Ford Pinto
Offered with an inline-4 engine and bucket seats the Pinto's mechanical design was conventional, with unibody construction, a longitudinally mounted engine in front driving the rear wheels through either a manual or automatic transmission and live axle rear end. Suspension was by unequal-length control arms with front coil springs; the live rear axle was suspended on leaf springs. The rack and pinion steering had optional power assist, as did the brakes.
Semi-automatic transmission
Ford Motor Co. offered the Semi-Automatic Transmission on the 1970 Maverick 6-cylinder model as a lower-cost option to the popular 3-speed C4 Cruise-o-Matic transmission. The shift quadrant featured "P R N Hi 2 1" and the Maverick owner's manual provides the speeds at which the driver should move the selector between the three forward gears. Like Chevrolet's Torque-Drive, the Ford Semi-Automatic was essentially the regular automatic without the self-shifting capability. At $121.00 retail, it was pricey, rarely ordered, and was discontinued the following year.