More Updates to the De Tomaso Registry

Ben,

good job, bravo.

One vehicle looks out of place in the GTS listing. Chassis 01242, would be a 1971 push button car. The car pictured does not have a push button door mechanism. Also, there were no GTS Panteras built in 1971, unless the factory performed a conversion at a later date at an owners request. The first GTS Panteras showed up in the second half of the 1972 model year (between January and June 1972). At least, that's how the story goes ...

Being a history buff myself, I think your work is truly wonderful, and long overdue.

Your friend on the DTBB, George

You're applying the USA rationale to chassis numbers. With Euro cars of that period, who knows what's what..

The car could very well be a GTS.

Kind of tough being a deTomaso history buff, since the rules change every 5 minutes, depending on the car.

Right Josh, I certainly can't be adament about anything. There is a good possibility the car was sitting around either Vignale or Fossalta in 1972, unfinished, and may very well have become the first GTS or something.

Ford was in control of production in that era, of both the North American bound cars, and the European deliveries as well. It was not the wild wild west. Left over push button cars did exist, as Gary's push button proves. They would have been sitting off to the side at Vignali, in Turin, or the Fossalta plant in Modena.

The red flag regarding chassis #01242 is the door handles, they should be pushbuttons with that chasis number. One possible explanation is that chassis #01242 may have been reassigned to a later car because the original car bearing that number had been somehow destroyed.

As Ben's data base grows, we shall learn more. I check it from time to time, because I know where the holes in my knowledge are, and a couple of my questions have already been answered via his web site.

Its fun for me, because my mind works in such a way that history, or more accurately "understanding progression", consumes my thinking sometimes.

Josh thanks for posting, because you've reminded me of something I wanted to mention to Ben.

Ben, if at all possible, please collect build dates on the cars as you collect the other data. That would help us understand the production history much better, especially were irregularities occur.

Your friend on the DTBB, George

I took a look at the car on Ben's wonderful site and noticed 10 inch Campies and a roof mounted antenna. Tell-tale signs of a Euro GTS, but could've been added later.

Difficult to prove either way. ??

Looking at all the pictures of the GTS, I don't think that I saw any with 10" Campies?
Are they supposed to have them or no one knows?
Also on the "light weight" Warren Tope car, what am I looking at with the "lightening holes" in it, the inner tail panel?
Where are the lightening holes punched into?
I know that there are aluminum skins for the doors, trunk, and engine lids. Are the spiders aluminum too?
Anybody know how much lighter the car was?

The points raised regarding 01242 are interesting, thanks. As far as I know, the Pantera GTS debuted in March 1972 at the Geneva Salon so I'll try and get to the bottom of this cars story in the next few days. If anyone else can add something, please do.

George, thanks for the feedback regarding the build dates of De Tomaso cars. It's something I do try and find out wherever possible but most people just seem to know the first registration date (which in some cases can be a completely different year as I'm sure you know )

quote:

Originally posted by SP:
...George, thanks for the feedback regarding the build dates of De Tomaso cars. It's something I do try and find out wherever possible but most people just seem to know the first registration date (which in some cases can be a completely different year as I'm sure you know )

The first 1974 Pantera bears chassis #5900. My Pantera, chassis 6018, is an early 1974 model (built in July 1973). It was sold in California during the 1974 model year (commencing Sept 1973). But Ford delayed having the cleveland engine certified for smog in California for that model year, so the early 1974 Panteras delivered to California were recertified by Ford and sold as 1973 models!

So yes, I understand how confusing it can be. lol....

keep up the good work Ben, your friend on the DTBB