RE: You Know You Want To...DeTomaso Guara

[dinkel]

Saw one in the flesh a few years ago . . . very weird looking kit.

[Luca Brasi]

What BMW V8 is that actually?

[GTRene]

Luca Brasi said:

What BMW V8 is that actually?

I think its a M60 4.0

Ascari (for the Ecosse) uses a M62 a 4.4 tuned to start with then a 4.7 (by hartge) and the last 3 a 5.0 (M62) by Hartge, very nice engines

[mikEsprit]

It's hard to justify when the older sister (Pantera) is better looking, has a better personality, and costs less.

I'd look to the Qvale, not exactly a looker either, well before this. The Guara seems more like a car I'd go up to at a car show and appreciate, but walk away thinking 'Not exactly where I'd like to put my money, but at least it's unique.'

[gazchap]

Looks a little bit MR2 Roadster like from the rear. Bit awkward.

[hesnotthemessiah]

Saw one at the Supercar meet at Graypaul in Nottingham a few months ago. Looks amazing from some angles and then errr....not so amazing from others! IMHO obviously

Edited by hesnotthemessiah on Monday 12th September 21:58

[Vario-Rob]

This one appears to fallen into the hands of the PH Illuminati

[Munich]

Is the windscreen taken from the Alfa Romeo SZ?

[Munich]

...no, no. Was this not the car that would eventually mutate into the MG SV? I remember that MG bought the SV project from the ashes of Qvale Mangusta, which was previously DeTomaso, but I can't remember if it was an evolution of this car that formed the basis for the MG SV or not.

[Juz]

i like that

[Schmeeky]

To me it looks like a bloated M100 Elan.. For such a company with a history of beautiful and sometimes very aggressive looking cars it seems very bland.

A shame, as I'm sure it'd be a lovely driving machine, but the looks do nothing at all for me.

[Carfolio]

Those wheels totally ruin it. The originals were far better, IMHO.

[Ftumpch]

I think there's something to be said for appreciating it as an example of late 80s-early 90s styling. Remember by that time we were all thoroughly sick to death of long-running mainstream supercars like the Testarossa, Countach and 928. Not to mention the three-box designs from BMW, Mercedes, Alfa et al. I remember at the time anything with curves and a bit of individuality was a godsend!

[Merle]

If you could get a pig to stand still long enough to put chrome and paint on it, some fool would believe the sales drivel about how exclusive it is and pay through the nose for it, especially for the optional curly tail.

[Vario-Rob]

Munich said:

...no, no. Was this not the car that would eventually mutate into the MG SV? I remember that MG bought the SV project from the ashes of Qvale Mangusta, which was previously DeTomaso, but I can't remember if it was an evolution of this car that formed the basis for the MG SV or not.

Nope, the engine is in the wrong place for a start. The DeTomaso Bigua became a Qvale Mangusta and that's the one that got sold to MG

[Twincam16]

mikEsprit said:

It's hard to justify when the older sister (Pantera) is better looking, has a better personality, and costs less.

They're very different cars. The Guara is effectively a spaceframed race car with numberplates and leather seats, whereas the Pantera, fantastic though it is, is very much a '70s fast-road car. Granted, race versions were available (Group 3 & 4), but the Guara is engineered more like a Ferrari F50 than anything else. That kind of engineering is rare, and never comes cheap.

[JaySteel]

Just digging up an old thread. I saw this car today near Brands Hatch. I even got the chance to compare it to my Porsche Cayman S. There was nothing between the two cars really. I didn't know what it was until I searched on-line. And then I found this thread and the example I saw today in Kent even still had the gold BBS split-rim wheels. I wonder what sort of money it's worth now?

Edited by JaySteel on Friday 30th June 21:32

[del mar]

JaySteel said:

Just digging up an old thread. I saw this car today near Brands Hatch. I even got the chance to compare it to my Porsche Cayman S. There was nothing between the two cars really. I didn't know what it was until I searched on-line. And then I found this thread and the example I saw today in Kent even still had the gold BBS split-rim wheels. I wonder what sort of money it's worth now?

Edited by JaySteel on Friday 30th June 21:32

You did well to get a picture before we had to brake when we hit the traffic......
I have no power brakes / and so stopping power is directly related to how hard you press with your foot !

I will try to type up a proper review next week.

Del

[JaySteel]

The photo is a screenshot from my dashcam. Thankfully my Cayman S has great brakes and the ABS is very effective. If I sent you the video then you'd see how hard I had to brake. The tyres were screeching! It was lovely to see your car on the road. I'd love to have a proper look at it one day.

Edited by JaySteel on Friday 30th June 22:14

[Escy]

Get the footage up on Youtube, I want to see it.