Well, after many months, today I got "the call".
As many of you are sick of hearing, my 74 Pantera, that I've owned since October, has not ever seen my house. Nor my town. Nor much of me for that matter.
The only time I drove it was the 12 miles from where I bought it to Roush's shop. They finished their "freshening" work in January with many parts from PI Motorsports (http://www.pim.net) and guidance from this board. That part of the story was reported earlier.
From there, the car went to Pat Mical's Performance Automotive Technology ("PAT" get it?). That's where the fun began, and I mean it.
Pat's job was loosely defined as "improve it without sacrificing originality". Yeah, vague as all get out, but we communicated well enough to get going.
This was NOT a restoration, so once I get photos, don't expect "fresh out of the oven" status. This was/is a super original one owner car, locked in a garage for 23 years. The story of the car's history will be told elsewhere, but from this point, just know that Pat hit the mark.
Today, he called, "It's done. I believe you'll be well-pleased."
The SHORT list includes a set of his headers, which in the words of the "special projects" tech at ROUSH, were "as fine a work as you're likely to ever see". High praise. Those were hooked up to a set of NOS Ansa pipes, sufficiently enlarged to accomodate.
Then the suspension was pulled completely, some nuts had to be chiseled off. The big stuff was powdercoated in "graphite", every bushing and bit of hardware replaced, new Koni orange for the shocks. It's all adjustable, but virtually 'invisible' unless you know where to look. He spent 4 hours aligning the car.
"This car will almost steer itself" said Pat in a thick New England accent. (With my deep southern, we almost needed an interpreter.)
The list goes on - New alternator with internal fan, stealth electronic ignition, lower amp fans, rotary compressor, 'quiet ride' insulation, 10" and 8" Campys, and well, you're tired of hearing about it.
Pat told me, "This is one of two of the most original cars I've ever seen in my life. Now it has been improved with the benefit of 35 years of technology without straying from the original path." Pat's turned into a friend and seriously trusted advisor on this.
Many of you told me how terrific his work was and over several months of communication, it is clear that he prefers to build upon that reputation. ( www.patsauto.com )
I can't wait to get the car home. If brother George will let me, we'll do a story about it. My story right now is that this Board has been and continues to be immensely helpful.
Look for an update in 10 days or so. I may not sleep 'til then!
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