Near Disaster: The 1977-79 Ford Thunderbird ("Torino Bird") Was Nearly A Flop!

Learn more about the design of the 1977-79 Ford Thunderbird and take a look at this awful proposal!

[@brandonzilka1274]

These were very nice cars in their time. I remember seeing many of them on the road as a kid in the 80's. That interior is so much nicer than 95% of production cars today. I could probably live in the back seat and still be happy. 😂

[@12345682900]

That "basket handle" theme, as many of you know, was simply a "modern" take of the Ford Crown Vic designs of the mid 1950's.

[@mistert7958]

These were the workingman's Lincoln. A little taste of luxury after 30 years of the blue collar grind.

[@Richard4point6]

Well stated.

[@Richard4point6]

Ugly GM features in the proposal.

[@MarinCipollina]

The 1960s Bonneville Brougham was the blue collar Cadillac.

[@Gary7even]

The first thing that popped into my mind when that proposal came up was the 71 Pontiac full-size.

[@unhandleme]

Likewise. And the greenhouse made me think K-car two-door.

[@TomSnyder-gx5ru]

I instantly saw '71 Pontiac also!

[@Michael-lk4oh]

@@Gary7even exactly! Especially with the “Bunky Beak!”

[@alparkranger]

I had a 72 Grand Prix with a horrible yellow paint job. They called it the "Big Banana". Two Panasonic Thrusters in the back seat.

[@bokesnmokes]

I thought of a Caprice taxi cab

[@Michael-lk4oh]

When I was in the fifth grade our neighbor had a silver ‘77 Thunderbird that he was so proud of. One Saturday he had my brother and myself wash the T-bird for him and afterwards he paid us $5 each and drove us to the movie theater to see Grease. Then the following weekend, I washed the car again by myself and took the $10 to the record store and bought the soundtrack double LP album for Grease. My brother hated that music especially the song “Hopelessly Devoted To You” so I would torment him by repeatedly playing it over and over. 😅

[@JEB757]

Love it Michael, I still listen to Oliva (and that other '77 thing the Bee Gees)

[@michaelwhite2823]

Call him and play the song.

[@Michael-lk4oh]

@ several Christmas’ ago I gave him the CD version of the soundtrack.

[@michaelwhite2823]

@@Michael-lk4oh it's not the same as crank calling him and waking him up. 😂

[@Michael-lk4oh]

@ I will do that tonight at 3 am

[@TheEriccurtis]

Still more amazing than any car made currently, I’m 59 years old so I’ve owned several Thunderbirds, Lincoln’s, LTDs Torinos etc.

[@billolsen4360]

Esp the 2-door LTDs of the 70's. The stiffened the old Galaxie frame then added all that sound insulation, it was like having a baby Lincoln.

[@jefweb5043]

Oh man do I love these late 70's "personal cars"... honestly, Cragar S/S wheels and a set of glass packs make this the quintessential car from when I was in junior high. Thanks for the video!

[@rightlanehog3151]

Adam, This was the last Thunderbird worth buying. I believe the Torino-bird followed the Big-bird rather than preceding it. 😉

[@DD-dj4jr]

Correct / this was after the Big Bird!

[@007fredh]

Adam has done that for years he uses proceeded when he really means followed.

[@davidmoney760]

I go back farther. I think the T-bird should have remained a roadster!

[@danielmestric9285]

​@@007fredhproceeded = to follow on, or continue on to the next thing with, not to be confused with precede = appearing before. Adam is pretty cluey 😊

[@GBBIII]

@@danielmestric9285 He says " it pr (o or e) ceded the..." If he meant Pro, "it proceeded from..." would have been correct. I really think he meant "it was preceded by".

[@althunder4269]

I'd take one of these over a modern hard riding SUV any day.

[@richceglinski7543]

I worked with a guy that was a Ford dealer tech in Chicago when these were new. He said that after bad ice storms the headlamp doors would be frozen shut and the vacuum chambers were powerful enough to break the attachment point off the back of the doors when turned on leaving owners stranded without headlights

[@mikebraz25]

Folks were actually supposed to open the hood and use a vacuum bleed off bypass on the driver inner fender toward the washer fluid, so that the headlamp doors would stay open.

[@richceglinski7543]

@mikebraz25 Hey thanks for that information. I guess Ford did think of that. As a former dealer tech they forgot no one reads the owners manual or opens the hood on a new car. 😂

[@Troy_nov1965]

10:06 ? I thought my TV picture went out lol.

