[DeTomaso] R&T Article

[Julian Kift]

Mike,
Interesting comments, when you say wide fenders formed over a wire clamshell which ones do you refer to? GT5 (like factory GT4 flares) were a fiberglass add on with the standard fender being cut to accommodate them. Factory GT5S fenders were stamped steel.
Julian

> The later cars (i.e. GT5-S) were closer to the 'handmade' side of the 
> spectrum.   Bare chassis were made in small batches by outside contractors 
> (mostly Embo) and then provided to Carrozzeria Campana (across the street from the 
> Maserati factory, in downtown Modena) where they were painted and trimmed.  
>  Then they were hauled to the De Tomaso facility on the edge of town, on 
> the outside of the Tangenziale, where the mechanical bits were installed and 
> the cars were finished off.
> 
> The wide fenders were made by hand using two-piece clamshell wire formers 
> (which have been sitting outside in the rain, rusting, for at least 15-20 
> years, I just saw them again in October), and then grafted to the sides of 
> standard Pantera fenders by hand--thus there is a lot of car-to-car variation 
> (and side-to-side variation on individual cars) as a result.
> 
> But if there is dimensional variation on an early Pantera (like mine has), 
> it's normally a result of having had accident/bodywork history (like mine 
> has).
> 
> Mike
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