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title: De Tomaso · HICONIUM
description: "Alejandro de Tomaso’s Modena house hung Ghia bodies over Ford V8s — the Argentine cattle brand on the nose, Lincoln-Mercury showrooms out front."
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# De Tomaso

Modena, Italy · est. 1959

Ford muscle in Ghia tailoring — Modena's Argentine outsider.

Alejandro de Tomaso left Buenos Aires for Modena, raced, then built supercars the pragmatic way: Italian chassis and coachwork around Detroit V8s that any Lincoln-Mercury dealer could service. The Mangusta and Pantera made the formula famous.

Models 0

Top value —

Period 1959–

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## Every De Tomaso on file

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The house

## Ford muscle in Ghia tailoring — Modena's Argentine outsider.

Founded 1959 Alejandro de Tomaso, Argentine-born racing driver, established the company in Modena in October 1959 — racing cars first, road cars from 1963. The badge A cattle brand The T-shaped mark is the brand of de Tomaso's Argentine ranching family, set on the Argentine flag turned on its side. Mangusta 401 built 1967–1971, Giugiaro-drawn at Ghia over a backbone chassis; factory tallies say 401 or 402. Mangusta is Italian for mongoose — the animal that kills cobras. Pantera ≈7,260 over 21 years Tom Tjaarda's steel monocoque with the Ford 351 Cleveland amidships, sold 1971–1992; Ford moved 5,000-plus through Lincoln-Mercury before pulling out after 1974. The empire years Maserati 1976–1993 De Tomaso also owned Ghia, Vignale, Innocenti and Moto Guzzi at various points — an industrial patron as much as a constructor.

Selected milestones

### A bloodline, not a list.

1. 1959

  Modena, via Buenos Aires

  De Tomaso Automobili is founded to build racing cars; the badge carries the family's Argentine cattle brand.
2. 1967

  The Mangusta

  Giugiaro's mid-engined coupé with centre-hinged gullwing engine covers debuts on the modified P70 backbone — Ford V8 behind the seats.
3. 1971

  Pantera through Lincoln-Mercury

  The Tjaarda-styled Pantera reaches American showrooms; the L of 1972 adds the black safety bumpers and the build quality Road Test names Import Car of the Year for 1973.
4. 1974

  Ford steps out

  The US programme ends after roughly six thousand cars; Modena keeps building the Pantera in small series for another eighteen years.
5. 1976

  Maserati joins the house

  De Tomaso takes control of Maserati and runs it until the 1993 sale to Fiat — the outsider now a Modenese institution.
6. 2004

  The founder's era closes

  After Alejandro de Tomaso's death in 2003 the original company is liquidated; later revivals carry the name under new ownership.

What defines De Tomaso

### Pragmatic exotica

Italian design and chassis craft over proven American V8s — supercar theatre without supercar fragility.

### The dealer network matters

Selling the Pantera through Lincoln-Mercury put a mid-engined Italian in reach of Main Street — and built the volume no rival matched.

### A racer's restlessness

From Formula 1 constructors' entries to buying Maserati outright, de Tomaso treated the industry itself as his racetrack.