1970 Ford Thunderbird

The name 'Thunderbird' was derived from southwest American Indian lore for a mythical bird glimpsed only briefly in the clouds and responsible for thunder and lightning, a symbol of power, speed and good fortune. The Ford Thunderbird was created in response to the Chevrolet Corvette, but watching it falter in popularity and sales, the Thunderbird was set on a new path as a radically different personal car. It had an all-steel body rather than fiberglass, a new and powerful V-8 engine rather than an old-fashioned 6-cylinder, a well-fitted cloth top with a hardtop optional rather than Corvette's cloth top, and roll-up windows with power assist optional rather than plastic side curtains. While the Corvette was initially only offered with a 2-speed autoshifter, the Thunderbird was made available with a manual 3-speed or optional Ford-O-Matic. Priced at nearly $600 less than the Corvette, the Thunderbird sales were an immediate success, with 16,155 units sold in its first year compared to 315 in Corvette's first year and 3,640 in its second year.

With each succeeding generation, the Thunderbird grew both in equipment and stature, in keeping with contemporary trends. The original convertibles were replaced by much larger 'Square Birds' of 1958 to 1960, followed by the 'Bullet Birds' of 1961-1964 and 'Jet Birds' of 1965-1966. In 1967, the fifth-generation Thunderbird brought the second major change in the car's design direction since its introduction in 1955. The Thunderbird had remained fundamentally unchanged from 1958 to 1966, offering buyers a sporty two-door coupe or convertible with two-rows of seating. Since the Thunderbird and the newly-introduced Mustang were competing against each other for sales, Ford management decided to move the Thunderbird upmarket into Lincoln territory. The prior unibody construction was replaced with body-on-frame construction with rubber mountings between the body and frame, the convertible body style was eliminated, and a four-door model joined the lineup. It grew in size and received more luxurious appointments, earning it the appropriately nicknamed 'Glamour Bird.'

Among the most distinguishable features found on the 1970 Thunderbird was its new front fascia highlighted by a prominent projection resembling a bird's beak that was in line with long angular lines in the hood. It continued to use the sequential turn signals of the prior year, along with full-width tail lamps, although now with an inverted 'U' arrangement. A single horizontal line ran along the mid-section of the body.

The two-door body styles rested on a 114.7-inch wheelbase platform while the four-door Landau had a 117.1-inch wheelbase. All body styles measured 215 inches in length. The wheelbase sizes were similar to the previous year, but the length had increased and the entire car was lower. Body styles remained the two-door hardtop, two-door Landau, and four-door Landau. Prices increased by approximately $150, with the hardtop having a factory base price of $4,960, the 2-door Landau at $5,100, and the 4-door at $5,180. The 2-door Landau was the most popular with 36,847 units produced, followed by the four-door with 8,401 and the hardtop at 5,116 examples produced. Options included air conditioning, cruise control, AM/FM stereo radio, AM radio with 8-track tape player, Brougham interior package, six-way power seats, power side windows, and the Limited-Edition Fiera Brougham optional package priced at $304.

by Daniel Vaughan | Sep 2020