A 1955 Thunderbird gasser at SEMA 2019

The Arc Audio outdoor booth at the 2019 Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) featured an unusual subject for a “gasser” style build, a 1955 Ford Thunderbird, built by Street Toys Mexico, based in Ciudad Juárez in the state of Chihuahua.

This heavily flaked candy gold metallic painted beauty converted into a roadster style body with shaved door handles and a chopped yellow Plexiglas windscreen. The bumpers are removed with a Moon-style tank out front. 

  

The Thunderbird is powered by a supercharged Chevy small block engine that sports Cobra valve covers and white painted fender well headers visible under the clear plastic hood.

The Spartan white and black trimmed interior is dominated by the lightning-rod style Kilduff shifter connected to the TH350 transmission.

The car maintains its gasser stance perched atop ribbed five spoke chrome wheels with pie-cut slicks from Coker Tires.

Founded by owner and CEO Demitrios Karabinis in 1988, Arc Audio specializes in car audio amplifiers, speakers, subwoofers, sound processors, equalizers, and electronic crossovers.  ARC Audio has more than 80+ USA designed products in their product lineup. Check them out at https://www.arcaudio.com/

“Redemption”

1958 Edsel Ranger Resto-Mod

1958 Edsels are not a typical canvas for a hot rod build, so we were surprised to see this PPG painted burgundy and silver example at the 2018 SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) show in Las Vegas.

This beauty based on the Ford-based Ranger model was built by Alloway’s Hot Rod Shop in Louisville Tennessee for owners George and Kathy Lange is powered by a Roush Racing supercharged Ford Coyote 305-cubic inch engine.

Instead of the original steering wheel mounted Teletouch automatic transmission, the engine’s 700 horsepower is passed through a console-mounted 5-speed Tremec transmission to a Currie Engineering 9-inch Ford rear end.

The interior created by Steve Holcomb’s Pro Auto Custom Interiors with 1964 Ford Thunderbird bucket seats and a custom-built console, with custom built gauges from Classic Instruments and the trademark Edsel floating dial speedometer was rebuilt.       


Photos by the author

1960 Ford Thunderbird convertible

The 1960 Ford Thunderbird was the third and final year of the second generation “square birds” which replaced the first generation two-seater Thunderbird the sales of which Ford Motor Company executives believed were held back by only having seating for two.  When introduced in 1958, the new four-seat Thunderbird was the first Ford built using unibody construction (no separate chassis).

Ford executives were correct about enlarging the new Thunderbird as it won the Motor Trend Car of the Year award and sales increased each model year. In 1958 total Thunderbird sales totaled nearly 38,000 in just nine months of production. Sales shot up to nearly 67,500 units, and in 1960, Ford sold 92,800 Thunderbirds, which included 11,800 convertibles like this one shown at the "Autos of Alamo" car show.

The 1960 Ford Thunderbird is distinguished from the front three-quarter view  by the egg crate style grille and triple vertical chrome "hashes" on the rear quarter panels.

The 1960 Thunderbird is easily identified from the rear by its triple taillights

352-cubic inch V-8 engine developed 300 horsepower from the factory

The 1960 Thunderbird was equipped with bucket front seats and a console

The car shown at Alamo was equipped with optional Kelsey-Hayes wire wheels

The convertible top eliminated much of the trunk room

All photos by the author

A 1960 Ford Thunderbird   

at the Promenade on the Peninsula

Coffee & Cars show 

On Saturday June 16 Pelican Parts hosted a Coffee & Cars show on the top deck of the parking garage at the Promenade on the Peninsula in Rolling Hills Estates, California. This gorgeous restored 1960 Ford Thunderbird "square bird" convertible stood  out in the sea of Porsches. 

The first generation of Ford Thunderbirds were two-seaters and though the first year of the Thunderbird in 1955 outsold the Chevrolet Corvette by a massive margin (over 20 to 1), Ford executives believed that the two-seat convertible  body style held back sales, so for the second generation which debuted in 1958, the Thunderbird came a four-seat design available in both a coupe and convertible body style. The executives were proved correct, a Thunderbird sales exploded from over 21,000 units in 1957 to nearly 93,000 in 1960.  

The example on display in Rolling Hills Estates represents  the final year of the second generation production and can be identified as a 1960 model instantly via its triple-row rear taillights. This one was one of nearly 12,000 convertibles sold in the 1960 model year.   

Notice the generous dimensions of the sumptuous interior with a large console separating the front bucket seats.   

Photos by the author

Great custom paint at

the Sacramento Autorama

 

 

 

There were two cars shown at the Sacramento Autorama that brought to mind the late great Long Beach custom painter Larry Watson.

 

 

The first was this  1950 Studebaker Starlight convertible with 'seaweed' style flames which won the award for the best use of flames.

 

The rear end of Gary Pettigrew's Studebaker features some attractive pin striping.

 

 

 

Outside the CalExpo building, the author spied this 1960 Ford Thunderbird that was painted following Larry Watson's "panel painting" style.

 

 

The five-spoke mag wheels with narrow whitewalls completed the period look of this beautiful lowered "Squarebird."

 

All photos by the author