Coachbuilt Ares Design Panther is tribute to De Tomaso Pantera

Following many enticing teasers and a camouflaged prototype, Modena-based Ares Design has revealed the Panther ProgettoUno – as it’s now known – coachbuilt supercar in final production specification.

Ares Design Panther Resurrects De Tomaso Pantera As 641HP Coachbuilt Huracan

The first product of Ares Design’s ‘Legends Reborn’ program may be named and styled after the legendary Tom Tjaarda designed 1970’s De Tomaso Pantera, but it is actually a Lamborghini at heart. Where the original Pantera brought together the best of two continents, the the retro-styled Panther ProgettoUno is entirely Italians. Instead of an American V8, this upcoming supercar has the same 5.2-liter V10 as the Lamborghini’s Huracan

In this application, however, the engine develops 650 PS (641 hp) at 8,250 rpm and 600 Nm (442 lb-ft) at 6,500 rpm courtesy of a tuned ECU and exhaust system. The seven-speed dual-clutch transmission and electronically controlled Haldex AWD system stay the same.

Despite packing 10 extra horses and the fact that it practically weighs the same (1,423 kg/3,137 lbs vs. 1,422 kg/3,134 lbs), the Panther is 0.2 seconds slower from 0 to 100 km/h than the latest Huracan Evo, covering the sprint in 3.1 seconds. Top speed, on the other hand, is an identical 325 km/h (201 mph). The company ‘mainly modifies the engine characteristics, the calibration, the gearbox changing times and the way the gearbox changes and of course the exhaust system’ to give the driver a ‘more emotional and more passionate experience’.

The original Pantera and the modern-day donor car share broadly similar dimensions. The donor is considerably wider, but with a wheelbase that is only 12 centimetres longer than the original Pantera it is an ideal basis for the transformation.

Compared to the donor car, the Panther is longer and narrower, thus sporting distinct proportions. The shape of the doors is actually the only thing that gives away the Huracan origins of the bespoke supercar. All the body panels are made from carbon fiber, and the pop-up headlights feature full LED technology.

Since we’re talking about a coachbuilt car, the interior is very different as well and only the digital cockpit reminds us of the Lambo. The cabin features handcrafted artisan interior panels in carbon fibre and leather, as well custom made Nappa leather and Alcantara upholstery. Obviously, Ares Design can fully tailor it to the customer’s wishes, no request or demand from the customer is too hard.

It is exquisitely constructed from carbon fibre and has a unique mix of traditional craftsmanship and modern engineering and manufacturing technologies.

The company will start delivering Panthers to customers at the end of May. If you’re interested, the modern-day De Tomaso Pantera will set you back €615,000 (about $695,000). Building one car takes Ares Design three months, so you’ll have to be patient as well as wealthy.

With cars like the Panther ProgettoUno, it will be more beautiful on the roads. But for us, ‘simple people’, the only way to admire the car ‘live’ is to go to events like Villa d’Este or Goodwood Festival of Speed. Come into the wonderful world of Ares Design.

 

 

 

 

 

Ares Panther, The beast is almost free

In December last year, Ares Design, the company of former Lotus CEO Dany Bahar, announced that there are still a few special projects in the pipeline. The Italian, Modena based company, which already had a Bentley Mulsanne Coupe, a Porsche GT3 Targa and the very remarkable X-Raid in its portfolio, showed the first sketches of Project Panter. The Panther (not to be confused with the English car maker) is in fact Ares’ modern interpretation of the iconic De Tomaso Pantera from the early seventies. This car was actually presented at the beginning of February. And now we see the Panther creating a scent for the first time.

Ares Design has taken a Lamborghini Huracán as the basis for the Panther, an Italian with a V10, who of course has radically adjusted it. This means that you can immediately find a big difference with its predecessor. The original Pantera wore an Italian carriage from Ghia, designed by Tom Tjaarda, and had an American V8.

One of the most significant characteristics of the Ares Panther is its voice. The sound from the naturally breathable V10 is nothing less than a roar.

Matteo Vezzani

In this case, the carbon fiber and aluminum of the Lamborghini Huracán are hidden under the classic appearance. Behind the front seats is a revised version of Lambo’s V10. The 5.2-liter ten-cylinder was a 5.6-liter and he now produces at least 660 hp and 560 Nm. Ares does not exclude that the assets will grow slightly before the final Ares Panther is unveiled at the end of the summer.

Ares put the back in the new with modern lamps, more details and more sharp lines. The front is, apart from two LED strips, almost indistinguishable from the old one. Including the folding headlights! That is the advantage of being a coachbuilder: the ban on blow headlights is (apparently) not applicable.

