Hi all! I'm new here but certainly not new to being a car nut, nor new to Pintos, having had several in my life. My first car was, in fact, an orange 1974 Pinto Runabout with black interior. It was special ordered shortly after my sixteenth birthday and was delivered in December of 1973. She had a 2300 cc engine and a manual transmission. Trim-wise, she sported the stainless around the windows, a bodyside molding with a black insert, standard hubcaps upgraded by optional trim rings, and WSW tires. Other than an AM radio and tinted glass, that was about it. I loved her dearly. After all, it wasn't every sophomore in my high school that had a BRAND NEW car! I bought her for the princely sum of $2900. I invested my life savings of $700 and my dad co-signed a 36 month contract. My payments were $76 per month. I'm 50 now but I remember that like it as yesterday. It's the only Pinto that I actually owned. The others I had experience with were my sister's dark green '72 Pinto Squire and my Mom's blue '79 Runabout. Both of those cars were automatics while I preferred the performance of my 4 speed.
While still primarily a Ford man, as I've gotten older they have evolved into Lincolns. I currently own a 2007 Mark LT 4x4, a 1999 Town Car, a 1979 Collector's Series Continental, and a 1979 Mark V. As much as I enjoy these fine automobiles, my dearest desire is to replace my little orange Pinto. I check eBay every day (that's where I found both my '79 Lincolns) and just know that, sooner or later, the right one will come along. I'm pretty set on the idea of an exact replacement, or as close as I can come. While it would be nice to find exactly what I'm looking for, realistically I can always paint it orange and the interior can be redone in black. The things which absolutely are not negotiable is that it has to be a Runabout and it has to be a 4 speed. The biggest factor is that while I do fairly well with bodywork and paint, I'm not in the least mechanical. Whenever I find my Pinto, it will have to be in pretty decent running condition... at least enough so that it can be driven once a week or so. I like to drive my vehicles and because of having so many (I also own an '83 Ford F150 4x4 and an '02 Chrysler Sebring Limited convertible) about once or twice a week is all any of them are used... often for nothing more than a run to the grocery store, out to dinner, or to work. By alternating that way, I can sometimes drive several of them in a day's time. Well, enough about that.
I'm looking forward to getting to know all of you and maybe even finding the Pinto of my dreams here!
As a guest, I have read through many of the forum postings and am amazed at the wealth of knowledge evident here. It gives me reason to hope that when I DO find my Pinto, I'll have a ready resource to turn to for help! Thanks in advance!
Here's wishing everyone a SUPER weekend!!!
Dwayne
HELLO, and welcome.
Bill
:welcome: dga57!!!!!
Nice story.
Sorry I do not have a lead on your dream Pinto at this time.
Orang W/ black interior MAY be a problem as those were most likely repainted.
Have you seen Original 74 daves 74 orange Pinto???
From Pintony
I thought Dave's Pinto deserved 1 more Photo.
Hi again and thanks for the welcome. I LOVE Dave's orange pinto! Unfortunately, though, at sixteen I couldn't quite afford the more expensive one like that. Mine was solid orange; no white two-tone and no white vinyl roof, although that would have definitely been my preference had money not been an object. Now I'm more into replacing the car I actually had rather than the one I dreamed about. As I said before, repainting really isn't a problem but, obviously, the closer I can get to what I want, the better. For instance, a blue car with a black interior would probably be more desirable than a blue one with blue interior. If need be, however, interiors can be redone too. My 1983 F150 was originally solid white with red interior. Now it is a blue and white Victoria two-tone (which required lots of taping/masking and the purchase of chrome moldings and ridiculously expensive striping) with a blue interior. In that particular instance, I had the seat reupholstered and I dyed the door panels and dash. Turned out great! It is a base model truck and only has black rubber flooring so carpet was not an issue although it can be successfully dyed as well; especially if you're going darker. Dying ANY color carpeting to black is a fairly simple procedure. With today's products, even dyed steering wheels stand up to the test of time. I'm not looking for a show car, just a good-looking driver.
I have a question: can the larger bumpers of the '74 and newer cars be retrofitted to the '71 thru '73 models? If so, that could widen my seach a bit. I also could alter a '75 to look like a '74 with very little effort, especially if it needed repainting anyway. That should be a simple matter of replacing the wider bodyside moldings with the narrow version and removing some badging and filling the holes. All in all, I'm pretty open to different avenues of getting the car I want. Of course the less I have to do to a car, the more I'd be willing to pay for it. I've got to keep it in perspective, after all. Cheers!
Dwayne
I may have a small lead, but wrong year. My uncle has (if he hasn't sold it yet) a 79 hatch which is orange with the black interior. It is a 2.3, C3, dealer air equipped car. If you are interested, I can see what the status is of this car.
--Doug
BTW, it's in Tucson, AZ, but it is in great mechanical shape and is a true AZ (DSO 75) car.
