Details
- Body Type: Convertible , Sports
- Model Year: 1956
- Trans: Automatic
- Fuel Type: Gas
- Ext color: Fiesta Red
- Int color: Red & White
Fiesta Red Exterior
White Factory Porthole Hard Top
Red & White Interior
312ci. V-8 Engine
Automatic Transmission
New Black Canvas Top & Restored Top Frame with New Weather Stripping
New 15″ Chrome Wire Wheels
White Wall Tires
Town and Country Radio
Dual Mirrors
Wind Wings
Fender Skirts
Factory Power Seats
Seatbelts
Chrome Headlamp Covers (Crown Victoria)
Evoking The Mythological Creature of Indigenous Peoples of North America, The Thunderbird Entered Production For the 1955 Model Year as a Sporty Two-Seat Convertible. Unlike The Chevrolet Corvette, It Was Not Marketed As A Sports Car. Rather, Ford Created a New Market Segment, The Personal Car to Position It.
First Generation (1955–1957)
The Ford Thunderbird Began Life in February 1953 In Direct Response to Chevrolet’s New Sports Car, The Corvette, Which Was Publicly Unveiled in Prototype Form Just a Month Before. Under Rapid Development, The Thunderbird Went From Idea to Prototype in About a Year, Being Unveiled to the Public at the Detroit Auto Show on February 20, 1954. Like The Corvette, The Thunderbird Had a Two-Seat Coupe/Convertible Layout. Production of The Thunderbird Began Later On In 1954 On September 9 With the Car Beginning Sales as a 1955 Model on October 22, 1954. Though Sharing Some Design Characteristics With Other Fords Of the Time, Such as Single Circular Headlamps and Tail Lamps and Modest Tailfins, The Thunderbird Was Sleeker and More Athletic In Shape, and Had Features Like a Faux Hood Scoop and a 150 mph (240 km/h) Speedometer Hinting a Higher Performance Nature That Other Fords Didn’t Possess. Mechanically Though, The Thunderbird Could Trace it’s Roots to Other Mainstream Fords. The Thunderbird’s 102.0 Inches Wheelbase Frame Was Mostly a Shortened Version of That Used in Other Fords While the Car’s Standard 292 cu in (4.8 L) Y-Block V-8 Came From Ford’s Mercury Division.
Though Inspired By, and Positioned Directly Against, The Corvette, Ford Billed The Thunderbird As A Personal Luxury Car, Putting a Greater Emphasis On the Car’s Comfort and Convenience Features Rather Than it’s Inherent Sportiness. Designations Aside, The Thunderbird Sold Exceptionally Well in it’s First Year. In Fact, The Thunderbird Outsold The Corvette By More Than 23-to-1 For 1955 With 16,155 Thunderbirds Sold Against 700 Corvettes. With The Thunderbird Considered a Success, Few Changes Were Made to the Car For 1956. The Most Notable Change Was Moving The Spare Tire to a Continental-Style Rear Bumper In Order to Make More Storage Room in the Trunk. However, The Addition of the Weight at the Rear Caused Steering Issues, and Was Changed Back In 1957. Among the Few Other Changes Were New Paint Colors, The Addition Of Circular Porthole Windows in the Fiberglass Roof to Improve Rearward Visibility, and a 312 cu in (5.1 L) Y-Block V-8 Making 215 Horsepower When Mated To a 3-Speed Manual Transmission or 225 Horsepower When Mated to a Ford-O-Matic 3-Speed Automatic Transmission.
