McNamara could see even greater potential for a four-seat variation on the theme. Yet almost from the Little Bird’s birth, Ford division general manager Robert S. “We always start with white and go from there,” he said.The two-seat T-bird of 1955-57 sold far better than anyone expected, topping 21,000 units in what would prove its final year. The bird’s white paint was a requirement for Short. It all has to flow from the front to back, and on the inside and out, so you’ll see that treatment throughout the car.” “Then we put the grille pattern in the paint. “The grilles are popular on this car - the honeycomb pattern - so we rebuilt all of the grilles on the car and then gave the same grille treatment to the intake cover,” Miller said. Miller says they started taking styling cues from the car itself, starting with grille. Overhangs were filled in, and the bumpers were tucked. For example, all the handles, emblems, and mounting hardware were shaved. While the square bird boasts new age technology, tons of good old fashioned hot rodding went into its design. A Retrosound stereo system provides the tunes, an A/C system allows Short to cruise in comfort, and an Accuair suspension system delivers a smooth ride. A custom made console holds an Ipad, and the stock dash features billet accents. Using the Coyote engine as inspiration, Short and Miller continued to incorporate more modern upgrades.
The engine features a custom cold air system that routes air though a one-off cowl system. The Coyote gives the Thunderbird a combination of great fuel mileage and good power - a combination that simply wasn’t possible in 1958. Short already had a Ford 5.oL Coyote motor lined up for the bird. The modern touches start with what’s under the hood. So we thought we’d make a modern ‘square bird’ with the modern touches.”
“And then we just started throwing ideas around, because the ‘square birds,’ especially these ones, aren’t super popular in the custom world, although they’re hot in the lowrider scene. “We were just going to do a clean, simple build,” Miller said. You’ll see a lot of really well done Thunderbirds around Reno, but there’s not a chance you’ll see another one like Alex Short’s ’58 Thunderbird. In fact, Short himself couldn’t envision how his Thunderbird would turn out when he took it to friend Cam Miller’s shop, HS Customs in Logan, UT. RENO, NV - Ford Thunderbirds are a popular car, especially at Hot August Nights.
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