u/theintercooler

In this week’s podcast Andrew Frankel and Dan Prosser discuss 1970s sports and supercars, one of cars in question being a De Tomaso Pantera.

Overlooked by some at the time for having the temerity to use an American V8, it’s arguably now the bargain of the bunch.

Countachs have gone stratospheric, a Ferrari Berlinetta Boxer will cost you double of a Pantera, and even the common as muck Porsche 930 Turbo will cost you £200k if you want a properly sorted example.

So if you want that iconic bedroom wall poster car of the era - is the Pantera the way to go? Early project cars can go for £50k and up, whilst a gorgeous and super rare RHD GT5 with only 6k miles went for £161k (plus fees) at Iconics in February.

If you’re buying a 70s supercar, what are you going for? (And we haven’t even mentioned the Maserati Bora).

In Ti’s latest Heart & Soul video on YouTube (link below), Dan Prosser argues he’d rather have a Daytona than its modern descendant, the 12Cilindri.

Once optioned up they’d be a similar price – but one of them is going to depreciate rather a lot more. How important is the extra power, handling capability and refinement of the modern car? Can it beat the sense of occasion the Daytona delivers?

How about you? Any other examples where you’d rather have the older car?

After just spotting this Cayman R with a pair of bikes on the roof, it got us thinking at Ti: what are the most entertainingly inappropriate uses of a sports car you’ve attempted? We’re thinking tip runs, Christmas tree collections, load hauling - the works.

Please share, and of course - all pics welcome.

(Thanks to @delorean4267 on IG for the DMC pic)

Andrew Frankel recently went to the south of France to drive the new DB12 S - effectively a remarketed mid-life facelift of the DB12. The embargo lifts today, so we can finally share what he thought of it:

‘When I first drove it in 2023 it was clear to me that the DB12 was both the greatest unlimited production Aston Martin of the modern era and the finest car of its type that there was. And the best thing I can tell you about the DB12 S is that the statement holds as true for this subtly, fluently and effectively revised car as it ever did.’

Is it good enough to turn round Aston Martin’s financial fortunes? Why has the company struggled so much in recent years, despite having the best range of models it’s ever had - Vantage, Vanquish, DB12 (now S) and DBX 707 all at or near the top of their respective classes?

What do you think?

Today’s Ti podcast is about road trips: what differentiates them from long car journeys, what the right cars are to take, and all the things that can go wrong.

What are the best or most memorable road trips you’ve ever had? What are the worst things you’ve had go wrong?

Very late example of the ultimate Integrale - look at those arches, and those seats 😍

Not your standard fare at Silverstone Premier Inn this morning - this incredible Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 Cabriolet Pinin Farina nestled in beside a Citroen MPV.

It’s an extremely rare and special car - 105bhp, which was huge for the period. Fewer than 10 ever built in RHD. This particular example was brought to the UK in 1950, and finally underwent a full resto in 2009.

Some facts:

The 6C 2500 used a 2,443cc twin-cam inline-six engine, in various states of tune (Sport, Super Sport, Competizione)

•	Bodies were coachbuilt — Pinin Farina, Touring, Ghia and others all produced versions

•	Production numbers were tiny; 458 Super Sports were made including all coupe/cabriolet/spider variants, and across all coachbuilders

•	These were flagship grand tourers of their era, used by celebrities and heads of state

•	Note the amazing Bakelite knobs in the interior and steering column mounted gearchange.

•	Value for this example in the hundreds. Of thousands, obviously.

And as a double Premier Inn whammy - how about this Bristol 409 too? Even rarer than the Alfa, but not quite as valuable.

Which would you have, if you were in the market?

The Mercedes costs more, weighs more, and has less power. But it has two things the 911 can’t match: noise, and torque.

Some stats if it helps, for the Carrera GTS vs GT 55 in today’s Ti twin test (link in comment below)

Mercedes-AMG GT 55 Premium Plus

Engine: 3982cc, V8, naturally aspirated

Transmission: 9-speed automatic, 4WD

Power: 471bhp @ 6500rpm

Torque: 516lb ft @ 2250rpm

Weight: 1908kg (DIN)

Power-to-weight: 247bhp/tonne

0-62mph: 3.9sec

Top speed: 183mph

Price: £149,800

Porsche 911 Carrera GTS T-Hybrid

Engine: 3591cc, flat-six, turbo, hybrid

Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch, RWD

Power: 533bhp

Torque: 450lb ft

Weight: 1595kg

Power-to-weight: 334bhp/tonne

0-62mph: 3.0sec

Top speed: 193mph

List price: £137,900

Ti are delighted to announce that Alex Brundle has joined the writing team. In his first story, published today, he examines why Max Verstappen (amongst other F1 drivers) are now craving time in lower formulae. Here's an extract from the story (link to full piece in comment below):

-------------------------

So why the influx of F1 stars in pursuit of ‘real racing’, if that’s not what’s going on? Are they mistaken and soon to become bored with the tin top side of life?

In Verstappen’s case, one could argue that we have confused the formula with the venue in understanding his aims. I’ve written many love letters to the Nürburgring. I’ll refrain from another, but the nature of the circuit demands natural driver skill in the absence of practice, direction, or information.

Whether it’s another GT3 car or a Dacia Logan, he’ll be overtaking seemingly infinite times in this year’s 24 hours; the Nordschleife strips the competitor of the capacity to deeply analyse their performance. The lap is too long, too complex, too unforgiving; there is no wheel-speed data trace worth looking at.

As a result, purity arises from the circuit irrespective of the formula in a way we might consider historical or even rose-tinted.

When Stewart or Clark drove a fine lap in 1960s Formula 1, the grid could watch the car’s attitude trackside, its engine note or even slip out of the pits behind them to try to follow and gain a sense of their rhythm around the lap.

Whether driving another car or watching, an onlooker could only theorise and marvel. Many viewers dream of driving or perhaps, if we are honest, ‘driving best’ – in a way that no other could imitate. The Nürburgring is perhaps the place in circuit racing where the nature and length of the lap render brilliance most difficult to copy.

A natural talent like Max’s will revel in the obstacles the rest of the field faces in reverse-engineering his performances. Plus there’s an old-school mystique that heightens the Nürburgring’s charm. But Max’s respectful approach to Nürburgring’s endurance series has made it clear he’s hardly pot hunting; perhaps then it’s the process rather than the result he’s looking for.

We’ll be interviewing Dave Richards at 9.30am, Mark Blundell at 12.30pm and Dan Geoghegan at 2pm in the MSUK building. Come and say hi!

Today’s story in Ti raises an interesting question. Whats the difference between ‘car people’ and bikers? Is there actually any?

Gez Medinger argues the only difference is exposure - if you like cars, then spend time around bikes and you will inevitably catch the bug.

Your thoughts?

This W116 450 SEL 6.9 is quite the beast. 286bhp, 0-60 in 7.4 seconds (in the days when autos were slow) and over 140mph on the autobahn. In 1975 it was the fastest saloon car in the world.

And if you’re wondering about the ride height, well that will be the hydro-pneumatic suspension, currently depressurised.

A huge thank you for everyone who submitted questions for Andrew and Dan for the latest podcast - we didn’t get time to ask them all, many of them got answered through the discussion.

We’re going to try to slip a few more into upcoming Ask The Intercooler midweek podcasts.

Hope you enjoyed the pod!

Everyone has one car they bought that taught them a mighty lesson. Maybe a plethora of them. What was yours?

(And by the way, in today’s story on Ti, Gez Medinger tells all about the DeLorean that he bought drunk on eBay that had spent half its life decomposing in a Florida bog)