cars have been made continuously since 1954 (with the cooperation of the ford motor company) you will not see a Thunderbird Jr. The statement they used on the brochures says it best! ![]() They were also available through the F.A.O. Lee Iacocca's daughter is pictured in a 1963 Thunderbird JR in a 1964 issue of time magazine. They advertised the competition in "Atomic Mouse" cartoons. In 1960 Turkish taffy offered the winner of their jingle contest choice of a 1960 Thunderbird or Plymouth Fury JR. They were given away in drawings at Ford dealerships Coca-Cola, Pepsi and tide and even at Laundromats and dairies. I would imagine that one of their best customers would have been the Shriners but most of the information I have been finding is they were used in a lot of other promotions. The demensions for the 1960 1/4 scale were as follows I would imagine the 58-59 were the same size 51 1/2" long, 17" tall, 24 3/4" wide, and weight without battery was 80 pounds. A 1960 Plymouth Fury JR was also made in 1/4 scale but it is the only other example of that scale that I have been able to find anything on thus far. I have also found information and images on 1958-60 1/4 scale cars that were made as a less expensive offering by the company. I have seen pictures of a 1956 version that was a pedal car instead of battery powered. While the most known size of Powercar Thunderbird was a 1/3 scale rendition they also made a 1/4 scale in some years. In the early years they could be ordered in a number of factory colors at no additional charge. Later versions in 1965-67 the cars came in standard colors and any other colors were at an additional charge. All of them used the same body but the adult versions had larger axles and Pneumatic tires. Next were the electric powered adult versions, and the top of the line adult gas powered version. The bottom of the line was the electric powered kid's version. There were three models available in 1964-66. ![]() The serial numbers were in the 3,000 range by 1957 so most of the production was done in the first 3 years. ![]() so George may have been a little off when he made that statement 23 years after the company went out of business.Īccording to George ford (no relation to Henry) that ran the company they made about 5,000 mini Thunderbirds from 1955-67 starting with serial number one in 1955 and continuing through the end in 1967. I have found factory literature and a Photograph of a gas powered 1957 Thunderbird JR. According to the interview done with George Ford in 1990 they were electric powered until 1964 when you could also get a gas powered adult version. The Powercar company of Mystic Connecticut started making the Thunderbird JR in 1955 and continued through 1967 but stopped updating the body changes in 1966. Junior Central Thunderbird page Junior CentralĬlick on pictures to enlarge or to open a link 1955
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