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Regular Cars Checks out the 2002 Ford Thunderbird

The 11th version of anything is either going to be very good or very bad. If that's a Honda Civic or a Ford F-150, it's good. But if the element in question is Police Academy… not so much.
Regular Cars Checks out the 2002 Ford Thunderbird 1 photo
Photo: screenshot from Youtube
The 2002 Ford Thunderbird is the car everybody wants to look at, but nobody wants to own. Back in its glory days, Chip Foose made a name for himself with a custom version of this roadster. It won every award possible, but the stock car isn't all that amazing.

Even though it's not a modern classic, the 2002 Thunderbird reviewed by Regular Cars is a history lesson. All the modern-retro looks of Chevy and Chrysler vehicles began with the Ford more than a decade ago.

The exterior color of this bad boy is a light metallic turquoise known officially as Thunderbird Blue. The interior features an all-black dash and turquoise accents that are part of a special package.

The only transmission option you could have with the creamy V8 engine was a 5-speed automatic with low gear selection. From 2003 to 2005, they also had a manual mode that allowed you to select the gear you wanted.

As you may have noticed, this Thunderbird has a hardtop. But this isn't your BMW 3 Series rival. To remove it, you need to unscrew a couple of bolts.

In terms of design, the Mk11 emulated everything that made the Mk1 so popular. In a way, it's like the American equivalent of the Fiat 500 or MINI Cooper. Of course, while the Europeans like tiny retro cars, the exact opposite is true in Florida or California.

A 2002 T-bird has a trademark reverse wedge body style, where the body sits higher at the front than at the back, giving a leaned-back look. Other retro elements include afterburner taillights, faux air vents, a hood scoop, chrome wheels and a rakish windscreen.

The chassis is shared with the Jaguar S-Type but shortened by 5 inches between the wheels. Aluminum construction and all-around discs make this a more modern machine, but it's no sportscar.

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About the author: Mihnea Radu
Mihnea Radu profile photo

Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida.
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