1956 Ford Thunderbird Convertible - $48k

48,355 miles. 312/225 HP V-8 engine. Ford-O-Matic automatic transmission. Power steering. Air conditioning. Town and Country AM radio. In-dash tachometer. 4-way power seat. Removable porthole hardtop. Fender skirts. Kelsey Hayes wire wheels. Wide Whitewall tires.

The first generation of the Ford Thunderbird is a two-seat convertible produced by Ford for the 1955 to the 1957 model years, the first 2-seat Ford since 1938. Light weight for its era and fitted with a standard V8 engine, the Thunderbird focused more on driver comfort than speed, and was not a direct rival to either the Corvette or European sports cars. The Thunderbird proved more suited to the American market than the Corvette, with sales of 16,155, versus 674 Corvettes in 1955. The original engine was Ford's 292-cubic-inch OHV 292 Y-block V8. For the 1956 model year, more trunk space was added, with the spare wheel mounted outside. A 312 cu in (5.1 L) Y-block V8 was added as an option. Production total for 1956 was 15,631 units.

This example made $48k at Mecum against an estimate of $50k to $60k.