[@jimlubinski4731]

I thought the same thing!

[@Troy_nov1965]

@@jimlubinski4731 Yeah i was in kitchen cooking and listening while glancing at the TV ....I looked up and it was black ....I was like UH OH !

[@Stewart_PDX]

I thought the same thing too! All the sudden everything just went black.

[@John....luvoldcars]

A black out .😅

[@85bigGMC]

I picked up my phone thinking the screen stopped working lol

[@turnne]

These were everywhere when I was kid...I think they sold very well

[@jeffrobodine8579]

Thunderbird had a banner year in 1978 selling 352,758 units.

[@khakiswag]

Same here. I had two Aunts that had one. One of them still brings it up, she loved that car.

[@pcno2832]

They had less standard equipment than the '76, which was already de-contented from the '75, so you got the name and little else. Ford was doing to the Thunderbird name what Walmart did to Martha Stewart.

[@MrSloika]

Very popular with Jersey wise-guy wannabes.

[@MrSloika]

@@jeffrobodine8579 Amazing sales numbers for a giant two-door coupe. I think there are only a half dozen coupes available for sale in the US today and all them put together can't match the '78 T-bird in sales.

[@ryansoltess6006]

I do enjoy the front clip swaps of Cougar,T- bird, Torino/Elite on the Ranchero.

[@Johnny_Socko]

Came in here to say this. Ford adapted that front end to the Ranchero, which made it look very formal compared to the more sporty El Camino. As a kid I couldn't decide which one I preferred. (Even though my dad owned an El Camino at the time.)

[@johneckert1365]

And the LTD II

[@mr_gamble_good]

My aunt had a 78 T-Bird. I remember it being so rich and sumptuous compared to the older cars the rest of the family had. We actually drove over the very scary Sunshine Skyway bridge in it.

[@ShadeIsLikely]

I had a new ‘79 exactly like this one…except for the mileage, this car could’ve been mine. I was a junior in high school and my grandfather took me to the local Ford dealer to make my selection. I kept it through college and graduate school. And to this day I wish I still had it. I never had a minute of trouble with it, and it was so smooth and comfortable. I’ve had lots of cars over the years, but that one still holds a special place in my heart…maybe just because granddaddy gave it to me.

[@300guy]

You chose a T-bird over a Fox Mustang?

[@mickcoe2475]

Why...did you sell your T-Bird?!

[@billolsen4360]

I had a dark red '79. Loved it. That orange proposal does look more like a an early 70's Bonneville/GrandeVille.

[@judih.8754]

The two door Fairmont Futura for 1980 was a mini Torino-bird. Basket handle B pillar, and similar taillamps.

[@timothykeith1367]

These were everywhere, often grouped with Monte Carlo and Cordoba. The Fairmont Futura borrowed the rear quarter treatment

[@johneckert1365]

Cordoba 🥰🥰🥰

[@Jack_Stafford]

It's hilarious that they call this a downsized car. The Styling helps it look just as big or even bigger than the one that came before, looked like a Lincoln Mark V in nearly every respect, and they still were very big! ( Even though it is smaller and moved to a smaller platform, they did an excellent job in the transfer!) I remember them and the cougar both standing out as large stylish cars even compared to the truly huge Buicks and Oldsmobiles of the day, it just shows how good styling and careful attention to detail can even make a "midsize" car look big long and luxurious. I mean really, what would you gain by buying a Mark V when you can get a fully loaded Thunderbird for half the price, or get a pair of Thunderbirds for you and the wife LOL 95% of the styling and luxury, just missing a Lincoln hood ornament and a little bit of backseat room that is rarely used anyway. Lincoln should have put the Mark VI on this platform instead of the disastrous one they ended up doing, at least they still looked big and imposing and not comically shrunken. Seeing these T Birds and the Pontiac Grand Prix of the same era with the excellent, distinctive sculpting and styling really stood out to me as a child and is partially what turned me into a car fan. And of course the boat tail Rivs, what pieces of art all of these cars are!

