Vehicle Description
1978 Ford Pinto
In 1970, the Ford Motor Company proudly debuted its newest addition
to the family: the Pinto. At first, the Pinto was famous for two
reasons: it was small, and it was cheap. Marketed as costing just a
dollar per pound, the Pinto's compact 2,000-pound frame clocked in
at a modest $2,000, making the car affordable and popular. But
later, the Pinto would gain a newer, darker sort of fame as one of
the worst and most dangerous vehicles ever built. It became known
colloquially as the "Ford Butane". Thanks Ralph Nader who ruined a
good thing just like the Corvair, by over exaggerating a fault.
Despite its shortcomings this dealer demo car came from its first
owner to our current consignor as he was making his way back from
another car sale/drop off in Hagerstown MD. As a result this is a
fully loaded car offering many factory options like power steering,
power brakes, automatic transmission, A/C, remote mirrors, deluxe
trim, map lite, trunk lite, underhood lite, an AM/FM radio and
swinging rear side windows. These are not often seen in these
quantities on any Pinto, so you start off with a goodie!
Exterior
Bright red bathes the panels of this unique car with its sloping
front end and gracefully dropping rear hatchback. Our example has a
white vinyl roof, and a white painted side trimming, as well as a
stainless rocker covering. Round headlights in square body matching
bezels and a small grille are in front, along with a shiny bumper
below. This car was a daily driver so there are a few dents and
dings, chips and crazing in the respray. One area of concern is on
the bottom back of the driver's door jamb, some invasive rust can
be seen. Overall, though seeing it is not a high dollar vehicle the
paint can be rated as good. Around the wheel wells is some bent
metal but no rust. Standard polished wheel covers are on all 4
corners and red steel wheels can be seen peeking out from the
rims.
Interior
In keeping with the options to sell the customer, the interior uses
overstuffed red bucket seats with some rectangular buttons and
stitched panels. The driver's seat shows some cracking and some
wear. The back bench has the buttons as well and shows in very nice
condition. The center hump runs through the bench and creates more
bucket like bench than a full bench, so much for the $1 a pound
deal! Red carpeting floods the floors and between the buckets a
hand brake and the shift lever reside. The dash is original with a
black inset gauge cluster with deep inset round gauges. A slight
bit of wood applique and mostly red plastic and vinyl cover the
dash which is fronted by a red steering wheel. There is a large
crack in the dash top. Above is a shiny red vinyl headliner nice
and tight. Not shown in the photos, two teddy bears will come with
the car and were belted into the back seats when the original owner
used them as her mascots. They have been belted in the car since
its purchase!
Drivetrain
Within the unrestored engine bay in a highly patina and dusty
environment sits the original 2.8 liter V6. It is fed by a single
2-barrel carburetor and has a C4 3-speed automatic transmission on
the back. The rear axle is a 3.40 conventional setup.
Undercarriage
Areas of surface rust and some peel off of the finish underneath is
noted. Heavy surface rust is seen on the suspension and drum brake
casings. Also, some invasive rust is noted in the floor pans and
will need remedied. This car being manufactured in 1978 does have
the extra plate at the potential point of impact where the problem
was with the fires from the gas tank hitting the pumpkin. Power
disc braking is on front and power drums on the back.
Drive-Ability
A quick starter and good runner. The consignor states he just loves
Pintos and has owned several examples of them, however this one
with its high options and all in working order was his best Pinto
he owned. He has since moved on to other vehicles!
A dealer demo has left us with a high option 1978 Ford Pinto not
oft seen with such options. A red resprays and some battle scars
from daily use make this a not oft seen find as not many survived.
Here's your chance! Giddy-up! And mascots included...
VIN DECODE
8T10Z108141
8-1978
T-Metuchen, NJ Assy Plant
10-Pinto 2 Door Base Sedan
Z-2.8L V6 2bbl
108141-Sequential Unit Number
DOOR STICKER
COLOR 2R2W-Bright Red, White Padded Top
DSO 56-Davenport
BODY 62B-2 Door Base Sedan
TRIM TD-Red Vinyl Buckets
DATE 26H-August 26th
AXLE 7-3.40 Conventional
TRANS W-C4 Automatic
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 650 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display.
This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown,
Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia
on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is
www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888) 227-0914.
Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the
vehicle in person.
