RE: Pantera rocks again?

[Shakiras peaches]

The rubber on those tyres if FAR too thick...

[Bencolem]

I'm afraid to say that it actually looks quite bland to me and sadly not an improvement on the origina which is much more muscular and emotional. Also afraid to say that I can't see how its based on the gallardo - the a pillar is way too far back from the front wheels for a start. Doesn't do it for me...

[Almost Naked]

Podie said:

Almost Naked said:

Podie said:

The problem is they get designers to style these things...

Classic example, as part of my degree we (Ergonomists) worked with Designers and Auto Engineers to produce a car for a project... it went something like this...

Designer: What do you think..?
A. Engineers: Looks good, but where's the engine going to go..?
Ergomonomists: Sod the engine, how the hell is anyone going to fit in it..?
Designer: But it looks good, right?

Big-ups to the ergonomist! I have a vast respect for ergonomists, my industrial placement was with MG/Rover just before they folded, doing research for a new interior for the TF. It was hard work! I am a designer, I do a little engineering and lots of ergo on all my projects now, not just package drawings.

As for the Pantera, the front looks a bit ham-fisted, they could have made it alot more elegant, like the original.

Didn't work with a guy called Martin did you..??! (He's also on PH)

I did some stuff at Rover, but I was working for MIRA at the time...


Funny thing is, when everyone got together it was stunning what could be produced...

Edited by Podie on Thursday 26th July 12:01

Yes that was us! Apparently, MEL were also doing styling sketches over the original package at the same time! I was told by a guy who was on a placement with them at the time.

[Chris71]

ANOTHER retro car? Have to admit I wouldn't say no to any of them (particularly the Miura concept) but why can't we have some new ideas? Fi you so desired you could stock an entire car collection with these quasi-replicas everyone is churning out. For starters,

A new new Mustang and a new Dodge Charger to play cops and robbers racing round San Francisco
A new Miura, because, well it looks quite like a Miura
A new Lancia Stratos to drive to the rally of Corsica
A new mini or [i]new[i] beetle if you're an estate agent
A new Fiat 500 or [i]new[i] Fiat Panda for the wife
A new Lola T70 from Lola (ok, that one I would pay money for!)

Edited by Chris71 on Thursday 26th July 12:49

[waynepixel]

That looks great, build it.

[Snoggledog]

I know its been said before but why is it that modern designers seem to have no imagination? Why do we have to keep on re-hashing old designs? (Says the owner of one of those hateful new mini's ) Did designers stop thinking after about 1975? Or are the good drugs no longer available?

I wonder how long it's going to be before someone comes up with the Allegro... again...

caveat....
One designer who seems to be crafting beautiful designs is Mr van den Brink. And whoever penned the new Alfa 8c is certainly up there.

[oagent]

[quote=Snoggledog]I wonder how long it's going to be before someone comes up with the Allegro... again...[quote]
See the bmw mini.. or is it just me an an ex all agro owner who spots the subtle similarities

I quite like this design rendering, cant see how it could be based on a lambo, but the ford gt would be ideal.. after all the gt40 shared the transaxel with the orignal pantera too. Im a bit of a fan of rehashing old designs. If something was right first time round then its worth copying. You have to admit the new beetle stands out from its siblings... seat ibiza = vw golf = audi a3

[Al 450]

That's the dog's danglies, I want. De Tomaso has always been cooler than Lamborghini.

I think the rights to De Tomaso were bought by MG Rover when they purchased the Qvale operation. Don't know who owns them now.

[Twincam16]

Hendry said:

Is this story anything other than about some design student using photoshop to modernise the Pantera? Is that news?

Why would anyone want to rebody a Gallardo, which is hardly a pig. And what excatly would make it a De Tomaso, given that it would have Lamborghini running gear underneath. I can't imagine anyone wanting to rip that out to put a Ford V8 in it to make it authentic.

History repeating.

The DeTomaso Longchamps was a Maserati Kyalami with Maserati's thoroughbred V8 ripped out and replaced with a Ford V8. Over time it grew big wheelarches, scoops and spoilers too.

Also, remember that the Pantera used a Giampaolo Dallara chassis remarkably similar to his chassis for the Lamborghini Miura.

Ford's US dealer network intended the Pantera to be a 'manageable' exotic, for wealthy Americans who were getting increasingly annoyed by Italian and British unreliability.