Thanks, Doug, but I'm really wanting a '74 (or thereabouts) if at all possible. The one good thing is I tend to be pretty patient. It took me six years to locate my dream Mark V. I wanted a 1979 in a specific color combination, with specific equipment, and even specific wheels. By golly, I was right; it WAS out there! I passed on close to a dozen that would have been pretty close but varied in one respect or another from what I was looking for. Lest you think I'm just too picky, the one I eventually bought had a couple of variations but they were ones I could address without a lot of bother. Waiting definitely paid off in that case and I'm sure that will prove true in my search for a Pinto also. Thanks again!
Dwayne
Quote from: dga57 on October 27, 2007, 02:59:57 PM
I have a question: can the larger bumpers of the '74 and newer cars be retrofitted to the '71 thru '73 models? If so, that could widen my seach a bit. I also could alter a '75 to look like a '74 with very little effort, especially if it needed repainting anyway. That should be a simple matter of replacing the wider bodyside moldings with the narrow version and removing some badging and filling the holes.
Just an interesting bit of info, the earlier cars (71-73) did not come with the 2.3L. As far as I know, the 74-76 are nearly identical save for differences in the grille on the 76. 77-78 cars can be made to look like the 74-75 cars by switching out the front grille, bumper and headlight buckets, but the taillight panel changed when the taillights grew in size, and the 'FORD' letters on the hood are more spread out. 79-80 cars can be changed to appear as a 74-75, but in addition to the mods needed on a 77-78, the front fenders and hood will need to be changed as well.
I wish you luck in your search, and welcome you to our lovely little pony place.
--Doug
Hi again, Doug, and thanks for the welcome. You're right... when I ordered my 1974 Pinto, the 2.3 Liter engine was a brand new offering. It ran really great too... far better than my sister's '72 with the smaller engine and automatic transmission. At this point, I'm not terribly concerned about engine size although I would have to think long and hard before buying a car with the 1600 cc engine - drastically underpowered in my opinion. The 4 speed is an absolute must and I'd really like to find a '74 if at all possible. Changing the interior/exterior colors is well within my capabilities and I'd rather deal with something I know than get into changing body parts in an effort to make a newer car resemble a '74. If I remain patient, it will come along eventually. Actually, I'm going to the Turkey Run car show in Daytona FL over Thanksgiving. There are supposed to be approximately 8000 cars there. Maybe the perfect Pinto will be sitting there in the car corral - I can always hope!
Dwayne
Welcome Dwayne!
You and I are the same age and have a similar start into Pinto's back in the day....when they were just affordable, economical cars that we could work on, not the awesome collectable classics they are today! I too purchased a new '74 Sedan, in about the same dress as my current orange car, set me back $3,814, $114.00 per month and could fill it up for three bucks!
I cherish the past memories of the 4 Pinto's I owned in the '70's and '80's, but marvel today at the wealth of information found on this site now that they are 35 years old and we have the experience with engine issues, etc. that we didn't have back in the day.
Welcome aboard and have fun!
Dave
Original74
Hi Dave, and thanks for the welcome! Pintony posted a couple photos of Geraldine last week and I must say, she is gorgeous. She is, in fact, the Pinto I really wanted rather than the solid orange with black interior that I ended up with. Nonetheless, now that I'm looking to replicate my first car, I want to stick with the orange/black color scheme like my original. One thing; I won't have to waste time seeing if I can track down the actual car... it was totalled by its second owner in a head-on collision about six weeks after I traded it in.
I always considered myself a "big car" person, but my Pinto was different... it was MINE... and, at sixteen, that accounted for a lot! I traded it in 1976 for a 1973 Lincoln Continental Town Car, triple black. That was right after the oil embargoes and fuel lines... I paid $1000 difference. Several years back, when I finally reached enough financial security that I could think about building a collection of cars that interested me, I naturally gravitated toward Lincolns (after all, I've had eleven of them over the years). My Mark V came about as a replication of my first NEW Lincoln... my Continental Collector's Series sedan represents a car that I would have bought if I could have afforded it new. I still wouldn't mind also replacing my first Lincoln, the triple black '73 Town Car, if a nice example happens to come along. I've even dabbled a bit with Rolls Royces (WHOLE different ballgame), but that little orange Pinto lingers in the back of my mind and I've always had the idea of getting another one. The thing I've discovered, though, is that they are extremely rare now... at least in my area. That's why I was so happy to stumble onto this site. At least I know I'm not the only person out there who still has fond memories of a Pinto! And, while it may take some time, I'll bet I eventually find exactly what I'm looking for. Thanks again for the welcome!
Dwayne
Hello dga57,
LOOK at the post
craigslist orange 77 pinto in SF
Nice orange Pinto with black interior.
I guess you have waited long enough!! ;D
From Pintony
Hi Pintony!
Thanks for the tip - I really want a '74 if possible but dashed off an email to the owner anyway... you never know! Will let you know if and when I hear back from him. $1800 doesn't sound too bad to me... what do you think?
