1979 De Tomaso Pantera GTS

This car is a rare narrow body 9000 series Pantera, a car which was originally produced for the European market and is understood to be one less than 100 narrow body 9000 series GTS built. The car was imported to the United States in 1989, at which point it was partially federalized, including the installation of US bumpers. The car retains its metric instruments including 300kph speedometer. During the second half of the 1990s, the car was placed in dry storage, where it remained for approximately 20 years until being acquired by a Southern California based owner in 2018. He resuscitated the car mechanically and retained it for about two years until its current owner acquired it in May of 2020 and set about performing a comprehensive refurbishment that included renewing virtually every mechanical aspect of the car as well as a concours level respray.

The mechanical work was performed by Mike Cook, former supervisor at the specialist shop Hall Pantera. Cook was also a hot rodder who built and raced speed record cars and set a Pantera speed record at Bonneville. The engine of the car was removed to inspect its condition, and the intake manifold and oil pan were removed, the bottom end was inspected, a new water pump and carburetor were fitted, all gaskets were replaced, and the factory GTS headers were ceramic coated as were the muffler pipes. A new 100 amp alternator was installed while the engine was out. The dual points ignition system was replaced with a Duraspark Type 1 (40,000 volt version) ignition system with a rebuilt Davis HP Duraspark distributor.

The engine was determined to be an authentic Australian 351C as it should be while it was out of the car. The transaxle was also removed and inspected, a complete new Centerforce clutch assembly fitted, and the entire cooling system was renewed and upgraded to a modern self-burping design with pressurized header tank and more efficient swirl tank. All cooling pipes were replaced with stainless steel and a new 4 row brass/copper radiator was fabricated and installed, together with high-flow electric cooling fans, which were rewired to have their own discrete circuits with an auxiliary fuse box. The fan shrouds were also media blasted and powder coated.

The air conditioning system was renewed in a similar manner including a new Sanden compressor, new condenser, new lines, and new expansion valve. A new steering rack was fitted and the suspension rebuilt with Aldan American double adjustable coilovers, new ball joints, and new wheel bearings. The hydraulic systems were also renewed including clutch master and cylinders and a stainless steel clutch hose was fitted as well. A set of custom 17” Halibrand style wheels was fabricated and installed and the original Campagnolos are also included.

The driver’s seat was mounted directly to the floor to provide more headroom and the original sliders are included. The dashboard was also removed and the Alcantara upholstery was replaced. The A pillars and headliner were also retrimmed in the same material. A period Alpine cassette deck was installed, together with new components and Bluetooth adapter.

The body restoration involved removing the windows, all trim, and the fuel tank so that the car could be completely resprayed, which was performed with single stage urethane Glasurit paint by Tony Fabozzi, an award-winning paint experienced with Panteras (and other exotics). The body was found to be free of rust when it was prepped for the repaint. The factory paint scheme was employed, including the black lower beltline. All black trim was stripped and powder coated in the correct satin black finish. After reassembly, the car was ceramic coated.

Today, the car is an exceptionally well-sorted example of this rare model, a late production European specification GTS which has both the performance upgrades and visual appeal of the early cars, coupled with the under the skin improvements of the later cars, including a lowered floor pan, which according to De Tomaso was about two inches lower in order to provide more interior room. The car displays obvious pride of ownership and it is extremely evident how obsessively kept and well-sorted it is. It starts and runs reliably, cools well in all conditions, and the air conditioning is ice cold.

Included with the car are the original wheels, coilovers, cooling fans, seat rail hardware for the driver’s seat, original cooling system components including electric fans, a binder of technical documentation, and another binder containing invoices and other documentation from the car’s refurbishment.