Vehicle Description
1955 Ford Thunderbird Convertible
Picture, if you will, a 1953 Ford Fordor sedan, sliced in half at
the B-pillar and welded together minus its entire rear door and
rear quarter area. The rearmost portion of the roof, including the
window, is awkwardly moved forward about three feet, and the entire
car finished in a rough fashion. This homely car was christened the
"Burnetti" after its creator, Ford engineer Bill Burnett, and was
designed to simulate the packaging of a European sports car for
American tastes; it was a major step towards creating what would
become one of America's most beloved and most collectible
two-seaters of all time-the original 1955-'56-'57 Ford
Thunderbird.
For consignment version 1 edition 1 of the Ford Thunderbird. This
ragtop/hardtop sports car was innovative for its time, and this
particular car has been restored about 15 years ago. It still
maintains its shine and is looking sharp on all fronts. A beautiful
interior is also retained, and engine runs on a 6-volt system with
an 88-volt battery for extra starting power. Some spare extra parts
are available, and we are in rarefied air with this year 1955 in
such good condition.
Exterior
Starting upfront, we can see a beautiful original and mirror like
bumper with mini "Dagmar" style bumperettes attached which take on
a jet engine like appearance. Directly above is a well-preserved
egg crate grille and flanking this on either side is a single
headlight. A long-scooped hood rolls its way back to the passenger
compartment, which is small, and is topped with a convertible top
in black canvas and sporting a clear plastic rear window. On back
small fins trip round taillights again, emulating jet age design,
and another clean bumper, this time the "Dagmars" are now the
exhaust tailpipes. 3 sets of wheel covers come with this car, and a
hardtop goes along as well. Wide whites surround red steel wheels
which just make a small appearance on the edges of the wheel
covers. All metal is painted in white paint and has nicely
preserved gaps with no rust seen on its exterior. One noteworthy
tidbit are the crossed flags under the Ford emblem on the header
panel, a one year only styling cue.
Interior
The curvaceous thick door panels are wrapped in red vinyl with some
white vinyl accenting, and a strip of machined aluminum through the
center. These are fairly clean, and look the part, as they melt
into the curved dash keeping the machined metal line through the
center. A fan style speedometer is above on the painted metal red
dash top and bottom, and consigner states the original radio will
come with the car. A near perfect bench seat complete with red
smooth bolsters and white tuck and roll inserts stretches across
the passenger compartment and is completed with seat belts, an
early option for Ford. Nice condition red carpet floods the floors,
and the red and chrome horn ring steering wheel fronts the pristine
dash. Noted power seat adjustments are on the door. A red tonneau
cover is in the rear storage area and awaits to cover the top when
it is in the down position.
Drivetrain
A 292ci V8 engine is in a clean and shiny engine bay. It is topped
with a 4-barrel carburetor, and a chromed air cleaner cover. Red is
reserved for the block, and shiny Thunderbird badged horizontal
ribbed valve covers add some more bling to the bay. A 3-speed
manual transmission, and a 3.73 rear axle complete the
drivetrain.
Undercarriage
Very light surface rust on just a few of the suspension parts, but
the X frame, floor plans and rockers are really beautifully
preserved. Independent coil springs for the front, and leaf springs
for the rear make up the suspension and drum brakes are all around.
Amazingly preserved for its ripe age.
Drive-Ability
Not a ton of room in these early birds, but once in they are comfy.
This car fired right up and took off for the test track where it
flew around in circles with ease. A strong accelerator, and good
stopper are also good qualities to have in such an early car and
they are there. Even the clock works!
All in all, a wonderful example that has been restored a bit ago
but still retains its luster and charm. A convertible, and hardtop
assures you motoring throughout the year, although with a classic
as such I personally don/t know whether you would be doing too much
winter driving. Either way you can soar through town, screech the
tires, and turn some heads...all the way around!
VIN DECODE
P5FH140617
P-292V8 4bbl 193hp
5-1955
F-Dearborn, MI Assy Plant
H-Ford Thunderbird
140617-Sequential Unit Number
WARRANTY TAG
BODY 40A-Thunderbird
COLOR A-Raven Black
TRIM A-Black & White Vinyl
PROD CODE 19A-January 19th
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 600 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display.
This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown,
Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia
on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is
www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888) 227-0914.
Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the
vehicle in person.