Vehicle Description
1963 Ford Thunderbird Roadster
The 1961 Ford Thunderbird design gave us the "bullet bird" with its
rounded to a point front end to the twin turbine rear tail lights.
We were firmly into the jet age, beehive hairdos, fedora wearing,
pipe smoking suburban dads, and the white picket fence surrounding
the New England style house. From the day it was built, these cars
became a desirable collectible and dripped with suburbia
success.
For consignment, a bit of "provance", (sic) we offer up a 1963
Thunderbird Convertible from the famed collector Jerry Capizzi's
Cappy Collection. This is an extremely rare M code car, which
designates it comes with the original 390ci, (6.4 Liter), V8 topped
with 3-2 barrel Holley carbs and rated at 340hp. Only 200 units
were sold between 1962 and 1963. For 1963 only 37 units were
produced, and it is believed only 22 now exist!
Exterior
With its bullet- like appearance this beautiful M code bird
features the sports roadster package which shows with 48 spoke
Kelsey Hayes designed wire wheels with spinner center caps and a
fiberglass tonneau covering which covers the rear seat. This gives
the appearance of the original two seat roadster of Thunderbird's
early and humble beginnings. A horizontal styling line was added
that ran from the point where the bumper and fender meet back
through the door and angled down. Small diagonal chrome bars were
added in this area on the door. All bathed in a Rangoon Red respray
with a few faults in the paint when looking closely, but overall
very nicely presenting. Under that enormous trunk is a pristine
white convertible top that needs manual assistance for one step
with moving down. All chrome and trimmings are in excellent
condition, and this includes the "shaver styled" front grille with
its horizontal dual headlights and pointed crafted bumper for the
front, along with a hood scoop with a chromed intake covering, and
of course the iconic rounded front quarters. Window surrounds are
all excellent as are fender toppers badging plus mirrors and
handles. On back the jet engine styled taillights framed with large
smoothed over bezels and another shiny bumper below. One had to
love the dual cowled tonneau which gives the entire package a
futuristic Buck Rogers look.
Interior
Two tone door panels await your entrance and have a mixture of red
vinyl all padded and nice with an interaction of aluminum panels
and some vertical chromed bars at the bottom. These doors and their
ribbed center panel line up perfectly with the aluminum, which is
on the dash front, swooping through the center of the otherwise red
padded dash with dual eyebrow design. A swing away steering wheel
allows for easy access for the driver and reveals a trio of round
chrome bezeled gauges embedded inept the dash. We also see within
the confines of the dash, controls for A/C, power windows and locks
and an AM/FM radio within the sculpted dash top. Cascading downward
from the futuristic dash is a center console which consists of more
ribbed aluminum paneling and a snazzy red leather covered
armrest/glovebox covering. On either side are overstuffed red
leather bomber style buckets with chromed tubs to sit within. The
tonneau sports red padded leather fronts that form headrests for
the buckets when the tonnneau is on. When the tonneau is off,
seating for an additional 2 is provided by the rear bench which has
a nicely padded center giving the appearance of more buckets and
emblazoned with the Thunderbird badge within the center of the
backs. Near perfect red carpeting floods the floors, and power
windows for the back are also installed and working just great!
Drivetrain
This is the "M" code 390ci V8 complete with its trio of 2 barrel
Holley carbs. The engine looks fab with its chromed valve
coverings, T-Bird badged oval air cleaner covering and a few other
chromed accenting bolted on to this powerful engine, which is
spec'ed to provide the driver to reach 132mph! Just a pristine
environment for this engine and bay, with new insulation within the
hood.
Undercarriage
Appearing showroom, rust free black paint and shiny suspension and
other bolted on components abound underneath. Rear drum power
brakes with leaf springs are noted, and in front more power drum
brakes with coil springs with power steering is bolted on. A shiny
exhaust is sealing its way rearward, and if you purchase this car
you will also need to purchase a large mirror to show off this
beautifully restored undercarriage.
Drive-Ability
All worked just perfectly for the test drive with nice smooth
limitless acceleration for the trio of Holleys on top of the 390
cubes, bias free braking, and smooth effortless automatic shifting.
We did need to assist the power top to go down through one step
which may be a signal for upgraded motors in this car's future to
make it self-sufficient. We also note that the brake lights do not
illuminate.
A rare Bird of you will, with the original drivetrain including the
M code engine, and "Sports Roadster" tonneau covering still
allowing for rear passengers when it's removed. Kelsey Hayes wire
wheels and the swing away front steering wheel, along with the
modern space age styling... welcome back to the future!
VIN DECODE
3Y85M109530
3-1963
Y-Wixom, MI Assy Plant
85-Thunderbird Convertible
M-390ci V8 3x2bbl Carbs 340hp
109530-Sequential Unit Number
WARRANTY TAG
BODY 76A-Thunderbird Convertible
COLOR J-Rangoon Red
TRIM 85-Red Leather
DATE 090K-October 9th Build
DSO 31-Cincinnati
AXLE 2-Ford 9" 3.10 Gears
TRANS 4-Cruise O Matic 3 Speed Automatic
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.
