Well 393, I think I will offer an opinion ...
Deeb has one of the best GT-5s you will see. I agree that flared cars look "bitch'in". He has also owned an earlier car. His advice is sound.
I own an orange '74. I have had it, and driven it very regularly for around 14 of the last 16 years. After a changing the all the A/C hoses and doing a number of other things, it is back on as my second car. I think, (although I do not really know because I changed the speedo from miles to km years ago) I have put about 50K km on it. I shopped for years before buying it and believe I paid a little more for it. I had very strict buying criteria and there were many cars I walked away from. My car was almost stock with original paint when I bought it. It had 100% original engine, P7s, a clutch job, and the driver's window gear replaced with a brass one.
The first thing I did before shopping for a car was to buy the DeT Pantera Technical manuals. Parts manual, Shop Manual and the Technical Service Bulletins. I got to know how the car was built and what to look for. I spoke to Parts Vendors to give me advice on what to look for or watch out for. (In those days there was no internet) Now, this can be done by searching the web.
The criteria that I believe is most important is exactly what David said: Get a solid chasis - any year. DeT cars can be modified to suite your heart's content and, unlike other exotics, are accepted and appreciated for those modifications.
Which leads me to another criteria that has been touched on in this post: Try to get the full history of the car. That is a great starting point. In addition, if you know the serial number, you can call some of the DeTomaso parts vendors in the U.S. and see if they will be able to tell you the parts they sold to the car. They did in my time and it worked great for me.
Although harder and harder to find, try to find a car with original paint that has a solid chasis. Pay particular attention to the edges of lapped joints to identify incipient rust. Recall, you are dealing with uni-body construction.
And last but not least (I know this may be controversial): It takes all of 2 minutes to disconnect the speedometer/odometer. In fact, if you want to go further, there are instructions in a technical bulletin on how, very simply to adjust things. When I was looking for a car, most owners didn't know how fast they were driving anyway. The mileage on the "clock" was more important if they were ever considering selling the car. Finally, a new speedo with minimal mileage can be bought for a few bucks. Message: I NEVER paid attention to the odometer reading when I was looking at cars. In fact, I still don't. When someone tells me the mileage on their car, I just say: "Oh, thats nice"
So, my advice is just to underscore deeb's: Solid body/chasis, solid body/chasis, solid body/chasis ... Then you will end up with a car you are most happy with.
To quote one of my favourite lines on the back of a GT-5 "Eats Porsches for Breakfeast and Ferraris for Lunch". A Cobra kit still doesn't quite do it fo me either. A GT-40 kit on the other hand, I would have to think about ...Hmmm, But where would I put my briefcase?
Yours, "andriyko"
quote:Originally posted by Mark Charlton:
Importing a car 15+ years old is pretty easy (just did it). Other than all the taxes, it's a simple form. Just make sure you have a clear title and an export clearance stamp from US Customs (takes 3 days to clear titles for export). Also, isn't there a 6.1% duty applied to cars not made in North America, regardless of age?
When I imported my not-made-in-North-America Pantera into Canada last December, no duty was payable because the car was more than 25 years old.
That was a pleasant surprise, especially because GST and PST are payable on the 6.1% duty.
Hey Marcus.
I didn't know that cars over 25 were exempt from the Duty. Now I have more virtual money to spend on my virtual Mangusta!
Thanks!
I didn't know that cars over 25 were exempt from the Duty. Now I have more virtual money to spend on my virtual Mangusta!
Thanks!
Can someone tell me is GST payable on the value of the car or just on the duty?
How does Canadian customs put acurrent value on the car for importation purposes?
How does Canadian customs put acurrent value on the car for importation purposes?
GST is payable on the price of the car. This is based on your invoice - there would not be any accurate reference for the value of this car. So a low invoice is all you need. Just like we do with all the parts we import...
If you are importing the car into the US, obviously no GST is applicable as we have no export taxes on private used cars. I was told recently that the Ontario rules for valuation of cars older than 25 was changed from invoice (amount paid for the car) to appraised value (LOTS higher). Since my last car squeaked in before the change, I'm not sure.
Well, I will defer to Mark, who lives in the law abiding capitol of Canada, Ottawa, where rules and requirements mean something. Just remove the Pantera logo and call it a an Innocenti. That should look after the "appraised" value. And what customs guy will know the difference? Better yet, come to the cowboy country of Quebec, where Canadian laws don't count and men are still men - well hommes anyhow.
The Ontario rules (I was told) only apply to the calculation of provincial sales tax (8%) due when the car is registered.
Still, there are enough eBay scams offering Panteras for under $10K, it should be easy to show how truly worthless these cars are!
And DEEB is right, Quebec is cowboy country—where hommes are hommes and laws don't matter—unless you're speeding and have out-of-province plates and can't speak French and it's late on a weekend night when only the jails are open late...
Still, there are enough eBay scams offering Panteras for under $10K, it should be easy to show how truly worthless these cars are!
And DEEB is right, Quebec is cowboy country—where hommes are hommes and laws don't matter—unless you're speeding and have out-of-province plates and can't speak French and it's late on a weekend night when only the jails are open late...