opinions on t-birds

DrSmith · Jul 29, 2008

As odd as this sounds, I'm looking for my winter car. I so love my 06 gt, that I am really getting to hate the winter. I am looking for something fun to drive in the maine winters. If I find the right mustang I'll buy it, but I just came across a 93 t-bird. It is low miles and looks good, but is auto, I'd like a stick. Were these good cars? I had a friend with an 80's version, turbo I think. On e-bay someone mentioned a t-bird that came tricked out from the factory. I know nothing about these cars, as these were the years my head was in the books and I was driving every other piece of crap I could afford. I know these cars are not practical for the winter, I'm not going to give up my truck for the deep snow, I just want something fun to drive most winter days.
advice and feedback are welcome.
Doc

walter · Jul 29, 2008

There were two performance T-birds in the 80's and 90's.

The Turbocoupe which is what your friend has is basically the T-Bird's version of the SVO Mustang.
The Supercoupe with the 90's bodystyle is a 3.8L Supercharged V6 performance model recognizable for the body kit and wheels.

Never really heard anything good or bad across the model line only thing I heard though is that the 4.6L models aren't quite as easy to mod as the contemporary Mustang's 4.6L engine was.

ranger04 · Jul 30, 2008

The thunderbirds were cool cars, my son had an 88 black t-bird turbo coupe, it had the turbo charged 2.3 lima 4 cylinder that made 190 hp and 5-speed manual trans. You could get them with all the trimings, like leather, hot stereo, moon roof. They came standard with 4 wheel disc brakes and posi 8.8 rear. The 89 super coupe had a super charged V-6 and manual tranny option.. The most manual tranny t-bird were sold in 89, they decreased every year after that untill 96. So the earlier in the 90's you go, you'll have the best chance of getting a manual super coupe. The 96 super coupe had the most power, it was 240 hp I believe, somewhere around there. The 89 was 200 or 210 hp , I forget for sure. I love thunderbird, they were cool cars. In 02-05 you could get the 2 seat t-bird like they made in the 50's with removable hard top. I hope ford brings it make.

tr7driver · Jul 30, 2008

I had a 88 coup with the stock V6. It was a little underpowered. It was an excellent car with no problems at all. I drove it for 10 years with no repairs at all, but it did start to rust out pretty bad by then. Not too bad in the snow either.

TGJ · Jul 30, 2008

There was NO factory Super Coupe in 1996. The last ones were 1995 models. If you can find a 94 - 95 5 Spd Supercoupe, that would be the best one. I would not buy an SC older than a 92. There was 3 generations of Super Coupes, 89 - 91; 92 - 93; and 94 - 95. There was power increases and differences between each one. The 3.8 SC was the only ones of the MN12( 89 - 98 TBirds/Cougars/MarkVIII ) to get a manual transmission.

They did not come standard with 4 wheel disc brakes and Trak-Lok 8.8 Diffs, they were options...

One of my toys is a 1996 Thunderbird LX Sport. For long drives, I still prefer it to my 2005 Mustang GT...

ranger04 · Jul 30, 2008

Yeah, I didn't remember for sure when the super coupe run ended or even what year the t-bird ended. I knew it was around 96 or 97, some where around there. Thats the funny thing about getting old, it seems like yesterday you could buy a new super coupe, in reality, it's been over 10 years, "boy" does time fly with age. I can't even remember when the 2 seat t-bird ended production, I think it was 2006. At anyrate, the thunderbird is timeless a real class act in all of it's forms. 2 seat, back seat, convertable, super coupe, turbo coupe, they were all gorgous cars, to me they werer classic the day they rolled off the line. My only t-bird was an silver 1980 with a 302. I hot rodded it, very cool car when I got done with it.

Satin Silver GT · Jul 31, 2008

A friend had a 6 cyl T-bird in the mid 90's. He always said it was very poor in snow.

TGJ · Jul 31, 2008

Up until 2005, my 1996 Thunderbird has seen Calgary Alberta and Regina Saskatchewan winters. It never had a problem in the snow with a good set of winter tires on it. I used to also have a 1990 Thunderbird 3.8 V6 that was a winter beater as well, it had no issues as well with winter tires.

GOLDENPONY · Aug 3, 2008

T-Bird

Not exactly in line with this thread, but I just wanted to say the newest T-Bird is the best looking car Ford ever sold. If it had been available with say 325 HP and a nice 6-speed manual along with a performance suspension, there would be one in my driveway right now instead of a Mustang. I love the car.

