Fuel Issue: Solved!
Mike had a great suggestion for me: put an in-line fuel filter in between the fuel tank and fuel pump. I put one in and guess what...the fuel supply has been supplied. Some gunk fell out when I removed the fuel line and I can already see gunk going into the fuel filter. Mike suggested that I replace the fuel filter in 500 miles and keep a spare in the car. As a result, I utilize worm drive clamps with thumb/wing nut style tighteners. Here it is in-line:




Next project is replacing all the brake calipers and bleeding the brake system...so I can get this cat on the road!

Fuel Issue: Tank to Pump

Mike Dailey came to my aid again with some great tips about chasing down the fuel problem. One area he said was inside the tank where there is a mesh sock that surrounds the pick-up. He said that this sock can get nasty and clog the pick up. You can test this by seeing if any fuel comes out of the line that leads from the tank to the fuel pump.

So first, I put the car high in the air:

I then proceeded to remove the fuel supply line hose from the pump:

Luckily, I planned ahead and wore face hugging googles... Why you asked? As soon as the line was off, I got a face full of gasoline! But hey....at least I know I don't have an issue inside the tank which would have sucked as you have to remove the motor to get the tank out :[

So now the problem is either the fuel pump, the fuel filter or one of Mike's other suggestions, a filter inside the carb. More to come

Pantera Project Launch! On with the fun!
I have finished my cobra kit car project finally and I am ready to sink my teeth into the Pantera (hopefully it won't bite back). The first project I was going to tackle was the frozen brake calipers. I wanted the car on the lift so that I could work comfortably and use the new hyrdaulic lift jack that I bought (works awesome BTW). I ran into a little problem. The car wouldn't start. The engine was turning over and I was getting spark so that must mean I have a fuel delivery problem. Oh joy! Just to make sure, I poured a little gas in the carb to make sure and she started right up. So now I just have to chase down the issue. I figured I would start from the top down. First thing I figured is that I had a stuck needle. So I used some carb cleaner, got out my soft mallet and banged on top of the carb float bowls. Very scientific! I then poured some gas into my "Hawt Sawce" bottle (just a BBQ/Catsup squirter) so that I could easily pour gas down the vent tube of the carb to fill the bowls.

Once full, I could hear that gas was being squirted when I acctuated the accelerator linkage on the side of the carb. As a result, I figured that their was an issue farther down the line.

I took pictures of the fuel filter (think there is only one) and it looks dry!

I am going to change the fuel filter but if that is OK, then I either have a bad fuel pump (which is weird as it looks new) OR I have a plugged line somewhere....which could be a fun (read not so fun) project...but let's not get ahead of ourselves!

At this point I figured I could fill up the float bowls and drive the car up onto the lift so that I could lcomplete the diagnosis....filling the fuel bowls up when/if I ran out of gas. Worked like a charm. Now the snake (aka the cobra) has traded places with the Panther (aka pantera) on the lift:

I am not sure if I will tackly my list serially or jump on other projects as I get stumped. I'll probably jump around while the grey matter works on particular problems or I wait for parts. Either way, I'll be making updates here. If you read my cobra blog, I'll most likely follow a similar M.O.

Reviewing the records: What work was done over the years?

After Mike's great inspection of the car, I went through the records that where handed down to me to see what has been done to this car. I wanted to memorialize a summary here:

February 1, 1992:
-Rewire electric choke
-Reroute brake vacuum line
-replace PCV hose
-Plugged PCV opening to air cleaner
-Recharge A/C
-Replace clutch master cylinder assembly
-Replace mallory ignition system with Ford Duraspark (1985 H.O. Mustang)
---1 DY-184-C Ignition Module
---1 DG-314 Coil
---1 D7zz12060-A Wiring Assembly
------1 m-12127-A301 Distributor
---1 M-12106-A302 Distributor Cap Kit
-Install remote timing mark on flywheel
-Repair right rear side market wiring and bulb connector
-Set of polyurethane bushing kit
-4 koni shock absorbers
-1 flo kooler water pump

March 30th, 1993:
Rebuild two rear upright assemblies
-four rear wheel bearings
-Four lower support shaft bushings
-Two lower support shaft kits (greasable)

Rebuild suspension system
-Remove/replace original bushings-install grease zerks
---grea zerks
---replace two u-joints in half shafts
---clean and paint half shafts and a-arms
---replace four shock absorbers
-wheel alignment front and rear

Rebuild and modified cooling system
-replaced radiator (used)
-replaced 2 fan motors with 7 blade fans (used)
-replace cooking system hoses and clamps
-install 12v relay for fan motors
-plugged internal bypass in engine block and installed modified 180 degree thermostat
-installed two coolant drain petcocks in block

Replaced cam shaft timing chain, gears and water pump
-Timing chain with gears (erson dual roller)
-Water pump (flo kooler)

Rebuild holley carburetor
-Power valve
-leaned primary from jet #72 to #68
-Modified intake for full throttle clearance

Repair of two market lights sockets and connections (left front and left rear)

Repair right rear brake caliper (rebuild)

Replace defective hazard switch

Replace Starter

Install Air Dam

April 1st, 1994:
Install clutch master cylinder
Install brake master cylinder
Install rear deck lid opening trim
Install holley 650 CFM Carburetor Model 4776

October 25th, 1994:
Carburetor-Holley Mod. 4776

Date Unknown:
Driver Door Window: Replaced broken window operating gear from fiber to brass gear.

