A great all around car

History:
I bought my 1994 Thunderbird V-8 from a guy who claimed to be the original owner. A carfax report later found that he was not and that my car was a rental car for Hertz in Virginia. That scared me a bit when I first got it because I know what people can do to rental cars.
Repairs/maintenance:
When I got it, it had 122,000 miles and I paid $1850 for it back in 2002. At 125,000 I had to put a new tranny in it ($1300) and an ignition lock ($35). After that I went about a year with only routine maintenance. Now he car has almost 158,000 miles and some repairs were necessary. I had to replace both front control arms, brakes need to be done often (I drive on the fast side so that can explain the suspension and brakes having to be done frequently). My father also has a 1994 T-bird and he encounters not nearly as many repairs as I do. The high mileage that my car has called for some other parts to be replaced.
Alternator
Electric fan motor
Water pump
It does burn oil but not in excessive amounts. That is common for the 4.6 V-8 to have oil consumption. Ford even tells you that it is normal for their new cars to use a quart in between oil changes! Other than that the car runs great
Gas mileage:
I used to get 13 (city) and 16 (highway) mpg driving fast and arguably stupid. I have since changed my driving habits to save gas and now get 19-20 mixed driving and 23+ on the highway averaging between 85-108 mph on a trip to PA. If I had slowed down to around 70 I bet I could get 27 mpg. The weight of this car and the low 2.73:1 gears make around town mileage a little worse because it takes more gas to get going, but on the highway you can do 70mph at under 2000 rpm and make up mileage there.
Interior:
The interior is laid out very nice and is very ergonomical. I am hard pressed to find an interior as smooth and laid out as well as the Thunderbirds. Seats are comfortable and fitting. The stereo was upgraded by me almost right away and sounds good.
Exterior:
The paint on these cars last for a while. Mine is dark green and it still looks great after a wash. These cars are also built tough. I was involved in an accident where I hit into someone making a left in front of me. We hit rather hard and the damage to my car was minimal.
FUN FACTOR:
These cars are fun. They are big but are quite nimble for their size. I can drive mine like a go-cart if I have or want to. They are quick with the V-8 and really shine when passing or from a rolling start. It kicks down into 2nd and take off. Second gear will take you well over 70 mph so it gets to highway speed easily. I don't suggest beating the hell out of it because the tranny will not last very long at that pace. The windows are large and some window tint is almost manadatory. I didn't put tint on for at least a year after I got it and I wonder how I drove without it. Summing up the FUN FACTOR it is a quick, comfortable car that can take a beating. I have beat several imports and mustangs with my car. And for the record i also have a 5.0 as a race/show car so I know about mustangs and the ones that I raced were POS autos.
Summary:
A great value. You can get these cars cheap and they still hold their style. If you want to beat on them make sure you have enough for a new tranny. Overall it is one of the best cars that I have owned and i hope/expect almost 180,000+ miles with this car before I get rid of it.