My wife thinks I love all old cars simply because they're old. That's not true. If it were, I'd appreciate Nash Ramblers, Studebakers, Saabs made before the 900 came out in 1978 and the Volvo 444. So, you see, dear, I don't like all old cars. However, when I do love an old car, I love it completely. And unconditionally.
Sigh. What a beaut. I love Ford's gigantic '60s Thunderbirds coupes so completely and unconditionally that I can look past those dreadful "Landau bars", vinyl roof and finned wheel covers. Love has a way of making you see past imperfections almost to the point where we can find them endearing. Almost. I hate those darn Landau bars. Yeccch. Everything else on this beast is eye busting awesome.
My older son is smitten with older cars but just like his old man, not all of them. He's not model or make specific much like his papa so there's no senseless grand standing about a Chevy over a Pontiac or Dodge or in this case, a big ole Ford. He just likes cool cars. And that's old and new. Because cool is cool. And cool, from what I've gathered during my time on this sweet earth is not only universal, it's timeless. My son approves of the '67 Thunderbird. Big time. He's 16. There's no one more in touch with what's cool and what's not cool than a 16 year old.
The all-new-for-1967 Thunderbird was the last great Thunderbird. Sorry---I should be more specific---the two door Thunderbird was the last great Thunderbird. Yeah. There was a four door version of this car that was horrible. Updates to the '67 for '68 and '69 were fussy and pointless and Ford went off the rails with the 1970 update. Forget about anything after 1972. However, for a very brief 1967 model year, all was right with the world.
Makes me wonder if they just got lucky when they came up with this design. It happens. It happens in movie making, music making, art and science....winning the lottery. You name it. I for one would rather be good than lucky. Anyone can get lucky. The good get lucky too. Thing is, good is forever and the good will get it done more often than the lucky ones. Throw in luck for good measure and you've got yourself the potential for a winning streak.
Just like with anything, Ford's winning streak, didn't last for forever. The only thing that does last forever is cool.
Cool is timeless.
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