1973 DeTomaso Pantera

Are you a Pantera fan? Do you collect the American/Italian sports car? If so, we have one you should not miss out on. The previous owner reports that no expense was spared on this build GT5 flared Pantera. He built the car for himself, but an injury made it almost impossible for him to get into. This car has less than 100 miles since the restore was completed.

This example was the 5,435th unit built in March 1973 (VIN code M) in DeTomaso's Moderna, Italy factory. Dressed in Racing Red, the paint and trim are in overall excellent order following a five-year full restoration. The previous owner reportedly said the body was glass-beaded before re-painting. The engine compartment and bottom have been sprayed with black bed liner spray. The car's bodywork is straight and solid and the car's body-colored bumpers fit tightly to the body. The car has rare factory fiberglass lift out trunk in rear.

This Pantera rolls on Pirelli radials, size 285/40ZR15 in front and 345/35ZR15 in back. Each tire is mounted on a GTS, three-piece, lightweight aluminum wheel. The car has four-wheel disc brakes and four-wheel independent suspension. The tires are in very good order while the 3 place wheels are in very good condition.

Behind the cabin is a factory Boss 351 Cleveland V-8 engine with a lengthy list of upgrades, as told by previous owner – four-bolt main ARP studded block bored .030 over; balanced and forged rotating assembly built by Eddie's Speed Shop; a Howard custom ground roller cam; Edelbrock roller lifters, roller rockers and push rods; Edelbrock AFR Pro Aluminum heads with stainless valves; matched Trick Flow intake manifold; high-flow oil pump set at 60lbs.; seven-quart oil pan; FluiDamp harmonic balancer; four-core aluminum radiator; dual, high-output fans with air diverter; heavy-duty fan temperature control unit; high-flow water pump; complete new radiator hose set, cooling tubes to all engine hoses and upgraded stainless cooling tanks; MSD distributor with MSD black box set at 6800 rpm; MSD matched coil; MSD wires; digital MSD tach converter; Holley 650 carburetor; high-flow manual fuel pump; 750 horsepower engine mount upgrade; upgraded 100-amp alternator with single wire conversion; oil sender; engine temperature sender; and fuel tank sender. The engine breathes via one-inch custom headers, wrapped for heat displacement; and stainless, three-inch tuned exhaust with muffler system. There are upgraded one-inch coated cooling tubes.

Backing up this motor is a completely rebuilt factory ZF dogleg five-speed transaxle and 4.22:1 final drive with limited-slip. The transmission has upgraded safety wire on pinion and rear gear kits; upgraded output load bearings with new driveshafts; 750 horsepower upgraded rubber mounts; McLeod Super Street Pro Clutch kit with high-speed throw out bearing and upgraded McLeod hydraulic slave cylinder with a braided line. The car's air-conditioning system has been completely upgraded – compressor, dryer, expansion block with all-new hoses.

The car has an all-new race kit suspension that lowers the car by one inch. It has lightweight A-arms with heavy-duty front and rear bushings; new front and rear axle hubs; quick-load coilovers, heavy-duty, high-speed sway bars front and rear.

The newer seats, which are mostly black with red trim, look great, as does the matching carpet set, inner door panels and Pantera custom floor mats. It has new firewall engine dampening and a Pantera removable steering wheel for ease getting in and out. The car has all-new seals, doors seals, latches and stops, hood seal and engine lid seal. There are racing belt attachments points installed with lap belts, factory shoulder harness bar installed behind seats without shoulder harnesses. The factory instrument panel is in good, original shape. The car has a factory AM/FM radio and the original center console and shift lever.

The Pantera was designed by the Italian design firm Carrozzeria Ghia's American-born designer Tom Tjaarda and replaced the Mangusta. Unlike the Mangusta, which employed a steel backbone chassis, the Pantera's chassis was of a steel monocoque design, the first instance of De Tomaso using this construction technique. The Pantera logo included a T-shaped symbol that was the brand used by De Tomaso's Argentinian cattle ranching ancestors, as well as a version of the Argentinean flag turned on its side, inspired by the company's founder, Alejandro De Tomaso, having been born and raised in Argentina.

The car debuted in Modena in March 1970 and was presented at the 1970 New York Motor Show a few weeks later. Approximately a year later the first production cars were sold, and production was increased to three per day. De Tomaso sold the rights to the Pantera to Ford, who were to distribute the cars in the United States, but Alejandro De Tomaso retained the rights to market the Pantera in Europe.

The slat-backed seats which had attracted criticism at the New York Auto Show were replaced by more conventional body-hugging sports seats in the production cars: leg-room was generous, but the pedals were off-set and headroom was insufficient for drivers above approximately six ft tall.

Competition to this DeTomaso in 1973 included AMC's Javelin, Chevrolet's Corvette, Jaguar's E-Type V-12, Maserati's Indy America and Porsche's 911.

VIN: THPNNM05435

This car is currently located at our facility in St. Louis, Missouri. Current mileage on the odometer shows 40,073 miles. It is sold as is, where is, on a clean and clear, mileage exempt title. GET OUT AND DRIVE!!!

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