This is the listing for a 1974 Ford Pinto Runabout going up for auction in Tipp City, Ohio on July 26. The car has 11,326 original miles and is in great condition, body and inside, according to the ad. The photos seem to back that up. The car was last licensed in 1991 and was only driven from Tipp City to Troy and back, a distance of as much as 7 to 10 miles one way. If anyone is interested in bidding on this at auction, let me know, cause I might go to the auction just to see it. Tipp City is all of 10 minutes from my house.
http://www.auctionzip.com/Listings/473953.html
http://www.auctionzip.com/Listings/473953.html
I don't know why this isn't working as a hyperlink..the web address is correct. The auctioneer is Larry Lavender of Troy, Ohio. Get in touch with me and let me know if you're coming this way. She sounds and looks like a real beauty.
You can click "View Photo Gallery" but the pictures are still really small and aren't very good quality to start with :(
I hope someone goes to the auction. It would be interesting to see what a car like that will bring although there may be few buyers at a small local auction. Maybe you can make a great buy!
Well, I'm going and I'm taking the checkbook. I don't know what it will go for, I don't have a clue in the world. Does anyone have any idea what to expect?
At a major auction it could bring in the $10,000 range but this car has had some alterations and who knows? I hope you can get a good buy, it is a great car regardless. Good luck and let us know how it went.
It's official...I got the Pinto! Only one other person besides myself was bidding on the car and she backed out; I'll pick up the car tomorrow. :lol:
As soon as I'm able I will post photos and a full description of the car.
Congratulations! You got a winner! We hope to hear all about it soon.
Quote from: FlyerPinto on July 26, 2008, 04:02:11 PM
It's official...I got the Pinto! Only one other person besides myself was bidding on the car and she backed out; I'll pick up the car tomorrow. :lol:
As soon as I'm able I will post photos and a full description of the car.
:o Pictures! Thats great. Have fun with that car!
First reports from the Pinto. The car was stored in a barn, not a garage, a barn. Which makes a huge difference when it comes to the smell which emanates from the car, and this car reeks of barn. At the auction the car had been somewhat washed, but it was still pretty messy. That fact encouraged me because I was afraid if the car was truly impressive I would get outbid in a hurry. The paint is a robins egg blue, though I don't know if Ford had any specific name for it at the time, other than light blue. The interior is blue carpet with blue vinyl seats that have what looks to be a lariat emblem on the back of the front seats. All the Pinto emblems are intact and have the red, white and blue striping within the capital "P". The original whitewall tires are still on the car with chrome wheel covers, though at the moment I can't give a better description of them. The car has the 2300cc engine, an automatic transmission, factory air conditioning and the radio delete option. The black metal plate that matches the contour of the dash is still in place where the radio would have been installed. The carpet is good, the seats are great, the dash pad is blue and uncracked. All electrical items are working, headlights, tail lights, flashers, horn, turn signals, brake lights, dash lights, and the foot pedal switch for the high beams. The body is almost flawless, other than a ding on the right rear fender lip where the owner apparently clipped the barn door, and there is a smaller yet eerily similar ding on the drivers side rear fender lip. The rear hatch won't stay up as the pneumatic supports have lost their strength, and the drivers side door won't open from the outside for some reason, though I suspect it has to do with the door looking slightly out of alignment. There are holes on either side of the headliner above the sunvisors where small furry rodents have been. The plastic rods the sunvisors are on are fine, as are the plastic interior panels in the footwells. Under the hood is a mess. I've dug out walnuts, wood shavings, fur, and any other kind of nonsense that can crawl into an engine compartment from a barn. I used my shopvac on it today to clean out all I could, and then turned the blower on it to clean out some more. I took off the air cleaner and found what has to be the original air filter. The air cleaner itself was filthy on the outside, but inside was showroom clean. The belts and hoses all look surprisingly good, and all of the rubber seals around the car are fine.
