From Leo: it is kind of fun to drive a 40 year old car. Have owned a couple of the Pinto models in the 1970's (2.0 and 2.3 liter) they are fully capable of daily driver use today. I drove a 40 year old car when I was 20, it was a 1936 Dodge, that car really was for a slower paced time, It really didn't have the brakes to do highway commuter duty. Glad you get to enjoy that Pinto.
I only drive old cars. My "new car" is a 1973 Lincoln and my work truck is a 1960 Dodge d100 with the flat 6 and 3 on the tree, although my truck is getting ready to have AC installed in it as California summers in traffic are getting brutal the older I get.
The Atomic Reverend Alexander , funny you mentioned it ... I understand the extra main bearing load can be a bit much on this engine and suggest a cogged or dual belt for the compressor in being cautious of the new , cantilevered drive pully . Love that truck !
My brothers and I all learned to drive in a Pinto in the 80's. My Dad started buying them up in the early 80's because they were dirt cheap, and we were all turning driving age soon. We had four of them at one time that we all drove daily, my Mom to work and us to School. They were all parked in our driveway at the same time. I hated Pintos back then but man I like them now.
You are absolutely correct about EFI. I have tinkered with all sorts of cars since I started driving in the 60s. I've gone through all sorts of carbs,cams, headers, manifolds , ignitions and so on , but the absolute BEST money I ever spent was last year when I converted my big block 63 Impala to aftermarket EFI. MSD in my case. WHAT A DIFFERENCE!. I had a temperamental Demon 750 carb, and to say the least what a profound difference! Just turn the key and it starts and idles instantly, no pumping the gas ,no farting and bucking, just absolute perfection. Good job on your Pinto.
Ahhhhh! 1980 Pinto! I used to own a 1980 Mercury Bobcat. Basically the same car. The difference with my Bobcat is that it had a V6 from the factory!!!! That thing would go SO FAST! It was nice to see the interior of that Pinto. It's been a long time. Thank you.
A week ago I bought my first car, A 79 Ford pinto. And I recently I found your channel. Watching this makes me want to pursue what you've done to yours. Great stuff man
I like carburetors on my old school cars. Reminds me of how society was more hands on back then and men weren't afraid to get there hands dirty. Takes a certain pride and also there is a fun factor in knowing you have a direct hand in it's state of tune. Good video and awesome little car! Also most regular and high performance EXTERNAL fuel pumps are loud, and Holley performance pumps are known to be loud.
My mom had a '77 Pinto with the V6. Black with orange pin-stripes and a tan interior. Looking back now, it was a very handsome car and I wish we still had it.
@@Scooter_911 I once saw a station wagon Pinto in the same color combination. She bought ours at JD Byrider around 1990 or so. They had it hidden out back because it was such a "crappy" car. Looked and drove mint, but since it was a Pinto they thought it was crap. She just had $900 and that was the ONLY car they would sell her for that low. We drove all over North Dakota in that thing.
Well I live in Georgia I'm very glad I found your Channel I have a 74 Pinto 4 speed I've owned the car 30 years I install Mustang 5.0 engine and transmission. But I still have the factory 2.0 Pinto engine and transmission the only reason I change engines I drag race the car back then with the built engine. But this distributor would not stay in sync I could not find electronic distributor I'm going back to my four cylinder set up this summer thank you again young man.
I love how your bringing back practical cars that we all share so many memories of. I also have an old Carolla that I think would be perfect to do this to. Keep up the good work! :)
I had an 84 Mustang with the 2.3 many years ago. Good solid engine. My wife and I tried to trade it in on a new car but the dealership wanted to give us only $400 in trade. I told the salesman, "I'll drive it into the crusher myself before I let it go for that much." We gave it to her Dad and he drove it for another two years. He had about 250,000 miles on it before some bozo rear-ended him. Nice work man! Rock on! BTW, I have owned my last carb. EFI all the way.
Having owned a Pinto in my teens, I really enjoyed your video! I had a 73 wagon with the 2.0 motor back in the late 70s time frame. I rebuilt the motor for power with Ares Racing Pistons, Childs and Albert Piston Rings, Isky camshaft, Edelbrock intake manifold, Mallory dual-point distributor, alcohol injection, and a Spearco turbocharger kit. The motor ended up making 288hp @ 8,000rpm. The car was very fast for a 4 cylinder, but the transmission and rear end could not handle that much power. It blew up at least 3 stock transmissions and one stock rear diff. I installed an 8 inch rear end from a 78 mustang II V8 (bolted right in) to fix the weak rear end. It had T/A radials on American Racing wheels, sway bars with teflon bushings. and handled really well. What a fun car! A turboed injected version would be a lot of fun...what a sleeper!
Wow that sounds like a killer sled. I've been toying with the idea of turbocharging it now that it's fuel injected but I definitely know the stock trans and rear end will be the weak link.
Had a '79 Mercury Bobcat (Pinto by another name), one of the best cars I ever had! Thanks for a great video. Wish they would make cars like this, some modern improvements without all the electronic crap we have now. And when they have a good design like the Pinto, quit trying to overdue it, just improve it. By the way, I really like "Jade and the Foxtones", really good sound, fun music!
Thanks for watching! The headlight bezels and the transmission in my pinto are from a 79 bobcat! I wish they could make simple fun cars again too but now we've got to make sure if a car hits a pedestrian it serves them a 4 course meal before they hit the ground instead haha!
My brother used to let me borrow his winter beater when I first got my license back in the early 80's and it was a 73 runabout with the 1.6 4spd combo. It got about 30mpg but what I remember most is that the speedo went up to 100 but the car topped out at about 88 MPH! LOL
Back in the '80s I would buy Pintos for $50 a pop, take two and make one runner. Had 11 of the '71-'73s, and 2 '75s that had the V6. Easy to work on and nobody wanted them. But they handled well and a little work they moved along ok.
Owned 2 Pintos,a 71 with the 2.0 and a 77 with the 2.3. The 77 was stock,the 71 had a Crane cam,Hooker header,Holley 390,KYB gas adjust shocks,1” anti sway front,3/4” anti sway rear. Great little car,lots of fun on Mulholland.
2.3 ltr iron horse loved those old Pinto's. My buddy ran a header also, he ran the exhaust out just before the rear tires on both sides. He would wind the auto trans out to 50 mph in first gear and let off the gas and flames shot three foot out on both sides. looked so cool. back in the '70s, he was the first dude I knew of with two 15's subwoofers in the back of his ride, the music was so loud.
Nice work, Pinto great, but was shocked to see those hubcaps? Makes no sense especially after all that was done, didn't see any bumper stickers though 🤔 lol
before I even had my licence (1983) I bought my first pinto. I washed, waxed and detailed it and parked it in front of my parents house. Someone offered me 300 dollars more than I had just bought it for. I sold it. I later bought 2 more through the years and never lost a dime. They had issues but they were reliable and cheap to drive.
Put a good set of exhaust headers on that engine and you'll be amazed at the increase in H.P. I did that to a 1974 Pinto i used to own in the late 70's and did a valve job to it as well. All was very easy and only took a couple of day.
@@BigEightiesNewWave Are you sure that wasn't a 2.0 liter that was designed in Germany? My '74 Pinto had the 2.0 liter and it was a great engine. Plenty of power especially after I put headers on it. It had a 4 speed transmission and was real fun to drive. Maybe your family's car had an automatic transmission and they put the larger engine in it? I don't know enough about that.
I put a header on my 2.4 Nissan truck out of necessity. Exhaust manifold broke & the header was cheaper. I read all these guys saying headers don't do anything. They're wrong. It's not always about racing. It performs well under normal operation.
My 71 2 liter 4 speed would barely pull 80 flat out. All I did was install Some Headman headers and went 102 on police radar. Good thing the cop was a friend of my Dad.
I had 3 Pintos: 1971 with the 2-liter German engine, 1974 with the 2.3 liter Ford engine and 1979 with the 2.3-liter engine, all with 4-speed manual transmissions. The were fun to drive and were simple and easy to work on. The Holley 5200 carburetor was easy to rejet to get the air-fuel ratio at all RPMs and the vacuum and centrifugal advance units in the distributors were easy to work on and adjust. There were oiling problems with the overhead hydraulic camshaft that caused excessive cam lobe wear on the early 2.3 liter engines.
