De Tomaso Pantera Caught Exiting Factory

We’ve all heard the rumors that the rebirth of the De Tomaso brand, which is being architected by the Italian automaker’s new CEO, Gian Mario Rossignolo, will include an all important two-seater. We don’t know weather we will call it a sportscar or a supercar yet, but we can say that, whatever shape it takes, we’ll prefer it over the Deauville.

The big news is that we can tell you what it looks like now... roughly, as a heavily camouflaged version was spotted leaving the De Tomaso factory for testing. The 21st century Pantera prototype has a really nice silhouette and spots some massive lateral air intakes and a brilliant engine sound, with plenty of burbles pops and bangs.

There are no official details of the car available right now, but rumors suggest that it will be powered by an aluminum bodied V8 sourced from Ford, just like the original Pantera. Power output is expected to be in the region of 550 hp, making this a match for the Audi R8 V10.

The car is expected to be revealed this year, most likely at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November.

The only De Tomaso car at the moment is the Deauville, which made its debut in Geneva and is a resurrection of a model from 1970s. The five-seater sedan features 2.8-liter turbocharged V6 under the hood producing 300-horsepower and 295 lb.ft. (400 Nm) of torque from 2,000 to 5,000 rpm.

The last piece of the De Tomaso puzzle will arrive next year in the form of a limousine.