1959 Ford Fairline 500 Skyliner Retractable Hardtop

While Ford didn't invent the world's first hardtop convertible, the Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner was the first mass hardtop convertible offered in a mainstream car line. Ford offered the innovative Fairlane 500 Skyliner retractable hardtop for three model years, 1957, 1958, and 1959. In 1959, after the introduction of the Ford Galaxie 500, the Skyliner migrated from the Fairlane line to the Galaxie 500 model. The Galaxie 500 Skyliner retractable hardtop was discontinued after the end of the 1959 model year -- it was rumored that Ford lost money on each one sold -- and it took almost 30 years before this better idea returned in the form of the Mercedes-Benz 230SLK. All images copyright 2010 by Richard Truesdell and automotivetraveler.com, all rights reserved. If you have a request for commercial use of these images, contact the photographer through Fotki. For more photos from the Automotive Traveler image gallery visit http://automotivetraveler.fotki.com/ To view automotivetraveler.com, visit http://automotivetraveler.com/jump/2196 And to view Automotive Traveler magazine, visit http://automotivetraveler.com/jump/2197

Photos copyright 2010 by Richard Truesdell, all rights reserved.