Bo Sandberg's 1959 Ford Thunderbird - Surfin Bird

A photo of Bo's Thunderbird taken in May of 1961. Bo's dads 1956 DeSoto is parked in front of the Thunderbird while Bo's chopped 1939 Chevrolet can be seen in the background. The chopped Chevrolet was never completed, probably due to the fact that it wasn't a Ford. Photo courtesy of Sven and Maud Sandberg, from Spoca.se.

A photo of Bo's Thunderbird freshly painted in 1962. Photo courtesy of Sven and Maud Sandberg, from Spoca.se.

Bo fit the Thunderbird with a 1955 DeSoto grille. This photo was taken during a vacation in Spain in 1962. Photo courtesy of Sven and Maud Sandberg, from Spoca.se.

A photo of the Surfin Bird version of Bo's Thunderbird taken at Svarvargatan in Stockholm in the summer of 1964. Photo courtesy of Sven and Maud Sandberg, from Spoca.se.

Photo courtesy of Sven and Maud Sandberg, from Spoca.se.

Hasse Broberg and Kjelle Gustad's 1938 Chevrolet Convertible parked in front of the Surfin Bird during a trip to Italy in 1964. Photo by Bengt Wennergren.

The Surfin Bird as it appeared in the souvenir program for the first Hot Rod Show held in Stockholm, Sweden in 1965.

A photo of the Surfin Bird taken at the 1965 Hot Rod Show. By then, the car had been given a red paint job. Photo courtesy of Tim Rommedahl.

A photo of the red iteration of the Surfin Bird from the Mats Rommedahl collection. The photo was developed in June of 1965. Photo courtesy of Tim Rommedahl.

Another photo of the Surfin Bird developed in June of 1965. Photo courtesy of Tim Rommedahl.

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By April of 1967, the car had been given a Cadillac Capri Aqua Metallic by Yankee Custom Parts. This iteration of the car was shown at the 1967 Hot Rod Show in Marmorhallarna. Photo courtesy of Tim Rommedahl.

The Surfin Bird as it appeared when it was featured in Colorod Nr.2 1971. Photo courtesy of Colorod.

Photo courtesy of Colorod.

Photo courtesy of Colorod.

Photo courtesy of Colorod.

Photo courtesy of Colorod.

Photo courtesy of Colorod.

Photo from Power Magazine 5/1995.

Photo from Power Magazine 5/1995.

Photo from Power Magazine 5/1995.

The Surfin Bird as it appeared in 2003 at the Classic Car Week in Rättvik, Sweden. Photo courtesy of Fuzzy Dice.

1959 Ford Thunderbird owned and restyled by Bo Sandberg of Yankee Custom Parts in Älvsjö, Stockholm, Sweden. Photos taken of the car in May of 1961 show it painted in a light blue. In 1962, Bo shaved the car for door handles. He painted it red, maroon or burgundy, and he fit it with a 1955 DeSoto grille bar.

The Surfin Bird

By 1964, Bo had turned the Thunderbird into a custom named "Surfin Bird." The Surfin Bird featured modified headlights, an extended hood scoop, dual sunken antennas in the driver door, Foxcraft fender skirts, and a Tee-Boyd tonneau cover.
Most of the body work was done by Arne Lindstrand, a very skilled sheet metal worker and a collegue to Bo at Ernst Nilsson cars in Stockholm.
The door handles had been shaved and replaced by solenoids, and the deck lid and windows were electrically operated. Bo painted the car Pearl White at his shop Yankee Custom Parts. In 1965, The Surfin Bird version of the car was shown at the first annual Hot Rod Show in Stockholm. By then, it had been painted red.

Cadillac Capri Aqua Metallic

By April of 1967, the car had been given a Cadillac Capri Aqua Metallic by Yankee Custom Parts. This iteration of the car was shown at the 1967 Hot Rod Show in Marmorhallarna.

Kjell Arne Pettersson

In 1971, the Surfin Bird was featured in Colorod Nr.2 1971. By then it was owned by Kjell Arne Pettersson of Sollentuna, Sweden. Kjell Arne had just straightened the old custom up and installed a 406 cubic inches V8 engine from a 1964 Ford along with a 1965 Ford Thunderbird transmission. Kjell had also installed electrical door locks and directional lights from a 1967 Ford Thunderbird. Still featuring the Cadillac Capri Aqua Metallic paint job, it had now also been dressed up with pinstriping in red and blue by "Sillen." Camaro seats had been installed, and the entire interior, including the top, was newly upholstered by Alfa Bilklädsel in white. Tinted windows and a radio hi-fi system had been installed along with a set off 14x6 Rader Wheels. Disk brakes from a 1967 Ford Cougar provided stopping power.

Sold to Hagfors

In 1974, the car was sold to Hagfors in Värmland county. In Hagfors it went trough a couple of owners before Mats Rommedahl from Järbo bought it for 29 000 SEK in 1980. Mats will preserve the car in the same shape it had in the sixties, and he insists on never selling it!

Magazine Features

Colorod Nr.2 1971
Power Magazine 5/1995