Lot 135: Ford Thunderbird Sports Rdster

The Ford Thunderbird was not, as the rumour goes, born out of a conversation between Louis Crusoe and George Walker at the 1951 Paris Motor Show. The Thunderbird was actually inspired by the Chevrolet Corvette in 1953. By 1954 Ford had a wooden mock-up at the Detroit Motor Show and by 1955 the European styled, V8 powered Thunderbird, was in production. Sales in 1955 amounted to 16,155 units beating the Corvette by 24 to 1. Unfortunately Ford messed with the concept, as they did with the Mustang and by 1958 they had ruined the model with the 4 seater "Square Bird" design. Despite this, the 1958 model sold 38,000 units but the car did not appeal to European tastes.The next Thunderbird to appeal to the buyers across the pond was the 1961, Third Generation car, which was much more fluid and pleasing to the eye. Under the hood was a 390 cubic inch V8 and the four seat layout remained, although, in 1962, you could now have Sports Roadster version, designed by Bud Kaufman. This was achieved by fitting a fibreglass tonneau cover over the rear seats, which incorporated twin, upholstered, headrests and could be left in place with the soft top up or down.Offered here is a 1965 version of the Sports Roadster, which is complete with the fibreglass tonneau, continental kit and period, screen pillar mounted, search lights, which are multi positional.Finished in the definitive red with cream interior, the car is quite stunning in appearance and is said to have been part of a private collection, in Kansas City, for many years. The car is said to have covered just 300 odd miles in the last 5 years.