Hey SoCal Tbirders and Funbird Alumni...

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1 Thunderbird Wire May 2015 An official Publication of the Thunderbirds of Southern California VTCI Chapter The object and purpose of this club shall be the preservation and restoration of the Thunderbird automobile. President s Message Inside this issue: All Ford Picnic Event Fabulous Ford 2015 Muckenthaler Show 2015 Fords Forgotten Aero War- Member Information 2 & 3 4 & Calendar 8 Advertisers 9 Hey SoCal Tbirders and Funbird Alumni... Well you can put the 2015 version of Fabulous Fords Forever to sleep for this year. And what a grand old time we had!!! This was the 30th Anniversary year, and as the saying goes, it just keeps getting bigger and better!!!!! A record turnout of 1,827 Fords, Lincoln, Mercurys, Trucks, and four wheel drive vehicles... The guests came from all over the USofA!!!!! Clubs and individuals from Phoenix, San Diego, Las Vegas, Portland, San Francisco and Denver. It was a long drive for some people, but they arrived with big Ford smiles on their faces, lots of great stories to tell and new friends to meet. I honestly think that we should award a trophy to the person or persons who travel the longest distance!!! What say you?? Our Chairperson, Damon Tolentino and his staff did an excellent job of organizing and setting up the parking lot... No easy task I may add!!! Saturdays bag stuffing extravaganza went off without a hitch, and the Sunday AM drive in was smooth and moved very fine!! I have known a bunch of the club personal over the years, and always look forward to meeting different members. My new BFF's for this year are the guys and gals from the Crown Victoria Club. Not only were there cars from the 50's and 60's, but a whole new generation of younger kids who love to drive and restore the police vehicles of today. I spoke to some of these members and was told of how they buy these cars from the California CHP at auction when the vehicles hit 100,000 miles... The cars are then completely torn down to the frame, and rebuilt using all new and updated parts. These hot rods were fast to begin with, as all are equipped with the police interceptor motor and heavy duty suspensions... Sort of a pocket rocket in a new civilian life!!! As always, the milestone display was top notch, and featured our own pretty Tbirds!!! All in all a really fun day with the most popular cars on the road!!! Many Thanks to our good friends at the Ford West Coast Headquarters for their guidance and support!! I'll see you on down the road!! JOHN

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4 Page 4 Fabulous Ford Show 2015 This year s Fabulous Ford show at Knott s Berry Farm was as close to perfect as you can get. The weather was so nice, not too hot and not too cold. The parking crew had it easy this year and only had to park the Thunderbirds. Ron held down the club booth and spoke to many prospective new members. It was interesting to see the milestone display as it had one of each of the body styles for the Thunderbird. Mike Ogletree s car was given the award for the best Thunderbird. The diligent parking crew!

5 Fabulous Ford Show 2015 cont. Page 5 Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival, May 16th & 17th Sprawled across 8 acres, the Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival is pleased to host an elite collection of only the finest examples of automotive excellence for both Hot Rods & Customs as well as Concour d Elegance classes. The weekend is dedicated to showcasing extraordinary achievements in automotive design and each enthusiast s passion and dedication to achieving perfection in their individual class. Enjoy a weekend filled with exception cars, fabulous food and specialty brews, as well as musical entertainment spread over the shaded manicured grounds of the Muckenthaler Cultural Center. Entry Form: Muckenthaler Cultural Center 1201 West Malvern Avenue Fullerton, California Phone: Fax: info@themuck.org Sunday, May 17th, 2015 Vehicles need to be placed at 9:00 a.m. Judging starts at 9:00 a.m. Field opens at 10:00 a.m. Awards Presentation begins at 2:00 p.m.

