Back in the mid-1970s, Car and Driver wasn’t as lilly handed and
high brow as it is today. In fact, the guys on staff used to like to
actually wrench on stuff and go racing. Shocking, we know. Famously,
the guys on the magazine put together a 1972 Ford Pinto for the 1974
campaign of the Goodrich Radial Challenge, a road racing series that
pitted a variety of cars against one another. Of course, people laughed
like hell when they saw the Pinto, but after proving itself to be a
race winner and tough competitor, no one was laughing anymore.
high brow as it is today. In fact, the guys on staff used to like to
actually wrench on stuff and go racing. Shocking, we know. Famously,
the guys on the magazine put together a 1972 Ford Pinto for the 1974
campaign of the Goodrich Radial Challenge, a road racing series that
pitted a variety of cars against one another. Of course, people laughed
like hell when they saw the Pinto, but after proving itself to be a
race winner and tough competitor, no one was laughing anymore.
The point of building this car was to prove to the
masses that a couple guys and some thinking would result in a car
capable of running right at the front of the pack. They proved their
concept that first season by winning the event at Charlotte Motor
Speedway. The car ran in the runner up position the race before winning
so Patrick Bedard and the other guys on the car knew they really had
something special here.
masses that a couple guys and some thinking would result in a car
capable of running right at the front of the pack. They proved their
concept that first season by winning the event at Charlotte Motor
Speedway. The car ran in the runner up position the race before winning
so Patrick Bedard and the other guys on the car knew they really had
something special here.
The engine started as 2.0L four banger that was
fairly stock. It ended up with a 2.3 that was billy bad ass and worked
great in the car. The only real downside of the Pinto as a racer was
the lack of torque and acceleration out of the corners. The write up
claims that the 2.3L race engine helped, the little cart just couldn’t
hang with the big boys in a straight line.
fairly stock. It ended up with a 2.3 that was billy bad ass and worked
great in the car. The only real downside of the Pinto as a racer was
the lack of torque and acceleration out of the corners. The write up
claims that the 2.3L race engine helped, the little cart just couldn’t
hang with the big boys in a straight line.
