OF ALL THE COMPANIES LIKELY TO MAKE a mid-'80s car mag cover star, you wouldn't have bet on Panther. Founded in 1972 by fashion designer and some-time saloon car racer Bob Jankel, Panther spent the '70s making a twee Jaguar SS100 replica, a faux 1930s saloon with Austin 1800 doors, a restyled Triumph Dolomite and, latterly, another fake pre-war roadster called the Lima. Most notoriously, in 1977 it created the Panther 6, a monstrous six-wheeled convertible powered by an 8.2-litre twin-turbo Cadillac V8, just two of which were made.
This zany freak show carried on until the end of 1979 when Panther ran out of money. Fortunately, soon afterwards South Korean industrialist Young C Kim visited London for a classic car auction, spotted a Lima outside his hotel and attempted to order one only to find production had halted. So he decided to buy the company.
This story is from the March 2023 edition of Evo UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the March 2023 edition of Evo UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
RENAULT SPORT MÉGANE R26 R
It's possibly the greatest hot hatch ever made, but it took true dedication and extreme measures to create it. This is the story of how the Mégane R26.R came to be
THE ART OF THE ESTATE
Fast estates have always been cool, but today they can take many forms. We pitch Peugeot's updated hybrid 508 PSE against Skoda's more conventional but equally compelling Octavia vRS
HYBRID WORKING
Bentley's new Continental GT will be its most powerful and most advanced road car to date. A drive of a pre-production example provides our first taste of its new V8 hybrid powertrain
THE LONG GOODBYE
After powering Bentleys for more than 20 years, the magnificent W12 engine has finally ceased production. We go for a farewell drive in the model where it all began - and look forward to the new Crewe generation
A DESIGN FOR LIFE
As a star of the very first issue of evo, Audi's design icon is a car entwined with this magazine's history. But now it's no more. We drive an early Mk1 quattro alongside a late Mk3 RS to find out if it enters retirement with grace
BACK ON TRACK?
After the slightly under-achieving M4 CSL, could the new M4 CS be the sweet-spot in the M3/M4 range?
FAMILY AFFAIR
Thirty years ago, the McLaren F1 set new benchmarks with its speed and purity; now Gordon Murray's latest supercar, the GMA T.50, promises to do the same. We drive them back to back
Aston Martin DBX707
Much-needed interior overhaul, plus other mid-life updates, ready the DBX for its second act
Radical SR1 XXR
Radical's entry-level racing car has been re-released in enhanced XXR guise. We find out just how good it is in the most revealing way - by racing it
VW Golf R
The Mk8 Golf R has never really wowed us. But can the Mk8.5 change all that? A drive in a prototype version provides some clues
