Ford Thunderbird (seventh generation) deliberate a downsizing as what was to come to future Ford cars, the 1977 Thunderbird was smaller than its predecessor, shedding nearly of length and of weight; height and width remained essentially unchanged. The 1977 Thunderbird was created on the existing intermediate car platform by recycling a select mix of body, interior and trim parts from the previous year's Ford Elite, Mercury Montego and Mercury Cougar combined with all new styling from the doors back to create a dramatic new Thunderbird look. The Thunderbird was distinguished from the LTD II and Cougar 2-door models by its unique wrap-over "basket handle"
Ford Thunderbird previous Thunderbird, the new Thunderbird featured a radically sleeker, more aerodynamic body and a slightly shorter wheelbase of . To power the new Thunderbird, the 3.8 L Essex V6 and 5.0L (302 cid) V8 were carried over from the previous generation with the V8 engine gaining CFI electronic fuel injection in 1983, and the V6 in 1984 for US models, 1985 for Canadian models (which was in turn replaced by multipoint fuel injection on the V8 in 1986 and the V6 in 1988). All-new, and a Thunderbird first, was a turbocharged 2.3 L OHC 4-cylinder engine featured in the 1983