6 FORD S FORGOTTEN AERO WARRIOR (Part 2 of 3 Parts) By: Hank Weinblatt Page 6 As indicated above, stock Monterey Cyclones were also manufactured in They had W front ends which produced much less down force than the Spoiler II s aerodynamic long nose and presented much more wind resistance. When the W nosed cars were delivered to Mercury s NASCAR teams, due primarily to the W front ends on the stock Cyclones,Mercury s NASCAR teams were at a distinct disadvantage on high speed banked tracks. The elimination of this design deficiency lead to the production and homologation of the Cyclone Spoiler II. Unlike the Spoiler IIs the W nosed vehicles were available with a full range of options including bucket seats, 4-on the floor and larger displacement engines but in race trim with equal power plants, the W nosed cars were much slower than the Spoiler II.The Spoiler II was very successful in the NASCAR Grand National racing series: winning 8 Grand National races during the 1969 and 1970 NASCAR seasons matching the total number of wins recorded by the 1970 Plymouth Superbird. In the summer of 2012, at a small Chevy dealer in Attica N.Y., which is located just around the corner from the infamous prison, I discovered a Gurney Spoiler II that looked like it might be in good shape. I watched the car in Hemmings classified adds and on the internet. I also asked the dealer to me numerous pictures of the car. After 2 significant price drops over 4 months, I bought the car sight unseen but the price including delivery, was right. So I crossed my fingers and uttered a fervent prayer to the auto gods that I wasn t purchasing a western N.Y. rust bucket. Papers I received with the car indicated it was delivered to the original purchaser in Tennessee. The second owner brought the car to Alabama. The third owner ferried the car to Western N.Y. put some miles on it and put it in climate controlled storage where it remained for approximately 20 years.in the spring of 2012, the third owner s son traded the Cyclone II in on a Silverado pick-up. I was the next purchaser. About a week after the deal was done, the auto transporter carrying the Spoiler II wheeled into Galpin. The car was unloaded and our friend Bruce Shureman had it put on a rack. The car showed 42,000 miles on the clock. The paint was original and in excellent condition. There was no rust on the under carriage or for that matter anywhere on the car. However, the rear chrome was pitted and the interior needed some minor work. Otherwise, it was in great cosmetic shape. However, when we ran the engine and test drove the car, I was not happy with the way the engine was breathing or with the exhaust note. We resolved those issues by replacing theexisting carburetor with a Holly 750, replaced the stock air cleaner with a K&N performance air cleaner, replaced the stock exhaust manifolds with headers, added a new exhaust system with long Flow Master mufflers and moved the exhausts to behind the rear fender wells. To add to the optics, we also replaced the stock valve covers with a set of Holman & Moody valve covers which I obtained from their Charlotte N.C. shop. Allof the original parts which were removed were tagged and stored. 69 stock Montego Cyclone with W nose 69 Cyclone Spoiler with aerodynamic long nose

7 Page 7 Happy Birthday: George Schultz 18th Lisa Claborne 21st Joan Swing 23rd Happy Anniversary: Ron & Diane Brunski John & Catherine Campbell 14th 19th Help Wanted: We are on the look out for someone who can do the website maintenance. This includes: keeping the calendar updated and making sure that the photos are updated each time we have an event. If you are interested in helping us out please contact Helen Morin at or hmm11402@aol.com

8 For Sale: Selling the complete REBUILT Powertrain from my 1957 Thunderbird Have majority of the receipts. Includes BBL Engine, Auto Trans, Driveshaft, Rear end with brakes and drums. Also available: Front Brakes and Drums. Powertrain: $4,750/offer. Please contact Jack Swing (562) Page Calendar of Events: May 17 June 7 July 18 July September 19 October TBD December 6 Muckenthaler Car Show Huntington Beach Car Show TSC Annual Picnic VTCI SW Regional, Grand Junction CO Pageant of the Thunderbird Driving Museum & Alpine Village Oktoberfest TSC Annual Holiday Party 2015 TSC Officers & Board members: President VP Secretary Treasurer Membership Newsletter DIRECTORS: John Peters (562) president@thunderbirdssocal.com Jack Swing (562) vicepresident@thunderbirdssocal.com Lisa Claborne (714) lisa@thunderbirdssocal.com Leo Beaulieu (714) treasurer@thunderbirdssocal.com Anita Nunez (714) membership@thunderbirdssocal.com Helen Morin (562) newsletter@thunderbirdssocal.com Ron Morin (562) Ron.m@thunderbirdssocal.com Bob Claborne (714) bob@thunderbirdssocal.com Ralph Nunez (714) gotbird@roadrunner.com

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10 Thunderbirds of Southern California Davenport Road Rossmoor CA Page 10