Mangusta thread

Giorgetto (small child): "The engine is in the back under this huge glass window. So you can see it"
Suit (approx 45 yrs old) : "Why?"
Giorgetto: "Because it looks cool"
Suit: "How does the boot open?"
Giorgetto: "Like this..." (demonstrates glass gullwing-hinged boot doors on a model)
Suit: "Erm... how do you actually get access to the engine with the hinge for the doors running across it?"
Giorgetto: "Shut up"
Suit: "Also, it appears to only be 40 inches high. How will we build this and give the occupants enough head room?"
Giorgetto: "Shut up"

awesome...!! you have no idea what designers have to put up with these dayz. instead of suits in clinics you have to answer to some pregnant house wife in kansas.

 

yes a GT40 is like 10x harder. ive sat in a real unmolested original GT40 it took like 5-10 mins just to get in and buckle up. only other street car that was harder to get in was the thinly disguised McLaren M6GT of the 60's. miuras and mangustas are easy in comparisons..

cheers

hf

 

I believe that the GT40 is likely the most difficult car to get in and out of. The door sills must be 10 inches wide. My Bizzarrini GT5300 is also a challenge. The door sills are gas tanks so they are a few inches higher than the seats and the steering wheel does not move. So, at 6'1" I had to develop a technique for getting in and out. You can see from this picture how low it is. The Bizzarrini is 43" to the top of the roof. However, once I am in it is comfortable.
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+1 I have a Superformance GT40. Getting underway in that car is like strapping into a jet fighter and takes some time. My Mangusta is a breeze by comparison. I suspect the car in the article may have suffered from deferred maintenance. A properly adjusted shift linkage on a Mangusta with sound engine and transaxle mounts should shift without problems. And what's with the engine hatch release issue? If his car's chassis would flex enough on an uneven surface to interfere with the action of the hatch release cables I'd say there was something more serious going on. And how well can you get to know a car in three months? Did he try to assess and resolve the issues? Articles like this one just serve to perpetuate popular, ill-founded myth and spread mis-information.

 

Even though I have driven as many cars as a lesser journalist, as stated it took some time to tame the Mangusta. It wasn't the HP or the torque as I had many times driven much more powerfull cars. The car is lower, and tighter than all it's contemporaries. The GT40 and the Countach visually give you warning getting in or out is going to be difficult, whereas the Mangusta looks normal. Yes, at first the little quirks you were warned about are noticeable; steering lightly offset to seat and pedals, but that is forgotten in about 10 minutes. Yes, you do sit low, but the bottom of the doors are high enough to clear the curb without creating an issue getting in or out. It takes 15-20 times getting in and out to find a proper technique (but then I am a bit round around the middle). The beauty for me is that the driving position was just as my driving instructor had told it should be; arms slightly bent and when the leg is fully extended just beyond the full depression of the brake pedal, and the seat is not too strait, too hard nor too narrow. The shift patterns was not hard to learn, was not sloppy but then it isn't as rigid as a Tremec with a short shifter. The car envelops you and that is what takes some getting used to. It's as if soem of the newer cars just have too many adjustments and this one is set-up just right for me (took me several weeks to get used to the quarter and rear view - or rather lack of). I don't say the car is perfectly balanced, but then the use of modern radial tires (and some common sense) make the performance and ride very Grand-Touring like. The car is easily serviceable and still quite affordable, yet requires some research if one want to keep it original (as parts source is quite varied). Oh and by the way my car is not a trailer or garage queen, it gets out a few times a week and I do not hesitate to go on road trips.
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I agree with everything Denis has said about the Goose. He did neglect to mention the ridiculously heavy clutch, but that is a benefit in that it allows you to enjoy driving while doing your leg exercises. Oh, and he does drive his car well and often. Here's a shot from one of those road trips.

Mark
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DenisC and Daryl,

Thank you both for the Mangusta testimonials. I have always loved these cars and someday I suspect I will have one. But for now I am enjoying my Bizzarrini, Iso Grifo and Iso Rivolta. Beautiful pictures, thanks.

 

Too true, too true.
I just love the thought of Giugaro as a 12 year old kid in an oversized suit presenting the car to the board.
"Any optional extras Mr Giugaro"
"Guns. Some guns"

 

A Goose transaction right now in Sweden aswell.

 

Saw that! Oh to have a free $80K to move on that...I'd pawn my E-Type for that! Why is there a single headlight on this one? Was that factory?

I thought they were dual...

 

NJ, This car has single headlight as an estimated 50 cars (from mid '69 on) destined to the US market were 'modified' at the factory to meet US headlight height regulation.

Just as 9-10 cars were also factory 'modified' to RH drive configuration for the UK/Australian markets.

Denis
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Beat me to it!

 

There have been 1 or 2 that have been "de-modified" but I cringe what it would take to reproduce the headlight bezels.

 

Jay, SteveW if I am not mistaken has imported repair pieces, here are pics of some front ends that were in the factory early in 2009. Although I only know of GregT getting one of those; he got the front 12 or so inched of the nose.

The other car from the northeast must have been done with parts from a salvage car.
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Let´s see some more pictures of Mangustas......

Here is one.

Thanks
Jorgen
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Wow, those may set a new price level for Panteras. So, it is great if you are a Pantera owner.

 

Here is one attached and there are more here:

http://www.carguychronicles.com/2011/01/mangusta-maximum-form-minimal-function.html

and here: http://***********************/2011/01/de-tomaso-mangusta.html
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Looking great in light blue metallic (Azzurro?)!
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Fantastic car. I love to see these cars on the streets. What is that item on the side that looks like a side light? The one nearest the door.

 

The market is finally catching up.
Too bad

 

Here is another great looking Mangusta.
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Hello

I am in the market for a Mangusta.

Looking for a car that need some work, but not a basket case.

Please let me know what you have or any leads are appreciated.

Thanks
Jorgen