2003 new owner initial thoughts

[Liquidlounge]

Hi All - 3 weeks into T-Bird ownership. I bought a 2003 Coral colored "007" - mostly on a whim. I always thought these cars were a great representation of retro form. The ride and handling have exceeded my expectations, though not by a lot haha.! Other nits and picks: The interior is really a nice place to be although I was expecting to stretch out a bit more (I am 6-3). The final drive ratio is a little shocking -2K+ RPM's @ 60 MPH?! Not sure this would be a great long distance interstate cruiser. I would have figured the 5 speed would have the motor turning slower. The trade off here is while not a muscle car, it does feel very peppy around town. I really like the slight wind buffeting when the top is down. Some newer convertibles are almost too still in the cockpit with the top of the windshield too close to your head, while some older verts will wear you out 20 miles down the road - these Tbirds are about perfect. The car is great looking and interesting to look at. The trunk is even smaller than I expected. Its fun to drive.

I am looking forward to this chapter of my bizarre daily driver cars. I probably check most of the boxes to enjoyably own a car like this. I am above average mechanically and technically and have a car lift which is the fountain of youth when an older guy likes to work on cars! My last car was a perfect black on black 97 Lincoln Town Car that got T-boned and totaled.. I look forward to interacting with you all!

 

[Chip]

Hi All - 3 weeks into T-Bird ownership. I bought a 2003 Coral colored "007" - mostly on a whim. I always thought these cars were a great representation of retro form. The ride and handling have exceeded my expectations, though not by a lot haha.! Other nits and picks: The interior is really a nice place to be although I was expecting to stretch out a bit more (I am 6-3). The final drive ratio is a little shocking -2K+ RPM's @ 60 MPH?! Not sure this would be a great long distance interstate cruiser. I would have figured the 5 speed would have the motor turning slower. The trade off here is while not a muscle car, it does feel very peppy around town. I really like the slight wind buffeting when the top is down. Some newer convertibles are almost too still in the cockpit with the top of the windshield too close to your head, while some older verts will wear you out 20 miles down the road - these Tbirds are about perfect. The car is great looking and interesting to look at. The trunk is even smaller than I expected. Its fun to drive.

I am looking forward to this chapter of my bizarre daily driver cars. I probably check most of the boxes to enjoyably own a car like this. I am above average mechanically and technically and have a car lift which is the fountain of youth when an older guy likes to work on cars! My last car was a perfect black on black 97 Lincoln Town Car that got T-boned and totaled.. I look forward to interacting with you all!

I also recently bought an '03 Bird. Great cruiser and also has more power than I originally thought. No issues so far. However, I've been told by other retro Bird owners to drive them, don't let them sit for prolonged periods of time. That's when the electronic demons start to rear their ugly heads. Only modification I am thinking of is a Borla exhaust. Parts availability is still pretty good considering it is a 20 year old vehicle. You don't see many of these retro Birds at car shows/cruises. Best of luck with your new purchase

 

[doug7740]

I have a 2004 Merlot Thunderbird that I purchased in 2021. My wife and I took it on Route 66 from Chicago to California and back home to Ohio via the northern route. We were on the road 28 days and 6,300 miles. There something about driving a Thunderbird on Route 66, on a sunny 75 degree day with the top down that can’t be described.

Great Cruiser

doug7740
1955 Thunderbird Blue

 

[Liquidlounge]

sounds like a dream trip!

 

[Swampy Meadows]

Liquidlounge:

I recently drove my 2004 Merlot T-Bird nicknamed Tina from Detroit back to New England for my 55th HS reunion. Put 2,000 miles on Tina and she performed flawlessly on both the interstates and back roads. My favorite part of the trip was taking the curvaceous Kancamagus Highway, which traverses through the NH State Forest. You know you are on the scenic route when you pass a sign that says “no gas for the next 21 miles” and they have gates at the lone entrance and only exit for those occasions when it is too snowy to attempt the passage.

Take your T-Bird for a highway cruise. I think you will be pleasantly surprised!

