1978 Ford Pinto

The subcompact 1978 Ford Pinto was available with either a four- or six-cylinder engine along with several body styles including a 2-door sedan and Pony Sedan, hatchback, and station wagon. Mid-year, a panel delivery Pinto became available with full-length flat cargo floor and metal side panels. The base price of around $3,000 for the Pony Sedan was $560 less than the next lowest priced Ford, the Fairmont. Updates for 1978 included new interior colors of jade, tangerine, and blue, and a new body. New options included an accent stripe treatment and white-painted forged aluminum wheels. Option packages included the Rallye Appearance Package and the Cruising Wagon option. The Rallye Appearance added blacked-out exterior moldings, racing mirrors, a black front spoiler, and gold accent stripes. The Cruising Wagon option added a front spoiler, cargo area carpeting, steel wheels, sport mirrors, multi-colored paint striping, and steel side panels.

The base engine was the 140 cubic-inch overhead cam four-cylinder unit offering nearly 90 horsepower and mated to a four-speed manual transmission. The optional overhead-valve V6 displaced 170.8 cubic-inches and offered 90 horsepower. The V-6 engine was updated with a new lightweight plastic fan.

By Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2018