Reply to "Pantera #1447 - the search is over, the waiting begins"

Sorry to see the problems with your car Vereeken. Most Panteras have some minor rust hiding away someplace but yours is pretty sad indeed. But not the worst I’ve seen.

The difficulty in fixing monocoque cars like the Pantera is finding someone that can do the work and create a proper repair that cannot be deducted so the car stays original and unmolested. This means the person doing the repair has factory parts or exact reproduction parts or can make them. Someone that can hammer weld is also a must if you need to insert pieces into existing parts. I expect Cos must have access to that type support and parts but it is can be time consuming and very costly. On the other hand I’ve seen many Pantera repairs that absolutely scream cheap sloppy repair and you can see them for miles even with undercoat on top of them.

An example of the complexity of monocoque repair. When I was having my front valance replaced along with the front cross member I ordered a triangle part from one of the Pantera vendors. It arrived but it did not have the proper flange areas on it for the spot weld reproductions. Apparently the vendor expected it to be seam welded in!! My repair guy said it was trash and made his own part that was an exact copy of the original. Take a look at an example of how it should be done by one of the masters of monocoque repair http://www.panteraplace.com/page44.htm Note the reproduction of the spot welds that show on both sides.

Absolutely amazing work!

Mike