A friend was recently sideswiped and sent into a guard rail, and his '73 was badly damaged in front. Instead of totaling yet another Pantera, he and his Insurance co are trying to save it. But everything forward of the pedals is pretty bad. What do you have? Contact Ray Seifert at <rayself@aol,com>
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Correct email
rayseif@aol.com
Larry
Looks like the rearward movement of the driver’s A-pillar has tweaked the roof. Anything can be fixed but I think a closer inspection of this car is going to find a lot of the damage is not shown in this photo.
Larry
Thank goodness the driver wasn’t injured!
Even if you spend more to repair it, than what it would cost to buy an equivalent Pantera, what’s it worth after the repair? Who’s going to fix it and how many years will it take?
The only sensible scenario is to total it and buy another one. Maybe some $ could be found by buying the wreck from the insurance company and parting it out.
@davidnunn posted:Thank goodness the driver wasn’t injured!
Even if you spend more to repair it, than what it would cost to buy an equivalent Pantera, what’s it worth after the repair? Who’s going to fix it and how many years will it take?The only sensible scenario is to total it and buy another one. Maybe some $ could be found by buying the wreck from the insurance company and parting it out.
I have to agree with that.
Guys, he's had that same car for decades and is still in love so not strictly rational. And his fully subsidized (via insurance) effort will save another car from the scrapyard or being parted out.
Bosswrench, I completely understand but who can he trust to do the job correctly? I recall, many years ago (1980's), a photo article in a POCA Quarterly, about a "wreck" that Dennis Quella repaired. He took the car completely apart and rebuilt it the same way it was built when it was new. When I say completely apart, I really mean it. All the sheet metal was removed, so the car began it's new life as a bare, perfect, chassis. The car was beautiful when it was finished.
He says his trusted local mechanic has restored several Euro cars and is willing to do it even after seeing the wreck. Probably not on any sort of tight schedule for completion. I suggest some sort of legal contract so both know what the other expects. And his location is rural PA- not a hotbed of sporty-car ownership. We'll see what actually happens.
True craftsmen are still around in the shadows, most working for fairly low wages because they enjoy playing with cars. I've owned and driven two "splitters' in my lifetime, both done by unknown local metal-wizards better than I at bodywork. Splitter is the name for a pieced together car either the front or back half. Both my cars drove well for decades, even being low-level raced a bit.
Sadly, the damage to this car appears even worse than what I did to 2511 in 2015.
I and my body shop created a reasonable estimate that was below the 75% repair vs agreed value that determines whether the repairs are made, or the car is declared a total loss, triggering a full policy payout, and the opportunity for a salvage buyback
But I knew at the onset I would be spending far more than the insurance payment, and I was determined to not see 2511 become a parts car
it sounds like this owner may have a similar point of view regarding his car. If he has the love, the funds, and most importantly the patience to wait for a no doubt extensive repair process, I personally urge him to go for it.
Larry
Larry,
Yours was just a scratch ! See; ... buffed right out!
@bosswrench posted:Splitter is the name for a pieced together car either the front or back half.
Never heard that term, we always called them 'cut and shut' cars
Larry -
Not sure if you are in direct contact with the owner, but I am sure you can be an excellent resource WRT sourcing parts…. Does Jerry Mooberry still have a supply of major assemblies that could be of value?
Lots of little stuff is available on line, but those are probably not really the parts he needs!
Chuck
Chuck,
yep, already in touch with Ray. Jerry Mooberry had some of the pieces he is going to need for this car but that was eight years ago.
I have some of the pieces he’s gonna need, most notably, the remnants of the front clip I purchased
repairing Ray’s car is going to come down to, like I said, the issue of patience and funds.
Larry
wrinkles like that in the roof mean a long, long road to doors that close...Unfortunately, its a truth that the parts that can be salvaged will mean a lot of time and not a lot of dollars...but geez, the best opportunity for a second life is probably being reincarnated as a track car...Lee
Oh, that was a beautiful car....but time to take a few deep breaths and grieve...
I don't care how good the body guy is, this is just going to need a jig along the lines of the factory jig to get it straight.
I would not be shocked if the entire monococ is tweaked to the side and either up or down. You may be able to pull it out but the question is whether or not it will stay there. One bump in the road and it will pop back.
Even so, we are talking laser lines to precise center points. Even if you have the machine for it, it will tie the machine up for months. I'm thinking that it has to be on the machine just to reset the post and the fenders while you weld them.
I think that now, this car is just a parts car donor. I'm sad too.
Larry's car was child's play by comparison. It was hit straight on, not on the angle this one was.
This car can absolutely be saved. I have a customer with a GT5-S that was hit so hard in the right rear 1/4 that it cracked the trans case in half and buckled the left 1/4 panel . It looks absolutely perfect today ( thanks to Kirk Evans)
I have a complete front clip that has minor damage on the tips of the front fenders available. Please have Ray give me a ring. 410-596-3170.
If he's in PA, that's even better.
Ron
@rmccall posted:This car can absolutely be saved. I have a customer with a GT5-S that was hit so hard in the right rear 1/4 that it cracked the trans case in half and buckled the left 1/4 panel . It looks absolutely perfect today ( thanks to Kirk Evans)
I have a complete front clip that has minor damage on the tips of the front fenders available. Please have Ray give me a ring. 410-596-3170.
If he's in PA, that's even better.
Ron
If you are game, go for it. Best of luck to all.
I am kind of the same situation, fix it or sell it. Fortunately it was hit straight on and the only visible frame damage was in front of the suspension pick up points . Unfortunately someone just cut the fenders annd removed tgem. After seeing Larry’s car and seeing what can be repaired I have some thinking to do.