At around 10:50 in the video, that hose clamp is maxed out and still allowing coolant to seep out. I know this video is 3 years old, and you’ve likely repaired it by now, but just had to point it out! Great video! Much appreciated, especially as a lifelong Ford fan and previous Pinto owner.
Good eye! Yes indeed the old girl definitely keeps me busy with leaks springing up here and there. But I'll take occasional leaks over a soulless new car any day! Thanks for watching!
Back in the late 80's I had a '79 Mercury Bobcat that I sort of inherited from a friend who joined the military. It was very much like your Pinto, even in color and body style. The thing ran good, had low miles, (33k), but it didn't set any speed records with its 90hp running through the cat converter and a 2.78 rear end ratio. My first change was to lose the cat converter, smog pump, and all the plumbing, it did smoke a bit on start up so I replaced the valve seals and replaced the valve cover and pan gaskets as well. It helped but it wasn't enough. Then a buddy wrecked his 1988 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe. I bought the car from the salvage company and transplanted that power train into the Bobcat. I cut down the rear axle to fit, converted the fuel tank to accept the fuel injection pump assembly, made up custom high pressure and return fuel lines from steel tubing, I converted the braking system using a mix of street rod front brakes, and the TC oem rear brakes. I then found a set of aluminum wheels from a 1986 Mustang GT (D slot alloys). The rear fender wells needed minor reworking to clear the tires, and the front end needed some steering stops added. I also found a complete stereo sound system from a 1989 Lincoln Town Car, giving the Bobcat a JBL factory sound system. I was able to use everything except the rear speakers which required modifying the rear panels a bit. The amp was mounted under the right front seat and speakers were added to both kick panels, the top of the dash, both door panels, and four in the rear panels. with a pair of satellite tweeters on the A pillars. I used the G3 alternator off the Turbo Coupe as well, and the ECM went behind the glove box. I drove that car for four years, sold it to someone who took it out of state. The main goal was to use all factory Ford parts whenever possible. I did that with the exception of a few speakers and a custom radiator and custom fiberglass lower air dam. (My lower air dam was broken up worse than yours, it eventually split diagonally after driving to work through some deep snow back in the early 90's, so i glued it back together well enough to use it to make a mold so I could duplicate it in fiberglass). That car was one of seven Pinto/Bobcats I owned over the years. Including a 1980 Pinto sedan I had for over 600,000 miles. I stuffed a 302 into a 1974, a 351 V8 into a 1976 wagon, and was planning to do up my 1977 wagon using the power train from a 1993 Mustang GT but that one never happened. The car got sold before I ever got around to making the swap. I still have the GT power train in the garage, maybe I'll find something else to use it on one day.
Just had a 2.3 put in my 1954 ford customline. After seeing your video I believe I will do the conversion as well. Great video and liked the way you explained everything brotha.
I love those 2.3 liter motors. My brother and I raced at a local dirt track and we chose the 4 cylinder class. This was back in the 1990's. Those motors were everywhere and so were the parts. I had so much fun. Glad to see your still up and running. I hope you get your fuel lines fixed. As for the fuel pump.....I've "heard" a lot of electric fuel pumps that sound the same.
Word to the wise: The loop of wires in the auxiliary harness on the fender needs to be cinched up in the middle, otherwise you have an induction coil that can create all kinds of problems in the long run. It's possible that the fuel pump noise is cavitation from the return line restriction; I hope you got that fixed, and the noise is gone.
My search for EFI for my ‘78 Pinto brought me here. Thanks for the good info. I had the same problem with my valve stem seals. I bought the special valve compressor tool and used the magic rope trick to keep the valves up. I installed a rebuilt carb, since my old one had been rebuilt a couple times and was dying from ethanol fuel. It runs great but I would love EFI, electric fan, and roller lifters and cam.
I bought a brand new Pinto in 1970 in San Diego, Ca with a 2000 engine and a 4 speed. The window sticker said that it was a 1600 with the 4 speed and according to Ford the combination that I was buying was NOT available! The salesman said that "FORD must have made a mistake on the assembly line. I paid $1860 buck-a-roos for it. It had a heater and a radio as the ONLY options. The floor was vinyl, NO carpets! Dark Green with black interior. It was a great car, wish I still had it. Oh well!
Good job keeping the old girl alive. I found it interesting that the TBI EFI is so adaptable to the smaller displacement. Check your fuel pressure. If it’s at spec. The fuel pump is not being dead headed and it’s just noisy. I’m sure that pump is way overkill for your displacement. I like the Bosch or Walbro pumps. Nic and quiet.
Thanks for the pump suggestions! The pump quieted down quite a bit after I fabricated some new fuel lines for it. Heres the video ua-cam.com/video/t3CTkWR5tNs/v-deo.html but its still not as quiet as an OEM one. I'll definitely look into the walbro
I'd like to have a 87 or 88 Turbo Coup. You may think I'm nuts but I fell in love with the Pinto and especially that little 4 banger when I would let my best friend borrow my 70 SS454 Monte Carlo for a hot date and I would have his 72 or 3 Pinto, I think it was, and I would hot rod that little gocart around all day on $3 of gas and have an absolute blast. Of course while my buddy was going from gas station to gas station. I liked my SS and was proud of it but I loved that Pinto. Excellent video.👍
That was a great video, and congrats for still enjoying this Pinto. My father had a 1979 Pinto for several years. I would bet that this car, with the hood up at a car show, would draw a crowd of people wanting to ask you about it.
I rebuilt my '72 2 liter on my dorm room coffee table I used a Moosehead engine transport system (Four guys bribed with 4 bottles of Moosehead beer) I used the Holley 350 with flow reducer from Racer Walsh but ended up running an epoxy filled power valve, because I was running at 5000 feet above sea level
For a young guy like you to even know about Pintos!!! ...is pretty impressive!! They are like Vegas or AMC's vehicles yet you show it love! My brother in law hooked his Pinto up too, and made it racing stock... Good job yet again Garrett.
I love Pintos I am on # 5 a 1980 wagon. I drive it daily on my 50 mile one way commute. I have had a 1971 a 1974 wagon my wife wrecked a 1976 Bobcat a 1979 wagon my son wrecked now my 1980 wagon. My son also has the only Ford Pinto on Guam. They are great straight forward little cars. That was proved by your going completely through yours in a weekend. I get compliments all the time on it. I can't go to the gas station without getting a chance to here folks say, "I had one just like that but it was a Chevrolet." My son is thinking of the conversion you spoke of as am I. Keep the rubber side down and if you happen to be traveling around Pipe Creek texas and you see a silver 80 Pinto wagon flash your lights.
Had a 77 pinto, except for replacing numerous C-3s, and the rear bumper I pulled off towing a trailer was most awesome car I ever owned, right up there with my 73 Gremlin.
Somewhere in the mid 70's my bud a used car repair tech, had a 72 pinto come in with an under hood fire, he bought the car for $100 for the new tires on it, but during spare time he scrounged up used parts, put it together and it ran, that car could chirp the tires in 4 gears and would outrun most auto trans cars, and it wasn't built, it had the simplicity of a points condensor and coil, ignition system, a two barrel carb you could tweak a bit, and truly settable ignition timing, besides being great little beatable beasts, these were and are comparatively easy to work on and thats what made it fun.
I know I am blowing up your channel with mad comments! I mentioned my cousin, our family mechanic! Like you, he put alot of effort into a car than many dismiss. His major efforts went into a Plymouth Cruiser. He totally rebuilt the engine to the point it is beast mode on the road! Like Pinto, I thought that was like...why bother? Lol! Thanks to you and my cousin for y'all vision!!
I run a FiTech system, with the retro fit in tank pump. It’s not hard to install and it gives you a reason to get the tank cleaned, and no noise. Love the video.
