I gotta get it streaming again. Dang!

 

A '54 Merc 300SL just went for 2 mill

 

cwazy

 

I am all for the idea, after owning several MN12s I've got a soft spot for the T'bird, Cougars, and Mark 8 of that era.

I would love to see the Mark and 'Bird back on the streets...

 

I like that. Even if they drop the 3.5 ecoboost in it I'll be happy!

 

Moving to 'Other Fords' section, but will leave a link for today . . .

 

Roger that. You have to admit though. A new thunderbird sounds cool lol.

 

Always thought the Forty Nine concept coulda made a nice Thunderbird. Decent 2+2 seating, loads of cools style

 

Taken as an amateur effort, not a finished product, it doesn't look terrible. He's essentially trying to create the look of a Ford XLR, which is not that crazy an idea seeing as the XLR is a Cadillac rip on the original T-Birds. Of course, even with its Corvette bones the XLR was a fairly massive sales flop.

I have a soft spot for the 2003 T-bird, though I think it has aged poorly. At the time it hit Ford dealerships had Zero premium product beside it to drive interest and car rags, who were lusting over the newly reborn speedy European roadsters, pilloried it for not being speedy. That's pretty much a recipe for disaster for a luxury cruiser, no matter how good it is or is not.

Today's Ford has a much more premium feel, and I think there should be another convertible in Ford's lineup beside Mustang. But something like a Focus Cabriolet or 2-door Fusion derivative is much more likely I imagine.

 

Yeah something like Forty Nine, with a retracting hard top or sliding glass roof, would be very nice.

 

People retro is done... No more retro anything... Let's move forward for God's sake... And as far as Thunderbirds go, why must they always be modeled after the original two-seater? All the successful ones had four seats.

 

A Forty-Nine is modeled after 1949 Ford which predates the original Tbird and therefore would be stupid to model as a Tbird. Anyway, let's leave the past where it is at and challenge designers to come up with new designs. U know designers used to always come up with unique designs every year... It's time to continue doing that without taking from something old.

 

Yeah, I guess the clue is in the name

However, to my eyes, the Forty Nine concept is closer to Thunderbird in, er, concept, than a '49 Ford.

As for modern designs? Problem is, put the same requirements into a computer and the end result ends up looking the same. Far too many cars look alike these days, which is why people love classic cars and why, too, many of us like "retro" designs. Classic looks without the classic overheads

 

So what if retro is dead! It's a good name for a great car that could be. Think about it... 2 seater with an all aluminum 5.0 with 500hp 400tq and fiberglass body. 3200lbs. 6speed manual or 6 speed manumatic "flappy paddle". Standard leather, hard top convertible option or glass roof. 0-60 4.0sec 12sec 1/4mile. IRS! 19in wheels standard. And it would have a huge aftermarket because of the 5.0! Easy 700hp car! Did I miss anything?

 

High cost to build and a very small market. That would be an awesome car but I don't think I would call it a thunderbird. As you can see, the name thunderbird isn't highly thought of in modern time. The classics are great, but that's about where it stops.

 

I say revive it to its rightful glory

 

WHAT IS THAT?!

I.e., what's it's rightful glory?

For me, it's one of these things:

The '57 Bird.
The '66 Town Landau Bird.
The '78 Diamond Jubilee Bird.
The '86 5.0HO Bird.
The '95 SC Bird.

They all have their pluses and minuses. All are glorious or horrid, depending on your point of view.

I happen to like all of them, and if I had a garage of these, I'd be pretty happy.

I also happen to have had significant driving time in every one of these cars. And they all have three things in common: Good performance for their era, best looking in their group, and excellent looking rear ends.

Now... which is the winner?

/FIGHT! - The Mortal Kombat Voiceover Guy.
//If it was sales based, the '78 era cars would win hands down.
///If it was looks based, it'd be a toss up between '57 and '66.

 

I think the 80's and 90's Birds really hurt the name and the way people think of the car. I love the 80s 5.0's and even the turbo coupes and the SC ones were awesome in their own right. I like them all, however I dont think it would work to bring the name back. Just my opinion but I would think of a new name.

 

They couldn't be any worse than early 80s Thunderbirds.

 

'57 all day! To compete with the vette! The idea in 1957 was to go up against the vette. That's the rightful glory.