A Bit More History

My family is helping me to piece together some of the history of the t-bird.  My Aunt was in high school when Grandma purchased the car, most likely in the spring of 1956.  Everyone agrees it was a very uncharacteristic thing for Grandma to do.  She was very practical, a high school math teacher, sponsor of the glee club.  Not the kind of woman to purchase a racy car like a t-bird, but she did, and she clearly enjoyed the car for the rest of her life.  I figure that someone in the Navy bought the car new in Iowa, drove to California, and then got assigned overseas and had to sell the car at a loss.  Grandma got a one-year old car for about 75% of the cost of a new one.  Grandma and my Aunt drove the car across the country on a road trip in the summer of '56, and my Aunt drove it to nursing school in '57.  It was still the original turquoise color.

My Uncle and his wife both remember driving Grandma's car on errands.  My Uncle says the car handled well, but was a little sluggish for it's size.  He liked the large steering wheel and manual steering, but remembers the seat being uncomfortable on long trips - it didn't go back far enough, and the padding was uncomfortable across his shoulders.  His wife liked the turquoise color... a lot!  Personally, I find it too bland, and I'd like something brighter or darker.  I remember the car being a light green in 1962, but I have started to question my memory.  No one has confirmed that Grandma had the car painted, and I can't find any of that green color in the layers of paint on the car now.

Funny thing... Mom asked me my favorite color when I was very young.  I remember thinking of Grandma's car and replying "green".  My memory of this color was a key factor when I, as a 14 year old boy, chose to paint the car "bright lime" (remember the 1972 Ford Pinto?  Many of them were that color).  My intention was good, even if I had no taste.  Seems strange that I can't find a trace of the color I remember on the car now.  Perhaps it was all sanded off in prep for a subsequent paint job.

Update 5/23/12:  reviewing my previous posts, I found a pic that shows the green color, revealed when the body shop was stripping the car.  There was none of this green color under the paint on the front of the car, but this is indeed the color I remember.  Maybe the car had a subsequent accident in front that mandated stripping the paint prior to the dark metallic green paint job.
Trunk Lid