Inherited '71 Pantera - Looking for advice on valuation and selling

You will probably get numerous  " what do you want for it".  Let people know if it runs, or just turns over. I would not try and crank it over after sitting for that amount of time. Pull the plugs, ATF in the cylinders let it sit a few days and get a bar on the crank and see it she will move and there are numerous other ways to do this. If it does you can say the motor does rotate. As far as valve get a marti report, get all your receipts so you can put them into a picture file so you can send them to prospective buyers and pictures and more pictures. Figure out if you want to send it thru and auction site like bring a trailer or other sites and be bothered with having to answer lots of questions or sell it privately and take the proceeds and do what you need to do. Either way Dad will be happy with your decision.  I have had 7 of these and probably on my last one, but who knows  Adam

Private message sent

I dig the old school turbine rims.  The original Campis should be single slots, and are actually quite valuable (it would make the car worth more if they were on it).

Needs a good clean-up (detailing).

Cars that run always sell for (a good bit) more than those that don’t.  Get it started!

Hopefully you still have the gills.  That’s a critical styling element of the car, most buyers would appreciate them.

GLWTS!

Rocky

The gills would not be easy to install with the modified body work.

Thanks for the responses so far. I left out an important detail... I live up in Oregon and the car is down in LA. So getting it running or even having complex visits with someone who wants to buy it will be difficult. Hoping to figure out some simple way to handle things.

You might want to check you serial numbers as I own 1744 and I am quite certain the pushbutton cars were not that high in serial number.   Certainly not 1736.  Ford imported the cars right from the beginning, so your car is not the 75th into the US.  Anyhow, you have a couple paths.  Sell it as is or spend a bunch of money to get it running and driving.   Both paths have their pros and cons.   I suggest you go to Bring a Trailer and look at Pantera sales over the past year.   Priced for a NICE driver car unmolested or highly modified seem to be in the 80's - 100's range right now.   good luck.  This site has a lot of members willing to help and provide guidance.  

The VIN range the pushbutton car is approximately 1286 to 1361.  When I had #1313 (white pushbutton, factory correct) it was the 27th Pantera that Ford imported.  Thus, 1313 minus 27 equals 1286.  And 1286 plus 75 (approximate number of Ford pushbuttons) equals 1361.

Exactly Steve.....

The car looks like a pushbutton to me.  The sheetmetal in the engine bay is unique to pushbutton cars and this one has it.  The engine bay windows are also unique to pushbutton cars (chrome over heavy brass) and I recognize those as well.  And it has the pushbutton door handles.  Maybe there is just a typo in the VIN at the beginning of this.

Those turbines look like they are iffbof a 1979 amc amx.  I actually need them for my dad. I have the correct wheels for your car and would be interested in buying it.  Prices are all over depending on how detailed and perfect it is.  Thickness of paint etc.  I sold one of the only black push buttons for a friend.  Black was not a normal pantera color.  Call me 972-998-3066

must be

Where in Oregon are you?  I go there routinely since my son and daughter both live there with their families.

@panterapatt posted:

You might want to check you serial numbers as I own 1744 and I am quite certain the pushbutton cars were not that high in serial number.   Certainly not 1736.  Ford imported the cars right from the beginning, so your car is not the 75th into the US.  Anyhow, you have a couple paths.  Sell it as is or spend a bunch of money to get it running and driving.   Both paths have their pros and cons.   I suggest you go to Bring a Trailer and look at Pantera sales over the past year.   Priced for a NICE driver car unmolested or highly modified seem to be in the 80's - 100's range right now.   good luck.  This site has a lot of members willing to help and provide guidance.  

Good catch! its 1376...

@theinvestor posted:

Those turbines look like they are iffbof a 1979 amc amx.  I actually need them for my dad. I have the correct wheels for your car and would be interested in buying it.  Prices are all over depending on how detailed and perfect it is.  Thickness of paint etc.  I sold one of the only black push buttons for a friend.  Black was not a normal pantera color.  Call me 972-998-3066

The paint is actually a metallic gray, its nice and thick but has a flake peeling off as you can see in one pic, held on by a bandaid... A neighbor spun around and elbowed it when her big dog took off after something while on a walk. The original color was white and blue I believe and I think it went through a maroon or copper phase also.

As I said above I've got a set of Campagnolos, not sure if I have 4 or 5 though.

@stevebuchanan posted:

The VIN range the pushbutton car is approximately 1286 to 1361.  When I had #1313 (white pushbutton, factory correct) it was the 27th Pantera that Ford imported.  Thus, 1313 minus 27 equals 1286.  And 1286 plus 75 (approximate number of Ford pushbuttons) equals 1361.

Yeah sorry its 1376. I'm pretty dang sure that its an original pushbutton but I wasn't alive when he first bought it so who knows!

1376 is certainly within the range and no worries.  There goes my upper estimate of 1361.  I am pretty sure it is an original pushbutton as well.

I read another thread that #1382 might be the last pushbutton.  If that's true then your car is certainly in range.

A guy wanted $120k for a grabber blue push button in similar condition, not sure if he ever sold as I bought what I thought was a driver for $91k (non push button) 2 years ago.

Here is a push button that was recently on BAT. It did not sell, and my opinion was way under bid, but the Pantera market is a funny place.

https://bringatrailer.com/list...detomaso-pantera-46/

That was Steve's car

Yes, that was my car.  I sold it last year to a buyer in Wisconsin.  I think it has sold since his failed attempt on BAT.  The owner in Wisconsin commissioned a dealer in New York to present the car on BAT and their photography and videos were incredibly well done but I think the dealer fumbled badly when describing the car.  Also, I think BAT is a very rushed way to try to sell a car like #1313.