[@turnne]

I bet it was 800-1000 lbs less than its predecessor....this was more Monte Carlo/ Grand Prix in 77 versus Riviera/Toronado like as it had been before

[@Sedan57Chevy]

Love these "what could've been" videos! The first thing I thought when I saw that proposal was 71 pontiac, and not in a good way... I personally really like 77-79 TBird and associated Cougar, although I always chuckle at how minuscule the back seats are in these. The small overall passenger compartment and overstuffed seats really don't leave much space for back seat riders. I think these cars are actually handsome designs that have a good mix of typical ford square styling, with some neat curves like the wheel arches, and other details like the super thin A and C pillars. Some nice family lineage with the Mark V while also still being distinct in its own right.

[@Mustang1683]

My mom had a 77 white Town Landau. I felt like we were rich when we got it. I learned to drive in it. That long nose was so hard to see over but I loved it. Thanks for the memories.

[@jimlubinski4731]

I actually did consider this generation T-Bird beautiful. You and I have completely differing opinions on the '80-'82 T-Bird vs. the Aerobird. The early '80's T-Birds were victims of a recession coupled with interest rates approaching 20% on car loans. I bought a 1980 Thunderbird and went to Pontiac when the Aerobirds came out. Anyway, you always present interesting points on vehicles many of us either don't know or have forgotten. I always look forward to your presentations. I think the styling proposal you showed for the 1977 era Thunderbird looks an awful lot like the Pontiac Grandville.

[@ralphgedney1782]

The last 10mins is a black screen no image.

[@phildavis3105]

At 10:05, the video goes dark, though the audio continues. Might want to look into that. There was a version of this car that was dark blue with tan trim and faux leather luggage straps over the trunk. A friend bought one new. We all thought it was the tackiest car ever.

[@davidspera7548]

Also known as the bondage bird

[@61rampy65]

Yes, I remember those luggage straps. Agreed that it was horribly tacky!

[@anthonym.cardali1875]

That was the "Chamois Package" The Cougar XR7 even had a padded Chamois Trunk Hump.

[@markcollins457]

The colors of these Torino Thunderbirds were unique the color options had some rich choices.

[@rickmccarthy3474]

Thanks Adam for covering this model , I had a 77 that i bought back in the day from a dealer in Tucson AZ . Its one of those (should have kept it cars) like my 68 Mustang and 72 mark 4

[@Thomas-y8r8i]

I had the 1977 T BIRD TOWN LANDEAU edition. BEST car i ever owned ! That plush velour interior was out of this world for seating comfort especially the front armrests ! Those were the days never to be seen again ! LOTS of power under the hood with that top of the line V 8. Only issue that took a while to get used too was turning on cornors.

[@mikekossey6436]

Had a 1970 with that beak and absolutely loved it. Had the 429 thunder jet engine. Now THAT was a car!

[@DanEBoyd]

These cars have their own little niche... I just love those turbine wheels!!!

[@TomSnyder-gx5ru]

Those turbine wheels are great to look at but a pain to clean, need a good long bristled brush to get between each turbine!

[@OhioSawMan]

Or, "Turban Wheels" as Adam pronounces it. Must be a Michigan thing😊

[@Stantonv]

I must have gone blind around 10 minutes in...

[@mbd501]

That’s when it became a podcast, instead of a video.

[@classicforreal]

Blame the mango-Tang-gold of the concept car.

[@unhandleme]

Thought I might’ve been having a stroke. 😰

[@johnfinnerty252]

Same

[@michaelwhite2823]

​@@classicforrealmore like colicky diaper mess.

[@johntamlyn6383]

The brown interior with ‘crushed’ velour is just so seventies!

[@styldsteel1]

It's just so luxurious. Today it's cold hard fire resistant padding. Ho hum

[@ericb592]

My Dad had a '76 Elite, with a 400, sport interior with the center console, floor shifter and tachometer. What a great car, I've always thought this era of T-Birds were just Elite knock offs.

[@steve20118]

Beautiful car! These were popular cars. Saw them on the road everywhere in late 70's through mid 80's

[@sharkinstx]

When I was working my first job in a grocery in high school, our store manager had a brand new ‘77 Thunderbird, triple Dove Grey, loaded, with the 400M engine, the velour interior, and the Polycast wheels.

[@BlackPill-pu4vi]

Even though the 77-79 Thunderbirds weren't advertised as performance cars, the 400M birds were no slouches and could hold their own with any domestic performance car of the time. I remember they drank gas and, because of fuel prices and gas lines, only 6-7% of T-birds were so equipped.

