This clean, two-owner 1973 Ford Pinto Runabout (hatchback) is about as nice an example as I can remember. We’ve seen many of them lately here on Barn Finds as you all know, and some really nice ones. This example is almost exactly like the one my dad had as a company car and the seller has it listed here on eBay in Chester, New York, the current bid price is $3,550, and the reserve isn’t met.
We’ve only seen 15 1973 Ford Pintos here on Barn Finds over the years, with 11 of them being station wagons (six squire wagons, four regular wagons, and one “jet-powered” wagon), just one two-door sedan with a trunk. The other two were Runabouts as seen here. Runabout = hatchback for those not initiated in Ford lingo. Here is a video they provided on YouTube showing this car, nice work.
Other than the great roof rack, this car is almost exactly like one my dad had as a company car in the early 1970s after a succession of Chevy Bel Airs. That was quite a change. Ford made the Pinto from the fall of 1970 for the 1971 model year until the end of the 1980 model year. This car has had just two owners in the last 51 years and has traveled just 40,022 miles, about what I drive every year. It looks great, too, but does have a few small areas showing rust that should be at least treated and covered with something. The seller also mentions that there are a couple of small rust spots and the “cowl” was repainted due to peeling paint, otherwise, it’s all original.
They show many nice photos, well done, seller! They even include underside photos, and having grown up in northern Minnesota, this car has basically no rust at all compared to what I grew up with. I would have that underside surface rust treated and coated as is all the rage today. The interior is exactly the same as my dad’s former company car, except his was a cheapo with a four-speed manual, this one has a Cruise-O-Matic three-speed automatic. The seats look great both front and rear, and the seller even shows us photos of the rear cargo area and one with the back seat folded forward. They hit a home run on the photos, it’s rare to have so many – they aren’t hiding anything.
The engine shows some surface rust here and there, which is understandable if this car is from the Northeast. This is Ford’s 2.0-liter SOHC inline-four with 83 horsepower and 97 lb-ft of torque. You’d really want that four-speed manual here to get the most out of the power going to the rear wheels, but this one has “new tires, battery, rear wheel cylinders, fuel tank flushed. Vehicle runs and drives extremely well!!!!” Looking great but with some exposed areas of surface rust that need to be taken care of, what is this great-looking Pinto going to sell for? $5,000? $7,500?
What a nice Pinto. Someone(s) loved and cared for the car for decades. Well-equipped, including the optional “Glow Paint” in Gold Glow ($29.12, which is $200 in today’s dollars)– I love period-correct colors like this. Has some rust, but one isn’t going to find many Pintos which are in better condition than this.
Your connection was your dad having one as a company car. My connection is that I had one, a 1973 Runabout like this. It was my college (and afterwards) car, a 1.6L 4-speed in Ivy Glow with an avocado interior. Remember it was the 70’s. It served me well.
Bob, my dad’s second Pinto was that dark green Ivy Glow color but it had an automatic if I remember right, so it wasn’t as fun. They both had “mobile phones” and it was way before cell phones were a thing. It was the opposite of a Frank Cannon Lincoln Mark Series to see a Pinto with a phone in it. I still remember the number, oddly enough.
This might be the nicest one I have seen since the ’70s. I never thought I would refer to a Pinto as nice, but there it is. I knew several people who drove new (1971) Pintos in high school, and although they were painfully slow, they could be fun to drive. My brother and I were hitchhiking (to the mall; that’s what we did in 1971) when we caught a ride in a black Pinto with the 2.0 liter engine that had been treated to a ported head with larger valves and stiffer valve springs to accommodate what sounded like a fairly radical camshaft, forged internals, a couple of Weber carbs, and some exhaust work. My 16-year-old self was moderately impressed watching from the back seat as the tach repeatedly hit the 8,000 RPM redline as our benevolent driver banged it through the gears for our entertainment.
Nice example.
The correct engine.
If I can’t have a wagon, I’d at least like a manual shift; but a lot of bidders will see it as a plus.
How did Ford get away with not having the railroad tie front bumper?
1973 was a transition year.
Bumpers had to withstand 5-mph impact that first year, but didn’t need to have standard height and impact faces until 1974.
I could be wrong, but wasn’t the requirement, at least for that first year, to have 5-mph bumper up front and 2-1/2 mph rear? Then the 5-mph mandated on both came later.
Replaced my 73′ 351 Torino with a 80′ Pinto 4- speed.
I needed something good on gas for my 60 mile round trip for work in Atlantic City
I was astounded by the 73′ Torino, but an 80′ Pinto? That’s longer than most driveways!
Loved my 72 Pinto wagon teal blue. Spent nights parked out in the woods with my sweetie who strung her bra across the rear glass. Much better than my red 71 Pinto 4cyl automatic and no power although I engaged in pursuit one night of a hit and run going the other way. Lost the dude and gave up. Went behind a school at night where the dude all of a sudden appears to tell me where the guy went. It was him and as soon as I said it he was off again. Turned in his license number to my insurance agent. Who can forget the jokes about Firestone 500 radials?
Firestone 500 radial tires! I remember my Dad driving himself, and me, crazy, trying to balance the wheels on his Mustang II. Every weekend, for a month, using a bubble balancer. Got them perfect. Stuck them on the car. Took it out for a test drive, and halfway through, they’d start shaking like an Aspen tree. Finally gave up and took it to Firestone.
Fond memories of learning how to drive a manual in our family baby s*** yellow wagon. Stall, mom laughs, stall mom laughs again.
Robert,
You didn’t tell me that your Mom had a Pinto.
I can’t ever talk to you (in public) ever again!
I love Pintos. Owned a few. Drove one automatic. 👎🏻 I don’t know if it’s lack of torque, or how Ford set up the torque converter in these- but they are
p-a-I-n-f-u-l-l-y S-L-O-W.
Mom had a ‘73 Pinto Runabout very similar to this, a very boring beige/tan inside and out. No roof rack but the 2.0 / Automatic, Factory A/C, Am Fm radio and the deluxe wheel covers with whitewalls. Sticker was like $3200 sitting on the outside showroom at Hollywood Ford. Mom’s trade was a cherry ‘69 Mercury Montego MX coupe with a 351, white over a red vinyl bench interior. Unlike today, where you make a deal on a in stock car and drive it home immediately, the Pinto had to be prepped and readied for delivery which took a couple days. A solid little car, asked for nothing and got nothing in return. The Pinto gave way to a new Volare’, a pathetic excuse for a car that essentially fell apart in the driveway. The Pinto was a far superior car, quality wise.
Mine was a white 4 spd,I had the deal of a lifetime given to me from a towyard owner. I could take a battery and gas can and jump wire for cars with no keys. I could pick anything I want whenever I want for $35 @car and he would send me the titles in my name. The first day I got a73 Pinto, 73 Maverick and a 66 Cyclone conv. Those were the days .
Ended at $7,600, Reserve Not Met.
Thanks, PRA4SNW! It’s relisted now with an $8,895 or best offer price.