De Tomaso Pantera

In short

• Built from 1971 to 1992 (English Wikipedia's text says it was phased out in 1993); about 7,260 cars.
• Ford 351 Cleveland V8 of 5.8 litres behind the cabin, five-speed ZF manual gearbox.
• About 5,500 sold in the United States before Ford stopped importing it in 1975.
• First De Tomaso with a steel monocoque instead of the Mangusta's backbone chassis.

De Tomaso Pantera at a glance

How the Pantera was born: Modena meets Ford

The Pantera was shown in Modena in March 1970 and at the New York show later that year. It replaced the Mangusta, whose backbone chassis gave way to a steel monocoque, the first in a De Tomaso. The deal behind it was with Ford. Ford took an 84 % stake in De Tomaso in 1971 and sold it back in 1974. In that time Ford handled US sales through its Lincoln-Mercury dealers, while De Tomaso kept the European rights.

The first production cars were sold about a year after the launch, at a rate of three a day. About 75 early cars went to Europe with bodies by Vignale, and 1,007 cars reached the United States in 1971. Lincoln-Mercury dealers sold more than three quarters of all Panteras between 1972 and 1975. Elvis Presley bought one in 1974 and sold it in 1976.

Design and construction

Tom Tjaarda drew a low, wedge-shaped two-seater at Ghia, a company that Alejandro de Tomaso controlled. The engine sits behind the cabin and drives the rear wheels through the ZF transaxle.

The first cars were not well made. English Wikipedia lists poor fit and finish, minimal rustproofing and body solder used to hide panel flaws. The 1973 cars received a new dashboard, with a single instrument unit instead of two pods. Body suppliers changed several times: production of the remaining Vignale bodies, about 175, ended when Vignale went bankrupt. Maggiora built bodies from mid-1976, and its poor work led De Tomaso to move to Embo, which built the last 504 cars from 1979. Chassis numbering restarted at 9000 around 1980.

Engine and performance

Every Pantera has a Ford V8. The spec table of English Wikipedia gives the original 5.8-litre 351 Cleveland 243 kW (330 PS) at 5,400 rpm and 466 Nm (344 lb-ft). Its text gives 246 kW (335 PS). For the 1972 US cars the compression ratio was lowered from 11:1 to 8.6:1, and a Cobra Jet-style camshaft was fitted. The US Pantera L of 1972½ was rated at 197 kW (264 hp) net.

Later Cleveland engines were built in Australia until 1982 and tuned in Switzerland. The 351 Windsor followed from 1988 to 1990. With 243 kW and 1,420 kg, the early car has about 171 kW per tonne; the power-to-weight calculator puts that against modern sports cars.

Pantera L, GTS, GT5, GT5-S and Si

• Pantera L (1972½): the "Lusso" model, with a large single front bumper and fixes for early problems.
• GTS (1972): the European sporting model with more power, wider wheels and ventilated brakes. A US GTS followed in 1974; about 40 were sold in California.
• GT5 (1980): bonded and riveted glass-fibre wheel arches. Fewer than 197 were built, according to an analysis by the Pantera Owners Club of America (POCA).
• GT5-S (1984–1985): flared steel wings instead of add-on arches; fewer than 183 built.
• Pantera 90 Si (1990): a redesign by Marcello Gandini, the Ford 302 engine with electronic fuel injection and F40 brakes. Only 41 were made: 38 were sold to the public and four were converted into Targas by Pavesi. In the UK it was sold as the Pantera 90.

Racing: Group 3, Group 4 and Group 5

De Tomaso built about 30 Group 3 cars for private teams between 1972 and 1984, with 247 kW (336 PS); they reportedly reached about 174 mph (280 km/h). The 14 Group 4 cars had a claimed 373 kW (507 PS). Their real output was 328 kW (446 PS) at 7,000 rpm, or 351 kW (477 PS) with Weber carburettors. The racing weight was about 1,100 kg at first, rising to 1,250 kg. English Wikipedia names the weak points: brakes on the hand-built Group 3 cars, and unreliable engines, a rigid chassis and extra weight on the Group 4 cars. Between 1976 and 1981 some Group 3 and 4 cars were converted to Group 5.

Ford leaves, Modena carries on

Ford stopped importing the Pantera in 1975 after selling about 5,500 cars in the United States. Production carried on for almost two more decades for other markets, in small numbers and with the GT5 and GT5-S bodies of the 1980s. In the same years Alejandro de Tomaso ran Maserati, and cars such as the Maserati Kyalami came from that period. The Si of 1990 was the last update, and the Guarà replaced the Pantera.

The story of the brand after the founder is short. After the 2004 liquidation, Gian Mario Rossignolo bought the trademark in 2009, but his company failed in 2012. The Hong Kong-based Ideal Team Ventures then bought the brand; a bankruptcy court approved the sale in April 2015 for €1,050,000. In 2019 the new company showed the P72, a retro-styled sports car, at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

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