1971 Ford Pinto Performance Ideas - 6-Page Vintage Automobile Article

Description

1971 Ford Pinto Performance Ideas - 6-Page Vintage Automobile Article
Original, vintage motorcycle article
Page Size: Approx. 8" x 11" (21 cm x 28 cm) each page
Condition: Good
FORD'S NEW SUB-COMPACT IS
WELL-EQUIPPED TO DO BATTLE WITH
THE VEGA AND THE VW FOR THE
"MINI-PERFORMANCE” CROWN.
Small sedans, both foreign and
domestic, usually make more than
adequate transportation, but they
seldom offer the sparkling, out-of-the-
box performance that makes the hot
rod scene. Sure, there are plenty of
VWs drag racing, but it does cost a
husky amount of hours and loot to
make a hot runner out of the
Wolfsburg Wonder. Now there are a
staggering range of small, four-cylinder
sedan engines available on these
shores, but there are still darn few of
them that will get a good acceleration
time without extensive mods.
Some of Detroit’s “little” cars may
improve this factor. A couple of the
new, basic engines offer enough
potential to make the devoted hot
rodder think about four instead of
eight cylinders. Chevy’s new, all-
American Vega cammer is an exciting
concept, but in standard form it is a
bit sluggish. However, hop-up equip-
ment is already on the market for the
Vega that should cure the problems.
Across town, Ford came up with a
dandy solution to the small car in-
vasion from foreign manufacturers.
Utilizing the worldwide manufacturing
facilities of FoMoCo, they married a
European drive train to a domestic-
built chassis, added Italianesque
styling, and brought out the Pinto.
Taking the idea a bit farther, Ford
offers two engines for the Pinto - one
from England and one from Germany.
Both are four bangers, and, while not
exactly the mild and wild type units
available in V-8s, the two engines do
offer a wide range of performance
possibilities.
The standard Pinto engine is the
tried and true Cortina package out of
Ford of England. The factory in Kent
has been cranking out this engine for
many years. The tough, overhead
valve, pushrod unit first appeared in
the Anglia series, and then moved over
to the Cortina line. The English took
to racing and rugged rally work with
the Cortina, and punched the engine
out to 1600cc. At the same time,
hordes of conversion .shops appeared
with full lines of hop-up hardware for
t-Ke engine, and the British still have a
huge aftermarket in performance...
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