupés that emphasized comfort over performance. The North American manufacturers most often combined engineering, design, and mar ...
produced by
Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...
for the 1964 to 1966 model years. This generation of the Thunderbird was restyled in favor of a more squared-off, "formal" look. The only remnant of the Thunderbird's former sporty image was the fact that the standard 390-cubic-inch
V8 engine A V8 engine is an eight-cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration. The first V8 engine was produced by the French Antoinette company in 1904, developed and u ...
needed nearly 11 seconds to push the heavy T-bird to 60 mph (97 km/h). The softly sprung suspension allowed considerable body lean, wallow, and float on curves and bumps. Contemporary testers felt that the
Buick Riviera The Buick Riviera is a personal luxury car that was marketed by Buick from 1963 to 1999, with the exception of the 1994 model year. As General Motors' first entry into the personal luxury car market segment, the Riviera was highly praised by au ...
,
Pontiac Grand Prix The Grand Prix is a line of automobiles produced by the Pontiac Division of General Motors from 1962 until 2002 for coupes and 1989–2008 for sedans. First introduced as a full-size performance coupe for the 1962 model year, the model varie ...
and Chrysler 300K were substantially more roadworthy cars, but the Thunderbird retained its leading market share.


Models

The revised model was initially offered as a hardtop, convertible, Sports Roadster with dealer-installed tonneau cover and wire wheels, and Landau with vinyl roof, simulated landau irons, and wood grain interior appointments. Total 1964 sales were excellent at 92,465 units, up nearly fifty per cent from the previous year, but the popularity of the Sports Roadster continued to decline, with only 50 Sports Roadster sold from the factory. The 1964 Thunderbird was the only model of this generation to have the word 'Thunderbird' spelled out on the front hood instead of a chrome Thunderbird emblem. The only transmission available was the Cruise-O-Matic MX 3 speed automatic. The listed retail price for the 1964 two-door hardtop coupe was US$4,486 ($ in dollars ), Several features intended for the new generation were delayed until 1965, when front
disc brake A disc brake is a type of brake that uses the calipers to squeeze pairs of pads against a disc or a "rotor" to create friction. This action slows the rotation of a shaft, such as a vehicle axle, either to reduce its rotational speed or to h ...
s became standard equipment and
sequential turn signals The lighting system of a motor vehicle consists of lighting and signalling devices mounted to or integrated into the front, rear, sides, and in some cases the top of a motor vehicle. They illuminate the road ahead for the driver and increase th ...
which flashed three bulbs in the broad, horizontal tail lights from inside to outside were added; the latter had been delayed by vehicle lighting regulations in the United States. Exterior trim was revised, including a new grille, Thunderbird emblem replacing the block letters on the front edge of the hood, simulated front fender vent trim, revised Thunderbird scripts now located on the rear edge of the quarter panels, and revised taillight lens trim and a single center emblem replacing the dual lens birds and block letters respectively. The popular "Tilt-Away" steering column continued, and was a Thunderbird recognized feature that was later shared on other upper-level Ford Products. Sales, impacted by increasing competition, including cannibalism by Ford's own newly introduced, and more affordable
Mustang The mustang is a free-roaming horse of the Western United States, descended from horses brought to the Americas by the Spanish. Mustangs are often referred to as wild horses, but because they are descended from once-domesticated animals, the ...
, dipped to 74,972. Again, the Cruise-O-Matic MX automatic was the only transmission available. Convertibles borrowed the opening mechanism from the all-new
Lincoln Continental The Lincoln Continental is a series of mid-sized and full-sized luxury cars produced by Lincoln, a division of the American automaker Ford Motor Company. The model line was introduced following the construction of a personal vehicle for Ed ...
where the trunklid would open electrically in a single piece, hinged at the back of the vehicle, then the fabric top would fold down and disappear beneath the trunklid. The mechanism was originally used on the
Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner :''See also Ford Crestline Skyliner for the 1954 Ford and Ford Fairlane Crown Victoria Skyliner for the 1955–1956 Ford Fairlane Crown Victoria, both with an acrylic glass roof panel.'' The Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner is a two-door full-siz ...
hardtop convertible of the late 1950s. Opening the trunk on convertibles for storage required that the lid be opened electrically, without deploying or retracting the folding convertible top. For 1966, the 390-cubic-inch V8's power was increased to . The larger 428-cubic-inch (7.0 L) V-8 became optional, rated at and providing a notable improvement in 0-60 mph acceleration to about 9 seconds. All models featured a new front clip. A flatter hood, re-shaped front fenders, new headlight buckets, new egg crate grille with large Thunderbird emblem, new bumper guards, a single bumper bar, and painted roll pan replaced the previous two model year's two-piece front bumper. The rear taillights were revised, now a 3 piece unit going the full width across the rear, the backup light now located in the center section replaced the formerly rear roll pan mounted lamps. A new Town Sedan model was offered, which featured a roof with blind quarter panels for a more 'formal' look, at the cost of rear visibility, and removed the retractable side window for rear passengers which were offered only on the Hardtop Coupe and Convertible. The Landau trim package added to the Town Sedan a padded roof and landau S-bars. It became by far the best-selling model, accounting for 35,105 units of the 1966 model year's 69,176 units sold. The transmission used on early build 390 V8 equipped T-Birds was the Cruise-O-Matic MX, however late build 390 and all 428 V8 equipped T-Birds had the new C6 3 speed automatic installed.


