1995 Thunderbird

           In April of 1999, Karen & I were looking to buy another Thunderbird. At that time, we had a 1994 Chevy Beretta, which we bought new in 1994, and of course, our 1978 T-bird that I've had since 1979. I noticed that a few dealers had some 1994-1997 Thunderbirds for sale, which were the model years that I was the most interested in looking at.
        The first Ford dealership Karen and I stopped at turned out to be the only one we needed to visit. We found our 1995 at Griffin Ford in Waukesha, and it had all the criteria I was looking for: dark exterior color (emerald green metallic), leather interior (mocha), power moon roof, and the 4.6 liter V8 engine. It was one of the very first 1995 models to roll off the line at the Lorain, Ohio assembly plant where all 1989-1997 T-birds & Cougars were built. After some wheeling and dealing with the  salesperson over our 1994 Beretta trade-in, we drove home that Saturday afternoon with another Thunderbird. 
         Even though our 1995 came loaded with almost every option offered in 1995, there were some options I added. The first option was the factory fog lamps. Another was the factory JBL sound system which included a 10 disc CD changer in the trunk. I also installed the factory Super Coupe lumbar pads  in the front seats, and a set of chrome LX wheels which were optional on later models of the LX.
I must admit I also cheated and installed two options that weren't offered on any model of the Thunderbird or Cougar, even though I think they certainly should have been. One was an auto-dimming rearview compass mirror (Ford offered this on high-end Lincoln models), and the other was an     express-down driver side power window switch. The module I used for the express-down came out of a 1995 Taurus.
     Since purchased, the 1995 has never let me down mechanically, and these often overlooked Thunderbirds are well-built cars that are very comfortable, handle well, and are extremely enjoyable to drive.