Woodie Wagon! 1975 Ford Pinto Squire
It took a while for American car manufacturers to get good at building subcompact cars. The Chevy Vegas (1971-77) had bad engines from the start and were prone to rust from the inside out. The Ford Pinto (1971-80) didn’t have those problems but developed a bad rap for gas tanks catching fire in rear-end collisions. Both seemed to have worked out their problems as time went on, so hopefully, this 1975 Pinto Country Squire will be trouble-free. Refreshed cosmetically, the wagon is in Irvine, California, and available here on eBay. Only one bid has been cast at $7,500 and that’s not enough to crack the reserve.
When the Pinto debuted in 1971, it came in only one body style, a coupe. Hatchback and station wagon versions would materialize within the next year. In 10 years of production, Ford built more than three million Pinto’s, so it has to be considered a success. Like most economy cars, sales flourished in the mid-1970s after the OPEC oil embargo drove up gas prices. The Pinto peaked at 544,000 units in 1974 but fell to a still solid 223,000 copies in 1975 when this “woodie” version of their wagon was built. Perhaps a little of the car’s thunder was stolen when Mercury offered a rebadged edition called the Bobcat from 1974 to the end of the line.
The Pinto was peppy enough but certainly not a terror when it came to acceleration. That changed a bit in 1975 when Ford added a 2.8-liter V6 engine as an option. Apparently, the idea was to compete with the AMC Gremlin which had an “inline-6” from Day One, and it gave them a leg up on Chevy whose Vega had neither. Though the Gremlin was heavier than the Pinto, we understand that a Gremlin could still outrun a V6 Pinto. The seller’s Pinto has the V6, along with an automatic transmission, and goodies like A/C, power steering, and power brakes.
This car has been treated to new paint, interior components, and tires. No mention is made of the fake wood paneling being refreshed and it certainly looks quite nice for a 48-year-old car. The odometer reading is around 84,500 miles, so this wagon was used but not necessarily well used. The seller does tell us that cars built before 1976 don’t need smog certification in California (is that true?), so we assume this wagon will avoid that hassle at the DMV if being resold in the state. If you’re into Pinto’s, this one looks about as clean as any you may find.
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Comments
Looks like a nice Pinto wagon…. from what little we can see from the Ebay ad, which leaves much to be desired. Green reigns supreme on this one.
Apart from the hideously oversized bumpers, this Pinto is a nice-looking little wagon. While that’s a lot of green in and out, that particular shade I find attractive. The car is in great shape but I’m wondering if the seller’s ask is realistic. I guess we’ll see. I have no experience with Ford’s V6 used in this one but I’m sure some BarnFinders have. Was it a good motor?
We put 180,000 miles on this 2.8 liter V-6, in our Mustang II. Back in the day. Only replaced the timing gear. But, it was no speed demon!
No
I was a grade school kid in the 1970s. When the 1973 cars came out with the big front bumper, I thought it looked stupid. Then, in 74, the rear bumpers had the government 5 mph standard as well. Some manufacturers did a little better job of the bumper design, but the Ford Pinto and Maverick seemed to protrude farther out than most cars. I called them “park bench bumpers”. They still look ridiculous after all these years.
Yes, somehow Ford bumpers looked worst of all. I called them guardrail bumpers, lol.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Pinto with that pattern on the
seats before.
Thats not stock, for sure.
That interior reminds me of a Shamrock Shake.
That the Grinch is drinking.
I was very interested in it until I looked at it closer.
You noticed the poorly aligned body joints too?
Had a ’76 wagon, 4cyl 5spd Drove until driver’s seat dropped to the pavement, motor & trans still good. replaced clutch once worth owning for sure.
They came with a 5 speed? I’ve never seen one.
There was no 5 speed. A 4 speed or a 3 speed automatic.
That V6 is stuffed in the engine compartment with very little working room. When I saw one in a Pinto wagon I was looking at, I wondered how they crammed everything in there.
It’s listed on CL for $9,000.
Steve R
Russ, you still need a smog certificate to transfer title upon sale.
Steve R
Recent California plates (9 series). Repaint; poorly-lined-up gaps.
This sounds like a potential flip, brought in from somewhere else.
Pintos would rust almost as fast as Vegas, so, check it out thoroughly.
I bought a 1973 Pinto Squire in Houston, 1982, for $750. It was in similar situation to this one, except for a four-cylinder, a real-bad sunburn, and a manual gearbox. Back when that wasn’t a serious problem in moving a car.
At $750, it was a steal. I put 60,000 more miles on that german 2-litre four, and it had compression and oil pressure at factory specs. The Cologne V6 of those years was said to be of similar quality.
If I were inclined to buy this one, I’d be shopping for pre-1974 bumpers, front and back. It would transform the appearance of the car.
Rust ,I disagree,Theres two unprotected in our drive way since new.Not a spec of rust to be found,California,no salted roads??? Go figure.
Not a Country Squire but a Country Squirt
IIRC that was the “Road &Track” title for their review.
You beat me to it.
You’re all nuts or have you forgotten on a 5-10mph rear impact a huge explosion happens. There were hundreds of deaths, a plea by Ralph Nader in Congress to get these death traps off our highways. They were quickly manufactured to compete with our Arab Oil Embargo. Chevy had their Vega and Chrysler the Cricket. All were terrible worthless heaps as they are today. The Pinto should be banned from any re-sales. Jesus, youtube Cars in America the Pinto.
