mobilene Posted June 2, 2008 Report Share Posted June 2, 2008 When I was 19, I got what I consider to be my first car, although I didn't exactly hold the title. It was a 1975 Ford Pinto. I loved that stupid little car. I am still not sure why. I wrote about it on my blog the other day and realized that I wouldn't mind finding one in good shape and having it restored, or maybe buying one already restored. Then I thought: Are you nuts? If you're going to do that, why not go for something with a little more zest, a little more verve, a little more, um, sex. You know, '71 Chevelle. '67 Mustang fastback. '68 Impala hardtop coupe, V8 powered. But another Pinto? Then I realized: I would be willing to part with the cash for a Pinto, while the other cars I cited, not so much. And then I could follow the Michigan Road, the National Road, the PP-OO, etc., etc., in a car that would make passers-by go, "Was that what I think it was?" And, "Who would want to restore one of those?" I added a search for "Ford Pinto" to my eBay favorites. Who knows, maybe someday I'll find the right deal. jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eyerobic Posted June 2, 2008 Report Share Posted June 2, 2008 Are you nuckin futs??? Pinto sheet-metal made great Modified Stock Cars, that's about it. . . . I'll bet your car came with a factory 8-track! ... Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoadDog Posted June 2, 2008 Report Share Posted June 2, 2008 My first new car was a 1973 green Ford Pinto. It got me through the gas crunch of 1973 and I had to drive about 40 miles to get to work back then. Exceptinally poor mechanically though. The reason I got rid of it. Paid the princely sum of $2200 for it. My teaching job racked in the even more princely sum of $7900. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted June 2, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 2, 2008 The Pinto was the brainchild of Lee Iacocca, who mandated a subcompact weighing less than 2,000 pounds that would cost less than $2,000. And so it did, in 1971 at least, when debuted. Your '73, RoadDog, was probably saddled with the massive 5 mph bumpers, like mine was. My '75 had about 60,000 miles on it in 1986 when I got it. It ran fine -- matter of fact, it ran rich, given that it would accelerate to 40 mph on its own, without me touching the gas pedal, after I let off the brake. The radiator issue got fixed fine with a radiator from a junked Pinto. The rust was that car's bane, though. jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keep the Show on the Road! Posted June 2, 2008 Report Share Posted June 2, 2008 When I was 19, I got what I consider to be my first car, although I didn't exactly hold the title. It was a 1975 Ford Pinto. I loved that stupid little car. I am still not sure why. I wrote about it on my blog the other day and realized that I wouldn't mind finding one in good shape and having it restored, or maybe buying one already restored. Then I thought: Are you nuts? If you're going to do that, why not go for something with a little more zest, a little more verve, a little more, um, sex. You know, '71 Chevelle. '67 Mustang fastback. '68 Impala hardtop coupe, V8 powered. But another Pinto? Then I realized: I would be willing to part with the cash for a Pinto, while the other cars I cited, not so much. And then I could follow the Michigan Road, the National Road, the PP-OO, etc., etc., in a car that would make passers-by go, "Was that what I think it was?" And, "Who would want to restore one of those?" I added a search for "Ford Pinto" to my eBay favorites. Who knows, maybe someday I'll find the right deal. jim Ah yes, the lure of the Pinto…. You must have gotten a good one. I was in graduate school and needed a car. Two friends had Pintos, so I bought a Pinto station wagon…yellow with deluxe simulated wood decals on the doors and rear gate. That was one sweet ride! I can still feel the raw surge of power as that baby struggled to reach 60. The gear shift shaft rattled so badly I had to glue the brown plastic knob on. But it made lots of guttural sounds, so you always thought you were going faster than you were. And for a small, underpowered car, it sure guzzled the gas. Maybe 16 around town, and 20 on a downhill with tail wind. It was quite a girl magnet too. I remember one lovely I was attempting to woo who summed it up in two words when I told her I drove a Pinto. Her reply (really!) was “Too bad.” But it was quite simple. The clutch cable broke on me one day in downtown Phoenix and I drove to a repair shop in Tucson shifting by matching speed and gear. Of course stop signs and signals were a little rough! Thanks for the memory! Keep the Show on the Road! Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennyG Posted June 3, 2008 Report Share Posted June 3, 2008 Back in the mid '90s when I hung around the local autocross events, there was a fellow with a heavily modified and very competitive Pinto that was always referred to as "The World's Fastest Pinto". I don't recall him ever being challenged for the title. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hutchman Posted June 3, 2008 Report Share Posted June 3, 2008 The Pinto was probably only outdone as a piece of you know what by the Vega, especially the first year Vega. I should know, we bought one brand spanking new. It was a GT to boot........... Still junk from day one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keep the Show on the Road! Posted June 3, 2008 Report Share Posted June 3, 2008 The Pinto was probably only outdone as a piece of you know what by the Vega, especially the first year Vega. I should know, we bought one brand spanking new. It was a GT to boot........... Still junk from day one! Hutch, Ah yes...but you can still love junk. Right?! Just go to any antique store! Keep the Show on the Road! Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted June 3, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 3, 2008 The Vega was a better looking car than the Pinto. The Kammback was 1,000% better looking than the Pinto wagon IMHO. But yeah, early Vegas were a real roll of the dice. GM made that basic platform live through the early 80s as the Monza/Sunbird/Skyhawk and by then they got the kinks worked out. jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roadmaven Posted June 5, 2008 Report Share Posted June 5, 2008 GM made that basic platform live through the early 80s as the Monza/Sunbird/Skyhawk and by then they got the kinks worked out. I have fond memories of those models. One of my older brothers had the eye catching '77 Monza Mirage like this one: 305 V8 in that little chassis gave it a bunch of gitty-up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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