I have to know! Please help.

Your going to want a metal fab shop. Of course it depends on how extensive the rust is. You cut behing the rust and replace the metal. You can buy replacement panals...you can bend a brake some of your own. You ever see the guys that builr motorcycle tanks from scratch. If you have rust in the usual places, Pull motor and trans. $400. Cut away 6 areas the size of a ballcap. Replacve with bought panals $1000 Plus labor another $1000. Take to body shop and smooth and paint the compartment. $ 1200. Reassemble $600 Total cost $4200-5000. You want to replace the front valance. Get another $2800

I think it would depend on the extent of the rust. When my car was done we replaced inner and outer rockers, the front radiator support and had to repair the rear supports on one side. I got a first class, top of the line paint job by a guy who only does restorations and the cost would have been around $13,500 including the sheet metal parts, fortunately I had about 3 grand in Mustang parts that he needed for another restoration he was doing that we traded and because he is a friend he knocked off $5/hour off his shop rate so I walked out the door about 9 grand lighter.

The rest of the restoration can get pricey, Once you start rebuilding motors, the tranny can cost several thousand dollars to get rebuilt, interiors, brakes,suspension, wheels, tires, etc. etc. is also where the money builds up.

I saved several (maybe many) thousand dollars by doing the removal of all parts and reinstalling all parts before and after the paint work.

I can also say that if the car in question wasn't 1500 miles away, I'd be in line to buy it.

Gary #06984

Hmmm. Doesn't the car have to be stripped of all paint and acid dipped just to find all the rust to repair?? That means complete dissasembly of the car down to the last bolt and wire. Then you have to have a rotissery to be able to make all the welds. Sounds to me like there is a lot of inbetween here. Like maybe a minimum of $5000 and a maximum of $25,000 perhaps????????

Here's how I figure it. If you dissasemble the car and dip it in acid, you can kiss all that money good by. You will have $100,000 in a car worth half that. If you are say 50 years old. The car will outlast you anyway. Every thing in this world is temparary, rust to dust. If you want a rust free Pantera... good luck finding it. Be ready to step up to the plate too. " Honk if parts fall off"

That is great advice Bill. Fix what is wrong and you can't get in trouble.

To the unanswered portion of your question - Who would resurrect an otherwise terminally rusty Pantera - a good candidate would be Kirk Evans. He's done it numerous times.

A good rule of thumb is that it rarely turns out to be less expensive to buy a rusty Pantera and give it a quality ground-up restoration. Or at least I've heard NUMEROUS first-hand stories of restorations that have turned out to be a lot more complicated and expensive than planned, and I can think of few (no?) cases of a complete restoration where someone got their money back when it came time to sell.

Buying a rusty Pantera might make sense if you enjoy bodywork, and restore the car as a hobby. Paying someone else to do it is something else.

Kirk Evans?? Isn't he in Ohio somewhere?

If the rest of the car parts are in good shape, there are some bare chassis around for sale.

Kirk is in Ohio.

Detom,

If the car has rust the worst thing you can dio is acid dip it. Now a days soda blasting or blasting with walnut shells. The acid dipping removes everything and makes any areas paper thin. So its all about the aproach. My car has rust and it had more rust ... some one fixed most of it. I'm scared to acid dip, strip or glass bead. Any body work that was done has lasted and not coming up.

I mounted mine tonight on a rotisere I made. So my plans thru assesment is to clean the car and fix and rust. Cut and fab any small patchs repaint the underside, reinstall all the supension cleaned and painted. Rebuilt motor ... I see the Pantera as it would be only worth 100% stirp down if these were 100k plus cars.

Ron

Ron, I am kinda jealous. I wish I could do what you are doing but I can't. Did you take every nut and bolt off your car, or just what you needed to get to?? How hard is it?? Is this like the bigest job you ever done in your whole life or just another one of many????

Is this what needs repair?

Not on mine LPB. On mine it is down at the other end. Down where the outer rail attaches to that rectangular tube. I got under there and scraped off some undercoating and got all mad because I saw rust under the undercoating. Man was I pissed. I had rust on my car but couldn't tell it cause the black crap they gooped on all over the undercarrage, everywhere pucky black crap, and you scrap it with a putty knife and what do you see?? RUST!!! Damn it. So I need to grind that panel out and weld in new, but I can't do that until my wife gets a new car.

Great topic guys! I am searching for my first Pantera and that is one of the things I have yet to deside. How much rust can I handle? Compenent parts... not a problem. My company has full fabrication and powder coating capabilities. But when it comes to body work.. visible or hidden, I am not a body man.

By the way if any one needs Powder coating work or brackets fabricated look me up. Because I know when I get my car I will need all the help and favors I can get. So I better start making lots of Pantera friends early and often.

