You forgot to mention that your car was $2,500 new back then. Cheapest cars today run around $10,000 for a base model.. Guess I could compare the Ford Pinto to the Ford Fiesta. The cost of the cars themselves have gone up exponentially even though they are almost entirely made by robots (someone has to pay for the CEO's, health insurance, and Uncle Sam)...
Anyways, my first car was a 1994 Dodge Stealth. I bought it in 2010 so it was already 16 years old. Paid $2,500 for it (same as you would have for a new Pinto). It was a great car for what it was, must have been a salvage at some point as the airbags weren't hooked up and it had windows from a different model. It also had a switch installed for the headlights as the light switch had burnt up. I kept it for 3 years, it deteriorated quite a bit over that time. Sold it for $1500 with mismatched tires and a dinged up passenger door. I'm on to my third car now and even though this one has lots of bells and whistles (including working headlights and airbags), I still miss the first one.
Well it was my first car & my parents bought it for me for $500. Obviously it wasn't new when I got it and nothing in it was electronic. Also, I was the only one who knew how to get it started, there was a very specific routine of 3 pumps on the gas or the carburetor would get flooded. Oh the good ol' days & how they make me appreciate my car now. LOL
I hear you regarding the condition of your Stealth. It's funny how you can miss such a clunker. Must be the nostalgic aspect I suppose.
When I first bought it the car stalled twice during the test drive. But once it got warm it ran fine. After I got the title, it wouldn't start. Held the gas, still wouldn't kick on. After 10 minutes of trying it started.
Dealt with that issue for about 2 weeks before I curiously looked over the engine bay. Found an air flow screw that made the car idle higher when it was on. So I cranked that puppy up and never had a problem starting again and a high idle always sounds better anyways, but16 MPG hurt when gas was $4 a gallon.
My Pinto would run fine after it got warmed up too. Luckily gas was under a dollar when I started driving, so I could fill it up for only a few dollars, I think it was about $6-$7.