r/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).

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)

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?

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.

As a kid I always though the difference between the Porsche 956 and 962 was easy to spot - the 956 more upright, with the high wing and short tail, the 962 sleeker with long tail and low wing.

But as Andrew describes in this week’s new Heart & Soul video, I was completely wrong. Porsche had been using short tail and long tail bodies on their sports racing cars since the 1960s - kurzheck and langheck, to use their proper titles. Seen clearly on 917s, and then on both 956s and 962s in the 1980s.

Bellof’s 956 for the insane Nurburgring lap record wore the kurzheck body for maximum downforce (more than a contemporary F1 car some sources suggest) whilst all 956/962s at Le Mans wore the langheck bodies - the later 962s clocking 240mph on the Mulsanne straight (before the chicanes were added in 1990).

The *actual* difference between 956 and 962 is the length of the wheelbase - the 962s being slightly extended to put the drivers feet behind the front axle line, as mandated by regulations. So spotting the difference comes down to the gap between the front edge of the door and the wheel arch. As Andrew says, now you know!