DeTomasso Pantera

Replicar

Last updated 11/04/02 08:42 PM

This is not your "typical kit car". This "kit" was designed and built by Lynn Long and Tony Newman of San Marcos California in the early 1980's. Unlike most kit cars, this one was designed to be as close to the original as possible. One of their aims was to build a "kit" that a person with a damaged Pantera could buy and transfer all of their parts over to and drive away with a "rejuvenated" car, without having to do extensive and expensive body & frame restoration work.

This car was built from scratch as a nearly identical copy of an original Pantera.

In later stages of construction, 1982, in Victoria B.C., with our Lear 24A, C-GEEN, and Lynn Long, the designer of the "kit", from San Marcos California.

The following is a page from their brochure in the mid 1980's.

The Chevy Citation V-6 option was to mount a transverse V-6 from a Citation in the car with an automatic or 4 speed transmission, as a less costly alternative to the ZF Transaxle and all the supporting gear.

This car, however, was built as an original.

At this stage, the car is drivable, but does not have any glass or doors installed. Each door took about 1 month to construct due to the complexity of the power window mechanism, window frames, tracks, slides, guides, hinges, latches, door handles, and locks that had to be built and/or fitted and installed. The doors were mounted to a fixture on an engine stand which allowed the doors to be rotated from vertical to any angle desired, without scratching the paint while fitting and installing and testing the interior components.

The body was painted while on a temporary stand, then fitted to the "pre tested" frame and running gear. We drove the car around on the Victoria International Airport ramp area, and set up the engine, clutch, steering, brakes, cooling, and other basic systems, like a "giant go-cart" before putting the body in place.

This shows part of the interior before installing the doors. Note the door hinges and wiring in place. At this point, all the instruments, radio, electrical system, air conditioning, cruise control, seats, carpet, and upholstery are installed and functional. The steering wheel is from a 1980 Camero, that has been shortened to fit in the Pantera, and allow the tilt system, ignition switch, dimmer switch, turning signals, 4 way flasher, windshield wiper/washer switch, and cruise control switches all mounted on the steering column to function the same way as in any G.M. car. The headliner upholstery has not yet been installed, and reveals the roof steel tubular structure bonded into the fiberglass.

This picture shows the body steel in the roof section being tack welded in place in the body while still in the mould. After tack welding, the steel was lifted away from the fiberglass, finish welded, cooled, placed back into the body, and fiber glassed in place.

Tony Newman (in red), and workers remove one of the many mould sections from the mould frame to reveal the body underneath. The mould was able to be rotated into various positions so that the "hand lay-up" could always be done with the material in a horizontal plane.

This is the finished frame just returned from sand blasting, ready for primer & paint. The rear of the frame is in the foreground. This frame is strong enough on it's own to operate the car, as we did, as mentioned before like a "Giant Go Cart."

The rear quarter window is lexan, and the aluminum extrusion on the original car is replaced with this black fiberglass teardrop "cap". I intend to one day modify these caps on my car to work as scoops for cold air supply to the carburetor. Note the rear window mounted in a steel frame. The bulkhead (not in picture), is made of a one piece fiberglass part and is removable with 8 bolts to expose the engine compartment for the full width of the car. The window frame and window is also removable with 4 bolts, to open this access to full height.

The engine & transaxle after "Go-Cart Testing" and body installation. The "box" on the left was a mock-up fuel tank that was scrapped for the more practical welded aluminum fabricated fuel tanks that also formed the front part of the rear wheel wells. These tanks carry 180 liters of fuel between them.

With the trunk liner in place. Note the aircraft fuel caps and the tops of the aluminum fuel tanks with the fuel level senders. There is a selector valve in the rear of the center console that selects tanks and senders simultaneously.

Head on! A classic look that still turns heads today almost 30 years after the original design.

In 2001, I added Roller Rockers and a complete MSD Ignition system to the engine. Both very good mods, especially the Ignition System.

As of today, March 11, 2002, the engine is ready to be re-installed in the car. I had to remove it and change a the clutch system. The old one, a Hayes Twin Disc system failed on me last year in August when the diaphragm broke. I have now replaced it with a Centerforce Dual Friction DF700000 Clutch and a new Billet Flywheel.

Almost ready to install.

The engine bay is waiting. Note that the bulkhead is completely removable on this car making very good access to the engine.

That access is evident in this picture. Access is from door to door and is restricted only by the 2 aluminum fuel tanks. The fuel tank selector is in the rear of the center console and selects both tanks and gauge senders at the same time.

I will be posting pictures of the finished car as it is today as soon as I have some good ones.

This is page is also under construction. More to come soon.