So the fact that the Ford Thunderbird inspired songs by Chuck Berry, Marc Cohn, Bob Seger, Uriah Heep and most famously the Beach Boys suggests it really had something going for it.

Named after a creature which appears in several Native American myths, the Thunderbird was produced with only one brief pause in eleven generations over half a century. Later models are not as highly regarded as the originals, but even they are, in name if nothing else, an important part of American motoring history. In these difficult days of ours, perhaps it's as good a time as any to escape into the world of an automotive icon:

(Please note: power figures for pre-1972 cars are quoted, as they were in period, in gross horsepower, when the power was measured without accessories fitted. The figures are therefore substantially higher than they would be using modern measurements.)