The lightweight Halibrand magnesium road wheels with 3-eared knock-offs were fitted with Firestone racing tires. Heavy duty stock car type suspension, steering and brakes were adapted as well as a dual exhaust system, with tail pipes being faired into the rear of the rocker panels. This included the door, hood and trunklid skins, head- and tail-lamp housings, side-vent doors, passenger side tonneau cover and a beautiful streamlined full length driver’s side head fairing. “Battlebird” SpecificationsĮxtensive use of aluminum to replace standard T-Bird steel components in order to save weight was employed. Famed racecar constructors Jimmy Travers and Frank Coons were in turn retained by De Paolo to carry out most of the actual modifications. Peter De Paolo Engineering, a Long Beach, California based race shop subsidized by the Ford Motor Company, got the job of preparing two T-Birds, later dubbed “Battlebirds” by the media. However in late 1956, perhaps sensing the early V8 Corvette’s potential as a track weapon, Ford decided to build and race two Experimental Class 1957 T-Birds. Ford’s Thunderbird series, which debuted in 1955, was designed more as a stylish and fast boulevard cruiser than an out-and-out sports car.
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