[DeTomaso] New Here...

[Asa Jay Laughton]

David,
Welcome aboard!

I'm sorry to hear you are having a problem with your new (to you)
Pantera.  The problem you describe does sound difficult.  There will be
many who speculate and offer different good ideas on what's wrong.

For now, it's best to focus on troubleshooting.  I'm not certain how
much wrenching you feel comfortable with on your own since you've had a
mechanic work on the car.  I would encourage you to dive in an
experience wrenching on your own.  The following items might be best
checked by a good mechanic but you can do it as well with the proper tools.

- Pull the spark plugs and take a look.  If you find one or two that
look odd, it's a good bet something is happening in those cylinders.  It
could be a head gasket, head or block problem.
- Have a cylinder leak-down test performed.  This injects air to the
cylinder with both valves closed.  Wherever the air is coming out
indicates where the leak is.  For example, if the air is coming out the
intake, then you have a leaking intake valve.  Note, that's not a great
example in this case.  What you'll really be looking for is air in the
cooling system; whichever cylinder you are hooked up to will be the
cylinder that is leaking.  We still can't figure out if it's head
gasket, head or block though.

You'll have to pull the intake and heads at the very least.  If you are
getting oil in the coolant but not coolant in the oil, then the oil is
under pressure.  You -might- have coolant in the oil too but just not be
noticing it.  To check do a couple of things:
- Start the car and let it idle for five to ten minutes, and shut it
down.  Come back a couple hours later and check the dipstick.  Look for
light brown coloring; this will be coolant in your oil.
- Drain the oil and let sit overnight in a closed container.  The next
morning, pour it from one container to the other watching for the same
light brown streaks.  The water and oil should separate enough overnight
to see, but pouring it from one container to the other might help you
see whatever might not have come out of solution yet.

I think any way you slice it, you're in for taking the heads off to see
what's up.  You may be in for a complete rebuild, or if lucky, just a
head gasket.

WARNING -- WARNING -- WARNING -- WARNING -- WARNING
If you take the heads off, and if it's just the head gasket, you'll be
sorely tempted to have the heads refurbished (good idea), which may mean
you'll want to have new one-piece valves installed (good idea) and while
your at it, you should probably have the valve guides machined for
positive seals and the valve seats replaced with hardened seats (all
good ideas).  But if you've gone -that- far, you might want to refresh
the bottom end too, with new piston rings, rod and main seals, and maybe
a new cam and timing gear set.

It's a very slippery slope dude.  :)
Most of us have been there... and done that.

Asa Jay Laughton, MSgt, USAFR, Retired
& Shelley Marie
Spokane, WA
******************************     
http://www.racingagainstautism.com
http://www.teampanteraracing.com
http://facebook.com/racingagainstautism


On 7/29/2013 5:31 PM, David Moretto wrote:
> Hello to all, I am new here and a recent buyer (11/12) of a 1974 Pantera with 20K original miles.
>
> I could not figure out how to POST a new topic only how to respond to a previous thread or email everyone. So if I have violated protocol please accept my sincere apology.
>
> My "Houston we have a problem." moment is this,
>
> I have what appears to be oil in my coolant.
>
> I have NO coolant in my oil.
>
> A couple of weeks ago I washed my car, topped off my fluids and went for a 30 minute drive.
>
> The next morning the overflow had puked coffee colored liquid on my garage floor.
>
> I mentioned to my mechanic a couple of months ago that the car's power didn't feel the same since he worked on it in February, i was getting a puff of smoke at start up and the car was backfiring more than before, the oil pressure would drop at idle and that according my dipstick I was missing oil but it wasn't on the garage floor.
>
> I have read it could be a head gasket, a cracked head or a cracked block.
>
> How should I go about trouble shooting these various degrees of disrepair?
>
> I have read about the mythical status of the Australian cast 351C heads and I have been given a green light for a new motor but would prefer to get off as cheaply as possible on this fix so that I can spend the remaining funds on other upgrades.
>
>
> Any and ALL suggestions will be appreciated.
>
> I am just outside of Raleigh NC.
>
> Thanks in advance.
>
> David
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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