1987 Ford Thunderbird LX review from North America

Hard Starting when Purchased.

Acceleration was sluggish and there was a wicked and sometimes violent shimmy and shake when the gas pedal was pushed 3/4 of the way down.

Both Problems were solved when I installed a new Fuel Pump.

Paint on roof faded due to Arizona Sun.

Water build up from A/C condenser was spit back into passenger cabin when I first bought car.

At the time, the A/C wasn't working well either.

After cleaning out a small Tube on the firewall, the water problem never happened again, and air works great now.

Could use some softer shocks IMO, but for some, a stiff ride is a good ride.

This is the Third 87 Thunderbird I've owned in the past year. My first was a Base model with the 3.8l V6. It got me where I needed to go, but it had some cosmetic damage to it's grill area which didn't look to good, and it's engine seemed underpowered. Don't get me wrong, it ran good, but I thought I could do better.

In December 2005, I purchased an 87 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe with Automatic transmission. It was perfect other than the fact some paint was chipping off the bumper and it's transmission was slipping badly in every gear. I sold the v6 T-bird in late January 2006 for $800. I used that money to have the tranny rebuilt. After that, the car was fine. However, beginning in the Summer, I felt like the car was underpowered. It just wasn't what I expected it to be. On top of that, the Air Conditioning wasn't as cold as I thought it should have been. Those two reasons led me to sell the car in Late June of 2006. The very same day, I purchased the car I currently own.

This 87 Thunderbird is the LX type. It's fully loaded, with the exception of the Moon Roof. It's equipped with the 5.0 Litre V8 engine, which for my money, is the best powerplant I've had in all three T-bird's.

The HP ratings may not show it, but it feels much faster than the V6 or Turbo. The torque has a lot to do with that. You really do feel yourself pushed back into the seat when the engine is gunned.

It hasn't happened often, but every once in a while, on a Saturday night, while cruising up ol' Speedway Blvd here in Tucson, you'll get a punk in a riced out Prelude that pulls up to you at a stop light and starts reving his engine like an idiot. There's nothing better than seeing the look on the offending guy's face when he's smoked by an 80's T-bird, or what in their eyes must look like a Boat.

The interior is in great shape and all the electronics work fine.

This is by far the best of the Three T-birds I've owned. Even better than the Turbo.

It's nice to only pull about 2k RPM's when doing 75 on the freeway. I never get that feeling like I'm damaging the engine in this car like I did with the 4cyl Turbo.

It's not the fastest car, but it's enough for me. The engine is reliable as a brick, the interior is plush, and to boot, it looks way better than any MN-12 T-bird, let alone some Fox Mustang.

I'm keeping this car as long as I can. If I'm right, you'll be seeing it at a Barrett-Jackson Auction in the not too distant future. Just wait an see.

A+++++ for this 87 Thunderbird!