Right now the biggest challenge will be getting it to fire. I put a new battery in this morning when I picked it up, and though it cranks it won't fire. As a result we towed it home and had no trouble at all with it during the trip, which was about ten miles or so. I'm hitting the auto parts store for some goodies, and I'm trying to get an old acquaintance of mine to come and take a peak at it. He was a Ford mechanic for years at the local dealership so he might be a good resource. The only other problem with the car is the smell, and it is really awful. The carpet is pristine, but it reeks. Any ideas on how to handle this?
Incidentally, before they started the auction for the car the auctioneer asked if there were any questions about the car. I asked if it had been taken to a dealer for the recall regarding the fuel tank (I had looked under the car and didn't see the plastic insert that did the job) and as far as the auctioneer and the family knew, the car had not been taken in. I might have put off a couple of prospective buyers with that question, but that was the idea and I got the car, so it might have helped.
My wife and I washed the car and have been busy going over the exterior with fine scrubbers to get what can only be described as a film, not to mention tar and bugs, off the car. It is starting to really look sharp. I'll post pictures when I bring the digital camera home.
Thanks for the great information on this car that we were all curious about. I hope it runs good for you. It should be a winner!
Other than the Smell it sounds like a really nice car. One way to get the smell out, is with Home carpet pet and odor remover(shampoo) with about 1 Table spoon of Oxyclean, Not too much so you dont cause the color to come out of the carpet but it does work well with killing odors as well as getting stains out. I would recommend Rug doctor's pet and Stain remover. =) never know what was living in there
FlyerPinto,
Congrats on the new car. Sounds like another fun project.
phils toys
Awesome!
If you need a hand let me know. I'm just down the road.
Adam
PS
You KNOW you have to get that to Carlisle. ;) ;D
The original owners granddaughter delivered the Retail Buyers Order, sales slip and stub from the bank check used to pay for the car. The buyers order is dated 7-1-74 and lists the car as follows:
2300cc
Cruise o Matic
WSW
Air Cond
Accent Group
Tinted glass comp
Bumper group
Disc brakes
and a note under shop installed that says, "Remove Radio".
The selling price is $3457 plus tax of $155.46 and filing fee of $10.50 for a total of $3622.96.
I've decided to take the car to my friends' shop and let him bring the engine back to life. Having sat that long I don't know what I would encounter, and he can probably knock it out in a day.
I would love to take this little beasty to a show when she's ready, I think it will be really impressive. This time I think I will trailer it though. Drop me a line Adam and if you want to run up and take a peek you're more than welcome to do so. I'll get back to you all later.
A big part of the value of your new Pinto will be its' low mileage and I would not recommend making it a daily driver. I have a low mileage Pinto too and regretfully don't drive it as I do not want to add any miles. I am looking for a driver as it is no fun to not take the car out and enjoy it and to just keep it in the garage. They do not make low mileage Pintos any more so cherish yours. You are very lucky to have found it.
She's looking to be a keeper. I don't think I'll drive it all that much, but I don't really know. Having discovered the car wasn't taken in for the recall regarding the gas tank circumstance I don't know how best to proceed, so I guess I'll just take a wait and see attitude, unless someone can tell me how to fix it. I appreciate the suggestions on the odor issue as well. I'm not sure what to try first but I'll get it running and then go to the next step. More to come later.
When you get it running take it to your nearest Ford dealer.They might be able to get the update for the tank,and it might be under warranty.
Quote from: pintoman on July 28, 2008, 05:07:37 PM
When you get it running take it to your nearest Ford dealer.They might be able to get the update for the tank,and it might be under warranty.
LOL!
I want to be there for THAT.
"A what? For warranty work?"
