In the early 80s I had a 73 Pinto wagon with a 2.0. After it broke a connecting rod, I put in a rebuilt 2.3 from a 74. Not a super easy swap. Many changes were made to the front of Pintos in 74 to accept the physically larger 2.3 and to reconcile with the changes made to the structure for the Mustang II. I had to bolt in new engine mounts and put in an electric fan on the front of the radiator, among other changes. The car drove well with the larger engine. The extra torque of the 2.3 made a lot of difference.
The car was white, with a brown interior and had US slot mags with fat tires. We also had a 72 Montego wagon at the time in the same color combination.