All,
With the November PCNC newsletter now out and ‘on the stands’, attentive readers will come across an article about my recent attendance at this year’s Monterey weekend.
And long term deTomaso Family members may still remember ‘yearling’ Larry’s “famous off-road adventure“ that occurred in late 2003.
Well, I made it almost 12 years without an accident…….. until August 12, 2015 just outside Carmel Village.
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Daylight, dry, two lane curvy mountain road. Tighter than expected right-hand turn. Too high entry speed and subsequent understeer saw 2511 over the double yellow at the same time an oncoming 1999 Subaru Legacy was entering the space I was entering.
Thankfully, the driver and passenger in the Subaru suffered no injuries. I had 2511 towed to the parking lot at the PCNC event lodge where it sat until it’s flatbed trip home on Sunday. Each evening I would entertain the Monterey folks with my heavily bruised but fully functional left arm, that took on a Mr. Poppin Fresh balloon-like swelling after each day’s events. Turned out, when I finally got X-rays two weeks later, I had a “non-displaced fracture of the radial styloid” which is that bump on the inside of your wrist. Quien es mas macho?
I’ve spent hours under, above and around the car, still in my garage, inspecting every nook and cranny. As best as I can tell, a low Pantera involved in a 45-degree head-on into the higher Subaru equals no ‘frame’ or suspension damage to 2511 of any note. Subaru LH fender impacted front-center on 2511. A lot of impact force seems to have been absorbed by grill, radiator, headlight bar etc. with the rest being carried into the body through the fenders.
The front sheet metal, windshield forward, IMHO “just” needs to have a zillion spot welds drilled out and new sheet metal put back on. The accident’s rearwards force impacted the A-pillars, raised the front edge of the roof a bit and left some other rear body distortions. There is no doubt 2511 will be spending time on a frame alignment machine to pull some sheet metal back into proper position, but after having viewed extensive photos, my chosen shop has assured me the damage can be repaired.
After talking with many members of the deTomaso Family for their wisdom and advice, I’ve decided to have the repairs done at Denny Finn’s Auto Restoration, located in Oregon between Salem and Portland. Denny’s shop is well-equipped, and includes a two-post frame machine, full metal fabrication facilities and full body and paint capabilities, allowing for a totally in-house repair of 2511. Denny not only owns a Pantera and is a POCA member, he currently has three other Panteras in his shop, one being “Pandora” owned by Chris Kimball.
State Farm treated me 100% correctly after my 2003 accident, and so far their actions for this accident have been supportive.They have already agreed to arrange and pay for the 700 mile transport to Denny’s shop. Denny has a lot of prior experience with State Farm and believes the repair estimate process will go smoothly. The devil is always in the details, but I will continue to be optimistic until I have reason to feel otherwise.
While I obviously come up short in being a truly responsible “caretaker” of 2511, I nonetheless still understand the responsibilities that come with that temporary position. It is my intention that as long as 2511 CAN be repaired it WILL be repaired, even if that requires substantial funds of my own to augment what State Farm eventually pays out.
For photos, details and more on my latest adventure, you can view this website I created:
www.MontereyPanteraAccident.com
Larry - here’s one photo to whet your ‘appetite’ ---- note the lack of damage to the front spoiler
