Minneapolis Street Sighting: Ford Pinto

As one knows now, I have a certain fondness for 1970s and 1980s domestic-marketed cars that generally get a bad rap. GM had the Vega/Astre, the Monza/Starfire/Skyhawk/Sunbird coupes, and the T1000/Chevette; Chrysler had the K-cars, the Omni/Horizon, and the Volare/Aspen twins, and what did Ford have? Ford had the Mustang II, the Fiesta (not the new one) and the Granada/Versailles/Monarch, and the Maverick/Comet, among others. But the car that's by far my favorite "forgotten Ford" only second to the Maverick/Comet, is the Pinto/Bobcat.
Introduced in 1971, the Pinto was Ford's answer to the rising popularity of small Japanese cars, and like the new wave of imported cars, the Pinto wasn't without it's share of problems. While the little imported cars, the Pinto, too, was rust-prone, though this wagon debunks the myth entirely. However, the Pinto had a more serious problem-- it could exploded under a severe-enough rear-end collision. Because the gas tank was positioned right below the rear axle, the tank would rupture on impact, result in deadly fires. Ford knew of this problem almost instantly, but declined to fix it, stating initially that the fires were result of "unfortunate circumstances". Pinto sales steadily declined until the little car was replaced in 1981 with the front-wheel-drive Ford Escort and Mercury Lynx.










I've never seen an earlier wagon in my life, so this was quite a surprise; also surprising, too, was the condition. I've seen numerous rusty Pinto hatchbacks, and the few later wagons I've seen have all had serious rust damage. There's not doubt that being a Minnesota car, this Pinto is probably masking some nasty underside cancer. On the surface, though, it appears relatively nice.
The paint is predictably flat (probably not a metallic color anyway), and big bumpers seem to have held up quite well, despite looking completely out of character with the rest of the wagon. The trim, too (only the badging here from what I can see) is quite clean, and is still intact--definitely a feat worth noting since the glue/pins/screws holding the badges on tend to give out quite often. The fact that three out of the four wheels are present suggests that the steelie currently in on the driver's side rear is likely the spare tire. I think it's quite neat to see a relatively forgotten car in such decent condition more than thirty-five years after it's introduction.
I can only wish for more happy motoring from this Pinto owner, and I can hope that his vehicle doesn't become a statistic in Pinto fires. After all, it's lived nearly four decades without becoming one.