SALON: De Tomaso Pantera - Italian soul with a Motown heart

摘要

It was 1970, and the bliss was about to hit the fan. Performance-draining federal regulations and OPEC oil embargoes would turn the decade into a horsepower wasteland, but like college students hopeful their draft notices would get lost in the mail, we remained innocent. Better yet, the race-proven, Lamborghini Miura-fired mid-engine design craze was on, and Detroit had signed up. In May, Road & Track's cover story featured the Ford Pantera. The June issue contained American Motors Corporation's return shot, the AMX/3. July's cover story about GM's mid-engine prototype trumpeted: "Tomorrow's Corvette?" Most of it was hype. Only Ford pulled the trigger, thanks to a friendship between Lee Iacocca and Alessandro de Tomaso.