![]() ![]() The Thunderbird Special V8 engine was also a 390 CID unit with Holley four-barrel carburetors but a higher compression horsepower and 375 available horsepower. The overhead valve 390 cubic-inch V8 was given a Holley four-barrel carburetor and produced 300 horsepower. A total of 73,051 examples were sold in 1961. A total of 10,516 examples of the convertible were sold at the base price of $4640. The 2-door hardtop sold for $4,170 and proved to be very popular with a total of 62,535 examples sold. Standard equipment included a new 390 cubic-inch V8, power steering, power brakes, and a cruise-O-Matic transmission. The 1961 Ford Thunderbird was completed new they were wider, lower, longer, and heavier than the prior year's model and rested on a new chassis with 'Controlled Recession Suspension'. The interior was the work of designer Art Querfeld, who penned separate compartments for the front occupants, going so far as to move the glovebox to the prominent center console to avoid any seams in his gracefully flowing design. It could be ordered with the optional 'Swing Away' steering wheel - with the car in park and the driver's door opened, the steering column would slide about 18 inches to the right, affording better ingress and egress for the driver. The 3rd-gen personal luxury car introduced numerous 'firsts' to the automotive marketplace, most notably the windshield-mounted 'floating' rear-view mirror, an item commonplace on most vehicles today. Its styling was sleeker its design was a far cry from the previous Thunderbird with curvaceous lines, tail lamps, a dramatic and distinct nose, and jet-link fins. The side glass and windshield were very similar in size and shape and both featured dash designs that swept around into the door panels. ![]() Both cars had 'dual unit' body structures using separate front and rear sections that were welded together at the cowl. Both the Thunderbird and the Continental had many elements in common, shared the same platform in production, and were built on the same assembly line in Wixom, Michigan. 'We wanted to keep it very youthful, and that meant aircraft and missile-like shapes,' Boyer once recalled. Engel's design for the 1961 Thunderbird was adapted to four doors to become the 1961 Lincoln Continental, while Boyer's rocket-inspired model was chosen as the new Thunderbird. ![]() Engel's career included tutelage under Harley Earl and later the role of the chief stylist at Chrysler Corporation. Two designs had been considered for the new Thunderbird - one by body-engineer Bill Boyer and the other by Elwood Engle. The auction started by seller svx007 is scheduled to end in 6 days.The third-generation Thunderbird was known as the 'Bullet Birds' and they wore a design by Boll Boyer. The bidding is currently underway, and the top offer barely exceeds $800. The price isn’t by means surprising, given the general condition of the vehicle. Parked for years, the engine could still be saved by a good mechanic, but the best way to figure this out is to head over to Arizona and inspect it in person. Again, this is something to be expected, given the car spent decades sitting under the clear sky in Arizona, so be ready for some serious restoration work if you want to take home the car.Īs for what’s under the hood, the T-Bird still flexes the original 390, but the engine no longer starts. The interior, for example, is also unrestored, and the plastic and rubber parts are pretty much compromised. ![]() The condition of this T-Bird isn’t by any means a surprise, and it needs substantial fixes in almost every department. And anyone can easily figure out what this means for the paint on the car. In other words, it’s a survivor in all regards, especially as it spent over 40 years in direct Arizona sunlight. This Thunderbird should theoretically provide Ford fans with a pretty good look at the original 1961 model, pretty much because the car is still unrestored and comes with everything in the factory condition. The output then dropped to the lowest volume for this generation, with only 63,000 Thunderbirds getting to see the daylight in 1963. Available as a 2-door hardtop coupe and convertible, the third-generation T-Bird was fitted with a 390 (6.4-liter) V8 paired with a 3-speed automatic transmission.įord manufactured a little over 73,000 units for the 1961 model year, with the production then increasing to over 78,000 units in 1962. ![]()
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