Thunderbird was a growing car. By the time it reached its 20th birthday, it had grown from a 175.3-inch two passenger car in 1955 to a 226-inch six-passenger car in 1975. Ford led you to believe in its brochure that the Thunderbird was the best luxury car buy in America. Built on the platform with the Continental Mark IV, it did provide a few thousand dollars savings over that car. At 42,685 sales in 1975, it was the slowest year for Thunderbird sales in this generation from 1972 to 1976. This is a 1975 Ford Thunderbird for sale here on Craigslist in Orange County, California. Thanks to Barn Finds reader Pat L. for finding this car and bringing to our attention.
The Thunderbird appears to be in good condition and is rust free. The vehicle has received a new paint job at some point in its original color. There were 20 available colors for your Thunderbird in 1975. Those were the days when you could buy a new car and not see yourself riding down the road five times while driving 25 miles. The vinyl top is original which looks to me to have some discoloration, but I can’t tell if there are cracks. The matching bodyside molding also has some discoloration. It was originally a California car that went to Arizona and then back to California.
The seller has some extensive paperwork that goes with the car. Many mechanical repairs have been made to restore this car but the only thing mentioned is the brakes. This car includes Ford’s deluxe wheel covers. The rear has wide segmented taillights with the backup light in the center.
Inside we find a medium green leather interior. It has held up well except for quite a bit of cracking in the driver’s seat, including some rips. This Thunderbird has the luxury steering wheel used by Ford with the cruise control setup and woodgrain treatment, but it’s unusual to see a car of this status from the seventies with no woodgrain on the dash.
The engine in this Thunderbird is the 460 cubic inch V8 big block with 4 barrel carburetor and SelectShift Cruise-O-Matic transmission. The seller has a long list of repairs and parts list for this ongoing restoration. The vehicle runs and drives solid and all running and driving-related mechanical issues have been addressed. The car has 107,229 miles. The seller is asking $8,700. That may be a bit optimistic. Hagerty lists the average value for a 1975 Thunderbird at $6,700. It depends on what the mechanical items addressed are if it’s worth the asking price. Are you interested in a 1975 Ford Thunderbird?
There’s a light blue example of this in my town. Not this clean but well maintained. Not a bad price for this one if it doesn’t need that much over again in work to be a part time driver.
The old man had a T-bird like this, might have been a bit older. I just remember what a tank it was. He didn’t keep it long.
I had a 1976 Thunderbird like this. Beautiful car in very clean condition. Mine was a local Milwaukee car but had always been stored in the winter so there were no rust issues. It was burgundy with matching crushed velvet interior & matching vinyl top that surrounded a power glass moonroof. I really loved driving that car…felt like a pump in it lol. I had a hard time selling it, finally letting it go for a measly $2,600 to a friend after advertising it on Craig’s list for over 6 months. My friend loves that car too. Not a bad car, just no value. I think the owner of this one needs to stop smoking whatever he is smoking & price this car reasonably. Maybe I should have consigned mine to a vintage car dealer. Might have got more out of it that way….
Nice old boat, but I would rather have the truck in the second photo. I need some help on that device fastened to the right side of the air cleaner? Smog something? Thanks.
That thing on the side of the air cleaner (looks like an oil filter) is a silencer to quiet the intake sounds. Funny, some cars today amplify that sound!
Thanks Tom, funny is right! Take care, Mike.
Ford did a really bad job on there corvette competition…
Part of my “How I Learned To Despise Ford In The 70s” collection, SlickB.
‘More road hugging weight’. Yeahhhhhh
Cue the “just an old car” and “make a nice winter beater for $500” crowd, though
Amen :)
ThunderBloat
Thunder Bloat…
Thunder Bloat
Sure is green.
That’s one fancy Gran Torino!
Had a 1973 that left me standing on a corner in Winslow, AZ. Busted timing chain.
Well I personally like it. Had a non running 73 in the same color, which I believe was called Medium Green Glow Metallic. Wanted to restore mine but it just didn’t make sense to put that money in it. Finding one like this that doesn’t need a restoration is more cost effective. The ride in these cars is incredible.
Permission to come aboard sir. This is the begining of all Ford’s to lose the individual looks and attractiveness. The bumpers were all huge and bulky looking, and they all had that floating boat-like feel. They were good solid cars, but looks wise not so much. I am a Ford guy, but my Dad didn’t have a lot to choose from. I think the owner is a little on the high side but it is clean. This is probably. 4-5k car.