The wagons never had that issue because of the increased length. Just like the the Corvair, the issue was overblown. For both cars, the issue was corrected, but the poor publicity followed.
Very true, I worked at a Ford dealer thru the 70’s. I installed hundreds of safety kits to the coups and runabouts, never a wagon. I also owned two Pinto wagons, I wore them both out and loved them both.
I couldn’t care less what Ralph Nader said. While he brought up some good points over the years he was pretty much a fear monger.
Not a fan of the colors of this little wagon, but I’d be happy to drive the right Pinto. A car much like this, preferably in different colors, with a stick, on the right coast instead of the left one, would get me really interested. There is something really cool about these little wagons with wood siding.
First, that didn’t happen to all Pintos.
Only to a couple, when all the right circumstances (force of impact, direction of metal distortion) happened. In terms of numbers, more VW Beetles had fuel-tank ruptures in crashes than did Pintos.
It was just Ford’s bad luck to get called out by an attorney on the warpath. ALSO Ford’s bad luck that it was documented, at a lower level, in testing, but they chose not to do anything about it.
IMHO it was not cost (about $5 per unit) but TIME. Lido Iacocca wanted the Pinto to get into production by September 1970 – 28 months from launch of the project.
Following the couple of fires and discovery that the cause – rear-axle bolts puncturing the fuel tank – had been known, Ford put a kit together to shield the tank, and had recalls. Problem solved.
Also as noted, the Wagon was never involved. From the B-post back, it’s a considerably-different car.
Statistically, the Pinto is/was safer than the Vega, the Beetle, several popular Japanese models.
SIDE NOTE: On my faded Pinto Squire, it amused me to put (illegally) a gasoline placard on the back gate. I also gave it a name, painted on the back window: BLAZING SADDLES.
There were never hundreds of death. The fire bomb legend was over blown and mostly the result of a shoddy article in Mother Jones News. Ford’s mistake was fighting a lawsuit in court. They lost and as a result all the discovery material was available to other law firms for free made the Pinto an easy target. GM had similar problems with early Chevettes. They settled all the lawsuits out of court and made sure everything was locked up with confidentially agreements. https://pintostampede.com/the-pinto-myth
I seriously doubt that “there were hundreds of deaths” caused by Pinto gas tank explosions. Some, yes. Hundreds, no.
You been reading a fairytail. The Pinto’s death rate overall from all accidents was in line for small cars for those years. Some had even a higher death rate. The official death rate by fire was 27.
Must be Rusty Griswold’s car!
People complaining about panel gaps don’t remember seeing malaise era cars when new. You could put your finger in some of the gaps from the factory. Misaligned hoods and trunk lids were more common than not. Tight gaps implied the body shop had been involved.
Would make a good Family Truckster Jr!
Is there no easy fix for the sagging glove compartment door? I see that more often than one that closes properly on Pintos.
bidding at $10,100 met
Ridiculously overpriced. Sad.
Had 2 Pinto. 71 put over 150kmiles and 74 put over 135k miles. Replaced one timing belt. Great cars. Wish I had either one today
Well if the winning bidder sobers up and actually follows through with the over $10k bid on this $1200 dollar car congrats to the seller
We had a brand new in 1972 pinto Squire wagon at the time the only car in Orange County California with factory air-conditioning. If you can believe it the car only had two air vents on either side of the dashboard. Was much later when they added four air vents. Very poor engineering.
Ours was white with black and white houndstooth cloth interior. I remember the carpet was made of wool i’m very difficult to vacuum.
I was completely gutless.
Unfortunately we had this car until 1979 when my mom got a brand new Mustang which was a huge upgrade!
My parents had one of these, bought used and loved it. It was grabber blue with dark blue interior. Took a trip to Mount Rushmore from Chicago area. Ran great until they got there then the timing belt gave out but once replaced they came home and drove it for 4 more years then sold it.
The California Smog Check Program applies to all passenger vehicles 1976 model year and newer. 1975 and older are exempt, including at title transfer.
You’re 100% right. Ford did not want to settle . And I still own in 1974 pinto runabout. And I get 30 plus miles per gallon 😁
I had a 1973 yellow Ford Pinto. Best running little car I ever had! I put 95,000 miles on it the first year! I was afraid of the rear end collision explosion threat so I traded it for a brand new 1977 Ford Thunderbird-white and blue. Biggest piece of junk! Lemon from day one!
Don’t know why Ford couldn’t have fixed the fuel tank issue on these little beauties. I had two wagons and 3 coupes 71-76. Loved all of them. The v-6 was quite a bit more peppy than the 4 bangers. If I didn’t live on the east coast, I’d buy this one
The colors on that thing are fantastic. I like it, not ten grand like it, but it captures the essence of cars of it’s time very well.
Lots of young families had cars like this back in the day, not like today when it’s all “my wife and are two small kids are feeling a little cramped in the Tahoe lately and really feel like we want to upgrade to a Suburban.
You mean my dog and I are cramped and need an F350 king cab dually King Ranch turbo diesel 4×4 offroad package even though I live in downtown LA.
Had a 72 and 74 wagons, both bought new. Each had the vacuum advance replaced with mechanical conversion significantly improving performance. Thoroughly enjoyable little wagons. Rally wheel trim rings-dog dish caps looked sporty. Each cost $3000. Enjoyed both until I could afford Honda’s. Good old days, formerly known as “these hard times”.