DeTomaso Pantera
Perhaps not as well-known as Ferrari or Lamborghini, De Tomaso is another legend of the Italian sports car scene from the 1960s. Started by Alejandro De Tomaso, the company first started as a race car outfit. It soon moved to sports car markets with a lineup of successful models that featured Ford’s small block engines, five-speed transaxle gearbox, and aggressive design (via Car and Driver).
The first car was the Mangusta in 1967. But the Pantera, introduced in 1969, proved to be far more successful and popular, even though it shared a lot with the Mangusta. The key to Pantera’s success was because Alejandro DeTomaso got the deal with Ford Motor Company. This meant that De Tomaso’s products would be sold officially in America through the Lincoln-Mercury dealership network as a result.