Enjoyed the video. I had a white 1980 Pinto with the 4speed manual back in the 80’s. I had a lot of fun with that little car especially when I found a company called Racer Walsh that made performance parts for the Pinto and Mustang 2. After I eliminated all the emissions and cat. I had a full length header with a straight pipe to the rear muffler. I made the muffler easy to remove and stow in the trunk. Little Pinto sounded like a 1000cc street bike and would haul ass. At least by 1980’s standards. I could beat the pants off any other 4cylinder.
My favorite car was the 1978 Ford Maverick. Straight 6 engine and bare bones basic. It was the 4 door, not 2 door. I always wished it had EFI. That car lasted well into the 1990's before wife demanded it go away. I miss that car . If I could get my hands on another one, I would.
I always thought a 1970s Granada, which was basically a dressed up Maverick, which was an updated Falcon, would be an interesting car to own. People complained about the mushy ride and numb steering, but those cars always looked more upscale than they were and I'm sure the suspensions could have been beefed up just enough to make the car a little less floaty. Ford had some pretty bizarre cars in those years (monstrous T-Birds, LTD IIs with crazy roof lines), but the Maverick and Granada stayed down-to-earth and sensible.
On my 71 I had Headman headers, Edelbrock Pony Ram intake with two Holley 185 VW carbs, Crane cam, a little port work and 4:10 gears from an early Ford van. My quickest 1/4 mile was 13.85. Wish we had EFI back then. But we had a blast anyway.
I used old cars for daily drivers right up until I retired- but I also had one new-ish car for those times when a breakdown would have been very inconvenient, such as driving to the airport to fly somewhere on business. Kudos for your enthusiasm, that's what makes this hobby run. But I haven't seen a Pinto on the road in over 20 years!
Had 2 Pinto hatchbacks. Both 2.3 L. '75 was a totally manual 4 speed. Loved it. '77 had power steering and power brakes. Those engines were damn near indestructible. Thumbz up to the Ford Pinto!!
I've owned two 1972 Pinto Runabouts. Both with 2.0 and Automatic, front disc brakes. I don't remember having to warm up my car before I left the house in the morning. If I did it must have been a pretty quick warm up. I do remember cars having to be warmed up for several minutes, but I always remember them being older than my 72 Pinto.
Garret Seesing no doubt the drive-ability is better, and it takes knowledge, experience to properly tune a carb, my problem with EFI conversions is the cost. Prolly exceeds the value of the car.
Hey, nice work keeping that thing running and convenient. It reminded me a lot of my journey to fix up my old eagle, except all my fuel injection parts were sourced from the junkyard or rockauto. Ended up going with mostly the entire setup from a 99 cherokee, as well as the transmission and transfer case. My fuel system isnt quite as jankomatic as yours, but features a universal high flow low pressure rotary pump, a high pressure pump from 80s ford pickups, and a filter/regulator from a grand cherokee. My pumps are pretty loud as well, but they worl pretty smoothly, aside from running dry when I turn sharply right under 1/3 of a tank. Keep it up man.
I had a Ford Pinto years ago with the inline 4. It was a real dog and it did not get that good of gas mileage. I am sure the upgrades on this video made a world of difference.
@@nellyfarnsworth7381 Mmm, memories. I was there the day a buddies dad brought home a brand new 87. He eventually got his hands on it that summer , what a fun car. A bunch of kids who just got their license, oh boy. Haha we made it to the county fair in 23 minutes vs the usual 45 that year🤣 Top gear, and the tach stayed at 5000 to 5500 for about a good 15 minutes of that ride, what a blast.
That's alot of heat under the hood , worked at a dealership while those were popular, learned alot about gas turbos in those days, we had alot of heat related problems .
@@beckywatt5048 Haha we did cook a turbo in it once. Ripping it thru a gear and all of a sudden it was a mosquito fogger in the back. She did run best on mobil super , you'd get 18psi out of it while most others wouldn't barely tickle 16.
Buddy had a baby-shit green Pinto in H.S. back in the late 80's. He always talked about stuffing a 351 into the thing at some point. Good work and good luck going forward, man.
I bought one of these new in 1979. No hatchback, no options, $3439 even. Sales couldn't believe I wanted the four-speed, but back then the automagic made such cars move like turtles.
First view of your Productions . So well done and funny too ! I've seen a few Turbo T-Bird conversions ... all go and no stop called for the bigger Tbird brakes to make the trip too ! Thanks for your time and talents .
This is great! I have been toying with the idea of doing this with my 1983 Ford Ranger with the same engine and was curious if it would work. Your video proves to me that it can! Lol...there goes my wallet!
12:20 My father had a 1980 Pinto and it started up exactly the same way; once I pumped the accelerator so many times to get it going that it smelled like a Molotov cocktail . I had this vague assumption that cars like this started up with less drama when they were new; I guess it's hard to tell, since even your fairly well preserved example had a number of other issues like the valve seals, head gasket, etc. The new throttle-body injection is definitely an improvement and it would be interesting to find how much more than its original 88 HP this engine puts out.
I would definitely go with this simple EFI conversion. Best solution by far. But I have to say to all concerned that your Pintos were not functioning correctly to begin with. I owned an '80 pinto back when it was about 5 years old. Great little car. I never had that kind of trouble starting it or any other carbureted car or truck I owned (yes I'm your dad's age). the thing about carbs is that they need to be choked correctly and the vacuum baffle in the air-cleaner needs to function correctly. As well the heat duct/tube must be intact. Cold starts (even on a warm day) start when you depressed the accelerator once. This closed off almost entirely the butterfly baffle at the top of the carb and cut off most of the air intake. When cold the vacuum baffle in the air-cleaner would also close forcing the early air flow to draw from the radiant heat from the exhaust manifold. This process provided warm air for the first few miles until the engine warmed up. When the engine did warm, the baffle in the snorkel would slowly open allowing outside air into the carb. The electric choke ( or the original bi-metal spring mechanical type) would also allow the carb to also open up and the engine would run on full outside air once at operating temp. Whenever I bought cars back then, the first things I would do would be to confirm these air intake components where fully operational including the metal or fiber ducting to the air-cleaner snorkel. My Pinto, Mustang II, '73 F-100 and '74 Comet GT all started on the coldest Vancouver morning with one depression of the accelerator (more than that and the engine was flooded thus the smell you noted of fuel. You were dumping raw fuel into the cylinders. One good backfire and bad stuff happened.) and a single turn of the key. Once they were at operating temp. a small depression of the pedal while starting was all that it took to start. That's how a fully operational fuel system worked on cars from the late 60s to the 80s. I had a '64 Comet that I converted to an electric choke as they were far better than the original mechanical ones. Most good running cars would start with almost no priming when warmed up. The exception to this for me was a '70 Maverick street/strip car I owned. It was high compression and cammed. It had a chrome aftermarket air-cleaner and none of the air intake items were there. Fortunately the car was a sunny day ride and the electric choke usually was enough to cold start it. That said, occasionally I went through the same process shown in the before part of this video and had to let it warm up for at least 3-5 minutes before it would go anywhere. It rarely saw winter driving and if it did I took it real slow for the first few miles until it was warmed completely. Driving carbureted cars really wasn't as crappy as so many people like to suggest today. every driver knew how to operate them and you could toss your keys to a friend. That said, my first car was a 1969 Toyota Corolla with a manual choke. That was as foreign to some of my friends as a Model A Ford was to folks in the '50s and '60s. Adjusting spark and advance to start, a story for another time.
Nice vid. When i got married in 1981 i got my wife the same Pinto as yours- but it had a auto trans. What a turd! I pulled the cat & muffler, put on a glaspak, and had trouble trading it off 3 years later coz "Pintos arent this quik, especially autos".
Hahaha yeah mine had the C3 automatic in it when I got it. You're dead right it was a slushbox. The 4 speed really woke it up... not as much as the fuel injection and a nice cam though.
Nice job with only 1 week of time, the 2.3 is one of my favorite motors to work on. My 79 turbo stang lived on a steady diet of 15 lbs boost and was a thrill to drive and eat up all the 5.0 mustangs and Camaros around town.
Right on! I've been tempted to grab a t-bird turbocoupe exhaust manifold and put a little whirly-do on the pinto but just haven't quite decided how far I want the next iteration of the car to go...