[@ChristonBinkley]

I worked at a grocery store at 16 in 1977. As a bag boy in the day’s when customers drove into the “loading zone”and I placed the purchase into their car. It was a good job to see various interiors of cars I may have never seen otherwise. Later I had a girl friend whose mom had a loaded 1979 Thunderbird. My girlfriend took possession of her 1974 LTD.

[@fp5495]

Born in '73, with a good amount of late 70s memories, and the Thunderbird/Cougar were in just about every other driveway in my area near NYC. They lasted well into the early 80s too. And they came in many different color combinations. Shoutout to the Lincoln triplet, particularly the Bill Blass edition.

[@MarinCipollina]

Thanks for this one, Adam.. Those were popular when new, many were on the streets.

[@kramm9322]

Brother in law had a new one of these... same model with the stainless strip over the roof and the "this car built for" dash plaque. Exceptionally comfortable interior and ride. The kind I wish I could buy today

[@darensamuels5208]

Back in the day I thought this the best looking car on the road! Loved these cars, and the Mercury Cougar version as well. They were really nice cars. The basket handle showed up on the Fairmont Futura and was a great selling car as well.

[@scottguthrie8074]

Always ways reminded me of a working man's Mark 5!

[@gregt8638]

Another reason this Thunderbird sold so amazingly well, was that it cost a lot less than the generation that just preceded it. Examples could be had for almost half as much as the Mark IV / T-Bird of just the year before.

[@mrl22222]

This must have been an early 70's proposal. The bumpers don't really look like they were thinking about 5mph yet.

[@Romiman1]

Also the still round headlights point to early 70s.

[@bobpierce115]

One of the things not mentioned here was that the '74-'76 mid-size Ford (Torino) 'Elite' was in actuality the first downsized T-Bird as much as it was a Grand Prix/Monte Carlo field competitor.

[@tonydziedziak3686]

A lot of bad Windsor 302-351 engines in that platform, l was a victim of that with 5 motors in 8 years with Torino Elite, l was a slow learner!

[@bobpierce115]

@ I'm really sorry to hear that, Tony. Ford should have replaced the first one at no cost to you. When it happened a 2nd time, they should have replaced it with a brand new car for you.

[@OLDS98]

Thank you Adam. You covered it nicely. I liked the design proposal you shared. It was very GM in appearance and you pointed out the cars that shared the appearance. As I named them you said them. I am glad they went a different direction. You can see the parts it shared or got from the Torino and Elite on the interior. This model shared with LTD II and Mercury Cougar. I preferred the Mercury Cougar 1977-1979 from this generation for the styling. It had a lot in common with this Thunderbird. This car was quite successful. It was what came later in 1980 that really did poorly. Thank you Adam.

[@Charlies_Corner]

One thing to note about the gauges on the thunderbird, they are the same on the 76-79 Cougars and the dashboard shell was the same from 74-79 thunderbird, cougar, and Mark series. I think it was done for cost savings.

[@Lasuvidaboy-jp4xe]

The basket handle roof design reminds me a little bit of the mid 50s Ford Crown Victoria.

[@404goldie7]

100%

[@Drchainsaw77]

5:05 Looks like a full-size '71 Pontiac

[@cellpat7392]

U hit the nail dude. Exactly what I had thought about. The 71 Pontiac Bonneville.

[@Alan-lv9rw]

Why can’t they manufacture cars like this today?

[@CSmith-gb1sl]

Because they would rather have you buy a SUV.

[@SurlyriderBilly]

My dad drove Thunderbirds prior to this model. He never really warmed up to this one, I seem to remember him thinking they had cheapened them a bit

[@novaseline4u]

I always liked these TBirds. I did notice even back when they were new that Ford had downscaled the car a bit to make it more affordable. My dad drove one for a bit, and a friend had a 79 for several years, from new. It was a really nice car. One big difference for the 58 - 76 TBirds was that they were on the Continental platform, and built on the Continental assembly line. It shows too, especially on the 60s cars.

[@billsoltys7611]

At 10:08 video goes black. This T-bird has almost the exact dash as the Torino. The difference was that instead of having the round gauges "Frenched" in to a rearward slanting panel, they were set on a flat panel. You could also get the optional sport instrument guage cluster, which included a tach. The sport cluster was just like the Torino's sport cluster, with minimal changes. The interior was almost identical to the Mercury Cougar XR7.

[@matthewsallman1700]

I was in college in the early 80's and one of the guys who lived in the house next door had one of these, as I remember a 1978. I always like that car. The roofline was followed on with the Fairmont Futura. Thankfully we didn't get that styling proposal!

