1964 Ford Fairlane Thunderbolt
In 1963, Pontiac, Chevrolet, and GM were out of factory-supported racing. Mopar was dominating the strip with the Max Wedge engines. Ford didn’t have enough firepower to compete with Dodge or Plymouth, but that was about to change when Ford unveiled its factory-built drag racer, the Fairlane Thunderbolt, just for the 1964 season.

Ford used a plain Fairlane two-door sedan body and removed all but the essentials. The Thunderbolt was all about a lower weight and big power. To drop the weight, Ford stripped the interior and removed the trim. Then Ford realized that the van-sourced bucket seats were lighter than the standard bench, so they installed two small seats in the front to save the Thunderbolt a couple of pounds.
They replaced the glass with Plexiglas, giving the Thunderbolt lighter fenders, bumpers and a hood with the characteristic teardrop air scoop. Under the hood was the new 427 V8 FE with a factory output of 425 HP. However, experts think the real output was closer to 600 HP since the engine had a special intake manifold and pistons. as well as high-performance heads.

Ford made exactly 100 Thunderbolts in 1964, selling them to professional racers for a dollar each. Out of 100 cars, 49 were four-speed manuals and 51 were three-speed automatics. The Thunderbolt was highly successful, winning the 1964 NHRA title for Ford despite fierce competition.