In 1955 Ford introduced the Thunderbird with the sole purpose to beat Chevrolet's Corvette. The Thunderbird beat the Corvette senseless. Ford sold 23 T-Birds to every Corvette. It was hardly a contest. The Thunderbird beat the Corvette through a combination of comfort as well as performance. It would be considered the first “personal luxury car”. In the past luxury automobiles had to be large sometimes chauffeured vehicles. With the T-Bird, luxury became personal and fun.

1957 was the last year of the first series Thunderbird. It was also the last of the two-seater Thunderbirds for over forty years, no doubt, much to the relief of Chevrolet. The style of the '57 was revamped with more pronounced tail fins, larger tail lights, revamped bumpers and grill. Ford offered a variety of V-8's with letter designations C, D, F.

The car offered for auction has the “D” 312 cid 245 hp motor found in most '57's. It is attached to a Ford-O-Matic transmission with power brakes and steering. The color is Willow Green. It is a numbers matching vehicle with 3,000 miles since restoration. It has been owned by seller for fifteen years

* 312 cid 245 hp “D”

* Automatic transmission

* Power brakes and steering

* Nut & Bolts restoration

* Matching numbers

ESTIMATE: $55,000 - $70,000