[@rogermason5833]

I actually like the proposed design better than the production car (except for the color). The lower beltline makes it look less formal and sleeker. And I like the simpler roof pillar arrangement. Of course, the lack of a 5 mph front bumper unfairly helps the comparison since the Feds would've required it for real production.

[@texanfournow]

My father was a scientist at the Ford Research Lab in Dearborn and leased a new Ford/Merc/Lincoln every year. In 1978 he leased a triple-jade green T-bird, a very smooth and comfortable car. In 1979 he leased a light blue T-bird, which I was driving when I took my mother to work at Greenfield Village. We didn't get there, because a woman ran a stop sign at high speed and t-boned us. Fortunately, this era of T-birds were quite sturdy and although the car was totaled, my mother and I escaped with no injuries!

[@mikeks8181]

My neighbor owned a 1977. He let his daughter and my sister take it to the Senior prom. They were with the boyfriends and " supposedly " on their way to s friend's house after? The police found it Wrapped around a telephone pole Miles from where it should have been! All Four families in Complete Panic. They showed up the next morning like nothing happened?That was 1985! To This Day none of the four will tell what The Real story was! I'm going to have to have s heart to heart talk with my sister this weekend!

[@johneckert1365]

One of the boyfriends was probably driving, and his girlfriend was giving him some distracting "road head" 😳. Sorry..........

[@mikeks8181]

@johneckert1365 Ha ha! Would not be surprised

[@CarlGerhardt1]

I grew up with these things all over the place, and I think the whole Landau roof/opera window styling theme has aged about as well as the leisure suit.

[@tbm3fan913]

If there ever was a car that lost the plot over it's lifetime it is the Thunderbird.

[@TS-ef2gv]

I worked for a big city Ford dealer in '85-'86 while progressing toward breaking into my intended career and moving on (which soon happened, thank goodness). A T-bird very similar to this one was traded in on a new Taurus or something by an older couple who had owned it since new. It was loaded and in beautiful condition with below average miles. Being a seven-ish year old vehicle of a type not in particularly high demand, the dealership was just going to wholesale it to one of the roving independents who dropped in regularly or send it to the auction, so I could have bought it for what they had given for it on trade (wholesale) plus $100. I was not particularly a big Ford person and I really didn't need another car at that point, but it would have been such a screaming deal on very nice "personal luxury" vehicle that I seriously considered buying it on the spot before it got sold to a flipper or shipped out. I sat in it a while, took it for a drive, and was very tempted, but in the end I was successful in talking myself out of it. I hadn't thought about that car in years until I saw this video.

[@geovanniinusa5973]

I like the revolutionary styling as opposed to the evolutionary styling. It was a good choice to shake things up for 77 as the sales prove. It was the right move at the time.

[@zalanr.2951]

I currently own a 78 overhere in Europe. Fantastic car. Smooth ride and breathtaking styling.

[@mikee2923]

I’m not much of a Ford guy but I’ve always had a soft spot for these Tbirds. When I was a kid these things were everywhere. It seems to me that Ford was following Pontiac’s lead on the Grand Prix. It was GM’s most expensive mid size car through 1975. Prior there were very few bench seat manual window non A/C Grand Prixs until 1976. They dropped the base engine down from the 400 to the 350 and sales of the Grand Prix really took off. 1977 was the best selling model year for the Grand Prix name plate despite the base engine dropping to the 301. Although I’m sure the downsizing for GM starting with the full size cars for 77 and the mid size coming in 78 had a lot to do with it. The big birds were expensive but this generation began the affordable Tbird for Ford buyers.

[@georgewilson1184]

I see Pontiac Catalina headlights 71 / 72 and 1977 Olds Toranado rear window

[@ericluebbers4415]

My mom had a 79 bought new. White with a red interior and red vinyl roof. 302 engine was fine. I bought it from her after high school in 91. Drove it a few years until I slid thru an intersection on a snowy Illinois winter.

[@michaelwitas9482]

The 1972-76 Thunderbirds were sort of a stretched Torino with a bigger standard engine and more standard luxury features. All Ford did for '77 was restyle the Torino based Elite and rename it as a Thunderbird. All these 1972-79 "Torino based" cars (big Thunderbird, downsized Thunderbird, LTD II, Cougar, Montego Elite, etc.) had the same basic chassis and suspension design, regardless of 114, 118 or 120 inch wheelbases.

