New For 1961

[dustdevil]

I've got a 62. I love the interiors as well. The aluminum trim and all the stainless trim look great on these. I just want to lower mine and put a few personal touches to it. I'd like to put the 61 quarter panel trim bullets on it though. Look much better than the 62's.

[imperial thunder]

here's my old girl, this shot was taken a few weeks ago.... today i started pulling her apart cutting and welding for some real kustomising....just mild and tasteful.... a hard car to do right ... which is probably why at least in this country 99% a restored... but im up for the challenge.
think kustomised by the ALEXANDER brothers, painted by WATSON
stay tuned folks

[pwschuh]

The blue Bird-liner is spectacular.

[Weasel]

[Weasel]

[BirdGuy]

Our '62. Purchased by my grandparents in '63. Now with a mild drop, Lincoln wheels & customized center caps. Otherwise pretty original so far. Every drive is a trip down memory lane...

[BrerHair]

Originally Posted by pwschuh

The blue Bird-liner is spectacular.

Amen.

[Sweepspear]

I think I first saw this car on this board, and just this past summer saw it for sale online.
Starliner roof grafted onto a Thunderbird.
I love the look!
Wish Ford had made this roof an option so there were more out there.

[chopper526]

I had a '63 and a '65, fun to cruise in. I've had a T'Bird Jr. tucked away that my kids are bugging me to restore.

[hotrodnailhead]

I'm a huge fan of the "bullet birds" and "flair birds".

They made and sold zillions of them, so they are easy to find. This makes them not very valuable for collectors.

They drive excellent with the power brakes and steering and could make a great daily if you can afford to keep gas in them! the 390 FE makes great power but they are thirsty.

The issues that I have with them are that most of the parts are unique to the Tbirds and if you can't find parts at swaps and auto parts stores you're outta luck. You can find another 'bird pretty cheap though if you have room to store them.

Most of the time, when I see them customized, they look gross. They are custom right from the factory, so more is usually too much. A little paint, some wheels and a slight drop make them look like ford intended them to (IMHO).

I think the '65 flair bird was one of ford's first cars to come with disc brakes standard?

[61TBird]

Originally Posted by pwschuh

What I'd really like is a 61 with a 65 interior.

Uhhh....how about No on the '65 Interior. The '61 Interiors are nicer....

Here's my '61;
The previous owner (I'm the 3rd owner) painted the trim White. I had plans of taking it out and replacing it,but it grew on me as it's different than all the others.



Raven Black with Red Interior is the best Color Combo


A little bit of trivia on the '61's...It does not have Ford emblems anywhere on the Car,inside or out. It wasn't until '62 that there was a small plate below the Vent controls that had the Ford emblem.

[old me]

A little different roofline-

Jim

[61TBird]

Originally Posted by old me

A little different roofline-

Jim

[DirtyDan]

I never much cared for them until I traded "Toast" for this one... what a great car... they drive amazing and really take well to mild customizing. And you can still pick nice ones up cheap!

[need louvers ?]

I have always dug the '61-'63 type birds, even when they weren't even remotely hip. The closest I have ever come to owner ship was back in '82, when I found a nice low milage '61 for 500.00. The same day I went to look at a '62 Falcon in the same shape. The thing is, when a car sits in Phoenix, all of the rubber goes to hell within say, ten years. So both cars being equal quality wise, both cars needed front suspension bushings. The Falcon cost about 150.00 to go through, the bird about 350.00 to go through. Guess which car I have to this day! Sorta do regret that sometimes though...

I wanted badly to do a "what if" kinda deal like maybe Doanne Spencer had applied his same magic from his '55 to a later 'Bird. You know, Halibrand sport mags, slight drop, lack of badges, more power, etc. Still on my short list - make it red and black!

[pwschuh]

Originally Posted by 61TBird

Uhhh....how about No on the '65 Interior. The '61 Interiors are nicer....

They are nice, especially the dash, but barrel-back rear seats for the win.

[hemi v8]

Best of all the birds hands down.

[dad-bud]

I do like T-birds - got a 64 Convertible to work on one day - I love the whole Space Age-ness of it - the details on hte dash and the wrap-around seats in back.
What's not to love?
61-63's are really cool too - love them convertibles

[Commish]

Always wanted a 61, have not got one yet. Did have a red 69, 360hp 429 c. i., black interior. Kind of regret selling it.

[ClearSpot]

Nice recent reissue from AMT

http://round2models.com/models/amt/6...erbird/product