By 1979, Pinto was about to retire. After a decade-long run, Ford's poor-performing but cheap-to-own small car will soon be replaced, although it won't be long until millions of nasty little cars have been sold to American consumers are literally less discriminatory.
Ford Pinto 1979
Generally crude in operation, the Pinto earned a reputation for reliability, was a bargain and was relatively easy on the gas. Additionally, the Pinto is American, something protectionist car buyers appreciate.
However, Pintos have a tendency to explode, although Ford management does not want to admit this. It turns out that early on in the development of the Pinto — a capstone project helmed by no less a renowned automotive expert than Lee Iococca — it was determined that the Pinto wanted to explode when hit by a vehicle. Other convenient tones from behind. You might think that at this point, development of the Pinto would be paused until a fix for the potentially deadly bug could be found, but you'd be wrong.
Price of Ford Pinto 2013: 17,375 USD
It wasn't until 1878 that Ford was forced to recall the Pinto after a number of injuries and deaths resulted from the car's faulty design. As it turns out, the fix was to install an $11 plastic shield between the rear differential and the fuel tank. Many lives were lost because Ford tried to implement a simple and low-cost repair solution.
Although the Pinto scandal quickly gained attention, American car buyers seemed to quickly lose interest in the story. Ford continued to produce Pintos and consumers continued to buy them.
What makes this 1979 Pinto ad so funny—or perhaps sad—is its indirect reference to the explosive Pinto scandal. The final paragraph of the ad is given the title. “Redesigned fuel system.” The text makes no mention of why the fuel system might be redesigned or how that redesign might benefit Pinto owners. However, if you know about the Pinto's penchant for fire, you may take some solace in reading the contents of this paragraph. Ford has fixed the problem – but you only understand that if you know about it in the first place.
The Pinto was replaced in 1980 by the Escort. The Escort has front-wheel drive, a roomier cabin, is generally more refined and is much more fuel efficient. And while the Escort had its share of problems, catching fire wasn't one of them.
Carnac The Great One said, “McIntosh, Dolly Parton and Ford Pinto. . .”
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1979 Ford Pinto Showroom
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Ford Pinto 1979
1979 Ford Pinto advertisement
1979 Ford Pinto advertisement
1979 Ford Pinto advertisement