@@Scooter_911 A 79 mustang intake should work with your EFI, the turbo mounted under the carburetor, that pinto runs well NA just add 10-12 psi and look out.
I was in the same boat a few years back. But I have to say EFI was the best thing I did yo my pinto. It seems like everyone has the same story too. The only people who are against it are the people who haven't done it yet.
Great presentation.great job. Ford pinto was a great car.all car racers I know used the pinto front suspension for there race cars or street car. Light and fast with any good motor.4,6,8cyl of your choice.
Thanks, now I need to visit Jade and the Foxtones to own a copy of Hyperdrive for the build montage. What a renaissance man you are. Here's to keeping it classic and classy!
All kidding aside, I really do miss my 1978 Pinto. No, it wasn`t the best car I`ve owned but the damn thing fit me like a glove. May she rust in peace.
Thank you for making these videos! I came across this while researching an EFI system for my unplanned 1986 Dodge Omni project car. Very informative of the process and your thoughts on the system are appreciated!
I had a 1990 mustang lx 2.3L single plug head. when I de-restricted it via a 'cold air intake' tube just rain to the stock box location and a performance filter as well a catless 2 chamber dump pipe under the driver seat, it really woke it up with the T5 trans in it. I'm talking full sideways first gear burnouts, 2nd gear chirp and even after that engine skipped timing and blew the headgasket it would still hit 137mph without much issue. little robust engines those things are. very capable too.
I had a 1976 Pinto Wagon for a long time. It was a great car. I often went "car camping" with it. I could haul a lot of stuff. Yes, I had to put up with a lot of "It's going to explode in a fireball" ribbing. I would tell them, "I heard that was only true for the sedan model, not the wagon." I didn't know whether it was true, but it seemed to calm their and my nerves.
My dad had a pea green 1974 Pinto with a stick shift and he drove it like a Porsche through the twisty roads of Natchez Trace Parkway. It was a fun car.
This was so much more than a Holley Sniper install/review video! Great job. 👍 But OMG 1980 did not have the best music... Most of the Sniper review videos complain about the throttle actuation, making the adjustment you did at the loss of full throttle. Seems Ike that should be adjusted in the controller somehow. Maybe the fuel pump is working harder on the smaller lines, but ya the pump sounds like a dog whistle. 😙
I have to say that this is one of the best production video that I've seen! Great commentary, shots, and video selection! I already hit the like and subscribed button!!!!!
Hello Garrett I am restoring a classic 1976 Maverick with a 250 inline 6. I am using the same efi carb system that you installed on your pinto and hearing that your 2.3 works well with it gives me hope for mine now.
Great video. I have a ‘78 Pinto with 2.3 that I want to switch to Sniper. Someone suggested the single barrel 1100 since it’s good for 170 hp and the stock 2.3 won’t get there. I like the two barrel for ease of installation, even if it’s more than the engine needs. Definitely looking into a different quieter fuel pump. I also like the idea of a distributor connected in the mix.
That fuel pump NOISE!! A buddy installed one of these in an old Jeep, that noise drove him nuts! He went back to the carb! I wanted to do this with my vintage Jeep until he sent me a video-the noise is awful. I guess it isn’t so bad in an enclosed vehicle.
The 2.8 V6 like they used in the early Capri's were a nice drop-in performance mod for the Pinto. I built one back in the mid 1980's for a friend of mine, and did some mild head work, good rods, header, and a small 4 bbl. I imagine if we had access to these Holley kits in that day and age, it would have ran a whole lot better, and developed a lot more horsepower than it did. Those 2.3 Lima engines were pretty bulletproof as long as you kept good oil in them and didn't get them hot. Nice conversion (with the exception of the fuel lines, of course, LOL!) 🤣
@@Scooter_911 I saw you partially uncover a '78 Corolla near the end there. I had one of those when I lived in Fla. back in the mid-80's that I built a screaming Toyota 1600 2TC hemi for. I did a BUNCH of headwork on it, and had a Weber DCOE 40 side-draft, MSD ignition, Crower street cam, headers, etc. etc. It made around 160 hp. N/A which was about double the original horsepower and still got 23+ MPG.😁 Seems the weak link in those drivetrains was the output shaft on the 4 speed transmissions that I would snap off on a regular basis.😜 I found out later on that a company had started making tougher output shafts (and complete sequential gearboxes) to replace the original. I didn't really have an extra 5 grand at the time to throw at it, and eventually moved on to something else.😉
May not know too many inline fours with a holley sniper, but here's one from Cali. 69 Datsun 510. L20b motor. I'm only a few steps away. Need to install the o2 and wire the harness. And throttle linkage. Thanks for the 1 year review... it's nice to get a real feel for this system. I plan to post a video of first start up whenever that happens. Btw, I love your vids... your hilarious.
Colostomy bag of a fuel system.....nominated for best 1-liner in an EFI conversion short :-)
Hahaha thanks. Might be my best work...
Getting shit done!
There's no shame in feeling the shame!
@wilsonle61 - No doubt! Still laughing over that one!!🤣😆
@@Scooter_911 no Garrett.....we don't have the money because of the big wigs hoarding them
Good to see Bam Margera back on his feet and productive! Seriously, kudos for keeping it on the road. I had a pinto of same vintage and loved it!
Thanks!
@@Scooter_911 Just think of the $$$ you are saving by continuing to drive the car you love with NOW the convenience of the new teck
Is he really bam Margera?
From Leo: it is kind of fun to drive a 40 year old car. Have owned a couple of the Pinto models in the 1970's (2.0 and 2.3 liter) they are fully capable of daily driver use today. I drove a 40 year old car when I was 20, it was a 1936 Dodge, that car really was for a slower paced time, It really didn't have the brakes to do highway commuter duty. Glad you get to enjoy that Pinto.
I only drive old cars. My "new car" is a 1973 Lincoln and my work truck is a 1960 Dodge d100 with the flat 6 and 3 on the tree, although my truck is getting ready to have AC installed in it as California summers in traffic are getting brutal the older I get.
The Atomic Reverend Alexander , funny you mentioned it ... I understand the extra main bearing load can be a bit much on this engine and suggest a cogged or dual belt for the compressor in being cautious of the new , cantilevered drive pully .
Love that truck !
@@marksommers6764 you may have taught me something new rhat I eas unaware of, I rebuilt the engine a year or two ago now and I don't want to harm it.
My brothers and I all learned to drive in a Pinto in the 80's. My Dad started buying them up in the early 80's because they were dirt cheap, and we were all turning driving age soon. We had four of them at one time that we all drove daily, my Mom to work and us to School. They were all parked in our driveway at the same time. I hated Pintos back then but man I like them now.
You are absolutely correct about EFI. I have tinkered with all sorts of cars since I started driving in the 60s. I've gone through all sorts of carbs,cams, headers, manifolds , ignitions and so on , but the absolute BEST money I ever spent was last year when I converted my big block 63 Impala to aftermarket EFI. MSD in my case. WHAT A DIFFERENCE!. I had a temperamental Demon 750 carb, and to say the least what a profound difference! Just turn the key and it starts and idles instantly, no pumping the gas ,no farting and bucking, just absolute perfection. Good job on your Pinto.
Ahhhhh! 1980 Pinto! I used to own a 1980 Mercury Bobcat. Basically the same car. The difference with my Bobcat is that it had a V6 from the factory!!!! That thing would go SO FAST! It was nice to see the interior of that Pinto. It's been a long time. Thank you.
Thanks for sharing! The 4 speed in my pinto came out of a bobcat! It was pretty nicely equipped!
A week ago I bought my first car, A 79 Ford pinto. And I recently I found your channel. Watching this makes me want to pursue what you've done to yours. Great stuff man
I like carburetors on my old school cars. Reminds me of how society was more hands on back then and men weren't afraid to get there hands dirty. Takes a certain pride and also there is a fun factor in knowing you have a direct hand in it's state of tune. Good video and awesome little car! Also most regular and high performance EXTERNAL fuel pumps are loud, and Holley performance pumps are known to be loud.
