1972 De Tomaso Pantera Coupé

• Delivered new to the USA
• Present ownership in Sweden since 2007
• Highly original and unmolested
• Matching engine and gearbox
• Circa 8,950 miles (14,402 kilometres) recorded from new

In 2007-8 this car's owner was searching for an early Pantera, checking every example offered for sale worldwide. Over the years many Panteras have been modified, renovated or upgraded, but he was looking for a 100% original, low mileage car, and during that time he found only two that matched his criteria, the one offered here offered here being the best of them. Chassis number '4145' was for sale at PI Motorsports with 8,188 miles (13,176 kilometres) on the odometer.

According to PIM's advertisement: "We have been offering Panteras for sale for over a decade and we seldom find a car with less than 10,000 miles on it. We feel this is a unique opportunity for an enthusiast desirous of finding a stock car in superior condition. This is not a 'car in the barn' either, the current owner has driven the car and logged several thousand miles since he purchased it, although mostly on short drives. This car even smells new inside and the interior, other than the radio and a digital gauge, looks just like the original Pantera brochure. The engine and engine room is very tidy and well presented."

Our vendor purchased this Pantera and had it shipped to Stockholm. The car came with a large number of documenting photographs (included) and since then has resided in his garage, being cared for and undertaking only a few outings on dry roads every year, adding only some 900 miles to the total.

Contacts with the former owner and PIM revealed that the car had been in a museum/private collection during the 1980s and '90s before being consigned to PIM to be sold. The preceding owner bought the car and kept it in his workshop where he was working on drag racers. Upon purchasing the car he fitted the following new parts:

Radiator (original type)
Stronger drive shafts (originals with car)
After-market coil-over shock absorbers (originals with car)

After that he drove the Pantera for a few thousand miles, but mostly it sat in his workshop under a cover until it returned to PIM in 2007 to be sold (to our vendor). When the car arrived it was obvious that it had not moved for a while; the brakes were partly stuck and the carburettor was leaking. The vendor restored the brakes and brake hoses, and changed all fluids. The carburettor was restored also and verified to be an original item correct for the production year. The front and rear light lenses where changed to European specification (the American lenses come with the car). Since then the Pantera has passed the roadworthiness test every time.

At a later date, the anti-roll bar bushes were changed together with all front and rear suspension bushes, since the rubber had aged. Apart from that, regular checks and fluid changes have been carried out to keep the car in excellent driving condition. The paintwork has also been treated by a professional. (The paintwork was redone at some point, probably more than 25 years ago.) The air conditioning compressor is charged but not activated (the belt is disconnected). As one would expect of such a highly original car, the engine and gearbox are matching numbers. In addition to those listed above, items which are not original are as follows:

Left-side mirror (correct one included)
Digital temperature gauge (correct one included)

The original speedometer is in the car, fitted with an insert to change the reading to km/h. The mileage is still counted in American miles though, to keep track of the original distance covered. A European speedometer comes with the car but is not installed. The current recorded mileage is circa 8,950 (14,402 kilometres)

Accompanying paperwork includes Swedish registration papers; copies of the old American titles; various documents; instruction manual; etc. This quite exceptional Pantera also comes with two sets of original keys and a quantity of spares to assist with future maintenance.