convertible boot

[ktEdsel]

With the boot stored in the trunk, there's no room left for luggage. I'll be taking my BlueBird on a trip to Death Valley next week. It may be a cool drive from Los Angeles so the top will probably be up. But on our daytime sightseeing trips in the park we'll probably want the top-down experience. So I guess the boot stays home so that we can fit our small bags in the trunk. Too bad, the Thunderbird looks so beautifully finished with the boot installed. I'm thinking of having my upholstery shop fabricate a less bulky black vinyl boot that could be rolled up and stored in the forward recess of the trunk. It won't be as robust as the factory boot, but I can't think of a better way. Has anyone else dealt with this quandry?

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[gammonj]

I have only had mine a few days, but I feel the same way. I was not worried about a small trunk, since my wife and I have been taking long motorcycle trips, we're light packers. When I saw the room the boot took up, I was disappointed. If anyone comes up with a substitute, let us know.

gammonj
6504

 

[DavidA]

gammonj: We ride a bike too. What do you two ride? We have a Gold Wing and ride almost every weekend. Might be fun to meet sometime with the cars or the bikes!


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#1429 Black Premium with Full Red Interior.

 

[Gobird]

I know no one has talked about this and maybe it wouldn"t look good on the New T-Bird, but has anyone thought about a luggage rack on the trunk lid. I have one on my 73 MGB and one on my 69 Vette. Just a thought,but we would have to find someone who would produce a good quailty rack for these cars.

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Blue on Blue Prem. STILL WAITING Ordered in Jan. 7of12
69 Vette
73 MGB
97 F-150
2-Seadoo Jet Skies
a dog a cat and a couple hundred fish in my pond
Got Vin. 109293

 

[yellowwing1]

Gammonj, another biker, yahoo. You and Davida look like you are close in the same state anyway. I'd love to ride with you but too far away, and the Bird wants to be driven.
The top cover (boot) is a challenge to us all I think. What will we do on the Rt 66 Tour??

 

[LON O'CONNELL]

I think Paula would be the expert in this field. Paula & her friend Julie traveled 2/3 of the way across the United States with the boot, removable hard top storage rack, two weeks worth of clothes & souviners all in her new T-Bird. If they can do that we can surely be able to do the same thing especially when we have the luxury of leaving the storage rack at home.

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Yellow/Yellow Prem. 02 Bird w/full accent
1999 F150 Super Cab 4x4 Off Road
1998 Taurus SE Sport 24V

 

[rlstonejr]

paula obviously doesn't pack like my wife !!

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[pbocciardi]

Well, it was certainly a challenge, BUT indeed we got an awful lot of luggage packed in that trunk! What we did was use the space INSIDE the curl of the snapped-up boot. All our clothes were in pliable duffel bags -- not suitcases -- so we were able to stuff things inside the boot. It's amazing how resourceful you can be if necessary!

 

[ktEdsel]

Paula,

Perfect solution for s brief trip!

 

[gammonj]

DavidA & Yellowwing1

I ride a HD Dyna Wide Glide, but I have ridden all makes over the last 35 years of m/c riding. I had a '94 Goldwing and matching trailer; the Rolls Royce of touring bikes. My second childhood kept pulling me back to the type bikes I rode in my youth. Arthritis slowed my riding up a bit, so I opted to mix it with convertibles. Maybe we can get together on two or four wheels! Both are fun, now that I have my red bird.

 

[fdthird]

Is the T-Bird's boot like my Mustang's...hard center with soft sides? The Mustang's is very hard to get in the trunk as it just bairly fits into the opening.

As a solution, I discovered that Ford Parts had what they called a mini-toneau cover. Its a vinyl cover that covers both the boot area and the back seat. All you have to do is replace the 8 trim screws in the trunk with screws with snap heads on them. The cover then uses these and connects to the car with no additional modifications. You see nothing out of normal on the car and since this boot/toneau is vinyl it folds up nice and small into the trunk.

We used it last summer for a 4 day trip down to the Jersey shore and it was the perfect solution for a bootless convertible (also a way to make me feel I was driving a 2 seat Ford before I get a chance to get my T-Bird - when ALL the kids get out of college!!!).

Perhaps Ford (or someone else) will produce something similar for the T-bird.