Reply to "newbie"

Hi Les,

Body/chassis rust & the ZF transmission are very costly to repair, these are the areas that the consensus is you want to focus on. Keep in mind that a new paint job isn't inexpensive either! Pantera parts are expensive, and sometimes hard to come by, so you want to make sure everything is there, and if not, price the replacements before you buy the car.

If the area around the rear control arm mounts is rusty, I would expect to find rust elsewhere too. Look for cracks where the A pillars attach to the body at the front fenders. Look for bubbling of the paint along the base of the windshield & the bottoms of the tail lights. Using your finger or a stiff blunt tool, check along both sides of the rocker panels (below the doors) for rust, try pushing in on the panel with force, and be prepared to say "oops" when you punch a hole in the car. Open the doors & perform the same check on the door jam panel below the latches "striker", as well as along the bottom of both doors. The rest of the checks are best performed with the car on jacks, although if you lay on your back next to the car, you can reach under the car with your arm & reach most of the spots you need to check (thats what I did). The frame around the rear control arm mounts, and the forward sections in each rear wheel house are also prone to rusting out. I know I'm going to forget something, so I'd like to direct you to Mike Dailey's web site, the pantera place, I understand he's added a section that describes how to search for rust.

You've come to the right place, we're glad to help you, don't hesitate to ask for any help or info you need. You may want to ask a member in your area to take a look at the car with you, we've got a lot of members who will be eager to help.

Welcome to the DTBB, George