Behold the resurrection of the blow headlights. A small moment of triumph for the distinctive feature, which was condemned unfairly and too hastily to the history books.

Car manufacturers are not allowed to fit blow-head lights on new cars due to pedestrian safety. Presumably because Ares Design is a coachbuilder, these rules do not apply. The car on which the Panther is based already has a type approval.

Ares Design says that the car is in the final phase of its development. Only 21 Ares Panthers will leave the factory. The price starts at 515,000 euros. All production slots for this year are already filled. And since it takes more than 24 weeks to build one car, you better get along.

 

 

 

 

New Pantera by Ares Design

Ares Design, from Modena, Italy, has released the first computer drawings of Project Panther, a car with which the design house wants to bring the legendary De Tomaso Pantera to the 21st century.

Ares Design is mainly known as the company of former Lotus CEO Dany Bahar, a top man under whose leadership the Bentley Mulsanne Coupe and the frankly bizarre Mercedes-Benz G based Ares X-Raid where recently built. The Italian-based company from Modena now announces that it is working on Project Panther, a modern interpretation of the legendary De Tomaso Pantera, an Italian muscle bundle with an American heart that appeared on the road for the first time in 1970.

Where the original Pantera (designed by Tom Tjaarda for Ghia) brought together the best of two continents, Project Panther on paper is entirely Italians. Instead of an American V8, this upcoming supercar has the same 5.2-liter V10 as the Lamborghini’s Huracan. In fact, under the skin it is simply a Huracán. That means: four-wheel drive, a seven-speed automatic transmission and a base consisting of aluminum and carbon fiber.

The first cars must be delivered by mid-2018. Prices and specifications will follow later. It is known that the first two cars were sold in advance. Soon more about the Ares De Tomaso Pantera here on Yakymour …

 

 

 

 

 

ATS withdraws bid for De Tomaso

If you were, like us, holding out hope for a De Tomaso revival prepare to be disappointed as Italian car maker ATS (Automobili Turismo Sport) has reportedly given up their bid for the defunct brand.

Founded by Alejandro de Tomaso in 1959, the company behind the Pantera and Mangusta eventually petered out a decade ago, only to be revived by former Fiat executive Gian Mario Rossignolo in 2009. The resurgent De Tomaso showcased the Deauville concept at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show and began development on a new Pantera, both designed by Pininfarina, but ended up back in bankruptcy last year amidst allegations of misappropriations of government subsidies.

Those truly schooled in the history of Italian sports cars will recognize the letters ATS. They belong to Automobili Turismo Sport, an outfit formed after the great ‘Palace Revolution’ at Ferrari in the early 1960s. The brand was originally launched in 1963 by a legion of disgruntled former Ferrari employees, like Carlo Chiti and Giotto Bizzarrini, but shut down a few short years later. ATS folded a few years after that, but recently resurfaced some 50 years later under new caretakers. And now it’s probably changing hands again.

Speaking to Autoblog, ATS chief Gianluca Gregis said the company will be leaving Italy to setup shop in the Canary Islands. The move to the Spanish archipel off the coast of Morocco will reportedly bring a number of benefits including tax incentives and easier shipping to global locations. Unfortunately, the change has caused the company to refocus their efforts and drop necessary projects. As a result, ATS have withdrawn their bid for De Tomaso and sold their Leggera Roadster program and sold their to an unnamed – British? – automaker.

ATS appears to be going through a management dispute between its two owners – one party supporting the course of action described below and the other working to stop it and keep ATS in Italy. We’ll be watching to see how it develops.

 

 

 

 

ATS buys De Tomaso, new Pantera planned

Italy has had more than its fair share of ‘old’ auto marques revived in recent years. Bugatti restarted in Modena before returning across the border to Molsheim, Fiat brought back the Abarth marque not long ago, Carrozzeria Touring got back into the business after decades lying dormant, Zagato revived the Diatto name for a small run of sportscars, and the students at the IED in Turin plucked the Cisitalia name out of the dustbin of history for a concept car last year. But two of the most recent Italian auto marques to resurface are ATS and De Tomaso.

ATS (Automobili Turismo e Sport) went back into business last year on the occasion of the original marque’s 50th anniversary with new models including the Sport 1000, 2500 GT and 300 Leggera. The brand was originally launched in 1963 by a legion of disgruntled former Ferrari employees like Giotto Bizzarrini and Carlo Chiti, but shut down a few short years later. Now revived after nearly half a century in remission, ATS seems to be moving forward nicely… which is more than we could say for De Tomaso.

