NO RESERVE,SURVIVOR,barn find,rust free,vintage,classic,Tbird,not mustang,camaro

Description

1965 Ford Thunderbird Original SURVIVOR!!
NO RESERVE AUCTIONHIGH BIDDER = NEW OWNER!!
Auction ENDS Sunday February 17, 2019 at 7:00 PM Pacific
If you are interested in buying this car right now and ending the auction early, please call me with your offer to discuss. Thanks, Paul (541) 974-5346
Up for sale in this NO RESERVE AUCTION is a very original 1965 Ford Thunderbird hardtop coupe that has been garage kept for most of its life. The previous owners, my friends Mike and Deborah, had owned this car for over 30 years and it held a great deal of sentimental value to them. They would drive this car sparingly (only 94k original miles) and would use as a classy weekend cruiser when the weather was nice. It was always kept in their garage when not being driven and was truly their pride and joy. They had a floral shop that was outgrowing their business facilities, and desperately needed to come up with additional space for coolers. The garage was the only readily available space, so the decision was made to install the coolers and find a new place for the T-Bird. I have always had an interest in these classic Thunderbirds and made a deal to purchase the car from them about 5 years ago.
This is a very solid rust free car that has not been licensed since 2000. It has been stored inside and was started periodically. The T-Bird's condition shows great care and pride of ownership was given over the years. Sometime in the 1980's it was completely repainted in what I believe was the original Arcadian Blue color. The F code on the ID tag on the door would reflect Arcadian Blue as the original color. The paint job was quality work and the only known body work performed was a dent repair in the driver's side rear quarter panel. There are some paint blisters in the driver's side quarter panel where the paint has lifted from the body filler and has been touched up. This quarter panel is very solid, and is not rusty by any means. There are some small paint bubbles beginning to show in the paint, hardly noticeable and hard to show in photographs, but wanted to point them out to you. Overall, the body is very straight and true. It is super solid and rust free. The paint shows its age but was a quality job. Remember the paint is probably 30-40 years old and not perfect. What I really love about older paint jobs is that one rarely runs into surprises on previous work. Brand new shiny paint looks nice, but if the prep work is not done properly, you will have a hard time being able to tell for the first few years if there are problems underneath. Other than being repainted many years ago, this is a very original car throughout.
One great thing I absolutely love about cars from this vintage is that the automakers took pride in putting out a showpiece when it came off of the assembly line. Lots of chrome trim both inside and out just really looks classy. The exterior trim on this is really nice and pops in the sun. The original fender skirts and hubcaps are really nice. The bumpers are really amazing shape, nice finish and shine. The only spot I see on the bumpers that is not super nice is a tiny ding on the rear bumper below the right rear tail light. (See Pics Below)
This is a "Z code" car that originally came from the factory with a 390 V8, 4 barrel carburetor, and power steering. This is the original motor in the car and it does run very well. The engine fires right up, runs smooth, and is free from any strange sounds other than a slight exhaust leak heard at initial cold start. Very common in a 390 and goes away after engine starts to warm up. The engine does not smoke, has nice power, and runs very smooth. It is dry underneath and I do not see any signs of any fluid leaks. Under the hood, the engine compartment looks original and clean, minor detail work could make this really pop!
HOW DOES SHE DRIVE? The engine fires right up and sounds great. All of the forward gears work and shift, however, I have only driven the car a few times in the 5 years that I have owned it. The last time I drove it I noticed that it doesn't shift into reverse. Reverse is not working at this time and probably will need a transmission rebuild. Again all forward gears are fine and I am sure this would most likely be an easy fix. May just need to be driven or have serviced, but have not investigated further. While going down the road, it is truly amazing how solid this car feels. Quality construction with durable parts feel so much different than newer cars on the road.
The interior is in original condition and while very complete, there are some areas that could be freshened up if you wanted that. The upholstery is original and does have splits, tears, wear, etc. The headliner is split and is coming down in a few spots. All of the interior trim pieces seem to be in pretty good shape. There is a lot of chrome and stainless trim pieces that are in really nice shape showing only some minor pitting in places. The power window switches feel gummed up and are sticky, pretty sure that is the cause of the non functioning power windows. This car could be enjoyed in its current original state, or you could pick and choose what to restore if that is what you want. Remember a vehicle is only original once!
I have had this car up on the lift and am very impressed with how rust free and solid this car is. Underneath is very nice and solid, only minor surface rust. The underside of the rockers look amazing. The inside of the fenders and the inner quarter panels are rust free and solid. The door jams are very nice and rust free. The trunk compartment shows surface rust and minor pitting but is free from any cancer. However, the trunk lid edge right by the latch does have a couple of small rust spots that will need some attention. (look at trunk lid pic below) The undercarriage is very clean and shows very little, if any, signs of leaks anywhere. The closer I inspect the car, the more I can really appreciate its condition throughout. Truly a solid rust free classic T-Bird that garners attention everywhere it goes.
I have done my best to represent and describe this car, but could not begin to describe every individual scratch, tear, scuff, ding, or imperfection on a 50+ year old car. Please view the 100+ pictures to make your assessment and I will be happy to answer any questions or show this vehicle in person prior to the end of the auction. This is a no reserve auction. You are bidding to own. Inspections are welcome prior to sale.
The terms of the auction are really simple. This is a NO RESERVE AUCTION and the highest bidder will own it. Please read the full ad a couple of times, study the 100 plus detailed photographs and contact me with any questions before you bid. I reserve the right to end the auction early and cancel bids if an acceptable offer is made prior to auction end. If you would like to buy this vehicle now and end the auction early, please call me with your offer to discuss. Thank you, Paul (541) 974-5346 Winning bidder to contact me and pay $1000 paypal deposit within 24 hours after the auction ends. The remaining balance is due within 72 hours of auction end, prefer bank wire. I have the free and clear Oregon title in my name that I will send to the winning bidder signed off and properly released after paid in full. Someone is getting a very neat classic T-Bird and will surely be a proud new owner!
This panel had some damage in the 1980's. Over time the paint has separated from the bondo, touch up paint was applied to preserve.
This is most definitely not rust, it was damaged here in the 80's. There is some bondo in this quarter panel and over years the paint has lifted and blistered.Quarter panel is solid but does have tiny rust blisters in this spot. Not really noticeable and hard to photograph, but there are some tiny blisters in the paint.
1965 Ford Thunderbird Original SURVIVOR!!
NO RESERVE AUCTIONHIGH BIDDER =NEW OWNER!!
AuctionENDS Sunday February 17, 2019 at 7:00 PM Pacific