Bowing for the 1955 model year, the Ford Thunderbird was the personal luxury car answer to the Chevrolet Corvette. The Thunderbird, or T-Bird, was produced continuously from 1955 through the 1997 model year, and again from 2002 to 2005, and through 11 different generations.
Luxury and performance were not mutually exclusive in the Ford Thunderbird. The 1957 Thunderbird’s 312 cubic-inch Y-Block V8 could be optioned with twin four-barrel carbs or a McCullough supercharger. The second generation T-Bird would offer a 430 cube, 350 horsepower V8 for the now four-passenger car. The fourth gen Thunderbird would offer 428 horsepower as an option.
As the Ford Thunderbird entered the 1990s with its tenth generation, another performance package was offered in the guise of the Thunderbird Super Coupe. The SC was powered by a supercharged 3.8-liter V6 that produced 210 horsepower (remember, this was the end of the Malaise Era, and 210 ponies was a pretty big deal).
The Thunderbird Super Coupe was well equipped with standard electronically-controlled speed-sensitive power steering, four-wheel disc brakes with ABS, Traction-Lok differential, and 16 x 7-inch alloy wheels wrapped in Goodyear Eagle tires, and an Adjustable Ride Control System.