Yeah, that would be pretty good. The guys at my Ford dealer think I've lost my mind as it is anyway. In one year my wife and I bought a new E-150 van, a new F-150, a used F-150 and a used Ranger from them, and I've been taking my Pinto Cruising Wagon and Mustang II in for some work. Just recently I tried to get them to donate a car to the foster care agency where I work...they looked at me like I was from another planet. So when I take this Pinto in and ask for warranty work (which I think is a wonderful idea!) they are liable to flip their lids!
you have to post what they say when you take it in lol i want to see it. and their faces!!!!!!
Heck, I went into my dealership with my '78 in '99 and they didn't have the "dealer only part" I needed.
FlyerPinto
My wife would not ride in my Pinto until I could convince her it had the gas tank modification installed. I was lucky enough to have a Ford dealer who located the recall parts in another state, acquired them and installed them on my car.....warran ty work on a 30 year old Pinto!
The easiest way to tell if the kit has been installed is the addition of a plastic shield in front of the gas tank, between it and the rear end. It is very noticeable if it is there.
Hope this helps.
Dave
Original74
"Recall Campaign 293".
Before I purchased the Pinto, I was able to secure two N.O.S. recall kits for the fuel tank recall from Green Sales in Cincinnati; one to put on the car, and the other one to show. As soon as I got home with it, my local Ford dealer
installed the kit for me.
oldcarpierre
here are someother people who had a kit installed under warrenty.
philstoys
I'm going to try my dealer tomorrow. I forgot about it today, in the midst of my normal fun work day. But I did get out and get plates for the 74 so I can get her down to the shop and not get hassled by the long arm of the law.
Quote from: 75bobcatv6 on July 27, 2008, 07:16:02 PM
Other than the Smell it sounds like a really nice car. One way to get the smell out, is with Home carpet pet and odor remover(shampoo) with about 1 Table spoon of Oxyclean, Not too much so you dont cause the color to come out of the carpet but it does work well with killing odors as well as getting stains out. I would recommend Rug doctor's pet and Stain remover. =) never know what was living in there
After all the washing, shampooing, odor remover and etc. has been done (and maybe failed) Go to "Wal mart" They sell (in the R.V. dept.) an "Oder Absorbing Gel" Comes in a 14 oz container. White with orange letting and a blue top. Sells for about $4.00. Comes in a smaller container, but the "14 oz." cost so little, its hardly worth it to purchase it.
Been there, done that ! Damm mice got into a car, built nest(s) in places that man cant get to. Found this product to be very helpful
Also, when you dont have a "smell-problem" you could put it into the car anyway, has a nice "citrus" smell.
After a few days, you cant even smell , unless you open the lid and stir it a bit.
When you do have a problem (as above) take a small amount and push it into the heater box or vents. With the blower help, you can over power the smell.
The cost is so little, you could put two (or as needed) into a car when theres a problem and one (every spring) when there isn't
I'v kept one in the bathroom for sometime now, There cheep and they work, just replace them every 90 days or so (for best results)
If you need a better explantion of the product, PM me, or ask here,,,,,,, Jim at jimspinto
Guys,
This is my first login on the site since the summer of 2008. What a year it has been. That is a story for another day.
I have been reading the unread posts since my last login from the bottom.
When I bought my Pinto, I did not know at the time that some of you had been able to get Ford USA to install the kit for free 25-30 years after the fact. My Ford dealer installed the kit for me (which I had purchased at Green Sales), but Ford Canada would not pick up the tab. I had to pay a couple of hundred dollars. Had I known then what I know now, I would have leaned harder on Ford Canada.
Pierre
that would be funny as hell. i also own a pretty low mileage pinto my orange 78 only has 78k on the ticker. got it from an older guy that didnt want to sell it, he was the 1st owner. he was behind on his mortgage and i just happened to have money. so it came home with me last july. ive only put a couple hundred miles om it since i bought it. i keep it polished and take it to cruises on the weekend, in the summer time. but ive never taken it too far. longest trip was from prineville to bend and back. about 85 miles round trip.drove like a dream. i say enjoy your new car and keep it nice but drive it. that is after all what cars were made for!