1964 Ford Fairlane Thunderbolt: Among The Rarest of Muscle Cars
One of the rarest muscle cars ever produced was the 1964 Ford Fairlane Thunderbolt. It was an experimental car created for the sole purpose of winning professional drag races and a NHRA Championship.
Ford only built 100 Thunderbolts, of which around 60 are still known to exist.
The Thunderbolt was a sort of option for the 1964 Ford Fairlane. What Ford did was to remove everything non-essential to the car to decrease weight, including the heater, radio, rear seats, and any sound deadening material. Then it paired the car with a 427cid engine equipped with a high-rise aluminum manifold with a pair of Holley 4-barrel carbs.
The Thunderbolt required major changes to the front suspension for the 427 to fit. It also received heavier-duty suspension mounts. The doors, hood, front fenders and front bumper were crafted from fiberglass (the bumper was changed to aluminum in later cars) and the earliest cars also received Plexiglass side and rear windows.
Standard factory performance equipment included tubular headers, an electric fuel pump, a modified rear suspension with traction bars and asymmetrical leaf springs, a trunk-mounted battery, locking differential auxiliary gauges, special tires and an aluminum scatter shield.
Dealers were not delivered Thunderbolts but had to go to Dearborn, Michigan, if they were lucky enough to be allocated one. To dissuade people from thinking the Thunderbolt was a street car, it featured a disclaimer label under the hood specifying that the Thunderbolt was designed for racing use only.
(photo credit: AutoHunter)
