10 years ago, Ford made its final Thunderbird - Boston.com
Ford was in a rush to catch up with General Motors, which developed the first American sports car in 1953, the Chevrolet Corvette. According to Ford’s website , the initial plans for a T-Bird featured: “A two-passenger, canvas-topped open car that ‘would make maximum use of standard production components. Check out Ford’s most iconic cars and trucks. Ford says the model broke the mold of boxy sedans, creating a worldwide shift in car design. It may not be a “classic,” but the Taurus got Americans to continue buying Ford in a flailing American car industry. GT: In 2004, Ford unveiled the GT as their premium sports car, inspired by the GT40 race cars that were popular in the world’s oldest endurance sports car race “24 Hours of Le Mans” from 1966 to 1969. Luckily, this model was three inches taller... You know, so people could actually get into it. Sadly, the Ford GT was only produced for two short years. Alden “Gib” Giberson, a young stylist for Ford offered the winning name, Thunderbird. A southwest native, Giberson said he took the name from the Thunderbird of Native American mythology. Source: www.boston.com
