2013 Pinto Stampede stops at Jim Baier Ford in Fort Madison. (Pinto Stampede Facebook)
Posted on 07/20/2014 1:48:02 PM PDT by BenLurkin
Roughly 50 Ford Pinto enthusiasts are gathering today for the fourth annual "Pinto Stampede," a three-day event from Dearborn, Mich. to Hell, Mich and back to Dearborn -- the birthplace of the Ford Pinto.
The caravan of Ford Pintos, produced from 1971-1980, will make several stops on their journey including a visit to the Henry Ford Museum, the Ford Product Development Center, the Ford & Mercury Restorers Club Car Show and other landmarks on their ride to 'Hell and Back.'
"The Pinto Stampede enables Pinto enthusiasts to celebrate our cherished little cars while doing something meaningful for others," said Norm "Trail Boss" Bagi, founder and organizer of the Pinto Stampede.
All proceeds from sponsorships and a fundraising raffle go toward the Wounded Warrior Project, which helps soldiers returning with disabilities regain normal lives. In its first three years, the Pinto Stampede has raised over $38,000 for the organization.
Ford produced more than 3 million Pintos from 1971-1980...
According to Pinto Stampede organizers, there are up to 10,000 "road-worthy" Pintos left in the U.S.
(Excerpt) Read more at mlive.com ...
Never owned one or rode in one that I remember, same for Yugo, chevette, yes , once, vw beetle yes more than once..
If they can raise a few bucks for a good cause, more
power to them
To Hell and back.
Had a 71 and a 72. Both were practical and good looking cars. Had the gas tank recall performed on them.
Terrible in the snow.
I’ll drive a Vega there.
Yeah, for repairs.
I’ll meet you in my Pacer.
Their charity is to buy them a better car??
It wasn’t the gas tank, it was the filler neck, which was made with a rigid tube to save a couple of bucks. What did them in was a smoking gun memo in which a cost benefit analysis showed that liability lawsuits would cost less than a flexible tube. Juries changed that calculus.
The monster lawsuit resulted when two young women in a pinto pulled onto an interstate and into the path of a dump truck. Fire and lawsuits ensued.
“Had a 71 and a 72. Both were practical and good looking cars. Had the gas tank recall performed on them.
Terrible in the snow.”
Yep, had a ‘73. First year of the fat bumpers I think. Terrible in the snow. Good little car though.
The early ones with the thin chrome bumpers are neat looking little cars.
Good car, I drove mine from California to Houston during the winter, and missing the driver’s side window, I did the driving in a mummy, military sleeping bag, with the zipper down the center.
Nothing like driving through sub-freezing temps at 70 mph, with no window, while just sitting there, but the car was dependable, and darned well better have been since I paid about $50, or $75 dollars for it.
Vega sucked.
In 1972 I went to look at a new Vega, and I got in the car, but before the salesman had even gotten situated, I told him, “no way”, this is too cheesy to even bother with this test drive.
I had a friend who years back went to the local Ford dealer and they put him in a Pinto. He told them after the settled on a price the only way he would buy it is if they threw in a set of rear fenders and quarter panels. They agreed to the deal...
First car ?
1974 Vega, was about to drop an all aluminum V-8 motor into it when I was T-boned in an intersection, oddly enough, by another Vega. The car was totaled.
Next car,
1972 Pinto.
Just a temporary car until I got my 1974 pinto Wagon.
I beat the crap out of that car and recall laying on my back with the transmission on my chest while replacing the clutch disk. And having to do it again since I put it in backwards the first time.
My ‘71 was a stripped down version and the seats were awful. No back support. So I replaced them with a pair from a wrecked Mercury Capri. Much better.
The thin bumpers were good looking, but U-Haul would not let me tow it behind our van because the bumpers were flimsy.
They should take care they are not followed by a procession of Audis.
When we got home we had to crawl out the windows, since we couldn't open either door. We jacked it up in the middle and jumped up and down on the bumpers until the doors would open and close. Then my buddy found someone to sell it to and dumped it.
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