The retro chic of car designer J Mays

Mays joined Ford in 1987, in time to oversee the attempt to revive the Thunderbird. The use of retro-futuristic round headlights, egg-crate grille, and a decorative hood scoop seemed more parody than homage, and did little to disguise the compromises and cost-cutting that undermined the dynamics of the car. At the launch, Mays declared, "It's not a caricature of what a classic should be. It is a classic automobile." He protested too much. Instead of the long production run he expected, its novelty appeal was quickly exhausted, and the T'bird had its wings clipped three years later.