The Pantera Doctor's Review: Mike Dailey

If you want to know everything about a pantera, go visit Mike Dailey's site Pantera Place. If you want an expert to look at your car, it is nice to find out that Mike lives in the same city as you! Mike is such a great guy. Doesn't know me from squat and offers to come over and give the car a good look over. I was nervous as to what he might find since this car was from Omaha (rust belt) and sitting for a good number of years. All in all his prognosis was that the car is in fine shape with just a few projects to combat the impacts of time. Here is his list:
Engine Compartment:
- Tighten engine compartment brace on passenger side
- Get a new plastic inspection cover for bell housing
- Use some Lubraplate inside of the shift linkage boot
- On the ZF transmission, put a little RTV sealant on each bolt being careful to torque correctly (bolts are nitorious for leaking oil through the threads).
- General cleaning...filthy in there
- remove the leaves by the back window
- Check for header leak or crack on left bank of motor
- have rear exhaust jet hot coated since they are in good shape!

Suspension:
- Remove US spec spacer on coilovers to lower the car to Euro spec height...no more 4X4 stance!
- Trim suspension mount points with cut off wheel where rubbing against shock body in rear

Hoses:
-Replace vacuum line for brakes

Brakes:
As I stated before, the brakes are frozen on 3 of 4 wheels.
- Remove and dismantle brake caliper for inspection for candidacy for a rebuild
- If good, rebuild caliper with rebuild kit

Body:
- Most dents can be removed by good dent company
- Drain Rails-take screw driver and scrape out BOTH sides of holes
- Window-clips on driver side cat whisker are loose
- Rubber seal for driver side door.

Steering
- Some play in steering rack; check out and tighten tie rod ends
- Leaking boots, clean it up and put 90W lube

Preferred Part Suppliers:
1. Pantera Performance in Colorado
2. Pantera East
3. PIM

Here is a picture of Mike after the inspection-

The Arrival in Georgia

It took some time to get the car back from Omaha due to some logistical errors in shipping. But she did get here and here she is:



Now my son is already asking about driving the car.....

For next time...I live in the same town as Mike Dailey who is the world renowned Pantera authority and author of the website panteraplace.com. Mike has graciously offered to spend an afternoon with me and the pantera on my lift and give me his assessment with a trained eye. I will document that as well.

The Search

While I finish up my Cobra kit car project that I cover on my other blog, I started to think about another project. One project that I kept lusting after was to dive into a Pantera project. I wasn't particular about the year and I was open to a myriad of project scopes (complete rebuilds to simple restoration). The scope I figured would be dictated by my budget and the market. Well, I started about 3 months ago, researching the car, signing up for forums and reading other's blogs about their experiences. I noticed that most panteras were modified in some way or the other with a lot of them being heavily modified. I didn't mind but I found that stock panteras are hard to find. Anyway, during this time, I started a new gig with a company called Sojern out in Omaha, NE. While getting to know the team out at dinner, we started talking cars. These guys are car guys! Our COO "Fish" is especially connected in the car world in NE and we spent a lot of time talking shop. We got around to dream cars and projects and I mentioned that I was looking for a pantera. He pauses for a moment and says "The guy I rent my garage from is into panteras. Let me ask if he knows of any." Well...this is interesting. I head back home and I get an email from Fish saying that in the garage/shop next to him is a pantera...and it is for sale...and from the original owner! Seems that the owner lives in Europe and in Omaha with lots of trips to Brazil. In fact, this gentleman had a pantera in europe and one here in the US. The gentleman that he stored the car with did all the maintenance and made sure it was ready to go when he was in town. I guess this explains why the car has just over 11K original miles. Yup. 11K. So here is what I saw when I went into the shop where the pantera was lurking:

The original owner, Dewey Anderson arrived and I was ready to inspect the car. My expectations were low being that this car lived in the rust belt and although had low miles, was worried about impacts of low milage would have as well. Dewey gave me a history of the car. He originally had a Dino, but thought it was "gutless" and discovered the Pantera while living in Europe. He had been to the DeTomaso factory a few times and even knew Mrs. DeTomaso. He bought one of the first production cars and added this car to his collection back in 1975. He liked to drive these cars at speed. He grilled me on my intentions for the car and then I was able to start the inspection. Here are some pics without the car cover:




In my inspection, I was very surprised to find little if any rust. The interior only had one tiny rip on the driver's seat. The steering wheel rubber I would come to find was deteriorating with age and that the fuel gauge might have a bad ground. The sheetmetal was in good shape given that this is in original paint. There are a lot of dents that should come out relatively easy with today's paintless dent removal. The brakes were frozen and the seals on the engine are weepy (due to sitting idol I am sure). I went through a 5 page check list that I won't go thru here but she came out pretty good for how old, low milage and original paint. We reached a deal and the car was sold. Here is a picture of Dewey:

And here is EJ who is a Pantera lover and caretaker of this Pantera

The modifications that were made to this car were:
- New carb
- New intake
- New cam
- Wider rear wheels and front wheels
- New air cleaner

Pretty much that is it. Dewey gave me the original carb, a host of manuals, the original radio block out plate, some italian manual, dodads, etc. He also gave me valuable advice as well. I want to thank Fish, EJ and Dewey for helping add to my car addiction.