I do love my Mustang though!

The Fang · Aug 3, 2008

The only T-birds `I liked were the ones from the mid 70s with 351windsors. I also likes the LTD II's then.

Five Oh Brian · Aug 5, 2008

I owned a 1988 T-Bird Turbo Coupe a few years back. Came from the factory with 205 hp, 5 speed manual, 3.73 limited slip axle, 4 wheel disc brakes with ABS, leather, moonroof, etc. Motor Trend magazine ran a top speed article that year to see which American built car had the highest top speed and the Turbo Coupe won, beating the Corvette, F-body twins from GM, 5.0L Mustang, etc.

I also owned a 1993 T-Bird LX 5.0L Sport about 10 years ago. 205 hp 5.0L V8 with 285? lb ft torque, AOD trans (yuck!), and I had 4.10 gears and a traction-lok carrier swapped in. Also had 3" flowmaster dual exhaust and that car sounded mean! Too bad it only ran low 15's in the 1/4 mile. Had the factory chromed fan blade wheels that looked almost identical to the 1993 SVT Cobra wheels. Car was a nice, comfortable daily driver with room for 5 and a big trunk. Sure wish Ford would make something like it again, but with more power.

With good winter tires, T-Birds make good winter cars.

ranger04 · Aug 5, 2008

I would love to have a black 88 turbo coupe. I would swap out the 4 banger for a 302 or 351. The turbo 4's are cool and all, but you can't get the sound from them like you can from a V-8. A turbo coupe with a 5-speed and an FI 302 would be awesome. Actually, that sounds like a good project. A few years ago, turbo coupes were a dime a dozen, but now they are going up in value unless there total junk. I use to see some nice ones for sale for around 1,200 to 1,500$ bucks, now there 4 and 5,000$ bucks.

orange 07 · Aug 9, 2008

I had five different T-birds
84 3.8
84 turbo coupe
84 5.0
2 90 35th ann super coupes
The modded turbo coupe ate many mustangs and the one of the super coupes got road raced and did quite well, much better chassis than the stangs of the same time.

klaw · Aug 9, 2008

I have a '95 T-bird with 180,000 miles on it. We get winter about 8 months out of the year here so alot of those miles were winter miles. As many have said, with good winter tires they're fine. The rear wheel drive and heavy nose makes them a bit sluggish in deep snow but they're easy to drift on ice with the rear wheal drive. Depends on your driving talent though. My son drives the '95 now and loves it. We're gearing up to drop an '07 Mustang GT engine and 5-speed in it as the 4.6 2V is getting pretty tired. Hope to post some pics/info on that project over the next year.

DrSmith · Aug 10, 2008

thanks for all of your replies. I am going to wait and see how low I can get this 93 for, I don't really want an automatic. Sad that I'm already thinking of a winter car. I guess that shows how much I love driving my mustang, I'm already dreading puting it away. Two years ago winter started in late December (well snow and salt on the roads), maybe I'll be blessed with another late start....
Thanks dudes,
Doc

Mr_Q · Aug 10, 2008

The '87 and '88 Tubrobirds are a blast and easy to maintain and get lots of fun out of. Good fuel econ and reliable.

The MN12 Birds, specifically the supercharged (Super Coupes), are A NIGHTMARE. Working on them is some kind of evil joke from Ford. They do have a MUCH better chasis, yes, but the powertrain is POO. PASS!

The Fang · Aug 11, 2008

Mr_Q said:
Working on them is some kind of evil joke from Ford.

LOL, Thats funny cause thats the way I feel when I look under the hood of some cars these days.

Gearbanger 101 · Aug 11, 2008

Are you dead set on the T-Bird? The Cougar is exactly the same car, save for the differences in the grill and rear body lines of the vehicle.

I hear they can be made pretty quick with the right mods.

DrSmith · Aug 11, 2008

No, I never thought of an older cougar. Do they come stick? I would be interested in one, I'll start to look. Thanks for the tip. I just want something fun to drive in the winter, my truck is getting rank, and I don't want to put money into it.
Thanks again,
Doc

ranger04 · Aug 12, 2008

If your dead set on a stick, your gonna have to get a super or turbo coupe. There the only t-birds with a manual tranny. There were no manual cougers in the rear wheel drives unless you go back to the 60's and 70's. The front wheel drive couger they made a couple of years ago had the manual tranny option.

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