[@MetalTeamster]

I rode in one of these when it was new. Smogged, strangulated 302 that could barely spin its wheels in gravel. What a joke

[@ronkemperful]

My favorite Thunderbird was my grandmother's 58. It was a four-seater with red leather upholstery, a white convertible. I got to ride around it in the late 1950s Hawaii, sitting in the back seat as a four year old. I asked her many years later what happened to the car and she said that just a year and a half after buying it, it had rusted out from the corrosive salt air of Hawaii.

[@62Madison]

I remember sitting in the backseat of a ‘77 T-Bird, while not as cramped and claustrophobic as a Camaro/Firebird it was not a pleasant experience especially for such a big car. The front overhang on these looks ridiculous.

[@Stewart_PDX]

My grandfather had a '77 T-Bird and yes, for such a large car there was pretty much zero leg room in the back seat. Not a pleasant experience at all.

[@pcno2832]

I suspect that the front overhang was Ford's patchy way of meeting federal bumper and safety standards. It got longer every time the standards got stricter. Ford even boasted about this approach in a "safety car" video kzbin.info/www/bejne/jGPZaWCkjdJ4hq8 . Volvo had no problem meeting the same standards in a compact package, but they had been working on that for years. I've read that it takes 15 or 20 types of steel to design such "crush zones" effectively. Ford seems to have gotten the hang of it by the early 1980s.

[@racefan8595]

They also had the sports instrumentation gauge cluster that really helped the appearance of the dash.

[@daveamo3237]

I remember these cars very well. I was in the service station business at the time, and they also came equipped with enormous fuel tanks. Most of these car owners took advantage of the full service islands. It was fun just walk around these land yachts while washing the windows.

[@stormythelowcountrykitty7147]

I listen to your videos while driving so I didn’t see the video failure until I checked the comments. Great job as always.

[@325xitgrocgetter]

There was some overlap with the larger Lincoln based T-Bird and the Torino based Elite Coupe. I don't recall the Elite being a sales success and seemed to not have a real identity in Ford's lineup. I would consider the Torino based T-Bird more of a heavily revised Ford Elite. You can still see the Torino hard points around the cowl and windshield roofline. Also, Ford renamed the Torino sedan and wagon the LTD II in 1977 which changed up the front and rear treatments to reflect late 1970s design. And at this point, the Mercury Cougar and T-Bird would share platforms until the ended production in 1997. My favorite era of Thunderbird is the 1987 revision of the '83 Aerobird....and I like the Aero Birds because it was a sign that cars were becoming more interesting from a styling and driving dynamic perspective.

[@ricksidenstricker2144]

Another excellent installment of forgotten Ford's. Great job and completely accurate. I have owned several of these cars and I pretty much liked each of them including two 1977 Cougar XR-7's. The ride quality is spot on Fordville, riding a little better than the iconic LTD's of the early and mid 70's, however these T-bird's have far better handling...in my opinion, you can still become sea sick gliding across parking lot's tho. They are all long gone now, My final one was a black 77 Cougar with chamois colored interior....lol...whooo, start passing out the sunglasses.

[@althunder4269]

These were very nice cars for that time. Affordable luxury in a "smaller" package. The Red and White color combo was quite popular on these.

[@mindeloman]

My mom had a 1979 Thunderbird. At 3:54 that gold plate above the glove box was a plate was a personalized plaque that you could send off for. Not sure if you did or the dealer did it. Anyway it said, "This Thunderbird especially made for: first and last name."

[@Thomas-y8r8i]

Still have my name plaque to this day from my 1977 Town Landau T bird.

[@josephherron1343]

love it, glad they went with the version that you showed first, and not the prototype

[@MarkWG]

This generation Thunderbird was never a "near flop." It instantly sold nearly double the previous Mark IV-based generation. All three years, '77, '78, and '79 were all sales successes for Ford. Almost everybody had one in Dallas back in the days.

[@ralphl7643]

The proposed headlights remind me of a quad version of the '71-2 Grand Prix. It looks like there are 4 separate fairings on the hood. What I liked about the production Bird was the gentle curve of the front fender top--a big improvement over the Mark V's straight edges. Too bad they didn't put some curves in the rear and middle.

[@solemandd67]

I like these Thunderbirds with the optional bucket seats, console shifter and moonroof. That design concept definitely reminds me of a Pontiac. Great video.

