Pinto Car Club of America

I was having a ton of difficulty with my 1980 Pinto Wagon until someone recommended the following:

First, check to see if your negative ground cable goes to the engine block AND to the body via a length of 12 gauge wire.  For some reason, the ground to the block just by itself isn't enough.

Then, it was suggested that I clean up any metal to metal contacts on the car.  Anywhere a clean solid electrical connection needed to be made, I removed the connections, sanded them to bare metal, reconnected, then hit with WD-40.  This makes a WORLD of difference.  No backfire, hesitation, or lack of power.

Of course I also threw in new spark wires, new distributor cap, Dri-Gas with every fill up of high test and it runs like a charm!

My dad got a free 1970 (69.5 actualy) maverick from the junkyard for that exact problem.

Old lady gave it to the yard cause it would die for no apparent reason.  They couldn't figure out what was wrong with it and my pop just happened to be there that day.  They told him "If you can get it to start and stay running, its yours".   5 min. and a ground strap later, He drove the maverick to the office for the title.

Was a nice maverick too.  grabber blue with black interior, 200 six, c4, and it had the metal horn ring on the steering wheel with the ignition switch on the dash.  They drove the wheels off of the car and eventualy junked it.  this was around 84 or so. 

That car in the condition it was in when he got it would go for a lot of $$$ nowadays.

-Harry