6/19/2023 0 Comments Birds of steel barrel roll![]() ![]() #98 was then entered in the local airport road course races where stock car driver Marvin Panch placed second to Carroll Shelby’s 4.9 Ferrari. After that, the blower was removed, and the new engine took Daigh to a third place at 93.312 mph in the standing mile acceleration class. Specifically constructed for the highly publicized Daytona Beach two-way flying mile speed runs, the two cars made their first appearance on February 9th, 1957.ĭriven by Chuck Daigh, this T-Bird, numbered as “98” and fitted with injection and a McCullough supercharger, reportedly made a 200 plus mph run before “ventilating” its block and preventing a return run, which disqualified it from the record book. On second thought they should have been – for each of these finely engineered cars must have cost more than $20,000!” The “Battlebirds” on the Track The end result was essentially a “full-race” American automobile that still looked like a 1957 Thunderbird but had very little in common with its normal showroom relative.Ī Sports Cars Illustrated (July 1957) article entitled “Ford’s 400 Horse T-Birds” said it best: “Performance wise the ’Birds were little short of being domestic Ferraris. ![]() Weight distribution was improved by moving the engine back six inches and placing it four inches lower. Removal of bumpers and liberal hole-drilling in steel components was also undertaken by the De Paolo team. No suitable American 4-speed transmission existed in 1956, so a Jaguar XK120 unit was adapted, as well as a Halibrand Quick-Change rear end. The #98 “Battlebird” was powered by a highly modified Hilborn-injected 312 Ford Y-Block V8 with magneto ignition. Ran 97.33 and 98.065 mph in the Standing Mile Acceleration Trials. Has a highly modified Lincoln 430 cid V8 engine. The 1957 “Battlebird” and Driver Danny Eames on the beach. Daytona Beach Speed Week Trials, Daytona, FL, 1957. The original interior was completely removed and replaced with a single lightweight racing seat located behind a small six-gauge instrument pod that replaced the original dashboard layout. The lightweight Halibrand magnesium road wheels with 3-eared knock-offs were fitted with Firestone racing tires. Heavy duty stock car type suspension, steering and brakes were adapted as well as a dual exhaust system, with tail pipes being faired into the rear of the rocker panels. This included the door, hood and trunklid skins, head- and tail-lamp housings, side-vent doors, passenger side tonneau cover and a beautiful streamlined full length driver’s side head fairing. “Battlebird” SpecificationsĮxtensive use of aluminum to replace standard T-Bird steel components in order to save weight was employed. Famed racecar constructors Jimmy Travers and Frank Coons were in turn retained by De Paolo to carry out most of the actual modifications. Peter De Paolo Engineering, a Long Beach, California based race shop subsidized by the Ford Motor Company, got the job of preparing two T-Birds, later dubbed “Battlebirds” by the media. However in late 1956, perhaps sensing the early V8 Corvette’s potential as a track weapon, Ford decided to build and race two Experimental Class 1957 T-Birds. Ford’s Thunderbird series, which debuted in 1955, was designed more as a stylish and fast boulevard cruiser than an out-and-out sports car. ![]()
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