Here is what is listed in the ProvaMO registry on your car:

The Model Year    : 1971

The Model             : Pantera PB

The Market             : USA

The Build Date     : 4/1/1971

The short VIN        : 1376

Rear Plate Panel Size   : Narrow

Deck lid Type   : Flat

Drive Side   : LHD

Rear Wing or Spoiler   : None

The Engine Type  : 351C

Reported Mileage    : Unknown

Body Service Num  :0

The Motor Number  : 0

Does Block # Match: False

Transaxle Number  : 0

The Original Color  : Bronze Metallic

The Current Color   : Gray

The Interior Color   : Black

The Condition          : Modified - Driven

Front Wheel Diameter   : 17

Rear Wheel Diameter   : 17

Front Wheel Width   : Unknown

Rear Wheel Width   : Unknown

Front Tires   : Unknown

Rear Tires   : Unknown

State of Ownership : CA

Country of Ownership: USA

What I meant on thickness of paint is a professional will take measurements all over car to see what was done.  Any body repairs etc.  Extra thick paint is not good.  It tends to chip off. 

@panterapatt posted:

Here is what is listed in the ProvaMO registry on your car:

The Model Year    : 1971

The Model             : Pantera PB

The Market             : USA

The Build Date     : 4/1/1971

The short VIN        : 1376

Rear Plate Panel Size   : Narrow

Deck lid Type   : Flat

Drive Side   : LHD

Rear Wing or Spoiler   : None

The Engine Type  : 351C

Reported Mileage    : Unknown

Body Service Num  :0

The Motor Number  : 0

Does Block # Match: False

Transaxle Number  : 0

The Original Color  : Bronze Metallic

The Current Color   : Gray

The Interior Color   : Black

The Condition          : Modified - Driven

Front Wheel Diameter   : 17

Rear Wheel Diameter   : 17

Front Wheel Width   : Unknown

Rear Wheel Width   : Unknown

Front Tires   : Unknown

Rear Tires   : Unknown

State of Ownership : CA

Country of Ownership: USA

Ahh super cool, thanks. I had the order of the paint jobs wrong.

The value of a pushbutton is in originality, fortunately it looks like you have all the original parts and then bronze metallic is a rare color. That said there's a good deal of work to get it to a quality that would demand top value, it truly depends whether you have the time and inclination to restore it, if that would be a check book restoration then you are unlikely to see much of a return on your additional investment IMO.

I'd say when done it could easily be a $150k car, but I'd estimate $65-80k as it sits, the lower number reflective of non running condition, the upper if you can demonstrate it starts and drives. Just my opinion in current market, others may disagree, but no one has yet provided their opinion on the question posed to value.

PS. I'd lose the nitrous bottle before circulating further photos!

I agree with joules.  The 1 of 1 black push button I sold was perfect and had the original single slot wheels plus a set of 10" gts wheel and did not bring 150k.  It brought 135k after 100k restoration on a nice driver car. 

21 cars have sold or bid up to a value and stalled on BaT since May of 23 for an average price of $98K.  The high sale was a "unicorn" original car with 10K miles on it with originality dripping off it.  Given the state of your car and the amount of modifications done to it, and assuming you do not have the means to conduct total restoration of such a car, you would be well over $100K paying somebody to do it.  Steve's highly restored pushbutton which he did himself stalled at $102K just last month.  You would have to really want to keep the car to spend that kind of money and I certainly would question doing it "as an investment" as the return would be many years off.  As it stands - I agree with Joules on pricing as is but $150K is a long wait and depends on finding the right buyer in a sea of talkers.

In 2022 my white pushbutton #1313 sold for $162,500 while on consignment at Hillbank Motorsport in Irvine.  The lion's share of Pantera buyers want a Pantera that looks mostly stock but has performance upgrades to the drivetrain and suspension.  Thus the number of potential buyers for a car like #1313 is very limited.  I think the checkbook cost to make #1376 (the car in this posting) similar to #1313 would be more like $100k to $150k.  I see projects like that at Wilkinson's over and over.

An original pushbutton can be a difficult car to sell.  It is nearly impossible for a private seller to get the top price.  Help from an experienced dealer or Pantera professional is pretty much mandatory.  Using BAT for an original pushbutton is likely a waste of time and money as we have seen.

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Honestly, I don’t know how Wilkinson does it. He’s very successful, but do people not realize they can spend over 100K there (sometimes way more than that)?

Do you think people go in with their eyes open, or are surprised at the final duration and price tag?

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Anyway…  I don’t know the price, but this car (1310) stayed here in Arizona…  Very original time capsule. The original owner was Jack Furrier, who ran a tire dealership here in Tucson.

I think there are lots of people with lots of money and don't care what it costs - just want it and buy it and don't really think what it will sell for 5 years later.  Normally, collector cars go up in value which is why they are called "collector" and hence the justification to restore one.

The black push button I sold was not mine.  I had a history with BAT and was able to help a friend sell it. 

#1310 and #1313 are sister cars.  Both are white pushbuttons.  I used the photos in Provamo along with photos from an ad for #1310 when assembling #1313.  #1310 is the most original and unrestored pushbutton I know of and was a helpful guide for putting #1313 back together especially since I got it in boxes.  Below is photo of #1313 after the restoration project was completed.

Really great looking cars, both!

@marlinjack What could go wrong?   hopefully it's really, really tight.