[@zephyr332]

Cool video! My father had a ‘77 T-Bird! Was white with red interior…SINFULLY comfortable, but he didn’t have it for long unfortunately - this was in Toronto and it was just too much stop n’ go in the city and my father found the big bird was suckin’ too much gas. Plus factoring in our brutal winter weather, and the T-Bird being a heavy rear wheel drive up and down our hilly narrow Toronto streets…yeah it just wasn’t practical as a daily driver for a young working man like my father was at that time. But mum had her ‘83 Mercury Zephyr with the good ole straight 6 so that became the family car. Then later my father would get a white Ford Fairmont…with lime green pint stripes! 😂 Picture it, and the Zephyr was red with white pint stripes and it had the spoke hubcaps. Actually, the Zephyr was a beautiful car in its prime, and my mother ran that Zephyr right into the ground! She had it until 1996 and by that point it was so rotted out the front seat was falling through the floor but that straight 6 was still ticking! It must’ve had a million miles on it - I’m talking road trips across Canada in all kinds of weather, that Zephyr went from province to province.. multiple times!

[@fleetwin1]

Well, I surely see the 1971 Pontiac theme in the front end, but doubt those little bumpers would conform to 5mph standards. The proposal did look strange, but I think with some adjustments it might have looked OK. Was never a fan of the Tbirds with the stupid opera windows, but I guess most of the cars had something like this. And yes, those bumpers on the production Tbird were awful...

[@colibri1]

It always surprised me at the time that this Thunderbird was so popular, because it really did look a lot like other mid-size cars of the time, a lot like its Torino progenitor, even more like its Elite progenitor, a lot like the concurrent LTD II, kind of like concurrent LTDs, etc. It really did look kind of undistinguished to my eye back then. Personally, I preferred the 1972-76 generation. I guess it was just the new generation's lower price that made it more appealing to people.

[@v1-vr-rotatev2-vy_vx31]

Worked on these Fords back then as collision repair Tech,, very easy to work on,, well engineered,, they drove really well... the grill with spring loaded to survive impact...

[@michaelmihalis9057]

Adam,78 Thunderbird,first car I ever bought when I was 15.Academy Ford wouldn’t sell it to me,told me to bring my father.Dad was so proud that he filled it with gas and paid the first year insurance for it. I loved that car.351 Windsor and FMX 3 speed automatic that was adjustable.Mike the Greek

[@LCR]

Both the exterior and interior of this car are so gorgeous! True luxury, beautiful rich styling, and that smooth, big car ride ❤

[@OhioSawMan]

My parents had one of these when I was a little kid. White with burgundy velour interior. I still remember falling asleep in the super soft back seat on the 90 minute ride to my Grandma's house. Not sure which motor was under hood, guessing the 302 knowing my Dad.

[@marymarzulli7895]

If you're going out to the Disco tonight, take the 2 tone 1977 T-bird in rose metallic. Don't forget your Chams de Baron shirt in brown with bell sleeves.

[@TomSnyder-gx5ru]

That rose metallic looked good on these Birds - I remember seeing quite a few that color back then.

[@SquirminHermanthe1eyedGerman]

I had a '79 was baby blue with dark blue interior & a 351 Windsor & I put on true duals with Thrush mufflers! Beautiful car as it was the only Tbird body styles I cared for (Ford is not known for designing good looking cars) but after 63,000 miles it slung a rod blowing the engine & it sat in my yard for a couple of years before a buddy bought it from me for $600 & put in a 351 Cleveland & drove it a couple of years more before his ex went mentally ballistic on it! In the '70s my aunt had one of those butt ugly 1973 models with the 460 ✌💖☮

[@rheetpeeler9401]

Adam, I was hoping you'd do a review of the 77-79 T-Birds as I am a subscriber and really appreciate the level of detail you put into each of your videos. I never heard of the term "Torino-Bird", but that's how I came to owning a '78 T-Bird... I had rented a '76 Torino Elite and really liked it in all aspects. In '77, I saw my first T-bird on that Torino chassis and was hooked on the styling. In '78, I finally bought a dark blue with white vinyl topped one from Hertz's fleet after renting many. I quite liked the sleek chiseled/slab-sided styling, hideaway headlights, v-shaped egg crate grille, handlebar roofline with a rhombus-shaped opera glass, and wall-to-wall tail light treatment. I was taken aback that you weren't "over-the- moon" with its elegant styling, quietness, handsome interior, and smooth ride. That said, I'm generally a GM guy and my wife's '76 Monte Carlo was equally as handsome and handled way better than my '78 T-bird. Thanks for all you do in your well-chosen, well-researched, and well-produced videos of truly classic cars of my 72 yr lifetime. Keep them coming!