My mom had a '77 Pinto with the V6. Black with orange pin-stripes and a tan interior. Looking back now, it was a very handsome car and I wish we still had it.
Wow I've never seen that color combo. It was probably pretty rare!
@@Scooter_911 I once saw a station wagon Pinto in the same color combination. She bought ours at JD Byrider around 1990 or so. They had it hidden out back because it was such a "crappy" car. Looked and drove mint, but since it was a Pinto they thought it was crap. She just had $900 and that was the ONLY car they would sell her for that low. We drove all over North Dakota in that thing.
Well I live in Georgia I'm very glad I found your Channel I have a 74 Pinto 4 speed I've owned the car 30 years I install Mustang 5.0 engine and transmission. But I still have the factory 2.0 Pinto engine and transmission the only reason I change engines I drag race the car back then with the built engine. But this distributor would not stay in sync I could not find electronic distributor I'm going back to my four cylinder set up this summer thank you again young man.
Wow right on! good luck!
I love how your bringing back practical cars that we all share so many memories of.
I also have an old Carolla that I think would be perfect to do this to. Keep up the good work! :)
I put a Holley 2300 on my 81 Corolla. Best upgrade I’ve made to it!
I had an 84 Mustang with the 2.3 many years ago. Good solid engine. My wife and I tried to trade it in on a new car but the dealership wanted to give us only $400 in trade. I told the salesman, "I'll drive it into the crusher myself before I let it go for that much." We gave it to her Dad and he drove it for another two years. He had about 250,000 miles on it before some bozo rear-ended him. Nice work man! Rock on! BTW, I have owned my last carb. EFI all the way.
Had a 75 Light Blue Pinto. Served me well in my early years........My parents even bought it for my little Brother's first car.
Having owned a Pinto in my teens, I really enjoyed your video! I had a 73 wagon with the 2.0 motor back in the late 70s time frame. I rebuilt the motor for power with Ares Racing Pistons, Childs and Albert Piston Rings, Isky camshaft, Edelbrock intake manifold, Mallory dual-point distributor, alcohol injection, and a Spearco turbocharger kit. The motor ended up making 288hp @ 8,000rpm. The car was very fast for a 4 cylinder, but the transmission and rear end could not handle that much power. It blew up at least 3 stock transmissions and one stock rear diff. I installed an 8 inch rear end from a 78 mustang II V8 (bolted right in) to fix the weak rear end. It had T/A radials on American Racing wheels, sway bars with teflon bushings. and handled really well. What a fun car! A turboed injected version would be a lot of fun...what a sleeper!
Wow that sounds like a killer sled. I've been toying with the idea of turbocharging it now that it's fuel injected but I definitely know the stock trans and rear end will be the weak link.
Had a '79 Mercury Bobcat (Pinto by another name), one of the best cars I ever had! Thanks for a great video. Wish they would make cars like this, some modern improvements without all the electronic crap we have now. And when they have a good design like the Pinto, quit trying to overdue it, just improve it. By the way, I really like "Jade and the Foxtones", really good sound, fun music!
Thanks for watching! The headlight bezels and the transmission in my pinto are from a 79 bobcat! I wish they could make simple fun cars again too but now we've got to make sure if a car hits a pedestrian it serves them a 4 course meal before they hit the ground instead haha!
My brother used to let me borrow his winter beater when I first got my license back in the early 80's and it was a 73 runabout with the 1.6 4spd combo. It got about 30mpg but what I remember most is that the speedo went up to 100 but the car topped out at about 88 MPH! LOL
My first car was a 1972 sedan with the 1.6L. Neither I nor my brother could kill that car.
Optimum time travel speed though 🤣
Back in the '80s I would buy Pintos for $50 a pop, take two and make one runner. Had 11 of the '71-'73s, and 2 '75s that had the V6. Easy to work on and nobody wanted them. But they handled well and a little work they moved along ok.
Awesome. I’m a scratch and dent shopper, too.
@@stopglobalswarming working on 2 fox body Mustangs, '82 coupe with a 2.3 and an '86 vert with an 5.0
Regarding pump noise, get the Holley 12-130 retrofit in-tank adapter. You’ll never hear the pump again.
Owned 2 Pintos,a 71 with the 2.0 and a 77 with the 2.3. The 77 was stock,the 71 had a Crane cam,Hooker header,Holley 390,KYB gas adjust shocks,1” anti sway front,3/4” anti sway rear. Great little car,lots of fun on Mulholland.
2.3 ltr iron horse loved those old Pinto's. My buddy ran a header also, he ran the exhaust out just before the rear tires on both sides. He would wind the auto trans out to 50 mph in first gear and let off the gas and flames shot three foot out on both sides. looked so cool. back in the '70s, he was the first dude I knew of with two 15's subwoofers in the back of his ride, the music was so loud.
This build is awesome and I love the brutally honest self review on the fuel system.
Nice work, Pinto great, but was shocked to see those hubcaps? Makes no sense especially after all that was done, didn't see any bumper stickers though 🤔 lol
before I even had my licence (1983) I bought my first pinto. I washed, waxed and detailed it and parked it in front of my parents house. Someone offered me 300 dollars more than I had just bought it for. I sold it. I later bought 2 more through the years and never lost a dime. They had issues but they were reliable and cheap to drive.
Put a good set of exhaust headers on that engine and you'll be amazed at the increase in H.P.
I did that to a 1974 Pinto i used to own in the late 70's and did a valve job to it as well. All was very easy and only took a couple of day.
our 74 pinto 2.3 was a great car.
@@BigEightiesNewWave
Are you sure that wasn't a 2.0 liter that was designed in Germany? My '74 Pinto had the 2.0 liter and it was a great engine. Plenty of power especially after I put headers on it. It had a 4 speed transmission and was real fun to drive.
Maybe your family's car had an automatic transmission and they put the larger engine in it? I don't know enough about that.
I put a header on my 2.4 Nissan truck out of necessity. Exhaust manifold broke & the header was cheaper. I read all these guys saying headers don't do anything. They're wrong. It's not always about racing. It performs well under normal operation.
My 71 2 liter 4 speed would barely pull 80 flat out. All I did was install Some Headman headers and went 102 on police radar. Good thing the cop was a friend of my Dad.
@@paulshamblin6260
An engine has to breathe to get the oxygen for combustion. Ditching the factory air filter helps too.
Dude, I was thinking of doing this to my 1980 Chevy Citation V6 and now I’m inspired! Thanks, car bae!
Hellz yes! I actually love the citation! Please do and report back! Those cars deserve love as much as any other!
I had 3 Pintos: 1971 with the 2-liter German engine, 1974 with the 2.3 liter Ford engine and 1979 with the 2.3-liter engine, all with 4-speed manual transmissions. The were fun to drive and were simple and easy to work on. The Holley 5200 carburetor was easy to rejet to get the air-fuel ratio at all RPMs and the vacuum and centrifugal advance units in the distributors were easy to work on and adjust. There were oiling problems with the overhead hydraulic camshaft that caused excessive cam lobe wear on the early 2.3 liter engines.
That's badass I've got a 85 ranger on full size axles, 2.0 punched,decked,10:1 2.3 head RV cam, love the pinto
At around 10:50 in the video, that hose clamp is maxed out and still allowing coolant to seep out. I know this video is 3 years old, and you’ve likely repaired it by now, but just had to point it out! Great video! Much appreciated, especially as a lifelong Ford fan and previous Pinto owner.
Good eye! Yes indeed the old girl definitely keeps me busy with leaks springing up here and there. But I'll take occasional leaks over a soulless new car any day! Thanks for watching!
i have a vintage firebird (1986,the unloved years) but still love all the 50s,60s,70s, 80s cars regardless of country of origin,engine size etc
Back in the late 80's I had a '79 Mercury Bobcat that I sort of inherited from a friend who joined the military.
It was very much like your Pinto, even in color and body style. The thing ran good, had low miles, (33k), but it didn't set any speed records with its 90hp running through the cat converter and a 2.78 rear end ratio.
