1983 Ford Thunderbird Reviews, Pricing & Specs

I have a 1983 Thunderbird with the 3.8 liter V6 and C5 automatic. It has alot the regular options commonly found on T-Birds: Cruise Control, AC, Tilt Wheel, Power Windows, Power Mirrors, Power Driver Seat, Rear Defroster, map lights. The interior trim is identical to the 'Heritage' edition Thunderbirds but without the decal trim. I believe 1983 was the only year for the vent windows, as I have seen many thunderbirds in the wrecking yards but rarely ever see the vent window that my Bird has. Also, after 1983 ford went to Central Fuel Injection on the 3.8 V6, so finding some parts for my 3.8 carbureted V6 are hard to come by. My T-Bird also came equipped with a vacuum assisted parking brake. I haven't seen it on any other thunderbird, so I think it is also a 1983 only item. Another perculiar item on my Bird is the intake manifold. It is an open plenum (single plane) manifold, not the standard dual plenum manifold found on so many Vee type engines. Because of this, my factory cold start idle is set to 2200 rpms according to the emissions sticker. I have never owned a car that revved so high at startup, and can take up to 10 minutes before the choke relaxes the engine down to 600 rpms. I own a mustang with the CFI equipped 3.8 and recommend the CFI setup over the carbureted version. However, aside from the quirky engine parts, the T-Bird rides so much nicer and is quieter than my mustang. They both share the same FOX body frame and parts, but you can tell Ford spent more time refining the Thunderbird than they did the mustang. The quality of the interior trim, seating, ride quality, and noise reduction make the Thunderbird a much nicer car to drive around in. Nov 03, 2007