Sunday, July 17, 2011

What's Still Missing?

There are dozens of missing parts.  It was funny that I could list a lot of them when I bought the car, but I can list a whole bunch more.  Luckily, I was able to get most of the really important parts, including the glass and the suspension.  However, little parts like the dash vents are missing.  For example, when I bought the car, I thought that the following parts were missing:


  1. Front and rear bumpers
  2. Exhaust system
  3. Ignition switch
  4. Interior headliner trim
  5. One window motor
  6. Headlight gearbox and motor
  7. Transaxle
  8. Transaxle side mounts
  9. Front window stainless trim
  10. Speedometer
However, I quickly realized that there were many more missing pieces.  I have been able to buy the front and rear bumpers, the ignition switch with key, interior trim, headlight gearbox, and have since found a speedometer.  While these were obvious parts, there are dozens of little parts that weren't there.  Things like the little plastic door latch retainers, and larger things like two of the three dash vents.  Many of the parts can be purchased through the various Pantera parts vendors, but some are non-existant and must be purchased used.

Another surprise was that the previous owner used parts from the 1974 car, which included '74 and newer dash components.  I have the original dash from 1998, but don't want to use it.  The original "dual-pod" dash is a disaster in ergonomics; the steering wheel blocks much of the view of the speedometer and tachometer.  The newer "single-pod" dash is much improved.  Granted, the newer dash doesn't address the foot-room issue nor the seats.  While the foot-room issue will never be solved given the chassis, the seats are simple and easy to replace.

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