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Amenities include a lockable center console, power windows, Thunderbird-logo floor mats, lap belts for the front occupants, and a push-button radio.Ī blue three-spoke steering wheel with a chrome horn ring is mounted to a Swing-A-Way column and fronts a 120-mph speedometer and gauges for fuel level and engine temperature. The interior is trimmed in blue (52) with chrome and brushed aluminum trim adorning the dash and door panels. Braking is handled by drums stationed at all four corners. The seller notes that there are blemishes in the paint.Ĭhrome 14″ Kelsey-Hayes wire wheels feature three-eared spinners and are mounted with 215/70 whitewall Firestone FR440 tires. An accident in the 1970s is said to have included repairs to the front bumper and right fender. Features include a power-retractable blue soft top, a Sport Roadster-specific fiberglass tonneau, chrome bumpers, a driver-side mirror, and a single exhaust outlet. The car was finished from the factory in Corinthian White (M) and was reportedly repainted during prior ownership. This Thunderbird is now offered with a clean Arizona title in the name of the seller’s company. Features include a power-operated blue soft top, a fiberglass tonneau cover, 14″ wire wheels, front bucket seats, brushed aluminum and chrome interior trim, power windows, and a push-button radio. Finished in white over a blue interior, the car is powered by a 390ci V8 paired with a Cruise-O-Matic three-speed automatic transmission. It was later owned by musician Richard Carpenter and was acquired by the seller on BaT in April 2021. Needless to say, I didn’t win, but it was a great experience and one reason why the Sports Roadster is special to me.This 1963 Ford Thunderbird is one of 455 Sports Roadsters built for the model year and was originally delivered to Bay Shore Motors in La Jolla, California. I loved going by the store and was excited to see my Thunderbird in the window with all of the other models. All of the models were displayed in the front window for about a month for all who passed by the store to see. Once finished, we took it back to Sprouse-Reitz as my official entry into the contest. I painted it red with black interior, a rather lumpy paint job if I recall, but I thought it looked great. I wasn’t going try spray painting again, that was too risky, so I decided to paint it the best way I knew how: with a small model brush. She agreed to pay the $1.98 for the replacement model kit (I must have begged, cried, or something) and we came out with a ’63 Ford Thunderbird Sports Roadster kit. It definitely was not suitable to enter into a model car contest. Well, things didn’t work out very well with the spray paint and I ended up making a mess out of the Fairlane. I wanted to paint it candy apple red over a gold base coat, so we got the spray paint and I was left to my own devices. Using my allowance that I saved up, I purchased an AMT ‘63 Ford Fairlane kit as my entry. My mom, being the supportive stay-at-home mother that she was, took me (and dragged my two sisters) to the store. Part of the requirements of the contest is that you had to buy your model kit at the store and enter it at the time of purchase. The Sprouse-Reitz Five and Dime store in the local shopping center was having a model car contest and I really wanted to enter. I was 8 years old and had been building model cars on my own for a little over a year. The total number of Sports Roadsters produced over the two model years was 1,882 making these cars rare and collectible today.įlashback to 1963. Just 455 1963 Sports Roadsters were produced. did a color survey of their registered cars in 2010 with the following results:įorty-seven percent of the total production of Sports Roadsters was represented, a substantial amount considering the age of the car! This color was exclusive in 1962 to the Thunderbird and the Lincoln Continental (as Platinum) and not available on any other Ford Motor Company product. I couldn’t find a production breakout by color, but the least popular color according to sources on the web was Diamond Blue with only a handful produced. Nearly all of the first 465 Sports Roadsters produced were built in this color combination with the exception of four, which all had red interiors. The most popular color combination was Rangoon Red with Black vinyl interior. Color choices were:Ĭorinthian White, Rangoon Red, Raven Black, Chestnut, Diamond Blue, Silver Mink, and Sandshell Beige. The Sports Roadster was initially available in 7 different colors, an eighth one was added in early 1962. Ford produced 1,427 Thunderbird Sports Roadsters in the 1962 model year.
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