Fifty-Seven Ford Fantasies - 1957 Ford Supercharged Skyliner, Thunderbird from Hemmings Muscle Machines
April, 2006 -
Eric English
By 1956, Ford and Chevy were locked in a dogfight with
stock car racing dominance at stake. Neither company had been a factor
in this competitive realm during the first part of the 1950s, when
Hudson, Olds and eventually Chrysler were the major players. This began
to change in 1955, when Chevy shocked the racing world by winning the
biggest event of the NASCAR season--the Southern 500 at Darlington.
In 1956, it would be Ford's turn at the Southern 500, with Curtis Turner
at the wheel of his Schwam Motors-sponsored ride. Hardly a flash in the
pan, Ford went on to 14 Grand National wins in '56, no doubt a factor
of growing experience, the right drivers, and the debut of the
312-cu.in. version of the Y-block V-8. On the flip side, 1956 was a
comparative disappointment for Chevy, which had treaded water with its
265-cu.in. engine and garnered just three Grand National victories. The
following year would be different story.
With two years of development under its belt, 1957 was the year in which
the small-block Chevy really came into its own. Enlarged to 283-cu.in.
and offering both dual quads (270hp) and fuel injection (250hp and
283hp), it didn't take long for Ford to realize it had to do something
to fend off the attack--and fast. Ford boss Robert McNamara distinctly
articulated the looming Chevrolet threat in an executive communication
in late November 1956, and outlined a counteroffensive in the form of a
supercharged 312. Time was of the essence, and McNamara wanted 100 units
completed in time for NASCAR's Daytona Speed Trials in early February,
thus meeting the sanctioning body's homologation requirements. In little
more than two months, the necessary number of cars were built. In a
letter dated November 26, 1956, McNamara said, "Because a performance
program is deemed essential to the maintenance of a Ford car and
Thunderbird performance reputation, plans were formulated for its
continuation. As you know, two high-performance engines (a 312-cu.in. 8V
carburetor engine developing 270 horsepower, and 285 horsepower with a
special camshaft) were approved for installation in the Ford car and
Thunderbird." McNamara went on to say that it was the opinion of Ford
Engineering that these engines were not powerful enough to compete with
Chevrolet's fuelies and other makes and that engineering recommended
installing the McCulloch superchargers, bringing the horsepower rating
to 300.
Both of Frank and Cathy Stubbs' 1957 Fords are the direct result of
efforts by the blue oval to gain a competitive edge in stock car racing.
You could say the 1957 NASCAR season panned out in Ford's favor, as it
won 27 Grand National races and 26 convertible class wins, compared to
Chevrolet's count of 19 and 12. On the other hand, Chevy men emerged
with the respective driver's titles due in large part to a system, which
awarded more points for bigger races. Regardless, both manufacturers
built more exciting cars as a result of their on-track rivalries, and we
have two near-perfect specimens featured here.
1957 Phase 1 Thunderbird
We had trouble deciding whether to use one of the most misused words in
all of automotivedom, rare, as a way to describe the Stubbs' 1957
Thunderbird. In the end, we succumbed to the temptation as this car is
truly a rare bird in every respect.
Many automotive enthusiasts are aware of the handful of 1957
Thunderbirds that wore a McCulloch supercharger on the 312-cu.in.
four-barrel V-8s because they are, quite frankly, the pinnacle of the
1955-1957 two-seaters. Generally recognized as "F-Birds" by virtue of
the "F" engine identifier in the VIN, just 196 were built, all in the
latter part of 1957 production--June 10 and later, to be specific. It's
certainly fair to say these cars qualify as rare; however, the Stubbs'
supercharged T-Bird isn't actually an F-Bird at all--it actually carries
the D-code, the more pedestrian single four-barrel 312. Say what?
Recall that McNamara communiqué was written in late November 1956, with
an urging that 100 supercharged cars be completed by early 1957, in time
for the Daytona Beach events. As mentioned earlier, 100 supercharged
Fords of various models were completed by this date, but none were
identified by the later F engine code. Rather than calling these F-cars,
the hobby has embraced the term "Phase 1" or "D/F" as a way of
distinguishing the early supercharged cars, of which only 15 were
Thunderbirds. That's right, just 15 Phase 1 supercharged 1957 Birds were
built and our feature car is one of only eight known to survive.
The Stubbs have owned their white Phase 1 Thunderbird since 1991, when
they bought it as a basket case in Reno, Nevada. Frank Stubb became
aware of the car through a friend who was storing it for a client. Being
the main man behind Frank's Restorations, the stated condition did not
deter Frank, since he clearly grasped the significance of the car and
soon made a bid that took some two years to be accepted. From the
outset, Frank and Cathy decided the car would be built to enjoy; as
such, this Thunderbird's odometer accumulates about 2,000 miles every
year.
With a direction set, Frank launched into the restoration of this 1957
model with the mindset that he'd do a presentable job, enjoy frequent
drives for five or six years and then do a complete body-off. The latter
hasn't happened as the Stubbs simply have too much fun driving the
T-Bird. While the Stubbs may feel the current condition of their T-Bird
is well short of one of Frank's prime restorations, we couldn't spot
anything less than fantastic driver quality anywhere we looked. With
years of collecting and dealing early T-Bird parts, the only real
challenge when dealing with the missing parts on this project had to do
with the tough-to-find supercharger components--specifically the Phase 1
supercharger pieces, which are obviously scarcer than an F-code setup.
Stubbs put out the word and lucked into a good share of the Phase I
items from an Alabama man. A trip to Carlisle turned up the remaining
missing pieces.
If you've never been in a 1955-1957 Thunderbird, you'll be surprised at
how difficult it is to enter the cockpit. A distinctly legs-first entry
is helpful due to the steering column's low angle. Stubbs bought his
first Thunderbird in 1971, and has years of practice perfecting his
entry technique--both he and his wife say it's just second nature to
them now. Once inside, the quarters are cozy and while the bench seat at
least suggests the idea of a three-person capacity, it'd be a mighty
tight squeeze. Seat belts? Forget about it.
We had the pleasure of driving the supercharged Thunderbird and have to
say this one is really dialed in--running perfectly in both cruise and
repeated full-throttle modes. In most respects, it feels very much like a
small mid-size pony car, no doubt in part to the setup which Stubbs
finds to his liking. This means good-size B.F.Goodrich radials,
aftermarket front and rear anti-roll bars, gas-charged shocks and a '60s
vintage Toploader four-speed in place of the original three-speed.
Likewise, power feels very much on par to a modified small-block Mustang
of similar displacement. The engine is stock save for a mild Clay Smith
camshaft, and while the supercharger certainly brings a strong power
rush at the top end, the 312's smallish 3.80-inch bore means the
cylinder head is distinctly limited in terms of valve sizing. In the
end, this was much of the Y-block's downfall in contrast to the
small-block Chevy. Horsepower for a blown 312 came in at an even 300,
and 270hp was the rating of the next highest option on the T-Bird
list--the dual four-barrel 312-cu.in. V-8. On paper, the horsepower
rating compared favorably to the fuel-injected Chevrolet and in fact was
wholesale priced at virtually the same $340 premium as the small-block
fuelie. Obviously, Ford was taking the Chevy challenge straight on.
1957 F-code Skyliner
Ford clearly rolled the dice with the introduction of the first
retractable hardtop on a mass-produced vehicle. The novel idea all but
eliminated the negatives associated with a fabric top, but in the same
breath, pretty well eliminated the normally vast trunk space. Surely, it
would take a certain kind of buyer to purchase a Skyliner--one such
customer was George Chaltin of Bellwood, Illinois. Chaltin had been
present for the action at the 1957 Daytona races and left impressed by
the performance of the new supercharged Fords. Before going home, he
tried to score a blown fixed-roof Fairlane 500 from a Daytona-area Ford
dealer, but didn't make the deal. The failed impulse buy turned out to
be a good thing, however, as Chaltin subsequently attended the Chicago
Auto Show, where the new retractable Ford was front and center. Watching
the top go up and down all day long convinced him that the ultimate
combination would be a supercharged Skyliner, which he ordered from
Courtesy Motor Sales. As it turned out, Chaltin was one of just a
handful of customers nationwide to order an F-code Skyliner, and was
perhaps the only one to order it specifically for drag racing. On the
surface, one would think the heavier Skyliner would be at a disadvantage
in straight-line time trials, but the extra heft actually slid the Ford
one class lower into D/Stock, where Chaltin did very well against a
variety of mostly GM competition.
