Starting in 1982, the Ford Thunderbird enjoyed a renaissance which extended through 1997. Here’s an LX model, looking a little worse for wear, from that last year of four-seater T-Birds to date.
This metallic Blue over smog-eaten plastic bumper ’97 has a straight body which looks like it’s done time on a Hertz lot. The miasma that clouds the headlights is common with plastic lens cars of this age. Inside, the mouse fur interior has held up better than the exterior paint has, however there’s no indication of the condition of the mechanicals from the Ace-Is-The-Place For Sale sign.
What it does give you is a price- which is $2,200, and shows just how little these mid-level T-Birds are worth these days. Unlike the SuperCoupe, which had been discontinued a year earlier, this 140-bhp V6 LX has no sporting pretensions, but would provide comfortable and drama-free transportation until age and mileage conspire to make it’s roadability less practical than a final trip to the scrap yard where it will sit in the scorching sun to be picked over like a bloated cow in a pirana-filled river eddy.
That’s not to say these cars don’t have their fans, and with a solid four-wheel independent suspension chassis and handsome coupe body, that is not without reason. So, go ahead and kick its virtual tires, at $2,200 it’s either this, or that 52″ plasma down at Costco.