Films and Popular Culture

A black 1964 Thunderbird convertible had a notable role in the TV series Highlander: The Series as protagonist Duncan Macleod’s main mode of transportation. A white 1964 Thunderbird convertible was used by
Felix Leiter Felix Leiter is a fictional character created by Ian Fleming in the ''James Bond'' books, films and other media. The character is an operative for the CIA and Bond's friend. After losing a leg and his hand to a shark attack, Leiter joined the ...
in a chase scene in the 1964
James Bond film James Bond is a fictional character created by British novelist Ian Fleming in 1953. A British secret agent working for MI6 under the codename 007, Bond has been portrayed on film in twenty-seven productions by actors Sean Connery, David Nive ...
'' Goldfinger'', starring
Sean Connery Sir Sean Connery (born Thomas Connery; 25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond on film, starring in seven Bond films between 1962 and 1983. Origina ...
. Another appears briefly in the 1965
James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors hav ...
film '' Thunderball''. A gold 1966 Town Landau was driven by
Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...
as
Matt Helm Matt Helm is a fictional character created by American author Donald Hamilton (1916-2006). Helm is a U.S. government counter-agent, a man whose primary job is to kill or nullify enemy agents—not a spy or secret agent in the ordinary sense of t ...
in the 1966 film '' Murderers' Row''. It featured several gadgets including the ability to display a scrolling message which ran across the tail-lights. The driver could dictate what they wanted to appear there into a microphone. A green 1966 Thunderbird convertible was prominently featured in the 1991
Ridley Scott Sir Ridley Scott (born 30 November 1937) is a British film director and producer. Directing, among others, science fiction films, his work is known for its atmospheric and highly concentrated visual style. Scott has received many accolades th ...
film
Thelma and Louise Thelma is a female given name. It was popularized by Victorian writer Marie Corelli who gave the name to the title character of her 1887 novel ''Thelma''. It may be related to a Greek word meaning "will, volition" see ''thelema''). Note that altho ...
, starring
Susan Sarandon Susan Abigail Sarandon (; née Tomalin; born October 4, 1946) is an American actorMcCabe, Bruce"Susan Sarandon, the 'actor'" ''Boston Globe''. April 17, 1981. Retrieved January 21, 2021. and activist. She is the recipient of various accolades, ...
and
Geena Davis Virginia Elizabeth "Geena" Davis (born January 21, 1956) is an American actor
, a red 1966 Thunderbird convertible was featured in the 1983 film '' The Outsiders'' which was directed by
Francis Ford Coppola Francis Ford Coppola (; ; born April 7, 1939) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the major figures of the New Hollywood filmmaking movement of the 1960s and 1970s. Coppola is the recipient of five ...
, and a black 1965 Thunderbird Convertible was featured in the
David Lynch David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...
film '' Wild at Heart'', starring
Nicolas Cage Nicolas Kim Coppola (born January 7, 1964), known professionally as Nicolas Cage, is an American actor and film producer. Born into the Coppola family, he is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Gui ...
and
Laura Dern Laura Elizabeth Dern (born February 10, 1967) is an American actress. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a BAFTA Award, and five Golden Globe Awards. Born to actor Bruce Dern and ac ...
. A black 1965 Thunderbird Landau was featured at the start of the
Nintendo Power ''Nintendo Power'' was a video game news and strategy magazine from Nintendo of America, first published in July/August 1988 as Nintendo's official print magazine for North America. The magazine's publication was initially done monthly by Ninten ...
video ''N64: Change the System''. It was shown transporting the three gamers to
Nintendo of America is a Japanese multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produced handmade playing card ...
headquarters for a first-hand sneak preview of
Nintendo 64 The (N64) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo. The successor to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, it was released on June 23, 1996, in Japan, on September 29, 1996, in North America, and on March 1, 1997, in Europe and ...
.


Production totals


References


External links


1965 427 Thunderbird
{{Ford vehicles 004 Rear-wheel-drive vehicles Coupés Convertibles Motor vehicles manufactured in the United States Cars introduced in 1964 Personal luxury cars