Founded by Alejandro de Tomaso in 1959, the company behind the Mangusta, Pantera, Longchamp, Deauville, Guara and other beautiful creations, eventually petered out a decade ago, only to be revived by former Fiat executive Gian Mario Rossignolo in 2009. The resurgent De Tomaso showcased the Deauville concept at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show and began development on a new Pantera, but ended up back in bankruptcy last year amidst allegations of misappropriations of government subsidies. Rossignolo was taken into custody over allegations that he – along with two others – misused €7.5 ($9.1 / £5.9) million worth of government funds, and the company was put up for sale in 2012.

Speculation ensued over who might buy De Tomaso, but now we have our answer. ATS has purchased the rights to the De Tomaso brand and is preparing to relaunch it with a new lineup. Although specific details of their cooperation will only be revealed later this month, ATS tells us that some future De Tomaso products could share platforms and other technologies with ATS models. First on the list is obviously a new Pantera, which could ride on a ATS 2500 GT platform, but specific details will be revealed later this month.

The two marques were among the very first carmakers to put a mid-engined sportscar into production, with the original ATS 2500 GT and the De Tomaso Vallelunga reaching the market in quick succession in 1963, after (what would become) the Matra Djet and years before the Lamborghini Miura would hit the streets. Now back in the game and bound together, we’re looking forward to seeing what ATS and De Tomaso have up their sleeves.

 

 

 

 

The Return of the De Tomaso Pantera?

Legendary Italian carmaker De Tomaso, which has struggled for quite sometime now, continues to catch our attention, this time with a newly surfaced video that appears to be a possible Pantera concept car.

At March’s 2011 Geneva Motor Show, a rejuvenated De Tomaso, now run by former Fiat exec Gian Mario Rossignolo and his family, presented the controversial SLS luxury crossover concept and announced production of not just one but three distinct new models.

Now, spotted outside De Tomaso’s plant in Grugliasco, just outside of Turin, Italy, is this mysterious prototype of a sports car with mid-engine proportions and a screaming V-8 engine. The original De Tomaso Pantera, designed by Tom Tjaarda for Ghia, was produced from 1971 to 1974. It was fitted with a Ford-sourced V8 engine and by most accounts the sports car was a success for De Tomaso. There’s no word on what engine the newest Pantera will get, but judging by the deep exhaust note from the video.

If the car in the video is indeed the new Pantera, it looks to be more promising (and exciting) than the concept De Tomaso SLC/Deauville luxury crossover concept that was featured at this year’s Geneva Motor Show. If you look closely at the video clip of the Deauville, you can clearly see ‘De Tomaso’ on the side of the building courtyard the vehicle is exiting, and comparing it to the alleged Pantera video, it’s also obvious it’s the same location.

So it’s safe to assume the sports car prototype is definitely a De Tomaso of some sort, if not a revival of the storied Pantera moniker. This modern-day De Tomaso Pantera could be revealed as early as this November’s 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show.

 

 

 

 

De Tomaso Panthera Concept

The Panthera Concept is a rétro-styled interpretation of the original 1970’s Tom Tjaarda designed De Tomaso Pantera sportscar. The creater is German 3D designer Stefan Schulze.

Stefan Schulze won in 2004 the Peugeot Design Contest with the Peugeot 4002 Concept and he has recently presented his Vector W8-derived Tribun Concept. Currently Stefan Schulze runs First Signal, a 3D and graphic design agency.

The Pantera, a mid-engine Italian sports car equipped with a Ford V8 produced from 1971 through 1996, can be considered as the symbol of De Tomaso. It was developed in partnership with Ford, which aimed at creating a rival for the GM’s Corvette. Most people that nowadays dream of having a De Tomaso Pantera must wait for a used one to reach the market. If any does get there, prices could be as high as US$ 100,000.

But what if you could have a modern version of this iconic De Tomaso, built over a reliable and fast structure, such as the Lamborghini Gallardo’s? Well, if designer Stefan Schulze manages to sell his idea to any investor, you might be able to do buy your Panthera (with an H) someday.

Renderings of the talented German designer Stefan Schulze, you see here are a design proposal for a modern day De Tomaso Pantera.

Just to put some Italian genes in the project, Schulze says the retro styled Pantera is based on the Lamborghini Gallardo platform. Looks quite nice overall, though we would have preferred it if Schulze avoided the Ford GT40 hints up front and the Lamborghini Miura styling elements in the rear end.

The De Tomaso Panthera Concept, is like we said a project based on the Lamborghini Gallardo’s platform, or else, it would have a V10 engine, 4WD system and a unique style, what would make this machine an easy target for (very) wealthy buyers that want an exclusive piece of machinery. And, as we all know, they are not so few.

The sad part is that, with a Lamborghini Gallardo platform, the Panthera would cost much more than the original vehicle. And, considering the inherited capabilities this car would have, the additional price would be worth it. A lot!

Come into the beautiful world of Stefan Schulze,