By 1961, Chaltin was a highly competitive racer and won the D/Stock
title at the 1961 NHRA Nationals at Indianapolis--an event that drew the
likes of a big-name stock class racers Arnie Beswick, Hayden Profitt
and Dyno Don Nicholson. Chaltin's victorious 14.54 seconds at 95.14 mph
may seem slower than you'd think, but mid-14s for a 2-ton Ford with
limited modifications was impressive in the day. At the time, the
Skyliner sported a column-shifted three-speed manual, which Chaltin
later swapped for a Ford-O-Matic when the racing days were over. The
latter came from a Fairlane Chaltin owned at the same time, so the
conversion is complete down to the power brake pedal, which subsequent
owners left in place. Stubbs seems inclined to live with the status quo
for now as, while the lazy-shifting automatic leaves much to be desired,
three-on-the-tree isn't exactly the cat's meow either. Such was the
state of the 1957 Fords.
Chaltin owned his Skyliner until August 1980, when he sold it to Dennis
Pruitt. Later, the car went to a Thunderbird dealer and collector Amos
Minter, who stripped and resprayed the car in its original two-tone
paint scheme. The Stubbs bought the Skyliner in 2002 from Larry Evenson.
Beyond the Thunderbird and Skyliner seen here, the Stubbs's own a 1957
F-code Country sedan station wagon, an F-code Custom 300 and three
F-code T-Birds. Stubbs talked to Chaltin who told him that half of the
54,000 miles were rolled up on a tow bar, traveling to races throughout
the upper Midwest. Chaltin said the Skyliner sat in a garage and was
waxed regularly and, from the looks of the mostly original interior and
engine components, it's easy to see this car was his pride and joy.
We took a ride in the retractable and, not surprisingly, found it an
altogether different experience than the similarly powered Thunderbird.
Unlike the smattering of modifications found on the Thunderbird, the
Skyliner is stock except for the transmission, so the experience was
very much a blast from the past.
First, there's no trouble easing behind the wheel and there's surely
enough room for a bunch of friends, but the engine falls victim to the
increased heft, archaic transmission and a somewhat poorer state of tune
than the hard-charging Thunderbird. While the Ford-O-Matic has three
forward gears, it primarily operates in just two, giving marginal gear
spacing for an engine that enjoys the upper end of its powerband. A
hiccup at roughly 3,000 rpm doesn't help the acceleration experience. No
matter, the Skyliner isn't about straight-line performance anymore, and
once up to speed we encounter the 1950s marshmallow ride typical of the
day. Stubbs navigated through heavy highway traffic with comfortable
ease, but we were glad he was at the wheel in this environment--the lack
of firmness being a bit unnerving.
Even though the supercharged 312 was a one-year wonder, no doubt helped
by NASCAR's April 1957 ban on fuel injection, superchargers and multiple
carburetors, Ford's retractable hardtop continued through 1959. We
never fail to marvel how that exotic roof operated, which can still be
considered true engineering even today. The retractable includes more
than 600 feet of wire, three drive motors and a plethora of switches and
solenoids, all of which proved relatively reliable. While today's new
retractable hardtops benefit from far more advanced technology,
designing such a piece is still no easy feat. Ford's budget for the
project back in 1957 was reported to be more than $2 million, though
with nearly 50,000 units sold throughout the three years the car was
built, we suppose the effort was deemed a reasonable success.
As opposed to today's automotive offerings, when high-performance
engines rarely cross over from one model to another, it was a different
story for much of the '50s and '60s. Ford's 1957 supercharged 312 is a
perfect example, offered throughout the company's varied lineup from
Skyliner to Sunliner, Ranchero and Ranch Wagon. As we found with other
cars in the Stubbs' collection, such cars often had different characters
and purpose, yet find common ground in a race-inspired powerplant
unlike anything of its era. While racing success was short-lived due to
sanctioning body edicts, the Stubbs are helping assure that these 1957
Fords are preserved and remembered for the long haul. Better yet,
they're enjoying the cars as intended--by driving them.
Source: hemmings.com
