[DeTomaso] Mangusta Designer?

[dickruzzindesign]

MANGUSTA DESIGN
It is interesting that the photos of the original car look very different than the production version.  I have pondered this every time I see a picture of it.  I went to DeTomaso once in about 1984, actually on a trip to Pininfarina.  That car had been moved to some other storage area so I did not see it.  I met a women there, when I told her that my car was built at the factory with a Chevrolet engine she told me that when I got home I should look at it very carefully.  Later they acknowledged that it was built as I described.

I recently met a young English designer who had worked for Jaguar and he had seen the original car recently.  He looked at my car and immediately started talking about the original and how different it looks.  We had a great conversation. First I thought that what I was seeing was caused by camera lens distortion.  Then I realized that there are proportional differences, the original is more dramatic, enhanced by the huge tires.  The theme is the same but the front of the original is wider, and I think the back is too. The form language is also the same but I think actually more sophisticated than the original.  The car could be wider overall as the wheels show a very deep rim.

I bought a 1/10th studio scale drawing of the Mangusta, all four views,  done sometime in 1966, not done by Giugiaro but signed by him.  It is the production car, has the right tire sizes, narrower front and rear, etc.

I think this drawing was done by Ghia as an interpretation of the original, to be used for the final production model.

Some of you may have seen the original and may have thoughts on this.

The original had hinges on the outside of the rear engine hatch spine and soft corners on the upper front grill in the headlight area.
Front and rear appear wider if you look at the hood cut lines in relation to the headlamps.  There are also shots of a large black chrome looking gas cap later installed on the passenger side over the gas tank interrupting the air intakes behind the quarter window.

The story of the design, starting with Giugiaro, going back to Ghia and then being interpreted, resulting in a smaller car would be an interesting one.  I think that the car is smaller and I feel that the small size is part of it's charm.

The original had a sun roof.  DeTomaso somehow arranged for the original Mangusta to make a parade lap at Monte Carlo before the Grande Prix, probably in 1967.  The passenger was Princess Grace, the sun roof was put in so that people could see her from buildings and grandstands.

Clearly Detomaso was a master at PR.
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All the best,
DICK RUZZIN
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