Greg

quote:

Compenent

Sorry I meant "components"

quote:

Originally posted by PanteraSeeker:
Great topic guys! I am searching for my first Pantera and that is one of the things I have yet to deside. How much rust can I handle? Compenent parts... not a problem. My company has full fabrication and powder coating capabilities. But when it comes to body work.. visible or hidden, I am not a body man.

By the way if any one needs Powder coating work or brackets fabricated look me up. Because I know when I get my car I will need all the help and favors I can get. So I better start making lots of Pantera friends early and often.

Greg

I am not really in a position to spend any money right now but I would love to get my velocity stacks powdercoated ford blue.

If you have a paint chip or RAL # I can check and see if we have the right color in stock. If we do could process them thru for next to nothing. the only thing I would ask is you handle any prep work (stripping blasting)

Let me know
Greg

quote:

Originally posted by PanteraSeeker:
If you have a paint chip or RAL # I can check and see if we have the right color in stock. If we do could process them thru for next to nothing. the only thing I would ask is you handle any prep work (stripping blasting)

Let me know
Greg

I can get a chip or RAL # pretty easily as ford blue is pretty common. I don't know if stripping or blasting would be necessary as the stacks are naked aluminum. Here's a picture


http://community.webshots.com/photo/108725354/1109223284051342436UKRlcB

Yes you are right ford blue is very common, so common that I have seen several different shades of it...lol. I have learned never assume anything. As long as there is no clear coat on the stacks the should paint up nicely.

Greg

Oh, on more thing. Gloss level? and would you want a clear coat over powder?

quote:

Oh, on more thing

Damn it, I cant type... that should be "one more thing".

Really, I'm not a moron I just act like one

definately going to hit you up on the powder coating. another question. anyone ever try to powder coat the under cairage or engine compartment or is it even worth it?

I have talked about it with a few people most notably Beverly Hall of Hall Pantera and it is generally viewed as not a good idea. Once the car is disassembled the body is quite weak. At least on my powder coating system the amount of danger involved (such as tweaking the whole car) out weighs the benefits. (Our line is 1,200ft conveyorized). If you had a batch system... maybe... but to really achieve a quality Powder coated finish pretreatment is paramount.

Our pretreatment washer is 6 stages and 120ft long.
stage 1) Alkaline bath
stage 2) R.O. water rinse
stage 3) Iron phosphate (Acidic)
stage 4) R.O. water rinse
stage 5) Non-Chrome sealer
stage 6) Final D.I. water rinse.

Don't get me wrong I haven't ruled it out just yet. But the conventional wisdom says no.

Greg

quote:

Originally posted by PanteraSeeker:
Oh, on more thing. Gloss level? and would you want a clear coat over powder?

High gloss and clear over the powder.

i see the stages you go through with power coating. Thanks for the info Greg.

No problem dean, I don't know alot about Panteras (yet) but I do know fabrication and Powder coating. If you need any help in those areas let me know.

Greg

other than those areas I am pretty much useless

Sorry Greg, but none of us are worthless. We all perform a needed function. Now cut that pity party out and get a Pantera so we can play.

That may be just the pep talk I needed.There are a couple out there I have my eyes on and may be pulling the trigger soon!

Greg

quote:

Originally posted by PanteraSeeker:
That may be just the pep talk I needed.There are a couple out there I have my eyes on and may be pulling the trigger soon!

Greg

My 2cents on this:
Buy the nicest Pantera you can afford, just like a house remodel, a restoration never cost what you originally think it will.
Unless you are in the paint and body bussiness, or can do the work yourself, plan on paying a pretty penny. This is nasty work, and if it's not done properly, you can plan on re-doing it in short order (rust is like a cancer, it must be completely removed, or it will reappear).

When did you see my house...

new roof
new siding
new carpet
new tile
new kitchen
new bathrooms
new paint..................
and the list goes on. If it wasn't raining I would be painting the new hardy plank siding right now.
Hell, I think I have more in the house after I bought it than when I bought it.

So I definatly hear what your saying.

Greg

well i tore my house down to stud basicly built a new one. yeah it cost more than a new track home but everything is custom and the way i want it. same goes with cars. just make sure you dont buy a basket case.

Greg, if you can do fabrication sounds like you can fix cars most guys will not attempt to touch. maybe you can buy a light rusted car for a song. better hurry up because pantera is definately going up in prices. i got mine a year ago and already people been offering me more than what i got it for. if i had extra garage space i would buy another one and sell it to some poor soul 10 years from now that didnt buy it.

let me give you an instant how prices gone up. i saw a pantera about 2 to 3 years ago on ebay that was pretty much stock and good condition. missing was either a left or right rear assembly. not sure which side. missing was wheel, suspension, upper and lower a arms, pretty much everything. dont recalled why it was lost. the starting bid was only 10000 and sold for 11500. today you cant even buy a rusted basket case for under 20.

Fabricating the parts isn't the problem... It is what do i do with all the left over pcs when i get it back together Hmmm where did this one go....

Greg