I'm really enjoying the Pinto saga. One might question the decision to drive the vehicle that cannot keep coolant temps in control.... I do vehicle testing in Arizona during the summer and the grades there can be miles long and the temperatures are brutal. Wittsend's story of the anemic 2.0L auto reminds me of my wife's 130,000 + mile '80 Escort (that was alot of miles then...) with a 1.6L carb engine and 4 speed. When going up highway hills with the AC on, the car would slow down & you really didn't want to downshift at 65 MPH.... I would hit the "AC" button to shut off the AC and the car would speed up. I called it "Turbo Boost" after the Knight Rider TV show.
My only experience with an automatic Pinto is my '80 Pintaroo. Can't say if it was a dog or not, the C3 crapped out after 5 miles of ownership. Not too worried, I have a '88 2.3L turbo and T5 for it. Once I retire, I'll have time for my projects....