Redesigned T-Birds Won't Be Very Easy to Find in L.A.

It may be the hottest new car to come out this year, but chances are you won't be driving a 2002 Ford Thunderbird any time soon. Local dealers expect that the limited number of T-Birds they are allocated by Ford will be sold out well before they arrive on the lot.

Ford Motor Co. showed a special edition Nieman Marcus Thunderbird at the Los Angeles Auto Show, which opened this weekend, one of only 200 of a limited edition built. The model sold out in two hours when it went on sale through the Nieman Marcus Christmas catalogue last September.

The 2002 T-Bird will have its official unveiling at the Detroit auto show later this week and will be arriving at the dealerships by early October.

Although Ford will build considerably more of the retro-looking two-seater than it did of the ultra-exclusive Nieman Marcus special edition, the estimated 30,000 to 35,000 cars that will be delivered this year will come nowhere close to meeting demand. And that's exactly the way Ford likes it.

"Ford will only produce a very limited number of the new Thunderbird, and the car is going to be sold out before it gets out," said Bert Boeckmann, owner/president of Galpin Ford in North Hills. "We are already getting many requests and have people's names on file, because everybody wants to be the first to drive one of these cars."

Galpin Ford is the largest Ford dealership in the United States, selling more than 20,000 cars per year, but Boeckmann said he has been allocated just a little over a hundred new Thunderbirds, which is still more than any other dealer. The first cars will be delivered in early fall and will initially only be available in "inspiration yellow," at a cost of approximately $40,000 each.

Ford will start taking orders from dealers this month and has allocated a fixed number of new T-Birds to individual dealers, using a formula based on the dealer's total sales and Ford Mustang sales. This tight control of the supply line is hardly accidental, however, and is designed to preserve the exclusive image of the Thunderbird for as long as possible.

"You've got to realize that there isn't an unlimited market for this kind of specialty car," said Don Kott, president of Don Kott Ford in Carson. "The life of this model extends over a number of years, and Ford will want to maintain the image of a very desirable and exclusive car over its entire life span.

The upshot for local customers will be that they may have to wait months, if not years, for their opportunity to drive their own convertible, V8 roadster down the Pacific Coast Highway. The upshot for Ford will be that the new T-Bird will generate a lot of interest in the company and give it a significant image boost.

"Ford will want to balance supply and demand of the T-Bird to make as much money as they can, but also to keep the interest level up and draw attention to the company," said Jeff Schuster, senior manager for North America market forecasting with J.D. Power & Associates. "That will bring buyers to the lot and help them sell their other models."

Whether that will happen is not a foregone conclusion, though. Chrysler's PT Cruiser has been a huge success and there are waiting lists of up to eight months to buy one of these retro vehicles, but it hasn't helped the sales of Chrysler's other models one bit, according to Schuster. In fact, the company may be better off flooding the market with PT Cruisers to shore up its bottom line.

"That would be the right approach for them," said Schuster. "Unfortunately they're building as many of these cars as they can right now, and they don't have to capacity to build any more."

Ford has its own problems with the Firestone tire recall, which has hurt its image as a builder of reliable and safe trucks and sport utility vehicles because the tires have been standard equipment on some Ford vehicles. It's not likely that the snappy T-Bird will make buyers forget about their safety concerns when shopping for an SUV. In addition, slacking consumer confidence last December resulted in a 15 percent drop in the company's car and light truck sales from the previous year.

The 2002 Thunderbird is a throwback to the classic models of the 1950s, from the porthole windows to the egg-grate grille and round headlights. As such, Ford is following in the footsteps of Volkswagen AG, which hit pay dirt with its hugely successful 1999 Beetle, also a modern interpretation of a classic, and the DaimlerChrysler AG Chrysler PT Cruiser. BMW is about to come out with the 2002 Mini Cooper, again an update of a popular model from the '50s and '60s.

One difference between the T-Bird and these other retro models, is that it is not aimed at a mass market, but rather a small audience that can afford to pay $40,000 for an extra car.

"It is a two-seater and it is meant to be a fun car," said Schuster. "It is not likely to be the primary car for the family, but I suspect that it's going to be a big hit in Southern California, because you can drive with the top down throughout the year."

For those looking for more of a bad boy image in their retro car, Ford is also unveiled a limited edition 2001 Mustang, based on the 1968 Mustang Fastback GT 390, at the L.A. Auto Show. Ford will be building just 6,800 of the vehicles this year.