I would be very interested to see if this makes production. If they used an American V8, the Corvette Z06 would have a serious fight on its hands.

[Twincam16]

Chris71 said:

A new Lola T70 from Lola (ok, that one I would pay money for!)

Gardner Douglas have reintroduced the original as a continuation alongside their Cobras. It's delicious.

[gregorio!]

I love it! Here's a quick combo of it and the Gallardo.

[Hendry]

Al 450 said:

That's the dog's danglies, I want. De Tomaso has always been cooler than Lamborghini.

I think the rights to De Tomaso were bought by MG Rover when they purchased the Qvale operation. Don't know who owns them now.

Not true. Qvale only had rights to what was known as the De Tomaso Mangusta (Bigua) - they did not own the De Tomaso name. De Tomaso continued to trade for some time after this in fact, selling the Guara until about 2004.

I think the company folded a couple of years ago.

[flattotheboards]

it looks great imo, they should build it.

[Twincam16]

Snoggledog said:

I know its been said before but why is it that modern designers seem to have no imagination? Why do we have to keep on re-hashing old designs? (Says the owner of one of those hateful new mini's ) Did designers stop thinking after about 1975? Or are the good drugs no longer available?

I wonder how long it's going to be before someone comes up with the Allegro... again...

One horrible word: Committees.

Basically, during this 'golden age' of design, engineers, designers, stylists and motorsport experts used to sit down and say 'let's make a great car'. Then they'd ask for some money and make it, and people would go 'oh wow, I want one of those'.

Nowadays, everything is owned by some humungous multinational. Everything starts in a committee room, where an irritating person with a flipchart will say 'our consumer surveys indicate that there is a large potential market for re-hashing this idea'. And lo, the idea is re-hashed.

Committees have no time for original thinkers or new ideas, because they are unproven. You couldn't go up to a board and say 'I've got this great idea for a car' without adding 'it's a bit like a...' or 'it's a new version of...', or else Andy Cappitalist won't be able to guarantee his shareholders any returns.

Same with films, which is why all the original ideas are in tiny art-house cinemas, and the multiplexes are all full of sequels, remakes and big-screen versions of TV shows. If it has sold, it will sell.

This is the problem, in nearly every industry - creatives are drowned out by the money men, regardless of whether the new idea has been seen to be successful or not.

Which is why, if you want to see real innovation and new ideas in motoring, look at the grass-roots engineering firms and the kit car companies - they need to stand out from the crowd in order to survive, and yet they need to avoid committees in order to stay on track.

[Ribol]

Have they changed the name as well as the shape then - PantHera?

[Job38]

Someone please just BUILD IT!

[Vario-Rob]

From memory its about three years since the factory closed which remains very much under lock and key with the bankruptcy still very much in the hands of the Italian courts, I’m not sure this is likely unfortunately

What’s more Santiago DeTomaso has seemingly never show the enthusiasm for the company but would I suppose cash in any rights he has remaining to use the company name. Mind you who never does buy the company will have a fair old parts inventory that is till very much intact and an extremely active customer base in the US for various old Pantera parts, lets not forget they sold thousands of the things back when.

Now to the car, please lord may this thing if it happens have absolutely no bloody VAG DNA in it, whilst many of you like the Gallardo and all that son of Pantera absolutely must be based around a large slice of Ford and absolutely not Volkswagen in any of its multitudinous incarnations, truly that would be sacrilege.

The starting point for the next Pantera would be ideally around the Ford GT an pitched at no more than £100k, if it happens I’ll be having one .

Pedant mode on, above it talked about a Longchamp being based on a Kyalami, it was the other way round, DeTomaso owned Maserati back then in the same way that the Deauville spawned the Quatty III. Pedant mode off

[FourWheelDrift]

Ribol said:

Have they changed the name as well as the shape then - PantHera?

I'd suggest someone else might hold the copyright to the name?

[bencollins]

Hendry said:

This is little more than me sticking a fez on and announcing I am the new Tommy Cooper.

[rob.e]

gregorio! said:

I love it! Here's a quick combo of it and the Gallardo.

great photoshop! now do one with the gallardo engine and transmission showing, and you'll see that the bulkhead will need to be mid-way through the cabin, which might make legroom a little tight..

Looks lovely though