Purists were appalled when the second generation of the Ford Thunderbird (1958-60) gained a back seat. Gone until 2002 was the 2-seat T-Bird that has become iconic today (who can forget Suzanne Somers in American Graffiti?). But the proof was in the pudding as Ford sold a bunch more T-Birds which could seat four people. That includes this rare 1960 edition that has a “3-on-the-tree” manual transmission which may have only gone into 2% of production that year. From Grain Valley, Missouri comes this ’60 Thunderbird which has found some success on the show circuit. It’s available here on craigslist for $25,000. A nod to T.J. for another cool tip!
At more than 92,800 copies, 1960 was the best sales year to date for the Ford Thunderbird and wouldn’t be bested until 1977. Of those, more than 78,400 would be the 63A 2-door hardtop like the seller’s car, with the rest being convertibles and hardtops with sunroofs. Most T-Birds were equipped with an automatic transmission which was in line with the car’s image as a personal luxury cruiser, but Ford did manage to build about 2,000 of them with a column-shifted 3-speed (according to the seller). The appearance of the 1960 model was little changed except an additional taillight was added on both sides.
We’re told this Ford is an original, unmolested car, which would imply that the paint, interior, and powertrain are as they were when the car left the assembly line. This machine has been in the same family for the last 30 years and has been shown often and taken home the occasional trophy. It has the optional Continental spare package in the back, which had started to generate less interest from buyers.
At 82,500 miles, this Ford sports the smaller 352 cubic inch V8 engine rather than the 430 that was available to buyers in 1960. We assume it runs as good as it looks and the seller says everything is in working order, including the AM radio. We’re told that delivery is available, but we assume that must be within a reasonable distance. If you’re in the market for one of these ”Square-Birds”, this looks to be a sweet example with a rare engine/transmission combination.
Well, I just assumed this generation of T-Birds was all automatics. Kind of cool to have a three-speed on the column. But if that is part of the seller’s pitch, I’d make sure I included a picture of the shifter and clutch pedal.
If you look closely, I believe you can see the clutch pedal in image # 5. But I get your point.
I went to check out a one owner Squarebird for sale in the mid 80’s. One owner/driver school teacher who had to drive through a school zone everyday, so she wanted a manual. One sits so low, and the hood scoop sits so high, I felt like a little kid driving the Squarebird; I passed.
I nearly bought a 60 Bird in Colorado Springs this past summer. 3 on the tree behind a factory 223 6cyl. Pretty rusty but for $1,000 I didn’t want to pass it up but had to – no room!! My first car was a 60 Bird – 430 power everything and that dang leaked like a sieve sun roof. But man would it fly!!! I pegged that speedo past that 140 so many times it wasn’t funny.
Whoa there cowboy, I know y’all got some “fancy” smokes down there in Colorady, but maybe it’s time to grab a bag of Doritos, calm down just a bit. A 60 Thunderbird with a 223 6cyl? Not in this lifetime. Or any other lifetime. Better grab another bag of Doritos.
I like these Square Birds,but that continental kit
ruins it for me.I can’t recall ever seeing a car with
that added,except at car shows.
There were a few ‘in the day’, but it was not a common option by 1960. Same one used on 58-60.
I don’t think they were the same transmission. I had to replace two gears in mine once (still don’t know why they went). All the bearings were double rows and the trans must have weighed 150 lbs. The only crossover trans I could find was in a 1964 Galaxie with the FE engine. I think the new gears cost me $90 at the Ford dealer, quite a chunk for a guy making $1.25 an hour!
I’ll never understand why Ford didn’t put a floor shifter in the console of these “aircraft” inspired interiors! At least this con/kit didn’t have those AWFUL side extensions, which portrayed the 5 mph baterring ram bumpers of the future.
GLWTS!! :-)
Hi Moparman, I think, Ford never intended for this car to be a sports car when it parted ways after the ’57. I read, an O/D was available, but no floor shifter. Somehow, a column shift 3 speed was more gentlemanly than a 4 speed. Also, the “pilot” inspired T-birds were the 3rd and 4th generation, with overhead consoles and ads depicting what an airline pilot would drive TO the airplane. I can’t find when, but I believe this was the last generation to offer a manual, and not until the Fox body did they even offer a 4 speed, anyone? I agree, this was the best rendition of a continental kit.
If I may throw down my 2 cents worth. I am surprised to find out that Ford did put in any manual tranny after 1957, until 1983.5 in the Turbo Coupe, which would have been a T-5 5-speed, no 4 speeds. The 58-60s were known as the new ‘Luxury’ Birds. Three on the Tree is not really luxury to me. The 61-63s were the ‘Aero’ Birds with the jet engine exhaust taillights and cockpit. I would assume that this 1960 would have overdrive added with the 3 speed which would be a better hiway cruiser than just a 3 or 4 speed.
“Rowing gears” and “Square Bird” just don’t seem to go together.
Mentioned once a while ago, fellow servicemen at Kessler AFB had a 59 with the 430 and stick. One of those JC Whitney generic sticks coming through the console. Factory shift lever long gone. Had overdrive and four of us put quite a few miles on that old baby blue Bird.
The 430 wasn’t available with a manual transmission, so the shifter isn’t the only thing that was changed.
Not saying it was all original, but a solid driver.
As a life long Ford guy, I must admit, I have never seen nor heard of a manually shifted Thunderbird between 57, and the Super Coupe of the 80s and 90s. What’s strange here, is there’s no photo showing the presence of a manual transmission, but I assume it’s there. Beautiful car though.
