At the beginning of the sixties, the successful Thunderbird urgently needed a restyling of the second series model. For 1961 the third series of the Thunderbird was released, which disconcerted a part of the public due to an excessively flat line. Ford marketing talked about "Cigar shape". The car, however, remained elegant and with a distinct personality. Available in different engines and body configurations, the Thunderbird III remained in production until 1963 with over 210000 copies sold, when it made room for the fourth series.