My first change was to lose the cat converter, smog pump, and all the plumbing, it did smoke a bit on start up so I replaced the valve seals and replaced the valve cover and pan gaskets as well. It helped but it wasn't enough. Then a buddy wrecked his 1988 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe. I bought the car from the salvage company and transplanted that power train into the Bobcat.
I cut down the rear axle to fit, converted the fuel tank to accept the fuel injection pump assembly, made up custom high pressure and return fuel lines from steel tubing, I converted the braking system using a mix of street rod front brakes, and the TC oem rear brakes. I then found a set of aluminum wheels from a 1986 Mustang GT (D slot alloys).
The rear fender wells needed minor reworking to clear the tires, and the front end needed some steering stops added.
I also found a complete stereo sound system from a 1989 Lincoln Town Car, giving the Bobcat a JBL factory sound system. I was able to use everything except the rear speakers which required modifying the rear panels a bit. The amp was mounted under the right front seat and speakers were added to both kick panels, the top of the dash, both door panels, and four in the rear panels. with a pair of satellite tweeters on the A pillars.
I used the G3 alternator off the Turbo Coupe as well, and the ECM went behind the glove box.
I drove that car for four years, sold it to someone who took it out of state. The main goal was to use all factory Ford parts whenever possible. I did that with the exception of a few speakers and a custom radiator and custom fiberglass lower air dam.
(My lower air dam was broken up worse than yours, it eventually split diagonally after driving to work through some deep snow back in the early 90's, so i glued it back together well enough to use it to make a mold so I could duplicate it in fiberglass).
That car was one of seven Pinto/Bobcats I owned over the years. Including a 1980 Pinto sedan I had for over 600,000 miles.
I stuffed a 302 into a 1974, a 351 V8 into a 1976 wagon, and was planning to do up my 1977 wagon using the power train from a 1993 Mustang GT but that one never happened. The car got sold before I ever got around to making the swap. I still have the GT power train in the garage, maybe I'll find something else to use it on one day.
Just had a 2.3 put in my 1954 ford customline. After seeing your video I believe I will do the conversion as well. Great video and liked the way you explained everything brotha.
I love those 2.3 liter motors. My brother and I raced at a local dirt track and we chose the 4 cylinder class. This was back in the 1990's. Those motors were everywhere and so were the parts. I had so much fun. Glad to see your still up and running. I hope you get your fuel lines fixed. As for the fuel pump.....I've "heard" a lot of electric fuel pumps that sound the same.
Word to the wise: The loop of wires in the auxiliary harness on the fender needs to be cinched up in the middle, otherwise you have an induction coil that can create all kinds of problems in the long run.
It's possible that the fuel pump noise is cavitation from the return line restriction; I hope you got that fixed, and the noise is gone.
Voltage is too low for that to happen.
My search for EFI for my ‘78 Pinto brought me here. Thanks for the good info. I had the same problem with my valve stem seals. I bought the special valve compressor tool and used the magic rope trick to keep the valves up. I installed a rebuilt carb, since my old one had been rebuilt a couple times and was dying from ethanol fuel. It runs great but I would love EFI, electric fan, and roller lifters and cam.
Roller lifters are next for me. Reach out if you have any questions when you pull the trigger!
I bought a brand new Pinto in 1970 in San Diego, Ca with a 2000 engine and a 4 speed. The window sticker said that it was a 1600 with the 4 speed and according to Ford the combination that I was buying was NOT available! The salesman said that "FORD must have made a mistake on the assembly line. I paid $1860 buck-a-roos for it. It had a heater and a radio as the ONLY options. The floor was vinyl, NO carpets! Dark Green with black interior. It was a great car, wish I still had it. Oh well!
Good job keeping the old girl alive. I found it interesting that the TBI EFI is so adaptable to the smaller displacement. Check your fuel pressure. If it’s at spec. The fuel pump is not being dead headed and it’s just noisy. I’m sure that pump is way overkill for your displacement. I like the Bosch or Walbro pumps. Nic and quiet.
Thanks for the pump suggestions! The pump quieted down quite a bit after I fabricated some new fuel lines for it. Heres the video ua-cam.com/video/t3CTkWR5tNs/v-deo.html but its still not as quiet as an OEM one. I'll definitely look into the walbro
I'd like to have a 87 or 88 Turbo Coup. You may think I'm nuts but I fell in love with the Pinto and especially that little 4 banger when I would let my best friend borrow my 70 SS454 Monte Carlo for a hot date and I would have his 72 or 3 Pinto, I think it was, and I would hot rod that little gocart around all day on $3 of gas and have an absolute blast. Of course while my buddy was going from gas station to gas station. I liked my SS and was proud of it but I loved that Pinto. Excellent video.👍
Thank you very much! Yeah I absolutely love my pinto. There's no car today that can give me what it's giving me
That was a great video, and congrats for still enjoying this Pinto. My father had a 1979 Pinto for several years. I would bet that this car, with the hood up at a car show, would draw a crowd of people wanting to ask you about it.
Thanks! Haha yeah I haven't really taken it to any car shows yet, but maybe I should start taking it to cars and coffee!
@@Scooter_911 absolutely....
I rebuilt my '72 2 liter on my dorm room coffee table I used a Moosehead engine transport system (Four guys bribed with 4 bottles of Moosehead beer) I used the Holley 350 with flow reducer from Racer Walsh but ended up running an epoxy filled power valve, because I was running at 5000 feet above sea level
For a young guy like you to even know about Pintos!!! ...is pretty impressive!! They are like Vegas or AMC's vehicles yet you show it love! My brother in law hooked his Pinto up too, and made it racing stock... Good job yet again Garrett.
Garret , Great video man , loved the project Pinto . Great Build ! And humorous too
Thank you very much!
I love Pintos I am on # 5 a 1980 wagon. I drive it daily on my 50 mile one way commute. I have had a 1971 a 1974 wagon my wife wrecked a 1976 Bobcat a 1979 wagon my son wrecked now my 1980 wagon. My son also has the only Ford Pinto on Guam. They are great straight forward little cars. That was proved by your going completely through yours in a weekend. I get compliments all the time on it. I can't go to the gas station without getting a chance to here folks say, "I had one just like that but it was a Chevrolet." My son is thinking of the conversion you spoke of as am I. Keep the rubber side down and if you happen to be traveling around Pipe Creek texas and you see a silver 80 Pinto wagon flash your lights.
Had a 77 pinto, except for replacing numerous C-3s, and the rear bumper I pulled off towing a trailer was most awesome car I ever owned, right up there with my 73 Gremlin.
Somewhere in the mid 70's my bud a used car repair tech, had a 72 pinto come in with an under hood fire, he bought the car for $100 for the new tires on it, but during spare time he scrounged up used parts, put it together and it ran, that car could chirp the tires in 4 gears and would outrun most auto trans cars, and it wasn't built, it had the simplicity of a points condensor and coil, ignition system, a two barrel carb you could tweak a bit, and truly settable ignition timing, besides being great little beatable beasts, these were and are comparatively easy to work on and thats what made it fun.
that was the 2.0 Cosworth... killer little engine!
I know I am blowing up your channel with mad comments! I mentioned my cousin, our family mechanic! Like you, he put alot of effort into a car than many dismiss. His major efforts went into a Plymouth Cruiser. He totally rebuilt the engine to the point it is beast mode on the road! Like Pinto, I thought that was like...why bother? Lol! Thanks to you and my cousin for y'all vision!!
Excellent video, you're a very bright young man, who's thinking outside of the box!
Thank you very much!
I run a FiTech system, with the retro fit in tank pump. It’s not hard to install and it gives you a reason to get the tank cleaned, and no noise. Love the video.
Enjoyed the video. I had a white 1980 Pinto with the 4speed manual back in the 80’s. I had a lot of fun with that little car especially when I found a company called Racer Walsh that made performance parts for the Pinto and Mustang 2. After I eliminated all the emissions and cat. I had a full length header with a straight pipe to the rear muffler. I made the muffler easy to remove and stow in the trunk. Little Pinto sounded like a 1000cc street bike and would haul ass. At least by 1980’s standards. I could beat the pants off any other 4cylinder.
