Thunderbird’s story is a varied one; after all, how many cars have had so many personalities? A sporty two seater, a luxurious personal car, an over-the-top Brougham, a less-expensive Brougham, a personal luxury car with sporting pretensions, a two-seater again…it’s hard to keep up with the changes. This 1975 model falls into the over-the-top Brougham category, with its almost-a-Lincoln looks and price tag. Like it or not, this is the T-Bird Ford was selling in 1975, and this might be one of the nicest ones left.
For years, one of Thunderbird’s best qualities was its far-out interior. Who can forget the coved dashboard of the Bullet Birds or the wraparound rear seat of the Flair Birds? The 1975 model might not have reached those dizzying heights, but a silver interior is bound to attract some attention. The 460 under the hood may have only produced 218 horsepower, and the gas mileage might have been abysmal, but few cars would have been better for long trips with that special someone by your side, your shirt unbuttoned at the top, collars flared.
This particular T-Bird has a mere 49,524 miles on the odometer. Unfortunately, the ad gives us little information on the car aside from that and a few pictures, but those alone make this car worth a message to the seller, if big T-Birds are your kind of car.
T-Bird sales in 1975 were somewhat disappointing, especially compared to the T-Birds of the early 1960s. Only 42,685 were sold, but a mere two years later, a downsized Thunderbird would sell over 300,000. That’s not to take away from the ’75, as Ford dropped the car’s base price by almost $3000 for ’77.
Cars of the 1970s in general may not be as popular as the “lower-case-c” classics of the ’60s or the red-hot cars of the ’80s and ’90s, but solid originals are always in style. This T-Bird is for sale on Craigslist in Illinois for a very reasonable $5995. Get it while you can, because I think this one is going to go fast. Thank you Tony Primo for another great find.
Good write-up Aaron. “Over-the-top Brougham,” that’s a good description of this T-Bird generation. It’s actually quite stunning with the silver-everywhere look. The 5 mph bumpers did the car no favors. I assume it simply floats down the highway, in quiet comfort. Something to be said for that; enjoy it as a cruiser.
Typical meager craigslist ad, so really can’t make a full determination. But what we can see looks good. Not a high-dollar car today; but is the ask too cheap?
The 73-76 always were my favorite Big Birds. This one looks great, and since I can’t justify buying it? Someone will get a beautiful T-Bird.
I had one just like it, the best car ever!
Nice car, that price is a steal. I’d look underneath since it is in Illinois. Someone will be lucky.
My Father bought a new 1976 Thunderbird in triple white. My job on wash day was keeping the whitewalls clean. Closest thing to driving a Lincoln that you will ever find.
That’s because it WAS a Lincoln (under the skin)! It shared a platform with the Lincoln Mark IV and V. Other than the nose and taillight treatment, and the opera window (the Mark’s opera window was an oval, the T-Bird’s was a trapezoid), they were mechanical twins. 1972-74 T-Birds got the 429 V8, the 460 was optional, and the Mark had the 460 as the standard engine, but by ’75, they both got the 460, as the EPA emissions rules continued to degrade power output. Some careful machine work on the heads, along with the usual go-fast upgrades (headers, exhaust and intake) can restore those lost ponies in short order.
My 74 Bird had the 460!
A few years ago, LincolnLand in Clearwater had a ’73 almost exactly like this one for sale. Same silver interior, but with smaller bumpers.
They had bought 18 cars from some Florida collector, and there were several MK lV and MK V cars, and this ’73 T-bird. The Lincolns were quite decent, though not perfect. They were asking around 4500-5000 apiece if I recall. The T-Bird was pretty much perfect, and, as with this subject car, they were also asking 6000 for their car.
I drove one of the MK V cars; it drove great and was really nice, but I couldn’t love it. I considered the T-bird, but ultimately passed on that car as well. Man that car was huge.
Hope it is as good as it says but only have 3500 so I’m just saving but we are T Bird fans
Cheap for a reason. Yeeeesh…. so bloated. Even the roof section is thick.
It was a luxury car, from the 70’s. Have you seen a ’75 Tornado? No one was auto crossing these cars.
Yes, I’ve seen a Toronado, and though just as enormous, I find the Toronado’s crisp styling much more attractive than the Thunderbird’s bulging, “inflated” look. The 1977-1979 Mark V, though very closely related to this Thunderbird, cuts a far more dashing figure because Ford toned down the bloated look. A matter of preference, of course. Most ’70s Ford products strike me as deliberately styled to look like they weigh 1000lbs or so more than they actually do, and they’re not light to start with.
The 75 and 76 Tbirds IMO were the best of the entire run. But then as most know, I am a huge devotee of LAND YACHTS and OTT excessive American Luxury. This one seems to be a bon marche, but as noted, a careful inspection (especially underside) should be done. Midwestern winters can take a toll! I actually liked these Thunderbirds better than their MARK cousins. The Lipstick edition was a stunner.
Any car from a snow/salt region takes it’s toll. I see some plugs in the door jams where it was ziebarted. The undercarriage needs to be inspected for undercoating.
THIS 1975 silver Thunderbird was a SPECIAL “20th Anniversary Edition” and the vinyl covered roof had extra padding on it to give it a more luxurious look and feel along with the silver-colored trim around the rear window. The other special edition for 1975 was the “Copper Luxury Edition” and copper-colored leather interior. We had the copper edition and what a gorgeous car that was!! And it got a whopping 9 mpg!
I like T-Birds, but the ’70’s featured my least favorite examples. They had become large, heavy and bloated luxo-barges, and were a mere shadow of their former selves. My Dad almost got a ’73 as a company car, but he cancelled the order when the dealer kept delaying delivery. Dad’s theory was that the dealer was selling the cars from the fleet order to customers who would pay more for the cars, and kept stalling the company fleet order, as there was almost no profit in it. That dealer is no longer in business, but he got his revenge, by selling us Mom’s new car, a 1972 Maverick that was a one year-old dealer demonstrator, and quite possibly the worst car Ford ever made!
My second car was a 76 Tbird just like this silver one, except mine had red leather interior. I traded it at 100k miles and always regretted selling her. Great luxury cars that were great on trips to Daytona Beach Fla in the day.
These year 70s Tbirds were the best land yachts ever. Pop the cruise control at 70-75 and forget about it. Power everything and I had an Alpine stereo blasting too. Like driving on Lincoln cloud.