1960 was the last year for a manual transmission. I knew a guy who traded a 61 Chrysler Newport coupe for a 1960 T-Bird, 3 speed w/ overdrive and a sunroof. all factory I don’t remember if it was a 352 or the 430 Lincoln engine. Him and his wife were moving to Idaho and he said it would pull a U-Haul better than his Chrysler. Car was dark green w/ white top. Always wondered what happened to it. that was about 1971.
In 1959 there were six 350 hp (on the hood) Holman and Moody built T-Birds in the lineup for the inaugural Daytona 500 mile race. Amazingly there was not a single caution flag and the 1st and 2nd place cars were both clocked at exactly 131.521 mph for the 200 laps.
Lee Petty in #42 Oldsmobile and Johnny Beauchamp in #73 T-Bird crossed the line in a photo finish that took 61 hours to resolve – in Petty’s favor with a lead of about 2 feet over Beauchamp’s T-Bird. The trophy and winner’s ceremony went to Beauchamp on the day, but the win was provisional. Hearst Metrotone News Service of the Week sent the film footage that confirmed Lee Petty’s win. Other photos taken at the finish had proven inconclusive.
For model year 1960 Ford manufactured 1,949 T-Birds with manual transmissions and one could order a T-Bird with manual steering, without power brakes, etc. with the 352 high performance V8. BTW the 430 was a heavy lump that could not be tuned for Nascar performance (power and reliability) based on its stock configuration nor was a manual transmission available. The 352 Special V8 could be ordered with three speed and overdrive. The Holman and Moody cars built in 1959 were not Ford factory supplied special vehicles. They were a Holman and Moody development of what could be.
Having had access to a number of Nascar shops in the late fifties, early sixties they were not populated by engineers working in spotless speed labs as today. The drivers, engineers and mechanics of the day were impressive nonetheless.
That race was a photo finish alright, and maybe controversial to this day. I’ve always wondered what motor was in that Thunderbird, the 352 or 430, Petty’s Oldsmobile would have been a 394. Speaking of that 352 “Special”, rated at 360hp, was Ford’s first entry back into racing since the AMA ban on factory promoted racing of 57, which is another story.
Better do some research, the nascar Thunderbirds were “in fact” equipped with 430s.
When I first moved to FL permanently in 1996, a fellow in my office daily drove one of these. His green and white 2 tone and had the three on the tree. He drove like a madman and the car had no seatbelts. One day he let me drive back from a site. It was fun to drive, but a handful. I believe it had manual steering as well. I just remember slow speed turns were the equivalent of doing a push-up.
Thankfully no continental kit on his. That really woofs up a cool design.
If you look closely at the interior pictures, particularly the one featuring the full steering wheel and the one where you can see the edge of the steering wheel on the left, you will be able to see about half the clutch pedal and the bottom of the shift knob in the full wheel pic and the end of the shift knob in the other at the edge of the steering wheel. Hope this hepls with the “three on the tree” question.
The interior picture withthe full steering wheel show about half of the clutch pedal bottom left, and you can see the shift lever just under the right steering wheel spoke; the interior picture with the steering wheel along the left edge shows the end of the shift lever extending just past the steering wheel. Hope this helps with the “three on the tree” questions.
I should clarify I looked at the pictures on the Craigslist listing to see those details.
So cool, would have been a manual ON THE FLOOR
So cool would have been the 430 with the manual
There is a console right there!!!! USE IT!
Fast foward to 2002:
So cool, would have been a manual ON THE FLOOR
So coo would have been a 5.0 with the manual
There is a console right there!!!! USE IT!!! FORD!
Nobody mentioned it has factory A/C, along with that 3 spd. trans!
I had one! Bought it in 1969 for $300, a little beat, but I had it repainted and upholstered. Mine had manual steering, power brakes, and a Lincoln rear suspension and differential. An article in Hemmings Muscle Machines a few years called them Nascar T-Birds and claimed there were only 532 equipped that way (sadly, I had sold mine a long time ago). None were raced by Ford in 1960 because of a ban on racing, but some were raced by privateers, and they claimed, a lot were sold to moonshiners (fast, low, and a big trunk).
As far as a floor shift, I think the console was to tall for it to work properly. Besides, mine worked just fine with the column shift, and I wouldn’t have cut up that beautiful console to convert it. Remember, 1940 was the first year for a column shift in a Ford, and by this time, the column shift was still regarded as “modern”.
Paid $400.00 for 1959 T-Bird in 1976 and it had the 430 engine.. Brought my daughter home as a new born in it. I am old enough now to enjoy all the really cool cars that were affordable in my time.
There Is a Hugh Difference Between Rare And Desirable.!.!.!
When I was working at the Ford garage in the Seventies, a ’58 T-Bird was towed in to the shop. It came out of a woman’s garage that they had to cut a tree down to get it out. It was black w/red interior, auto, and had if I remember correctly, 1600 miles on it. It still had the delivery plastic covers on the seats! The fuel system and wheel cyls. had to be rebuilt but it looked brand new after a wash and detail. She was going to give it to her grandson to take to college. I can only imagine what happened to it!
Years ago (1970 or so) I knew a fellow who had one of these–3 spd, OD, Fact AC. It had come out of AZ which explained the AC. There weren’t many of ’em.
I ran across a 59 or 60 with the 3 speed and OD outside Syracuse NY in 1971.