*****CAR IS SOLD****** (4-14-13)
It pains me to compose this as I never thought the day would come...
Nearly 40 years ago at the age of 12, my cousin, 25 at the time purchased a '71 Pantera in Grabber Blue. In my mind he was a ROCK STAR! Heads turned everywhere he went in that car. What ever happened to his Pantera? More on that later. I vowed that one day, I would own a Pantera.
I have owned this car since August 2003. Purchased with a little over 74,000 miles, I have put a little over 10,000 miles on it in nearly 10 years. Like most Pantera owners, I am passionate about this car. But it needs to be driven more than it is now. With three children under 18, my “free-time” is virtually non-existent. It’s time to find a new home for Scooby. This car has been well sorted-out with 95% of the work done by me personally (except what was done by previous owner).
HISTORY
• Purchased August 2003 in Buffalo, NY (originally a California car where it spent most of its life)
• Car had following upgrades performed by previous owner:
o Rebuilt Ford 351 Cleveland (0.030” over Boss pistons, Boss crank, mild Crane cam, 10:1 compression, Holley 700 CFM double-pumper with mechanical secondaries, Edelbrock 4V performer intake, MSD Ignition/Distributor, chrome coolant tubes and pressure tank, dog-bone air cleaner, headers with stock ANSA exhaust. Car had been dyno’d showing over 320 HP at rear wheels.
o Stainless fire wall cover.
o Kenwood radio with cassette; in-door Alpine speakers.
o GTS paint scheme (black/red) with stock (7” and 8”) Campy magnesium wheels on older BF Goodrich tires. Stock bumpers with Euro (Carello) rear lenses ($$$).
o Interior had been partially refinished with carbon fiber trim, stock seats recovered in leather, no seatbelts, no A/C, and inoperable heater (fan blows and core does not leak, but hoses currently not connected-more on this later)
o Front suspension rebuilt with urethane control arm bushings and Zerk fittings
o Steering rack rebuilt/tight.
o New interior carpeting and cloth headliner.
o New dash upholstery.
o LaCerra 13” leather steering wheel with DeTomaso logo.
Every winter/spring I focused on completing one major upgrade with the idea of creating a reliable, comfortable driver that I could take anywhere. Here’s a list of what has been completed to date:
MECHANICAL
Cooling System
o Fluidyne aluminum radiator in lay-forward position
o Dual Spal 12” high efficiency “puller” fans with custom aluminum brackets
o Pantera-Electronics proportional fan controller module
o Silicone and Gates Green-stripe hoses
o Chrome pressure tank
o Polished aluminum overflow tank with discharge piped to rear of car
o New Sanden R-134a AC compressor (AC is NOT functional; requires hoses and condenser)
Suspension
o Powder-coated rear A-arms with new OEM bushings (better ride than urethane with no squeaks- rebuilt by Pantera ProFormance)
o Aldan double-adjustable aluminum shock absorbers on all FOUR corners (these shocks are a VAST improvement over stock); car was corner-weighted/height adjusted by professional race shop following rebuild of the rear suspension.
o 7/8” rear chrome sway bar with SphereBall (Heim-style) mounts
o New lower pivot bearings
Braking System
o Completely rebuilt OEM (Girling) calipers.
o Braided stainless steel lines.
o New Corvette master cylinder with Pantera adapter (retains stock booster)
o Removed OEM distribution block
o Re-piped with Wilwood adjustable front/rear bias control
o Wilwood Superlight rear caliper upgrade (retain orig. caliper for e-brake)
Engine/Drive Train
o High efficiency Edelbrock/K&N air filter modified for PCV system
o New stainless steel mufflers (low noise at cruising with nice HOWL when you STOMP on it)
o Re-piped PCV system
o Improved carburetor linkage with dual-spring return
o Rebuilt MSD Ignition module
o New MSD Tach interface with plug-in rev limiters
o New MSD distributor cap and wires
o Optima Red Top Battery with quick disconnect
o Polished DeTomaso aluminum valve covers
o New long-throw stainless clutch slave cylinder with braided stainless line
o New shift linkage billet/urethane trunion joint (improves shifting)
o Braided aluminum fuel lines with in-line billet fuel filter
ELECTRICAL
o Pantera-Electronics ATO Fuse Block (replaces stock fuse block with modern ATO fuses-the stock Pantera fuse block is CRAP)
o Pantera-Electronics Headlight Motor Controller (HMC)- this takes all of the high current OFF the ignition switch, using modern electronics and vastly improves the reliability of the notoriously bad Pantera electrical system.
o Pantera-Electronics Ignition Switch Bypass (replaces the connector form the main harness to ignition switch and removes high current through the switch)
o Pantera-Electronics Proportional Fan Speed Controller
o New window, headlight, wiper, and washer switches
o Replaced driver-side window lift with new Ford Taurus modified lift- this is a VAST improvement over the stock SLOW Duciliare motor- this is an afternoon project- I just have not gotten to the passenger side yet. Replaced all weather stripping and cat whiskers.
o New reverse transmission switch
o New turn signal switch
o New OEM horns
o Optima Red Top Battery with quick-disconnect
TIRES/WHEELS
o Stripped/repainted stock Campy magnesium wheels (15x7, 15x8) with new center caps
o Toyo Proxes tires (295 rear/225 front)
BODY/MISCELLANEOUS
o Amerisport front bumperettes (replaces heavy/ugly rubber steel-one piece bumper)
o New rear decklid struts
o Refinished stock rear bumper
INTERIOR
o Interior fully insulated with Eastwood Thermo-coustic barrier
o Amerisport Bulkhead-Reduction Modification (reduces center hump, re-locates alternator and AC compressor, allows passenger seat to move flat to firewall, even with driver’s seat)
o Pantera logo floor mats
o Corbeau Classic II Seats- period correct with great support
o New OEM-style 3-point seat belts
So there you have it, Ferrari-cool without the $5,000 clutch replacement cost! This car will ALWAYS turn heads. You’ll feel like a ROCK STAR when driving it. Young kids, bikers, guys in pick-ups, and ANYONE driving a classic Ford will give you the thumbs-up. It will always hold its value, so it is a solid investment (amazing they haven’t appreciated more relative to what’s happened to classic Detroit musclecars). Your wife (or girlfriend) may hate it (unless she’s a “car chick”) but YOU WILL BE COOL!
THE REST OF THE STORY...I recently attended my aunt's 85th birthday party in Long Island. I asked my cousin what ever happened to his Pantera. With a wide grin (I am SURE he wasn't grinning 40 years ago!), he said, "Well, remember that my driving record wasn't the best in the world, so in order to avoid the high cost of insurance, I had the car registered in my girlfriend's name. In those days , there were no titles. We had a bit of a "misunderstanding" and one day, while driving the Pantera, I was pulled over by the local police who received a report of a stolen car! Now they KNEW ME from my previous "meetings", but the car was impounded. My then-ex sold the car! NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THE SCORN OF A WOMAN!"
Pictures at my PhotoBucket
Pantera Pictures
Thanks for looking.
Swen
Offered at $ 45,000
Original Post