Lot 233: 1987 De Tomaso Pantera GT5

Former racing driver, Alejandro de Tomaso, has owned some of the most famous names in Italian engineering including Maserati, Innocenti, Benelli, Moto Guzzi, Vignale and Ghia. Cars under his own name raced in Formula One in the early 1960s and he showed a number of prototype road cars before putting one, the Vallelunga, into limited production in 1965. De Tomaso hoped that the Vallelunga would be taken over by a major manufacturer but when that did not happen he reengineered the chassis and dropped in a 4.7 litre Ford V8 which delivered its 306bhp (and 392lb/ft torque) through a ZF five-speed gearbox. Meanwhile Giotto Bizzarrini had designed a mid-engined car for which Giugiaro had created a body; this project was stillborn but de Tomaso took over the body shape and so created the Mangusta, which is Italian for mongoose, the only animal which the cobra (ie; as in AC) fears. The Mangusta's combination of style, a proven, un-temperamental engine and four wheel disc brakes meant that de Tomaso soon had a full order book. Few of the 400 examples made came to Britain, however, and only three had right-hand drive. One was featured in Classic & Sportscar in 1984, and author Mike McCarthy was suitably impressed: 'I didn't take it over 4,000rpm, nor use full throttle, but even so there was enough urge to bring out a wide grin, a slight settling in the seat, and a refocusing of the eyes to some considerable distance ahead...' This superb example, presented in red with contrasting magnolia trim, wooden dash and door inserts, was originally a special order through Emilia Concessionaires, the customer having requested a GT5 and not a GT5S which was in production at the time. The styling was more aggressive for the GT5 than the GT5S' and the factory acquiesced and built a one-off special. Hence this is, by far, the very last Pantera GT5 ever built. It was subsequently featured in a book called Dream Cars by Peter Dron. Extensively restored in the 1990s at a cost of over £30,000, with an engine rebuild taking place at the same time costing over £8,000, the work included the fitment of larger Weber 48 IDA carburettors which helped produce over 450bhp. The gearbox was also rebuilt at a cost of over £3,000 and as a result, not only is the car completely sound inside and out but it is also arguably the finest de Tomaso Pantera in Europe. With just 22,000 miles recorded, a full year's MoT test certificate and an extensive history file, take a leaf out of Mike McCarthy's book and refocus on the horizon with a large dose of opposite lock and a wide grin...