[@atikovi1]

You don't need to bring chairs to the car show with that car. The front bumper makes great seating.

[@winstonelston5743]

I worked in the valet garage in a hotel when I was in college and about half the rent-a-cars we saw were either this T-bird or the Cougar equivalent or the LTDII. There was almost no telling them apart, especially since they were almost all painted navy blue with a tan padded vinyl top.

[@bryanpreston3595]

Hearing it called Torino Bird hurts my ears. Bloody Hell... Ive had two 1978 Ford Thunderbirds before. That year is my favorite Thunderbird. I'd never want one from years before that.

[@DrummerPainterDogNutPGH]

In 1977 my older brother traded in his 1976 Mustang Cobra II on a silver base model 1977 Thunderbird. I had a 1974 base model Torino at the time. Other than the fake woodgrain around the instruments, on the T-Bird, the dash was identical. I knew a half dozen people who owned these at the time, and they were very reliable. The other odd thing about this T-Bird and all of its cousins (Torino, Montego, Cougar, Elite) is that in my opinion they were all weirdly good in the snow. They got around better than any other rear wheel drive cars that I drove of that era. I realize that is subjective, but we had a bunch of these and their cousins in our "bubble", and everyone I knew felt a little more comfortable in the snow driving these.

[@kroge007]

That gold proposal rear window looks a little like the 77 Chevy Impala 2 door or even a little like Olds Tornado XS

[@jlab67]

Nice car.. front end feels Lincoln-esque which is not a bad thing. Who doesnt love an opera window? So many references to "Opera' in this period. We were all so sophisticated back then...😂

[@treyreed6203]

I absolutely love the color combo on the one you featured. Just beautiful

[@okc557]

Bought a new 78 and loved it

[@cld2930]

My neighbor had one of these. They purchased it brand new. I used to think it was a very pretty car. They had the same roof treatment with a split vinyl top. The car was 2 toned It was a cross between a baby blue and sky blue. Pin stripped the same way as this one is, but the pin stripe also went around the hump on the hood. The pin stripe, the vinyl top the interior and the lower half of the car was dark navy blue with the main car being that lighter blue. Very pretty.

[@bobdodson8468]

I think the Torino- bird although not the most exciting T-bird it was still attractive for its time.

[@blackdogX13]

I had one that was geared really low with cherry bomb pipes , Crager mags & a 10 inch steering wheel that made the hood look even longer than it already was housing a mighty 400 cubic in V8.…man oh man she roared ! A massive beast that maybe got 10 mpg and this was in '97 ish when gas was $5 plus a gal. She was a monster.

[@TomSnyder-gx5ru]

These, and the new '77 Cougars were everywhere back then - you either had one or somebody you knew had one! I know these were basically refigured Torinos/Elites, but the "tweaks" they did to it I thought put it over the edge. I'd go for the '77-'78 though because in '79 they changed the wall-to-wall taillights into two big blocks separated by the backup light which I thought looked ugly and the '79 grill looked heavy/gaudy IMO! My cousin had a '78 T-Bird Town Landau that had the optional gauge cluster package which I think made for a more attractive dash.

[@tbrdmann]

This was the first T-bird I ever rode in. Loved it. Then, really wanted a bullet shaped, manual 87 Turbo Coup with the hole in the hood. Sadly never got one. Did wind up with a 1994 LX. Got it up to 117 mph on I-20 in between Atlanta and Birmingham. It floated. Sweet car.

[@markwilburn4962]

We had a 78 T-Bird close to this same color. That was the car I learned to drive in. 400 engine and man was this a big heavy car!

[@61rampy65]

My mother had a 77 in that same color. She had traded her 74 T-Bird in on it. The 77 Bird was not quite as luxurious, but it was far nicer to actually drive. She kept that car for a number of years, trading it in on a 85 Mark VII. When you showed the styling proposal, my first thought was 71 Toronado, especially in the headlight area. Then we have the Cadillac grille, and NO park bench bumpers. Glad that one didn't get put into production! And, yes, my screen went black, too!