1980 Ford Thunderbird

The eighth generation of the Ford Thunderbird is a personal luxury coupe that was manufactured and marketed by Ford from the 1980 to 1982 model years. Introduced to commemorate the 25th year of the Thunderbird, the eighth generation was substantially downsized, transitioning further into the mid-size segment. For a second generation, the Thunderbird was the Ford counterpart of the Mercury Cougar XR7; while the Cougar again served as the mid-size Mercury line, the Thunderbird was offered solely as a two-door personal luxury coupe.

The Thunderbird had a unibody construction and was built on the Fox platform. It shared its chassis with the contemporary Mercury Cougar XR7 and Lincoln Continental.
The car had MacPherson strut front suspension and a four-link live rear axle, while both front and rear axles had stabilizer bars. The braking system featured front disc brakes and rear drum brakes.

The classic had a 4.2-liter V8 engine that boasted 115 hp and a more powerful one developing 131 hp, a 5.0-liter V8 unit offered as optional. Both engines were paired with a 4-speed automatic gearbox.
Late in the 1980, a new engine with 6 cylinders was offered, developing 88 hp. It was a 2.3-liter paired with a 3-speed automatic transmission and the same engine was mounted on the Ford Fairmont and Granada.

For those who prized leisurely cruising and comfort over raw acceleration, the Thunderbird was still a fine chariot to own.  Granted, it was smaller in every dimension and now advertised as a four-passenger vehicle, unlike its five (or more)- passenger predecessors.  Then again, how often did a Thunderbird actually carry more than two passengers?

This Thunderbird generation has some obvious and distinct shortcomings, but mechanical and structural integrity are not among them. So why didn’t these Thunderbirds begin to approach the success of the previous generation?  One factor was the sales-stifling economy of the early 80’s, which hurt the entire auto industry.