 

[tommyc]

Hi All - 3 weeks into T-Bird ownership. I bought a 2003 Coral colored "007" - mostly on a whim. I always thought these cars were a great representation of retro form. The ride and handling have exceeded my expectations, though not by a lot haha.! Other nits and picks: The interior is really a nice place to be although I was expecting to stretch out a bit more (I am 6-3). The final drive ratio is a little shocking -2K+ RPM's @ 60 MPH?! Not sure this would be a great long distance interstate cruiser. I would have figured the 5 speed would have the motor turning slower. The trade off here is while not a muscle car, it does feel very peppy around town. I really like the slight wind buffeting when the top is down. Some newer convertibles are almost too still in the cockpit with the top of the windshield too close to your head, while some older verts will wear you out 20 miles down the road - these Tbirds are about perfect. The car is great looking and interesting to look at. The trunk is even smaller than I expected. Its fun to drive.

I am looking forward to this chapter of my bizarre daily driver cars. I probably check most of the boxes to enjoyably own a car like this. I am above average mechanically and technically and have a car lift which is the fountain of youth when an older guy likes to work on cars! My last car was a perfect black on black 97 Lincoln Town Car that got T-boned and totaled.. I look forward to interacting with you all!

Like that trunk huh? ? You're right, it doesn't allow for too much. When I was considering a convertible I looked at the Saturn Sky and Pontiac Solstice. Both are still attractive vehicles, but the trunks on those were insanely small. With the top down the trunk was almost completely full. You could fit a small, shaving kit sized bag on either side of the top. That was it. I saw numerous people who had obtained color-matched motorcycle trailers to pull behind these cars just so they could carry some luggage on a weekend getaway. LOL

After seeing this, the retro bird's trunk didn't look so bad. Plus you have a little bit of room behind the seats.

Update: I thought this sounded familiar. Here's a link to a post I did five years ago about this very subject. LOL

Hardtop in trunk- 2005?

I don't have my car delivered to me yet,so this is probably a dumb question, but would the hardtop fit in the trunk? all the way closed or partway with bungi cord holding down trunk lid?

forums.fordthunderbirdforum.com

 

[Liquidlounge]

That link was excellent Tommy! Its good know that most Tbird guys have excellent senses of humor. The OP probably thought that if the Ford Skyliner had the capability to store the hardtop in the trunk, why shouldn't a much newer Tbird? haha

 

[Brax]

That link was excellent Tommy! Its good know that most Tbird guys have excellent senses of humor. The OP probably thought that if the Ford Skyliner had the capability to store the hardtop in the trunk, why shouldn't a much newer Tbird? haha

This was to be a Lincoln mkX prototype the retractable HT should have been done to t birds, shame they didn’t make a few years of these. Maybe they would have fixed many of the issues t-birds had.

Concept Cars That Should Have Been Built: 2004 Lincoln Mark X - MyCarQuest.com

 

[Chip]

Ford has made so many stupid product decisions over the years. The retro T-Bird could have survived if they would have done a mid cycle refresh with a different engine like a HO 5.0 liter and a redesigned/ updated dash, and electronics. Then they could have built a Cougar spinoff for Lincoln/Mercury. Just like now, no mainstream cars, because all they want is electric SUV's/Trucks. The 2 row ICE compact SUV will be gone in another 3 years. Look at the Japanese and Koreans. Continue to offer an array of cars. Whether Ford believes it, not everyone wants an SUV. Today all product decisions are made by "bean counters" not true car people

 

[Brax]

Ford has made so many stupid product decisions over the years. The retro T-Bird could have survived if they would have done a mid cycle refresh with a different engine like a HO 5.0 liter and a redesigned/ updated dash, and electronics. Then they could have built a Cougar spinoff for Lincoln/Mercury. Just like now, no mainstream cars, because all they want is electric SUV's/Trucks. The 2 row ICE compact SUV will be gone in another 3 years. Look at the Japanese and Koreans. Continue to offer an array of cars. Whether Ford believes it, not everyone wants an SUV. Today all product decisions are made by "bean counters" not true car people

Quality problems back then and still today, all the problems with retro birds, you think Lexus Toyota or Honda has these quality problems in 2002 to now cars. I was a ford man for years sorry they cut every corner and don’t care about lasting more than warranty time. Unfortunately retro birds are some of the worst quality fords made, on par with a Taurus. Bean counters not engineers decide quality and the aim is to sell you a new one, sooner rather than later. Sad to see it happen but they dug their own hole

 

[tommyc]

D

Quality problems back then and still today, all the problems with retro birds, you think Lexus Toyota or Honda has these quality problems in 2002 to now cars. I was a ford man for years sorry they cut every corner and don’t care about lasting more than warranty time. Unfortunately retro birds are some of the worst quality fords made, on par with a Taurus. Bean counters not engineers decide quality and the aim is to sell you a new one, sooner rather than later. Sad to see it happen but they dug their own hole

Definitely agree with some of your thoughts. The retro-birds were highly anticipated when they debuted, and they looked cool so everybody heaped on the praise. MotorTrend made it their "Car of the Year" for 2002, but a few years later Car and Driver added it to their list of most embarrassing award winners. Here's an article about that. Has a humorous video embedded also.

