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Barnebys HQ
Brahegatan 10
BOX 5038
114 37 Stockholm
All auctions / Vehicles / Ford USA - Thunderbird - 1955
Ford Thunderbird 1955 - Sought-after 3-speed manual transmission with overdrive - Original color scheme in turquoise - Very original condition - Extensive American documentation available - Notable example due to appearance in several films and series, including Top Gear - Hardtop HISTORY/DOCUMENTATION An iconic car: the first-generation Ford Thunderbird, produced from 1955 to 1957. This exemplar was manufactured on March 21, 1955 and carries the body code P5FH197955, where P stands for the engine code (312 4V V8), the 5 for the model year 1955, the F for the production location (Dearborn, Michigan) and the H for the model (Thunderbird). The remaining coding also corresponds to the trim, namely: 40A (Roadster), T (Thunderbird blue). The special thing about this car is that it was originally fitted with a 3-speed manual transmission with overdrive; rare and highly sought after! Also notable is that extensive documentation accompanies the car, so the history is well known. There is even an old photo from the United States of this car, with license plate 'USU 501'—a wonderful photo with two women half leaning over the car: pure Americana. In the early '70s, the then-owner, although the car remained in excellent condition, stripped and restored it to concours condition, reusing as many original parts as possible. The car was then heavily used as a show car at auto events, praised for its superb condition. Documentation of this is available. In 1990 the T-Bird was shipped to the United Kingdom, where its originality and condition attracted significant media attention. The car appeared in films and series such as Boon, Tomorrow's World, The Ruth Rendell Mysteries and Top Gear (1991). It was also used by K-Tell Records for promotional purposes and appeared on the cover of a parts catalog. This parts catalog is present with the car! Also many other documents such as maintenance invoices and export documents are with the car. In 2006 the car was imported to the Netherlands, where it has had only 2 owners. This is a unique chance to own a particularly fine and coveted Thunderbird with a wonderful history! EXTERIOR Originally finished in the coveted turquoise color and delivered with a hardtop in the same color. This contrasts beautifully with the striking white interior and the white soft top. The soft top is originally electrically operated, but this system has been disconnected so the roof can be opened manually with ease. The restoration carried out is now more than 50 years old and therefore the car is no longer in concours condition, but it is in good condition with still a beautiful paint, fresh rubbers and lighting. The car's design is iconic, for example look at the exhausts integrated into the rear bumper. The car is in a very original state. INTERIOR An opulently luxurious interior, especially for the 1950s unique and forward-looking. Think, for example, of an original electrically adjustable bench seat in 4 directions, electrically operated windows and power steering. Currently, the electrically adjustable bench seat is not working. The leather interior is finished in a striking turquoise and white color scheme. The interior is further equipped with a horizontal speedometer, a clock, a tachometer, heating and a radio. Naturally, it is very comfortable to sit on the comfortable bench. The interior is in a very original condition. TECHNICAL Although the Thunderbird shared several design features with other Fords of the time, such as some round headlights and taillights and modest tail fins, it had a slimmer shape and featured a hood with a air intake and a speedometer up to 240 km/h, which was not available on other Fords. It used mechanical parts from mass-production models of Ford. The frame with a wheelbase of 2591 mm was a shortened version also used in other Ford models, and the standard 4.8-liter Y-block V8 engine came from the Mercury division of Ford. Shifting can be done via the 3-speed manual transmission with overdrive. This overdrive is very rare and highly sought after. The car starts, drives and shifts properly. GENERAL The Thunderbird, designed to rival the Corvette from Chevrolet, was one of the first Fords with the new head-cylinder V8 engine. The Thunderbird was introduced as a two-seat 'personal car' and was aimed at image-conscious younger customers. It was not a pure sports car, but primarily focused on comfort as well. Thanks to its superior V8 engine and greater refinement, it outsold the Corvette by a large margin in the sales war. Despite this success, the original concept was quickly abandoned and in 1958 a larger—and slower—four-seat version was introduced, causing the early two-seaters to become collectible almost overnight. The first-generation Thunderbird was built from 1955 through 1958. The Thunderbird sold exceptionally well in its first year and in 1955 sold more than 23 times as many as the Corvette, with 16,155 Thunderbirds sold compared to 700 Corvettes. A total of 11 generations of the Thunderbird have been released over the years, up to 2005.
Estimate:£36,485.62
To the auctionEstimate:
£36,485.62
OCT 8 | 3:00 PM
OCT 8 | 3:00 PM
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