My favorite car was the 1978 Ford Maverick. Straight 6 engine and bare bones basic. It was the 4 door, not 2 door. I always wished it had EFI. That car lasted well into the 1990's before wife demanded it go away. I miss that car . If I could get my hands on another one, I would.
Oh man I think the Maverick is one of the most severely under rated cars! Getting pretty hard to find these days too!
I always thought a 1970s Granada, which was basically a dressed up Maverick, which was an updated Falcon, would be an interesting car to own. People complained about the mushy ride and numb steering, but those cars always looked more upscale than they were and I'm sure the suspensions could have been beefed up just enough to make the car a little less floaty. Ford had some pretty bizarre cars in those years (monstrous T-Birds, LTD IIs with crazy roof lines), but the Maverick and Granada stayed down-to-earth and sensible.
But 77 was the last year for the Maverick...
@@halohunter5217 Beat me to that lol
On my 71 I had Headman headers, Edelbrock Pony Ram intake with two Holley 185 VW carbs, Crane cam, a little port work and 4:10 gears from an early Ford van. My quickest 1/4 mile was 13.85. Wish we had EFI back then. But we had a blast anyway.
I used old cars for daily drivers right up until I retired- but I also had one new-ish car for those times when a breakdown would have been very inconvenient, such as driving to the airport to fly somewhere on business. Kudos for your enthusiasm, that's what makes this hobby run. But I haven't seen a Pinto on the road in over 20 years!
Good Job! I had the 1980 Mercury Bobcat, loved that car. Great video.
Im actually fixing one up of the same year
Thumbs up on the flip flops!
My last outboard motor was a fuelie. It was so nice to just turn the key and leave the docks!
Had 2 Pinto hatchbacks.
Both 2.3 L.
'75 was a totally manual 4 speed.
Loved it.
'77 had power steering and power brakes.
Those engines were damn near indestructible.
Thumbz up to the Ford Pinto!!
I've owned two 1972 Pinto Runabouts. Both with 2.0 and Automatic, front disc brakes. I don't remember having to warm up my car before I left the house in the morning. If I did it must have been a pretty quick warm up. I do remember cars having to be warmed up for several minutes, but I always remember them being older than my 72 Pinto.
Nice to see a younger Gen appreciate the Pinto Pony, EFI and all. Pretty hard to beat a Weber twin choke on a Pinto 2.3
Thanks! Mmmm I'd have to say the sniper firmly beats the Webber 32/36 that came on my 2.3
Cosworth YB would easily beat that... the ultimate Pinto engine. You can even buy a new aluminum block for one.
Garret Seesing no doubt the drive-ability is better, and it takes knowledge, experience to properly tune a carb, my problem with EFI conversions is the cost. Prolly exceeds the value of the car.
I never thought that one of the best car videos on UA-cam would be about a daily driver pinto.
Subscribed for someone who drives a Pinto as a daily driver and prefers older cars to the technological headaches of today.
Hey, nice work keeping that thing running and convenient. It reminded me a lot of my journey to fix up my old eagle, except all my fuel injection parts were sourced from the junkyard or rockauto. Ended up going with mostly the entire setup from a 99 cherokee, as well as the transmission and transfer case. My fuel system isnt quite as jankomatic as yours, but features a universal high flow low pressure rotary pump, a high pressure pump from 80s ford pickups, and a filter/regulator from a grand cherokee. My pumps are pretty loud as well, but they worl pretty smoothly, aside from running dry when I turn sharply right under 1/3 of a tank. Keep it up man.
I had a Ford Pinto years ago with the inline 4. It was a real dog and it did not get that good of gas mileage. I am sure the upgrades on this video made a world of difference.
I’ve always wanted to put a SVO 2.3 turbo in one of these old pintos
Goes right in! The holley can run turbo applications too if you can't get your hands on an old SVO or turbocoupe.
@@nellyfarnsworth7381
Mmm, memories.
I was there the day a buddies dad brought home a brand new 87.
He eventually got his hands on it that summer , what a fun car.
A bunch of kids who just got their license, oh boy.
Haha we made it to the county fair in 23 minutes vs the usual 45 that year🤣
Top gear, and the tach stayed at 5000 to 5500 for about a good 15 minutes of that ride, what a blast.
That's alot of heat under the hood , worked at a dealership while those were popular, learned alot about gas turbos in those days, we had alot of heat related problems .
@@beckywatt5048
Still do unless you fix em.
Svo and merkurs had front mount intercooler which helped.
@@beckywatt5048
Haha we did cook a turbo in it once.
Ripping it thru a gear and all of a sudden it was a mosquito fogger in the back.
She did run best on mobil super , you'd get 18psi out of it while most others wouldn't barely tickle 16.
as a diehard Ford fan - I'm SO glad you love your Pinto! it's so adorable!
Buddy had a baby-shit green Pinto in H.S. back in the late 80's. He always talked about stuffing a 351 into the thing at some point. Good work and good luck going forward, man.
Your video bring back memories of my old 73 Pinto that was good old car
I’m gonna say something to you that in my day I never thought I’d say to someone driving a pinto. Nice car man. I wish I had one just as cool.
Thank you very much.
You made your video really fun to watch! Nice work, thanks!!
Glad you liked it
I bought one of these new in 1979. No hatchback, no options, $3439 even. Sales couldn't believe I wanted the four-speed, but back then the automagic made such cars move like turtles.
First view of your Productions .
So well done and funny too !
I've seen a few Turbo T-Bird conversions ... all go and no stop called for the bigger Tbird brakes to make the trip too !
Thanks for your time and talents .
This is great! I have been toying with the idea of doing this with my 1983 Ford Ranger with the same engine and was curious if it would work. Your video proves to me that it can! Lol...there goes my wallet!
J.T.'s World! I'm sure it would .
Always happens, lol, with the wallet.
Wearing flip-flops while I’m a freakin machine plays in the background, classic!
12:20 My father had a 1980 Pinto and it started up exactly the same way; once I pumped the accelerator so many times to get it going that it smelled like a Molotov cocktail . I had this vague assumption that cars like this started up with less drama when they were new; I guess it's hard to tell, since even your fairly well preserved example had a number of other issues like the valve seals, head gasket, etc. The new throttle-body injection is definitely an improvement and it would be interesting to find how much more than its original 88 HP this engine puts out.
I would definitely go with this simple EFI conversion. Best solution by far. But I have to say to all concerned that your Pintos were not functioning correctly to begin with. I owned an '80 pinto back when it was about 5 years old. Great little car. I never had that kind of trouble starting it or any other carbureted car or truck I owned (yes I'm your dad's age). the thing about carbs is that they need to be choked correctly and the vacuum baffle in the air-cleaner needs to function correctly. As well the heat duct/tube must be intact. Cold starts (even on a warm day) start when you depressed the accelerator once. This closed off almost entirely the butterfly baffle at the top of the carb and cut off most of the air intake. When cold the vacuum baffle in the air-cleaner would also close forcing the early air flow to draw from the radiant heat from the exhaust manifold. This process provided warm air for the first few miles until the engine warmed up. When the engine did warm, the baffle in the snorkel would slowly open allowing outside air into the carb. The electric choke ( or the original bi-metal spring mechanical type) would also allow the carb to also open up and the engine would run on full outside air once at operating temp. Whenever I bought cars back then, the first things I would do would be to confirm these air intake components where fully operational including the metal or fiber ducting to the air-cleaner snorkel. My Pinto, Mustang II, '73 F-100 and '74 Comet GT all started on the coldest Vancouver morning with one depression of the accelerator (more than that and the engine was flooded thus the smell you noted of fuel. You were dumping raw fuel into the cylinders. One good backfire and bad stuff happened.) and a single turn of the key. Once they were at operating temp. a small depression of the pedal while starting was all that it took to start. That's how a fully operational fuel system worked on cars from the late 60s to the 80s. I had a '64 Comet that I converted to an electric choke as they were far better than the original mechanical ones. Most good running cars would start with almost no priming when warmed up. The exception to this for me was a '70 Maverick street/strip car I owned. It was high compression and cammed. It had a chrome aftermarket air-cleaner and none of the air intake items were there. Fortunately the car was a sunny day ride and the electric choke usually was enough to cold start it. That said, occasionally I went through the same process shown in the before part of this video and had to let it warm up for at least 3-5 minutes before it would go anywhere. It rarely saw winter driving and if it did I took it real slow for the first few miles until it was warmed completely. Driving carbureted cars really wasn't as crappy as so many people like to suggest today. every driver knew how to operate them and you could toss your keys to a friend. That said, my first car was a 1969 Toyota Corolla with a manual choke. That was as foreign to some of my friends as a Model A Ford was to folks in the '50s and '60s. Adjusting spark and advance to start, a story for another time.