Dwayne
Hello Dwayne,
I say pull the 77 nose off and backdate the look to a 74!!!!!
If you are willing to paint and re-do the interior then this Pinto should be a snap!!!!
1800 sounds like a heck of a deal to me!!!!
From Pintony
dga57
If I have learned one thing with my first two old cars ('69 Olds Cutlass S Convertible, '60 Cadillac Sedan de Ville), it is the following: BUY THE BEST ONE YOU CAN FIND.
My first car was a 6-year old brown on brown '73 Pinto sedan, 2.0 automatic. Like you, I figured that I would try to find a perfect brown on brown, or at least one with a brown interior. Paint is easy, interiors are a different story. Well in my quest for the perfect brown '73, I found the perfect Pinto. Unrestored 1974 2.0 4-speed, medium lime yellow, avocado interior, 9500 documented miles. It doesn't get more seventies than this colour scheme.
When I saw it, I knew the search had ended. It was close enough. When I drive Stupinto (my wife named her), it is 1979 and I am eighteen again. From where I sit, I can't see that the bumpers are bigger, and shifting these gears is a lot more fun than the old C4 automatic I had the first time.
You will get more enjoyment from a perfect Pinto that is close in age to your first one than from a tired one of the exact year and colour scheme.
By the way, the search took 3 years. Paid through the nose, worth every penny. That is not bad, considering that the search for my '61 Pontiac Parisienne convertible took 7 years (also paid through the nose, also worth every penny).
Welcome aboard. We're all nuts.
Pintony and Oldcarpierre both make excellent points. I, too, am a believer in the "buy the best one you can find" adage. I've done it both ways, though, with good results. The first of my two '79 Lincolns was the "paid through the nose", all original, excellent condition example. Other than needing a repaint, and a handful of insignificant little things (like rebuilding the clock, new door lock actuators, etc.), the car was probably as nice as any around when I purchased it. Realizing what a find I had, I decided to have the repaint done professionally to show quality. Major bucks invested. Car turned out perfect... is a sight to behold and a pleasure to drive BUT I'm into it way too deep to recoup my investment anytime soon. That's okay with me... I have no intention of selling it anyway. My other '79 Lincoln cost me less than $700 to buy. It had about 82,000 actual miles but had been sitting (not even started) for about seven years. There were some rust issues but, fortunately, only in the outer panels... nothing in the frame. I had $1200 worth of work performed on it before I took possession, spent additional money on new tires, and drove her 850 miles home at interstate speeds. Once home, I tackled the bodywork and paint myself. Show quality wasn't my objective with this car since I bought it to be a driver (so the other one can stay pristine in the garage). Had a new exhaust installed and the carburetor rebuilt after bringing it home and, at this moment, it runs and drives as well, if not better, than the $12000 car; all at a cost of about $3500.
Here is what I've learned about that orange 1977 Pinto. Mostly original paint, black interior in good shape other than a small tear in the driver's seat and a hole in the carpet at the driver's seat. At $1800, I have no doubt that it truly is a "deal". Because of the original paint, I believe it would be a shame to start altering the body of this particular car. To look like a '74, the nose would have to be changed, the taillights redone, and the hatch replaced. Assuming all that is even possible (that everything would fit, etc.) locating parts might be a problem. So... if I were to purchase this car, I'd probably take Oldcarpierre's advice and leave it a '77 and convince myself it's "close enough". The next problem is that the car is located in San Francisco, California while I am located in Virginia. Add about $1500 for transportation. Yeah, I could drive out and trailer it home but, by the time you figure gasoline, motels, meals I probably couldn't do it for any less. Still, $3000-3500 wouldn't be too much for a super nice example. The real deal breaker came when I discovered that the car has an automatic transmission. That simply is not acceptable to me. Matt tells me that he had planned to convert it to a manual transmission and purchased the clutch/brake pedal assembly to do so. He's including it in the sale. That, however, is WAY beyond my capabilities! While I can hold my own with body and interior work, I am not in any way, shape, or form, a mechanic. I shudder to even think how much a shop would charge me to make that conversion, assuming I could find a manual transmission to install. After due consideration, I've decided to pass on this one - nice as it is. I still firmly believe a suitable car will come along (hopefully east of the Mississippi) if I'm patient.
Dwayne
Dga57,
Welcome aboard!!!!
I hope you find the Pinto of your dreams as we hope to see you show up with it at a meet in the future to show them off with us.
High_Horse
Hey dga57,
Carlisle is only 7 months away. Better hurry-UP!!! ;D
From Pintony
I really can't think of anything I'd enjoy more. I've been to Carlisle a couple of times but only as a spectator. I'm headed to the Turkey Run in Daytona in less than three weeks... I'm hoping to stumble onto something irresistable (and affordable) in the Car Corral -after all, out of 8000 or so cars, you'd think there'd be a PInto or two. Probably not, but it doesn't hurt to dream.
Dwayne