1982 De Tomaso Pantera GT5

I had been trying to buy this car for the past 5 years. I had never seen it but Ralph at Motown Auto Parts had been to the owner’s house to do some minor work on it and had told me it had a Chevy 383 in it but that was all he knew.

In 2016 the owner eventually agreed to sell it. The car was solid and ran with a misfire but the big surprise was that it is a right-hand drive! The owner had never mentioned that and it had never dawned on me to ask because of the fact that they are extremely rare. After doing some research on the VIN number etc and because it is so rare as a genuine RHD GT5 I decided to restore it instead of just using it as is. Frederick Booysen took it away and a year and a half later I took delivery of this stunning car.

It was stripped to a shell and apart from a little rust on the left side rear sill, it was solid as a rock. The was originally black so we left it that colour. The fiberglass sill flares were removed as a personal preference to give the car a narrower waistline. (They can be reattached)

The interior was in great condition. Only the aftermarket seats were re-trimmed in black leather to match the rest.

We all know that this car should have a big port Ford Cleveland 351 but over 20 years ago it was fitted with a Chevy small block 383. The engine was refreshed with new rings, bearings, roller rockers, cam, valve springs, oil pump and water pump, new Holley 770 and exhaust.

All cooling pipes were replaced, stainless steel and rubber and the car already had a high capacity aluminum radiator.

The car sat with its nose up on the standard suspension which is only adjustable using shims in the coil over shocks. There were replaced with a fully adjustable set up from Alden Racing in America. The suspension bushes are all eruthane and rose jointed. The handbrake was missing?! Frederick made up a hydraulic handbrake which works far better than the original ever could.

Tyres are a huge problem on GT5 Panteras, simply because they are not made anymore. Stock rims on GT5 are 10x15 front and 13x15 rear! The tyres are stock Pirelli P7 – 285/40/15 front and 335/35/15 on the rear. The front size is not available anywhere! The rear size is 335/35/15 (the same as a Lamborghini Countach) are available but were last made 4 years ago and are USD 600 each – so that means +/- R16 000.00 each landed.

I left the old cracked front tyres on from the time being and put Hoosier tyres on the rear, but cannot drive fast because these tyres are bad news waiting to happen! Many cars have been converted to custom made 17 inch mags because tyres this size available. I have modified a set of American Racing which will soon adorn the car.

Special thanks to:

Frederick Booysen – Restored the entire car

Motown Parts – Ralph and Terence

Ferolli Performance  - Tune up and exhaust