If the carb is tuned correctly and the choke works, unlike in this case, the car just needs a couple pumps and it will start.
Nice vid. When i got married in 1981 i got my wife the same Pinto as yours- but it had a auto trans. What a turd! I pulled the cat & muffler, put on a glaspak, and had trouble trading it off 3 years later coz "Pintos arent this quik, especially autos".
Hahaha yeah mine had the C3 automatic in it when I got it. You're dead right it was a slushbox. The 4 speed really woke it up... not as much as the fuel injection and a nice cam though.
Nice job with only 1 week of time, the 2.3 is one of my favorite motors to work on.
My 79 turbo stang lived on a steady diet of 15 lbs boost and was a thrill to drive and eat up all the 5.0 mustangs and Camaros around town.
Right on! I've been tempted to grab a t-bird turbocoupe exhaust manifold and put a little whirly-do on the pinto but just haven't quite decided how far I want the next iteration of the car to go...
@@Scooter_911 A 79 mustang intake should work with your EFI, the turbo mounted under the carburetor, that pinto runs well NA just add 10-12 psi and look out.
Love the 2.3's
Good job.
Glad to see a pinto still alive.
Had a pinto back in my early driving days. Good car and engine tough as hell.
I am a purist struggling with the idea of converting my carb 205 to Efi, I am almost buying into the idea of converting to efi thanks to this video.
I was in the same boat a few years back. But I have to say EFI was the best thing I did yo my pinto. It seems like everyone has the same story too. The only people who are against it are the people who haven't done it yet.
Great presentation.great job. Ford pinto was a great car.all car racers I know used the pinto front suspension for there race cars or street car. Light and fast with any good motor.4,6,8cyl of your choice.
In tank pump would take care of the noise, my mom had a 79 2 door wagon with port hole windows, neat little car.
Awesome video.
I loved my yellow Pinto wagon.
I imagine it's running free in that pasture up state. Ha ha ha.
Thanks, now I need to visit Jade and the Foxtones to own a copy of Hyperdrive for the build montage. What a renaissance man you are. Here's to keeping it classic and classy!
hahah thanks a lot! Listen extra hard to the bass line!
I love the 4x4 Ford Truck in the background looks like a 76 or 77 XLT.
It's a 78 f150 ranger. For sale if you like it THAT much hahah
All kidding aside, I really do miss my 1978 Pinto. No, it wasn`t the best car I`ve owned but the damn thing fit me like a glove. May she rust in peace.
Thank you for making these videos! I came across this while researching an EFI system for my unplanned 1986 Dodge Omni project car. Very informative of the process and your thoughts on the system are appreciated!
Any progress on your Omni EFI swap?
@@thomasainlay924 Some unexpected expenses came up forcing me to hold off on the swap for now so I’m sticking with the carb for now.
I had a 1990 mustang lx 2.3L single plug head. when I de-restricted it via a 'cold air intake' tube just rain to the stock box location and a performance filter as well a catless 2 chamber dump pipe under the driver seat, it really woke it up with the T5 trans in it. I'm talking full sideways first gear burnouts, 2nd gear chirp and even after that engine skipped timing and blew the headgasket it would still hit 137mph without much issue. little robust engines those things are. very capable too.
I had a 1976 Pinto Wagon for a long time. It was a great car. I often went "car camping" with it. I could haul a lot of stuff. Yes, I had to put up with a lot of "It's going to explode in a fireball" ribbing. I would tell them, "I heard that was only true for the sedan model, not the wagon." I didn't know whether it was true, but it seemed to calm their and my nerves.
Great video! I had a 1978 Pinto wagon. Great car.
I want to see that fuel tank video! Love the build so far. keep up the good work!
My first car was a 1980 Pinto Pony 4 speed with a trunk no hatch. I got it in 1990 Great car
My dad had a pea green 1974 Pinto with a stick shift and he drove it like a Porsche through the twisty roads of Natchez Trace Parkway. It was a fun car.
First running the 4 cylinder awesome! Second flip flops perfect.
Awesome job modernizing your Pinto! Can't wait to see how you refine the fuel delivery system.
Very cool and well done! I owned a 1976 Pinto 2 door wagon way back in the day and actually liked it.
I don't don't doubt that. I love my pinto. I frequently tell people there is no other car I can buy today that can give me what I get from that car
This was so much more than a Holley Sniper install/review video! Great job. 👍 But OMG 1980 did not have the best music... Most of the Sniper review videos complain about the throttle actuation, making the adjustment you did at the loss of full throttle. Seems
Ike that should be adjusted in the controller somehow. Maybe the fuel pump is working harder on the smaller lines, but ya the pump sounds like a dog whistle. 😙
@Mike Anderson Holley external pumps and most other brands are loud regardless.
I have to say that this is one of the best production video that I've seen! Great commentary, shots, and video selection! I already hit the like and subscribed button!!!!!
Hello Garrett I am restoring a classic 1976 Maverick with a 250 inline 6. I am using the same efi carb system that you installed on your pinto and hearing that your 2.3 works well with it gives me hope for mine now.
Great video. I have a ‘78 Pinto with 2.3 that I want to switch to Sniper. Someone suggested the single barrel 1100 since it’s good for 170 hp and the stock 2.3 won’t get there. I like the two barrel for ease of installation, even if it’s more than the engine needs. Definitely looking into a different quieter fuel pump. I also like the idea of a distributor connected in the mix.
That fuel pump NOISE!! A buddy installed one of these in an old Jeep, that noise drove him nuts! He went back to the carb! I wanted to do this with my vintage Jeep until he sent me a video-the noise is awful.
I guess it isn’t so bad in an enclosed vehicle.
The 2.8 V6 like they used in the early Capri's were a nice drop-in performance mod for the Pinto. I built one back in the mid 1980's for a friend of mine, and did some mild head work, good rods, header, and a small 4 bbl. I imagine if we had access to these Holley kits in that day and age, it would have ran a whole lot better, and developed a lot more horsepower than it did. Those 2.3 Lima engines were pretty bulletproof as long as you kept good oil in them and didn't get them hot. Nice conversion (with the exception of the fuel lines, of course, LOL!) 🤣
Hahaha thanks I did end up building a much nicer set a little later. there's a link to the video in this video
@@Scooter_911 I saw you partially uncover a '78 Corolla near the end there. I had one of those when I lived in Fla. back in the mid-80's that I built a screaming Toyota 1600 2TC hemi for. I did a BUNCH of headwork on it, and had a Weber DCOE 40 side-draft, MSD ignition, Crower street cam, headers, etc. etc. It made around 160 hp. N/A which was about double the original horsepower and still got 23+ MPG.😁 Seems the weak link in those drivetrains was the output shaft on the 4 speed transmissions that I would snap off on a regular basis.😜 I found out later on that a company had started making tougher output shafts (and complete sequential gearboxes) to replace the original. I didn't really have an extra 5 grand at the time to throw at it, and eventually moved on to something else.😉
May not know too many inline fours with a holley sniper, but here's one from Cali. 69 Datsun 510. L20b motor. I'm only a few steps away. Need to install the o2 and wire the harness. And throttle linkage. Thanks for the 1 year review... it's nice to get a real feel for this system. I plan to post a video of first start up whenever that happens. Btw, I love your vids... your hilarious.
MAN I CANT WAIT! the 510 is one of my faves! keep me/us posted!
Wow! My dad had that exact color Corolla a few years ago. Nice work on the Pinto!
You did a very good job. Excellent video. We don't see so good explanations on video like this one.
Thank you very much!