The 2002 Ford Thunderbird Is the Car You Always Thought About Owning

Because with the blue paint and the retro looks, it's still "subtle."

www.roadandtrack.com

I owned two Lincoln LS prior to this, and I remember thinking like a lot of people that Ford could have done a better job with the interior. Better quality, and different enough that it didn't look like the LS. You know those moments when something good happens and you have a short "Ah!" moment, immediately followed by a small disappointment or letdown, and you get a subdued "Oh." moment? That was my experience when I first saw a retro bird up-close, then got inside and saw . . . a Lincoln LS interior. And I liked the LS.

But regarding Ford in general, my '04 F150 has about 300K on it now, and the maintenance costs have been reasonable, or what you might expect. That's a place they've proven themselves over and over. I was considering buying a new truck a few years ago, and I asked a local shop owner which brand he thought was best. He pondered his answer for a moment and said, "If you're gonna drive it 100K and then sell it, buy anything you like. They're all that good." But then he added, "When one of my mechanics walks in the office and tells me he has a truck out there with 300K+ miles on it, well . . . it's gonna be a Ford."

 

[Liquidlounge]

I got to laugh when someone has a 20+ year old car and is disappointed in quality issues, interior, etc. Since the advent of the internet, its never been easier to have a good handle on just what you are purchasing. If you are not somewhat of a car guy (or know a good car guy), the retro bird is going to be a little harder to own. Not because it's significantly crappier than other 20 year old cars, but because there are not that many of them AND they came built on a rather uncommon platform. The knowledge base and parts solutions are going to make it a bit harder. The bones of the car are just fine - just get to know and understand the cooling system and keep up with it. The rest isn't that unusual. Forums are great when owning a unique car like these. If you want something easy in an older convertible, then look at the mustang.

 

[J&B]

I have a 2004 Merlot Thunderbird that I purchased in 2021. My wife and I took it on Route 66 from Chicago to California and back home to Ohio via the northern route. We were on the road 28 days and 6,300 miles. There something about driving a Thunderbird on Route 66, on a sunny 75 degree day with the top down that can’t be described.

Great Cruiser

doug7740
1955 Thunderbird Blue

That sounds awesome!

 

[Hiatt Riot]

I got to laugh when someone has a 20+ year old car and is disappointed in quality issues, interior, etc. Since the advent of the internet, its never been easier to have a good handle on just what you are purchasing. If you are not somewhat of a car guy (or know a good car guy), the retro bird is going to be a little harder to own. Not because it's significantly crappier than other 20 year old cars, but because there are not that many of them AND they came built on a rather uncommon platform. The knowledge base and parts solutions are going to make it a bit harder. The bones of the car are just fine - just get to know and understand the cooling system and keep up with it. The rest isn't that unusual. Forums are great when owning a unique car like these. If you want something easy in an older convertible, then look at the mustang.

The 97 SVT I had for a decade had a much better motor and manual transmission that I wish they’d have used in retros, but the cheesy way plastic panels were connected in that reliable pony car was same and compared to the lack of driver comfort in the Mustang, the retro shines. Still you gotta be in love with either one to overlook many price concessions.

 

[thomoz]

I also recently bought an '03 Bird. Great cruiser and also has more power than I originally thought. No issues so far. However, I've been told by other retro Bird owners to drive them, don't let them sit for prolonged periods of time. That's when the electronic demons start to rear their ugly heads. Only modification I am thinking of is a Borla exhaust. Parts availability is still pretty good considering it is a 20 year old vehicle. You don't see many of these retro Birds at car shows/cruises. Best of luck with your new purchase

Mine has a Borla exhaust and it transforms the V8 experience, slightly better horsepower and you have that aural feedback when shifting or accelerating.
I didn't install it, bought mine 20 months ago with it already in place. Even with the hardtop on and windows up the pipes drown out (or clashes harmonically) with some music cd playback.