Footnotes

Having established himself as a serious automobile manufacturer with the Mangusta coupé, 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 - and competition-specification double wishbone/coil-spring suspension all round. The 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 an all-synchro ZF 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 (0-96km/h) sprint in a little over 5 seconds and touch 160mph (257km/h) flat out. Styled by Tom Tjaarda at Carrozzeria Ghia, the stunning coupé body was in fact built by Vignale, both companies being part of De Tomaso's empire in the early 1970s.

Exceptionally long-lived for a supercar, the Pantera was still around in the 1990s having undergone a series of upgrades. The first major revision of the Pantera's body style occurred in 1980 with the introduction of the GT5 which, with its deep front air dam and delta-wing rear spoiler, represented one of the earliest examples of these aerodynamic devices being applied to passenger car design. Introduced for 1985, the GT5-S incorporated further revisions to the bodywork while its interior was significantly upgraded, rivalling that of many a luxury limousine. With the supply of Cleveland engines running out, De Tomaso switched to the Ford Windsor V8, at first in 351ci (5.7 litres) form and then 302ci (5.0 litres). Production of the world longest-running supercar finally ceased in 1993.

One of only 18 right-hand drive examples, this exceptional Pantera GT5-S has had only one owner from new and seen only occasional use since it left the factory over 30 years ago. Indeed, the car had covered a mere 7,367 kilometres (approximately 4,600 miles) when the current MoT certificate was issued on 1st December 2020. The private registration LTS 88 is offered with the car, and the vendor emphasises that this is a very desirable registration as 88 refers to good luck and wealth in many countries. There is little service history to speak of, but it appears that some maintenance has been carried out by a local garage. It should be noted there is a little damage pictured around the left-hand indicator which will be rectified before the sale. A wonderful opportunity to own one of these characterful Italian/American supercars, benefiting from only one owner and relatively little use, and with the added advantage of right-hand drive.