1971 De Tomaso Pantera (Pre-L)

• Designed by Tom Tjaarda, and built by Ghia, the Pantera was launched in 1970 and subsequently updated in 1973 to the Pantera L (Lusso)
• The early pre-L cars are identifiable by a lower ride height, slender bumpers and narrow body
• Very original, matching numbers example owned by our vendor for the last 10 years
• Chassis #2105 is one of only 188 finished in Spring Orange (Arancione a Molla)
• Powered by the legendary 5.7-litre 351 Cleveland HO engine, fitted to only the earliest models. Reputed to have in excess of 360bhp and even by today's standards this is still a very quick car
• Recent works include an uprated cooling system/fan upgrade, carburettor overhaul, new shocks and springs, suspension bushes and ball joints, brake overhaul with new callipers and a set of the factory-correct Michelin XWX tyres
• Having only had minor restoration work over the years means that this particular example is nicely patinated and absolutely stunning

Having established himself as a serious automobile manufacturer with the Mangusta Coupe, Alejandro De Tomaso commissioned Lamborghini designer Gianpaolo Dallara to produce the chassis for his new mid-engined supercar, the Pantera. Dallara opted for unitary construction for the steel chassis/body - abandoning the Mangusta's backbone frame. Ford Motor Company was De Tomaso's partner at the time of the Pantera's introduction in 1971 and thus the Pantera, like the Mangusta, relied on Ford V8 power. Mated to a ZF all-synchro five-speed transaxle, the 351ci (5.8-litre) 'Cleveland' engine varied in output depending on the destination market, and in European trim came with 330bhp on tap, enabling the Pantera to complete the 0-60mph sprint in a little over 5 seconds and touch 170 mph flat out. Styled by Tom Tjaarda at Carrozzeria Ghia, the stunning coupe body was in fact built by Vignale, both companies being part of De Tomaso's empire in the early 1970s.

De Tomaso's longstanding relationship with the Ford Motor Company led to an arrangement whereby the Pantera was distributed through select Lincoln-Mercury dealerships in the USA.

Exceptionally long-lived for a supercar, the Pantera was still around in the 1990s having undergone numerous evolutions and production of the world longest-running supercar finally ceased in 1993.

The car presented here is a 1971 Pantera, built in the latter part of that year, and referred to as a 'narrow body, flat-deck Pre-L model'. Fitted with the bullet-proof Cleveland '351 HO.' V8 - enabling 170 mph in 1971, the Pantera was truly a supercar.

The car was supplied new to Italy before being imported into the US in 1972. It was delivered to the state of Oregon, where it was registered '557 FVR' and spent its entire life there, where our vendor understands it was owned by a doctor who used to carry out his house calls in the car!

In the late 1990s, the owner sadly died, the car dry stored, and subsequently purchased in an estate sale by our vendor in 2012, prior to being shipped to the UK. It was fully inspected (found to be rust-free) and re-commissioned, by AV Classic Cars Ltd. in Bedfordshire which took just under 12 months to complete.

From our vendor: