When you think of a car along the lines of what it would look like if it wore a different badge but was otherwise left unchanged, it can transform your perception of its place in the market. In the case of a vehicle like the Ford Thunderbird Super Coupe, if you think of it purely as something that wears the familiar blue oval badge, it can lead to the perception of it being an overstuffed two door. But if it wore, say, a BMW badge, it would take its rightful place in the lineup as a powerful GT coupe available with three pedals. This 1993 Ford Thunderbird SC is listed here on craigslist in Richmond, VA for $12,500 and features the desirable 5-speed manual.

When we evaluate a BMW 6-Series Coupe – such as the E24 platform model – or even the later 8-Series, we generally don’t complain about its power-to-weight ratio or whether it made enough power. Because BMW had a history of making compelling luxury coupes that could also be transformed into interstate long-range missiles with the option to row your own gears, most of its big coupes are given a chance to succeed. With cars like the Thunderbird, because of its long-in-the-tooth history of being a heavy, slow personal luxury coupe, the peanut gallery adopts an attitude of, “Why even bother?” when Ford decided to make it into a 6-Series competitor. The Thunderbird SC was actually quite compelling, with an attractive, strictly-business cockpit, no goofy gadgets or features, and a list of equipment that was almost entirely driver-focused.

The trick suspension featured adjustable Tokico shock absorbers, along with a wide range of adjustment settings that allowed drivers to program the system’s dampening. Known as “Automatic Ride Control,” it truly was a world-class setup – if only the masses had appreciated just how advanced the engineering behind the SC was. Other notable features included contoured bucket seats with adjustments geared towards keeping the driver firmly in place, four-wheel disc brakes, a subtle body kit that improved its looks without being obnoxious, and 16-inch alloy wheels (that have been plastidipped in this case, which should absolutely have been removed for photos to maintain a stock appearance.)

The Thunderbird SC was a true four-seater performance coupe, with a usable back seat. The supercharged V6 produced 210 horsepower and a meaty 315 lb.-ft. of torque, good for a 0-60 run reliably in the 7 second range (although some road test editors at the time claimed they achieved high 6s). Regardless, the Thunderbird SC did everything right, and its road-holding ability was considered among the best of its day. However, brand stigmas are hard to shake, and even with its many attributes, the big coupe didn’t win over enough BMW shoppers to survive. Today, examples like these are sought after, and this one’s long list of recent maintenance and mostly stock condition should keep its time on the market short. Thanks to Barn Finds reader Rocco B. for the find.