De Tomaso

Podcast Episode: 0156
What Ever happened to De Tomaso?

    No other company did it better when they merged American muscle with Italian engineering.  So, why did De Tomaso disappear from the world?  AutoLooks has the answers to that and more, as we take a look back at this once great brand.

    Many American companies have tried and failed at building an American-Italian car.  With many failed attempts, it seems odd that a man from Argentina would be the one who would get this formula right.  Now, this company didn't start out this way, but their best model was.

   Since its creation, De Tomaso has been one of those back of mind sports car companies.  Building vehicles we all loved, but truly forgot about.  The Pantera was their biggest product, surviving over 20 years and a multitude of different ownerships.  But in the end this product, even as good as it was, was not strong enough to carry this company into the future.

    The end of times came when it gave up control of Maserati, its only marketplace leader division.  Without a larger product to help prop up its bottom line, De Tomaso did not have enough in its stable to keep it going through the 90's.  Now with the dawn of the 2000's and the demise of the niche sports car world, De Tomaso was eventually going to fade out.

    But like many other great marks of the past, someone is always waiting in the bushes to snap up these great properties and bring them back to life.  This time around it was the likes of Ideal Team Ventures and their partners at Apollo who would help to bring back this great company. 

    Today we all wonder if ITV will do more than just a one model lineup for this once great brand.  Will De Tomaso get to live on, or will it ride out once more into the sunset?  Only time will tell now, as we inevitably wait for the return of the true De Tomaso brand.

Everett J.
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