Junior Central

Thunderbird juniors 1955-66

click on pictures to enlarge or to open a link

1955 1957 1959 1961 1963 1965

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. 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. I have found factory literature and a Photograph of a gas powered 1957 Thunderbird JR. so George may have been a little off when he made that statement 23 years after the company went out of business.     According 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. The serial numbers were in the 3,000 range by 1957 so most of the production was done in the first 3 years. There were three models available in 1964-66. The bottom of the line was the electric powered kid's version. Next were the electric powered adult versions, and the top of the line adult gas powered version. All of them used the same body but the adult versions had larger axles and Pneumatic tires. Later versions in 1965-67 the cars came in standard colors and any other colors were at an additional charge. In the early years they could be ordered in a number of factory colors at no additional charge. Not a cheap toy! Here are some of the costs that I know of. 1957 retail price $465.00 Electric ($565.00 Gas model) dealer cost $325.00 1960 1/4 scale $395.00 retail 1965 kids retail $495.00 dealer cost $364.00 1965 adult retail $537.00 dealer cost $395.00 different sizes available     while the most known size of Powercar Thunderbird was a 1/3 scale rendition they also made a 1/4 scale in some years. I have seen pictures of a 1956 version that was a pedal car instead of battery powered. 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. 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. 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.     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. They were given away in drawings at Ford dealerships Coca-Cola, Pepsi and tide and even at Laundromats and dairies. In 1960 Turkish taffy offered the winner of their jingle contest choice of a 1960 Thunderbird or Plymouth Fury JR. They advertised the competition in "Atomic Mouse" cartoons. Lee Iacocca's daughter is pictured in a 1963 Thunderbird JR in a 1964 issue of time magazine. They were also available through the F.A.O. Swartz catalog. The statement they used on the brochures says it best!     "Thunderbird Jr. cars have been made continuously since 1954 (with the cooperation of the ford motor company) you will not see a Thunderbird Jr. in every yard...because their cost has kept them out of the volume market...However, if you know where to look, you can find them scattered over the globe in the most interesting places: in secluded country estates, in mansions of heads of state, on the Riviera, in the palaces of dictators, middle eastern and oriental princes. They are bringing pleasure and fun to the families of presidents, movie stars, magnates, potentates... and to a lot of ordinary people too, who have won them in promotional contests or as incentives. In fact, it is thanks to smart sales promotion programs that many other people are enjoying them" end quote from 1964 sales brochure     Since I started collecting information on these cars many years ago I have been lucky to talk to a number of Ex-employees of the Powercar company. Anywhere from the son of the secretary that swept up on weekends to the Production manager and his son who worked as a test driver in the early years. I also had the pleasure to talk to George Ford that ran the company back in 1994 before he passed away. More and more information continues to come out of the woodwork about these cars and the Internet has helped to gather additional information. Go to the main Powercar page I have started a Resources page that will list known available original parts and reproduction parts for Powercar products. Go to the Powercar resources page

1956 1958 1960 1962 1964 1966