11th Jan 2016, 22:52

Also if the car was so bad, they would have never built the Mustang II on the same platform.

12th Jan 2016, 20:36

There were no decent American cars from about 1973 to 1975; all of them were too heavy and underpowered. They all had anemic, low compression engines choked by miles of vacuum lines and primitive catalytic converters that did more harm than good. All so they could run on unleaded fuel.

With a few rare exceptions, power didn't come back to American cars till the 1990s, and overall build quality was terrible until about 10 years ago. It is still hit and miss today; you have to shop carefully for a new car.

13th Jan 2016, 13:51

The Trans Am was fine. And AMC was a good choice. I had the 304 V8 available in the small models. Never had any mechanical issues.

13th Jan 2016, 21:29

This blanket statement is just as utterly unsupported by any factual data as the one that claims all import cars of that era never broke down and were otherwise superior in every respect to any American car.

14th Jan 2016, 18:39

I second that. It does get tiring reading posts that claim '70s cars were so bad when in reality an intermediate or full size GM and Ford were strong, well built, reliable cars.

14th Jan 2016, 22:25

I briefly owned a used Mercury Capri in the late 70s with a sunroof that I picked up for only 400.00 as a flip. It was an interesting car, but I can't comment on long term durability. It had some decent styling for the time.

7th Sep 2016, 06:37

I had a 1974 Pinto runabout that I bought new. I was a young single girl and working. I really loved that Pinto. I drove it back and forth to work and to go shopping. It was easy to drive and park and great on gas. I had it serviced routinely. Never had any major problems. I did get the first flat tire while driving by myself while out shopping on the right back tire and got stranded. Lucky I was wearing my old blue Keds sneakers barefoot with a hole in the toe and my big toe sticking out, and they were comfortable to wear as I had to walk a good half mile to get to a phone to call for help. I got a cousin to change my flat tire for me. That was the only time my Pinto left me stranded on the road. My plain jane little Pinto was a good car for a single plain jane girl like me, and we were a good match for each other. I have fond memories of that Pinto runabout.

7th Sep 2016, 10:44

The Cadillac Eldorado and the early Marks were a lot better to ride in vs a small import.

8th Sep 2016, 01:29

The Pinto was not a "small import" and the comparison to a Cadillac or Lincoln is just wrong.

8th Sep 2016, 15:04

Addressed the comment that America did not have decent cars in the 70s. Am aware of their size differential.

9th Sep 2016, 11:54

Actually, you "addressed the comment" from the plain jane girl with the Pinto and a hole in her Keds.

9th Sep 2016, 17:02

No it was 20:36. The very girl from that era may be driving a new McLaren today. You never know. I drove a 1963 VW Karmann Ghia back then that cost me $100. Just under 4.00 to fill up the tank. Many years later I have bought new cars to date as high as 73k. I would be interested in what she drives now. I kind of liked her story. Not all of us have had things handed to us. Work really hard and there's some great rides to buy today. I have been upgrading and not taking out loans on mine.

14th Sep 2016, 01:14

Hi. I am the plain jane girl that wrote about my 1974 Pinto runabout. You wondered what I drive now. Well I had my 1974 Pinto for a good 10 years. After my Pinto I had 2 Escorts and now I have a focus. I like Ford's small cars. They are affordable and easy to drive and park and get good gas mileage. I just like small cars to drive as basic transportation to get back and forth to work and go shopping and a trip on occasion. I don't care to spend a lot for money for a car. So they have been my choice for cars to drive. Oh, by the way I still wear Keds sneakers and still get a hole in the toe. Ha!

6th Nov 2020, 05:14

I saw your review about your 1974 Ford Pinto runabout. When I was a younger woman, I had one and really enjoyed it. My Pinto was a great little car for me and I had it for a long time. I only had to replace the battery and timing belt and have brakes worked on. I went thru several sets of tires over the years. I know what it's like to have a flat tire while driving by myself, and it happened on the right back tire one morning when I went out to go shopping. Luckily I had learned how to change a flat tire and was able to do it myself, and go on and not be stranded on the side of the road.