“And now for something completely different…” As regular readers here we’re sure you’re aware that we have a huge soft spot for the “underdog” cars, this ’78 Pinto wagon project we found over on Pro-Touring.com definitely qualifies as that. “Draggin’ Drew” Mitchell, the owner of the car, grew up following his dad around the shop and the drag strip, and made a real name for himself in a ’77 Pinto.

The '78 Pinto Squire. That's real faux wood-grain.

That car was sold when Drew was 8, but he’d always remembered it. When he was in his late teens the ’77 was repurchased and Drew began to race it himself. That helped his soft spot for the Pinto into something bigger, and thus led to his purchase of this little ’78 Pinto Squire wagon, complete with 2 doors and faux wood-grain!

Unlike the ’77 Pinto, this little wagon is intended to carve corners and will be subjected to the Pro-Touring treatment. The project will sit for a while until time and funds allow, but Drew plans on doing a complete chassis build and will simply set the wagon body atop of it. He’s planning to use the bulletproof drivetrain combination of an LS1, a T-56 6-speed, and a 9″ Ford rear end.

To top it off he’s planning to call in every favor he has under the sun and add in a little sweat equity to complete the entire build for under $5000. Granted, even with mad build skills and a bazillion “slightly used” parts, the $5000 price seems like a tall order, but honestly, who cares. We love it!

At 6'9" and 400lbs., Draggin' Drew Mitchell is not exactly the ideal size for such a tiny compact wagon. Drew admits that some modifications are going to be needed to the seating and factory floor just to fit the big guy in.