Of course, this was a premium car, and folks ponying up for a new T-Bird were not concerned with such things. The 429 was dropped and all Thunderbirds now had the 460 as standard, for a less than stellar 11 mpg. Thanks to the new rear bumper, curb weight was up to 4800 lbs. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a 1972-73 Thunderbird with buckets and console. One of the T-Bird’s defining features, bucket seats, were eliminated in 1974. Sales went up again, with over 87,000 Thunderbroughams sold for 1973.įive mph bumpers were added to the back of all 1974 T-Birds to match the front one, with restyled taillights as well. It was initially an option (like on the ’72 Mark), but was also made a standard feature soon after.

It first appeared on the Continental Mark IV in 1972 as an option, was made standard in 1973, and then the T-Bird got its own version that same year. Also new was an opera window in the C-pillar. Thanks to the 1973 federal bumper standards, the ’73 T-Bird got a new nose, with requisite chromed battering ram, new grille, headlights in separate pods, and new, larger parking lamps. The windshield and side glass were identical between the two, and primary differences boiled down to exterior and interior styling. As previously mentioned, the ’72 shared a lot of parts with the Mark. Either way, you could have any transmission you wanted, as long as it was the 3-speed C6 automatic. The 429 CID V8 was standard equipment, with a 460 optional.

Thunderbird 70s