[DeTomaso] Hagerty Article: "Pantera: Ripe for picking up, not picking on"

[Jar Von Ritter]

I know I am always saying this but....

The endless drubbing the Pantera receives in auto circles is, in my estimation, 
a mixed blessing.  If it weren't for the common misperceptions out there about 
the Pantera, I (and possibly many others) probably couldn't afford one.  This 
car is in a funny little market niche of it's own that lets people enjoy owning 
a bona fide exotic who might not otherwise be able to.  

I used to wonder if I could even call my car a bona fide exotic.  I've never 
even driven a Porsche 911 let alone a Ferrari, Lambo, Viper etc. and so had 
nothing to compare the Pantera to except my 72 Datsun 510 wagon. (Don't laugh, 
this car is fun when you hop it up a bit and put some tight rubber under it). 
 One day a while back at a filling station a guy pulls up behind me in a Viper. 
 He walks up, looks my car over and starts telling me how he likes driving his 
Pantera more than his Viper.  I took that to mean the Pantera is indeed a bona 
fide exotic.  Driving fun is everything.  Well done, Allejandro!

(Of course, now that I own one, I wouldn't mind the value of it going through 
the roof upwards of $100K like certain 60s muscle cars have.  But if it never 
does, as may well be the case, so be it.)




________________________________
From: Sean Korb <spkorb at gmail.com>
To: JDeRyke at aol.com
Cc: WLHPANTERA at aol.com; detomaso at realbig.com
Sent: Fri, December 10, 2010 8:21:25 AM
Subject: Re: [DeTomaso] Hagerty Article: "Pantera: Ripe for picking up, not 
picking on"

It really doesn't make sense.  If your old $50,000 Ferrari needs a clutch
job at 5000 miles, and it costs $4000 to do it, everyone is like "oh, of
course".  But if a Pantera overheated 30 years ago, somehow there's no
fixin' it.

It's all perception.  If you haven't owned one, you just don't know.

sean

On Thu, Dec 9, 2010 at 10:58 PM, <JDeRyke at aol.com> wrote:

> A good article and a better reply by Adam. Sadly, old first impressions die
> hard. I recently had an e-mail conversation with Mike Spence of C & D, and
> when I mentioned I had a Pantera, he said, "Pantera? Now there's a scary
> car...." I said, "we'd owned ours for 30 years, with my wife doing half the
> driving. We raced it, autocrossed it, street-drove it 60,000 miles and no
> wrecks or damage yet. You really oughta try one again...".   I doubt it
> will
> happen but I'll be sure to forward him Pat Hals' Classic LeMans results
> next
> summer. Cheers- J Deryke
>
>
-- 
Sean Korb spkorb at spkorb.orghttp://www.spkorb.org
'65,'68 Mustangs,'68 Cougar,'78 R100/7,'60 Metro,'59 A35,'71 Pantera #1382
"The more you drive, the less intelligent you get" --Miller
"Computers are useless.  They can only give you answers." -P. Picasso
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