Ford Pinto

Mercury's version of the Ford Pinto Runabout, now discarded in Colorado.

Here's an extremely rare '71 model, spotted in a California self-service wrecking yard.

Giant, hideous crash bumpers, engines that made 25 horsepower per liter, and velour. Lots of velour. 1973 through 1983, which year was the Malaise nadir?

The 1988 Pontiac LeMans? The 2004 Mercury Monterey? Something more painful?

In an article for The New Yorker, Malcolm Gladwell puts deep focus on understanding the automotive recall. In part, he interviews the head of Ford's recall office during the Pinto's exploding fuel tank campaign for an insider's view.

There's a car club out there for everyone. Case in point: Ford Pinto enthusiasts have embarked on a journey across a large portion of the country. In all, 24 Pintos are making the 1,600-mile trek from Denver, Colorado to the Ford Nationals in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. By the time the group arrives in PA, a few more Pinto fans will join the unique train of cars, bringing the total number of vehicles up to 32.

Car and Driver 1972 Pinto race car – click for high-res image gallery

What do the 1980 Chevy Monza and the 1973 VW Microbus have in common? They are among Car Talk hosts Tom and Ray Magliozzi's Top 10 Scariest Cars list. Of the Monza they say, " Whenever one of these beauties reared its ugly grille in front of the garage, every mechanic with more than six weeks' experience would go running for the men's room and lock the door." Another car on the list, the 1987 Ford Festiva, gets this derision from the brothers: "We once got in