Several years later the love for these cars (dating back to reading Car magazine in the late 1970s) hasn't gone away. I tried to redirect my affections to old British luxury cars instead (a Bentley Turbo R and a 1953 Rolls-Royce Solve Wraith) and while they are also wonderful in their own manner, it's not the same. So I succumbed, but have persuaded myself that I can achieve greater reliability and lower costs by combining an Italian body and chassis with an American V8. It's not an original idea, Mr de Tomaso also thought of it!
Learning from past mistakes, although I did buy it unseen it was from a reputable dealer this time and I also got it inspected. Notwithstanding, I got a local specialist (the highly recommended Thunder Road Cars in Cheshunt) to give it a thorough check on arrival. And of course it needs a few things (mainly clutch master cylinder and new shock absorbers) which aren't particularly expensive but are taking ages to arrive from the US (there are lots of parts suppliers in the US, where thousands of Panteras were sold, but none in the UK). With a bit of luck it will be home in early January. Thunder Road say it's in generally very good condition, which is a big relief
A bit more detail: it's a 1972 'pre-L' model (which means it doesn't have the nasty rubber bumpers). It was originally white but has had a good-quality paint job at some point in the past. I have no history paperwork at all but it's clearly been looked after; the fans and brakes have been upgraded and someone also decided to put Gotti wheels on it. They look better in person than in the photos, but nonetheless I prefer the original Campagnolos and managed to find a set at an acceptable price. Tyres are also a challenge as the original wheels are 15" (and I didn't want to fit larger aftermarket ones); I ended up with Avon CR6-ZZs.
Being the 'base' Pantera it's also a narrow-body. While you may recall that my Countach was a LP400S2 and hence had the flared arches and also a substantial wing (which I preferred), I actually prefer the original style of Pantera with no wing. De gustibus non est disputandum, as LJK Setright might have commented. In any event, there should be no argument about the noise it makes. I don't have a recording yet (and UI heard it before any tuning had been done) but the sound of a 351 Cleveland V8 is AWESOME - somewhere in between the Lamborghini V8 (for tone) and V12 (for bass). My neighbours are going to hate me
.More news in the new year!
