1955 Ford Thunderbird Convertible is a photograph by John Telfer which was uploaded on June 5th, 2013.
1955 Ford Thunderbird Convertible
FAA WATERCOLOR MARK DOES NOT APPEAR ON FINAL SALES
While attending a Classic Car show in Westbury, New York which was looking to raise funds for... more
by John Telfer
Title
1955 Ford Thunderbird Convertible
Artist
John Telfer
Medium
Photograph
Description
FAA WATERCOLOR MARK DOES NOT APPEAR ON FINAL SALES
While attending a Classic Car show in Westbury, New York which was looking to raise funds for cancer research, I came across this mint looking 1955 Red Ford Thunderbird Convertible. I photographed this classic car on such an angle as to catch both the front and side view of this classic beauty. From this photo you can see the chrome surrounding the front headlights and the horizontal grill with the chrome fender below the grill. 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 its roots to other mainstream Fords. The Thunderbird's 102.0 inches (2,591 mm) 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 V8 came from Ford's Mercury division.[4]
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 its inherent sportiness.[4] Designations aside, the Thunderbird sold exceptionally well in its first year. In fact, the Thunderbird outsold the Corvette by more than 23-to-one for 1955 with 16,155 Thunderbirds sold against 700 Corvettes.[5] 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, and an optional porthole in the removable roof was offered and often selected by buyers. However, the addition of the weight at the rear caused steering issues. The spare was moved back to the trunk in 1957 when the trunk was restyled and made slightly larger. Among the few other changes were new paint colors, the addition of circular porthole windows as standard in the fiberglass roof to improve rearward visibility, and a 312 cu in (5.1 L) Y-block V8 making 215 horsepower (160 kW) when mated to a 3-speed manual transmission or 225 horsepower (168 kW) when mated to a Ford-O-Matic 2-speed automatic transmission; this transmission featured a "low gear", which was accessible only via the gear selector. When in "Drive", it was a 2-speed automatic transmission (similar to Chevrolet's Powerglide).(Low gear could also be accessed with wide open throttle.)
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June 5th, 2013
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Viewed 14,936 Times - Last Visitor from Roswell, GA on 03/20/2024 at 8:22 PM
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PICS BY TONY
Seen in the COMMENT FOR COMMENT - C F C group. Stunning work! I have both Liked and favoured this image! I hope my work with as good as this one day! Seeing this has made my day! Thank you.