[DeTomaso] Pandora sighting

[Charles Engles]

Dear Chris,


                Holy Moly............I don't know what to say.  This story has more wrong turns and bad twists than a congressman at a lobbyists convention.   


                               Warmest regards,  Chuck Engles

PS: is it possible to cut your losses and flat bed the car out of there to a competent mechanic when the blockage is gone??



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Christopher Kimball" <chrisvkimball at msn.com>
To: "Pantera List Serve" <detomaso at realbig.com>
Sent: Saturday, June 27, 2009 7:36 PM
Subject: [DeTomaso] Pandora sighting


> 
> For those of you following the close-to-eight-week saga of my disappearing Pantera, here's the latest:
> 
> Last Friday I called the police department and they gave me the mechanic's address (Randy is his name).  Today I plugged it into the GPS and set out on a 35-minute drive to his house.
> 
> As I drove up, who should I see just arriving in a black pickup, but the man himself.  I got out of my car as he got out of his truck, and I introduced myself.
> 
> Strangely, he seemed to be expecting me, since he said, "I figured it was you."  I was cordial, as was he, and we engaged in a long conversation about cars, engines and such.  Finally, I asked him where my car was.  He gave the the address (only a few blocks away) and apologized for taking so long.  Apparently, he has a friend's truck in the shop blocking access to the Pantera, and as soon as he's done with the truck, he'll finish my Pantera.  
> 
> He claims it should be done by Wednesday.  Sure it will.
> 
> When trying to get the rear deck off the car, they messed up the lock (which never did lock, until they forced it into the lock position when trying to open it, thereby jamming it).  The engine builder had told me about that soon after I had dropped my car off at his shop, and he assured me they would have a locksmith repair the lock so it would work properly from now on.  Randy mentioned he still had the lock rolling around on the floor of his pickup because he hadn't had a chance to get it to the locksmith yet. 
> 
> Hmm, almost two months and he hasn't had a chance to get to the locksmith.  Right.
> 
> After talking with him, I am really, really nervous about in what state the car will be in when (and if) I finally get it back.
> 
> I drove to the shop (which is nothing but a large garage belonging to the nearby house) and peered through the window.  Sure enough, hiding in the back of the garage, barely visible through the window, was Pandora.  Ironically, even if I were to have arrived with a flatbed, there would have been no way to retrieve the Pantera, since it is blocked in by the partially-disassembled tow truck he's repairing (and I use the word repairing loosely).
> 
> To give you just one example of why I'm so terrified; while discussing my car, he said, "man, there sure were a lot of washers in that car.  I've never seen so many washers.  I'll try to put them all back in."
> 
> Yes, folks, the nightmare isn't yet over.
> 
> Chris
> #3846 (unless that number has been is ground off and replace with a fake one)
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