The graceful new 1957 version of this fresh American favorite was full of surprises…even for veteran Thunderbird aficionados. It provided further refinements on one of the world’s truly respected and elegant cars.

By 1957, Americans were beginning to quench their thirst for horsepower in the post-war era. Eight-cylinder engines from both Ford and Chevrolet seemed to be gaining horsepower by the year, with each company vying to have the best powerplant. Chevrolet offered fuel injection in the Bel Air and Corvette for the first time that year, while Ford introduced a supercharger option for their passenger cars, which sent was a very exclusive option for the latest and greatest “T-Bird.”

This new car was nicknamed the “F-Bird,” for the letter F in the chassis designation, which signified the presence of a McCulloch/Paxton VR57 supercharger that was fitted to Ford’s existing 312 cubic inch V-8 engine which also featured a hot cam, a Holley four-barrel carburetor, and unique cylinder heads, to keep the compression ratio at a reasonably sound 8.5:1. It produced 300 horsepower and transformed the Thunderbird from a luxury cruiser into a car that could handedly put Chevrolet’s fuel-injected models in its rearview mirror. Either a manual or automatic transmission was available. All of this was a $340 factory option package on top of the ’57 Thunderbird’s $2,944 base price, but to the lead-footed T-Bird owner, it was worth its weight in gold.

This exhilarating F-Bird formerly belonged to Lee Harrington, and it is reported as having a very correct frame-off restoration with proper “OK” stamps and window etchings. It is beautifully executed on one of the most highly-optioned examples that one can find. The F-Bird is offered from a private collection and is presented in Thunderbird Bronze (Code Q), a one-year-only color offering and has a matching bronze interior with a padded dash. Among its highly optioned features are a three-speed manual transmission with overdrive, rare power seat Dial-O-Matic four-way adjustment option, rare gauge cluster for the supercharger boost, electric windows, AM Town and Country radio with central trunk antenna, fender skirts, factory “Turbine” wheel covers, wide whitewall tires, both removable hardtop and soft-top, jack, spare and unspecified documentation.

Of the 21,380 Thunderbirds produced in 1957, approximately 211 F-Birds were produced, making them the most sought-after of their breed.

The following year, the Thunderbird became a four-passenger “personal luxury car,” and the supercharged engine faded into memory after only one season. Today, the token number of F-Birds built is deeply desired by Thunderbird collectors who want only the very best.