I spotted this over the weekend while surfing from site to site and I came across this little number over at RideLust. So I ask, is this the most controversial 70’s ride that you may have never known about?
Friend of Hooniverse – Dustin Driver – wrote about this last week, and it seems that a UK Dealer is offering up this rare Panther Six, for £150,000, or about $220,000 at current exchange rates. The car is powered by a twin turbocharged 500 CID Cadillac V-8 lifted from the then current Eldorado. The Transaxle was also used and the entire drivetrain was placed behind the driver.
For more details on this phenomenal automobile, check out the Dealer Listing at Kidston SA, located in Geneva.
Oh look, there is also a video available for your viewing pleasure.
Image Credits – Kidston SA
Jeff Glucker
I prefer the black paint job and chrome grille of the original and the dashboard looks remarkably homemade. Also, the fairings for the side mirrors on the white car are unfortunate. Otherwise, the Panther is six kinds of spectacular awesomeness. It's a shame you couldn't really drive this, though – what do you do when you need new tires for those front wheels?
Well, if you can afford $220k for what's essentially a toy, $700-$800 apiece for custom-built tires probably won't make you blink. If the company that made the initial batch still has the molds (and they probably do), I'm sure they could be persuaded to make a short run of them.
The front tires were made by Pirelli, and they only made eight in total for an initial prototype batch. According to the founder of Panther, Pirelli's refusal to make the tires in series prevented the Panther Six from getting into real production, even though there were 15 orders on hand. I seriously doubt Pirelli has kept the prototype molds for 32 years.
Tire supplier issues were what essentially killed the Tyrell P34, even before FIA limited cars to 4 wheels. Damn tire manufacturers always messin' up my 6-wheeled shit.
Yeah, the bastards.
To be fair, it wasn't just tire supplier issues that killed it, there was also the fact that the much smaller diameter tires were spinning much faster than the larger wheel/tire assemblies that they replaced, causing heat build-up issues that led to grease breakdown and bearing failure.
Avon Tyres started making front tires for the P34 for historic racing in the late 90s. They also made TRX tires for a while after Michelin stopped making those. They (or Coker) could probably make tires for these.
I don't doubt at all that those molds still exist. Even if they don't, there are plenty of companies out there that will manufacture tires to your specifications, if you're willing to pay them enough to make it worth their while.
Reading the ad -http://www.kidston.com/view_car.php?id=93# – it would seem that tyres (let's be British for a moment) were not the real reason, funding was withdrawn and blaming tyres was a useful excuse.
I had gotten the same impression when I read the article. Actually, I think the manufacturer's decision not to make the tires was more a result of the decision not to produce the cars than the cause of it.
It's the Tyrell P34 of passenger cars! I bet a wheel alignment is a bitch though.
I'm no engineer, but twin-steer vehicles tend to be ridiculously complex, and pretty much impossible to make handle well with acceptable levels of tire wear.
That said, it makes sense that every twin-steer vehicle I can think of besides this, the P34, and the Covini c6w is a class 8 truck meant for primarily off-highway use.
UD, I have a challenge for you and your taste in automotive obscurities. Many years back, probably mid-80s, a car maker in the eastern bloc contemplated building a supercar. I remember reading about it in one of the buff books, probably R&T, since I had a subscription. The most distinctive feature of this car, aside from its commie roots, was that it would be a 2-stroke.
I have never found mention of this on teh internetz, and I don't remember any other details. I would be truly impressed to read a profile of this mythical beast here on Hooniverse.
Tatra MTX V8
I think you're right about it being the MTX. The Tatra mill was air-cooled but not two stroke, I'll chalk that one up to faulty memory. Thanks.
Or Melkus RS1000
"twin turbocharged 500 CID Cacillac V8"? A little vein just asploded in my head. Good lord, this thing is badass.
And that no man might drive or park, save he that had the mark, or the name of the car, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the wheels: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six wheels, 500 CID and 7 gages.
What kind of drugs are necessary to build the DeVille, Lima, and Kallista at the same time as the Solo and 6?
The very best. The very best.
That is one Mother Effing Ugly Piece of Shite.