So when it came to time to refresh the Ford Thunderbird and Lincoln Mark IV for 1977, product planners decided on two different directions for FoMoCo’s jumbo personal luxury coupes.

But super-sized cars were still an enormous Detroit cash cow, and Ford was in no mood to go too far out on a limb. The Mustang II and Granada/Monarch represented profitable repackaging of new “Style” on proven (i.e. The company had enjoyed enormous success with “fancier” small cars in the wake of the 1973 Arab Oil Embargo. The resulting car, though a stopgap in many ways, was very well received by the press and the public, becoming the most successful ‘Bird ever.įord Motor Company was clearly hedging their bets for 1977. However, Ford also made a major downsizing play for ’77 by shrinking the size-and price-of the Thunderbird. For the 1977 model year, General Motors was the leader of the movement, with a complete line of downsized full-sized cars.

After the 1973 Oil Embargo, a buzzword started sweeping through the American automotive industry: “downsizing.” In this case, “less was more” as downsizing introduced a new generation of more rationally-sized vehicles that offered the benefits of their larger predecessors without the added bulk.

Ford thunderbird 70s