Reply to "Dick Vanderberg GT5-S from Niagara-on-the-Lake"

Thanks to a lead from Wayne, I have been able to get decisive information about this car. The DeTomaso VIN is #9493, and the door plate gives the date of manufacture as the fourth month of 1988. The owner is Dick Van Derende, not "Vanderberg"

It is part of a batch of Amerisports that went to Florida, as follows:

#9491 - 1988 Pantera GT5-S - Tim Clingler - Orlando, Florida, USA
#9492 - 1989 Pantera GT5-S - Al Rubin - Ft. Myers, Florida, USA
#9493 - 1989 Pantera GT5-S - Dick Van Derende - Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada
#9494 - 1989 Pantera GT5-S - Roger “Guts” Gossett to Ted Wolch, Edmonton, Alberta

The car is interesting in that all of the others listed above had the 90 Si style makeover, but #9493 had the conventional Amerisport white-on-white treatment. Also interesting is that it has a Windsor in it, while #9494 has a Cleveland.

#9493 was purchased by Dick Van Derende from Dave Nichols, who had brought it to Ontario from Florida. Dave had bought it from a Fort Lauderdale exotic car dealership called the Auto Toy Store. It had about 3,000km on it (Wayne reports it has only 5,000km on it now). He was told it had been repossessed from someone who got in trouble with the law. Dave also purchased #9494 at the same time at a different but adjacent Fort Lauderdale dealership called the Steering Wheel, and then sold it to Roger "Guts" Gossett in Jupiter, Florida (the car is now in Edmonton with Ted Wolch -- who posts here as "Ted #9494").

Thanks for the tip, Wayne! Thanks also to Dave Nichols, who remains passionate about Panteras even though he sold his, and thanks to Dick Van Derende for taking the time to talk to me.