Red-hot Love

The Age

Saturday May 24, 2008

Nadine Armstrong

An Italian body and an American engine tick all the boxes for this sports car's owner, reports Nadine Armstrong.

BUILT in the Italian city of Modena and powered by a 5.8-litre Ford V8 engine, the De Tomaso Pantera ticks many, possibly all, of the boxes for Perry Spiridis.

He doesn't even flinch when I dish out the "poor man's Lamborghini" taunt that many such cars have been branded with. He has owned enough cars to know a great one when he sees it.

A clearly badged car, it's no secret that a Ford V8 engine hides beneath the Pantera's ruby red bodywork.

From the rear of the car, it's all fat tyres and quad exhaust pipes. This car's aggressive body is intriguing - it looks like it means business. At just 107 cm in height, the Pantera (Italian for panther) has a low profile. And it's quite a workout just to get in and out of it.

Visually, the Pantera has all the characteristics of a '70s fastback sports car: a fat rear end slopes to a low nose to create the classic wedge shape. Front on, it is similar to a Ferrari and Lamborghini of the same era - the difference being that this car brags a muscle-car attitude from every angle.

"The Pantera is a very unusual car; there's not too many of them around," Mr Spiridis says. "Most people ask what it is, and when you do tell them, they admit they've never heard of it. Explaining it's an American motor with an Italian body is no help.

"I just love it; I love the whole concept. I think they are underrated here - they're relatively unknown."

The tallish Mr Spiridis fits comfortably into the car, which is still in its left-hand drive format. The cabin has a a cockpit feel to it, with the black leather trim, silver-rimmed gauges and contoured seats creating a comfortable cocoon.

After 36 years and with 55,000 miles on the clock, this Pantera shows few signs of ageing. It's in immaculate condition.

"The more you drive it, the more you love about it," Mr Spiridis says.

The only real problem seems to be that every time he takes it out for a drive, it rains. "And it's a real pain to clean . . . and the gearboxes are terribly expensive to maintain."

It's safe to say that the Pantera is somewhat of an anomaly that rejects many of the impractical shortcomings of classic sports cars. Yes, it's a very low ride but the cabin is fairly spacious and you get great visibility.

Mr Spiridis says it is "mechanically fantastic and it doesn't cost an arm and a leg to maintain", and you can fit a suitcase in the boot.

"You should see this," he enthuses, revealing a generous-sized tub liner in the car's rear that fits nicely on top of the engine bay - which looks like a piece of art with splashes of pristine black and chrome metal.

Above all, Mr Spiridis says he gets a kick out of driving the Pantera.

"The V8 delivers beautiful power. Although, with the motor sitting right at your back, it gets really hot in summer, so I've installed a good air-conditioner."

His wife Kathy is not such a fan of the V8 pounding at your back. "I think she likes the look of it but it's certainly not her car of choice," he says. Indeed, the Pantera is not without fault.

"The cooling system on these was shocking - the cooling and the rust were the two major problems with these cars," Mr Spiridis says. "I think the rust is there straight off the production line!"

However, he's prepared to overlook the flaws. "I get a lot of enjoyment out of this car, particularly with my son, who is nearly 14.

He loves it. 'Oh Dad, can you pick me up from school?' he asks.

"The other thing I love is that this car is so versatile. It mixed it with the best at an American muscle car show recently, and a month prior to that we took it to Como House for the Italian car festival. It appeals to a wide audience. You can do so much with it. It really doesn't get much better."

AUTOBIOGRAPHY

1972 DE TOMASO PANTERA L

POSITIONED as a rival to General Motors' Chevrolet Corvette, De Tomaso built about 7200 Panteras between 1970 and 1990. The company was founded in 1959 by Alejandro De Tomaso, an Argentinian who lived in Italy. With an interest in race cars, it wasn't until 1963, in partnership with Ford, that De Tomaso produced its first road car, the Vallelunga coupe. This was followed by the V8-powered Mangusta and the Pantera, the company's most successful model. The 1972 model owned by Mr Spiridis is the Lusso or luxury model, the Pantera L. It uses a 185 kW 5.8-litre V8 mated to a five-speed manual gearbox. De Tomaso closed its doors to car-making in 2004.

© 2008 The Age

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