The Thunderbird was introduced in 1955 as a challenger to the Corvette, although it morphed a few years later into more of a personal luxury cruiser reminiscent of ones found in Europe. This 1966 example is the final year of the fourth generation of T-Birds, and appears to be a great candidate for a restoration, or at least a refresh. It is up for sale here on eBay with a current bid of $7,200, no reserve, and 166 high-quality photos. It’s located in Lutz, Florida, a perfect spot to enjoy a classic convertible!
The early Thunderbirds definitely had a jet-inspired theme, which was particularly pronounced in the 1961-1966 models. Both the interior and exterior took cues from jet styling, which was a huge component of the culture those years. Some specific items that you can easily tell benefitted from this trend are the front nose, the long and wide rear taillights, and the gauge pod in front of the driver. 1966 was also the last year for the convertible model, which the example here is equipped with.
Overall, the body appears to be worn but still solid, with the main flaws being normal wear and tear, some rust starting behind the convertible top, plus some areas of peeling paint. Underneath appears to be a turquoise color. You can see some more of this color around the trunk and under the hood, as well as some white overspray around the door jambs and a few other locations. I’ll bet the hood is from another car, and the whole car was re-sprayed at some point. The soft top itself is in surprisingly good condition.
The engine on this car is Ford’s 390 cubic inch V8, putting out 315 horsepower mated to the 3-speed automatic Cruise-O-Matic transmission. The seller tells us this is a non-running engine due to it sitting so long. It does turn over by hand, so it shouldn’t take too much effort for the next owner to get it running again.
It also comes with a large stash of spare parts, which should help with any future engine and interior work.
Speaking of interior, the styling on this one is fantastic. The chrome and black dash accents really pop against the wine-colored seats, dash, and carpet. From a distance the interior looks to be in great shape, other than a split drivers seat and some wear marks along the bottom edge of the rear seat cover. This would probably be a car that could be enjoyed as-is while the next owner makes some updates and fixes as needed. Or, it would really shine as a full-on restoration project. Either way, this Bird deserves to be back on the road!
Very nice cars. A friend of mine in a small northeast Texas had one that took concours at a Houston show. He sold it a couple years ago and bought a very clean 58 retractible hardtop convertible. Now this particular car is no ways near concours, but is still a sharp car for daily driving. Not known for gas mileage these cars can burn a quarter tank of gas pulling a short steep grade. So if it’s economy you want this isn’t the car for you. On the other hand if it’s a great looking car that will get a lot of attention then this might be the one.
God bless America
I doubt this car was once turquoise…with a red interior? Maybe the hood was replaced and that was turquoise…I see some red…and maybe some black…hard to tell…and I commend the seller for such great pictures, and cleaning it up before posting it for sale…
You have to like a seller that has lots of pictures. Those underneath pictures are worth it if you want to be a serious bidder on this T-Bird.
You would also have to really love this version of the T-Bird to take on a full restoration. If it was a Q code 428, I think it would have more bidding.
The eBay listing includes a photo of the data plate, which appears to have a “B” above “COLOR.” That would make the original color “Light Beige Metallic”.
Can a “Survivor” be full of Bondo, horribly painted incorrect color, have a non-operational engine, and need a full restoration?
Beautiful car, great price, but crank windows? On a T-Bird? Especially a convertible? I wonder if the top is power?
A real ‘stripper’ Bird convert. Can’t imagine why anyone would buy one w/out pw, esp. on a convert.
Good buyer beware advise for all comments. I noticed the lines don’t match at all. Hood, trunk, doors, especially the fenders flares if that what they are. I not sure they would make it a block down the road.
May be a nice total resto. Not to keen on crank windows on convertible. Good luck.
I was thinking that this looked like a great amount of car for the money.
Thank you for all of the astute observations.
My impression is someone just bought this sight unseen and realized they bought a ……. Now trying to part with it ASAP. At least we can see this ‘pile’ for ourselves.
My Grandfather had a 65. Red/white with black interior. The power windows didn’t work anymore and it was sweltering in there. I remember the car felt like it was a hundred years old by the late 80’s. I like the burgundy with white on this one. My Buick convertible had crank windows and it is kind of a pain.