8/13/2023 0 Comments 2003 thunderbird 0 60![]() ![]() Not a single person who saw the vehicle said they would part with seven hundred hard-earned dollars when the standard black leather looks so much better. For $695 you get Saddle Brown leather seats, gearshift knob, and an insert on the steering wheel. Our fully loaded test car had the optional Saddle Brown interior accent package. Money less well spent is evident when you open the door. It’s something you won’t use everyday, but it is handy in certain circumstances and they only charge $130, so we think it’s money well spent. It works well, especially when you’re in a corner and don’t want a computer mandated shift to upset the vehicle. Our test car had the optional Select Shift transmission which lets you slide the shifter into a separate gate and tap up or down for the corresponding shift. For those readers who live on numbers, the Thunderbird does 0-60mph in 6.5 seconds. Press into the electronically controlled accelerator to pass at 50mph and the 5-speed automatic takes a few more seconds than we’d like to shift down a couple gears, but when it does, 100mph comes up faster than you expected. ![]() The silky-smooth 3.9-liter all-aluminum V8 pulls strong from 2,000rpm on. For 2003 the engine, which is shared with the Lincoln LS sport sedan, received variable cam timing, which boosts power to 280hp at 6,000rpm and 286lb-ft of torque at a usable 4,000rpm. However, canyon carving certainly isn’t what one buys a Thunderbird for. If owners do decide to drive more spiritedly, the tight steering, at 2.7 turns lock-to-lock, and standard traction control will help them keep the Thunderbird pointed in the right direction and shiny-side up. It can’t keep up with a Miata in the hairpins, but it isn’t designed to either. Gorgeous 17” chrome wheels wrapped in Michelin Pilot tires do a nice job of holding the 3,800-pound T-bird to the road. ![]() All four corners feature vented disc brakes with four channel ABS that haul the car down commendably, though the pedal is softer than we’d prefer. Over Michigan’s neglected roads there is still more cowl shake than we’d like but on most roads, most of the time, the cockpit is free of annoying quivers and vibrations. This time machine starts life as a Lincoln LS chassis, albeit a shortened one, which provides the ‘bird with a fairly strong backbone. They call it the Thunderbird, and it’ll take you back through the years faster than you can say, “I need a facelift”. Ford, however, would love to sell you a more permanent solution. These remedies might do the trick for a while, but they are still only temporary. Most every city in the country houses a doctor or twelve that will inject you with Botox, suck your fat out through a tube or prescribe pills that promise to firm up sagging skin. These days people will try anything to turn back Father Time’s clock. ![]()
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