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1968 Ford Thunderbird Hardtop (1/25)
Issued in 1968 and Made in USA
After choosing this kit, for its incredibly beautiful box art, as one of the flagships on our homepage, ironically, we rarely come across them. This particular one is a gem still in good condition from almost 50 years ago but has a fair box. Most of the parts are on the trees, and the chrome is bright. We sealed a few loose parts inside and resealed the box for protection and care.
If you ever had the opportunity to ride in or drive one of these big thunder chickens, you would remember how powerful and fast off the line they were. One of my friend's dad's, with a heavy foot, had one, a four door, and it took off like a rocket ship. More about the first of the fifth generation T'birds below.
The fifth generation of the Ford Thunderbird is a large personal luxury car that was produced by Ford for the 1967 to 1971 model years. This fifth generation saw the second major change of direction for the Thunderbird. The Thunderbird had fundamentally remained the same in concept through 1966, even though the styling had been updated twice. The introduction of the Ford Mustang in early 1964 had, however, challenged the Thunderbird's market positioning. It, like the Thunderbird, was a small, two-door, four-seater with sporting pretensions, but it was more affordable. The Thunderbird's sales suffered. Ford's response was to move the Thunderbird upmarket.
The 1967 design was radically different from what came before. Ford's stylists delivered a radical shape that in many ways anticipated the styling trends of the next five years. A gaping wide "fishmouth" front grille that incorporated hidden headlights was the most obvious new feature. The look was clearly influenced by the intakes on jet fighters such as the F-100 Super Sabre, and was enhanced by the flush-fitting front bumper incorporating the bottom "lip" of the "mouth". The sides were the barrel-like "fuselage" style that was very popular during this period. The belt line kicked up "coke-bottle" style after the rear windows, again a styling trait that would prove ubiquitous. Large C-pillars (and a small "formal" rear window on the 4-door) meant poor rear visibility but were the fashion of the time. The taillights spanned the full width of the car, and featured, as in previous Thunderbird models, sequential turn signals.
The 1968 Thunderbird saw the introduction of the new 385 series big-block 429 cu in (7.0 L) V8 engines. Like most Ford motors of the time, they were tuned down to 360 hp for insurance reasons. The Thunderbird motors also got special treatment with wedge style heads, making a significant power increase over their conventional headed brothers. These motors made the cars some of the quickest and fastest ever produced, despite their larger size and heavier body on frame construction. 1968 and 1969 model years saw minor trim changes respectively.
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