Background
Alejandro de Tomaso was a driven, very ambitious Argentinian racing driver and entrepreneur who settled in Modena, Italy, in 1955. Out of convenience and to better blend in, he adapted his first name to its Italian version, Alessandro.
Modena was then the world centre of motorsport and de Tomaso soon started building single seaters including a considerable number of Formula Juniors. A plethora of models were born from his creative mind and relentless efforts which would take him as a team owner all the way to F1. His first road car was a brilliant concept called the Vallelunga, a gorgeous very light mid rear-engined Berlinetta with a 1,5 litre Ford Kent engine. It featured a backbone chassis and its brilliant very agile handling was a revelation. Only fifty were built as de Tomaso was already on to the next project: the Mangusta.
The Mangusta was born from serendipity. Our man acquired many companies in his life and had recently bought the Ghia design firm. One rear mid-engine design study, the shape that would become the Mangusta, was entrusted to Ghia’s young and very talented Giorgetto Giugiaro who penned one of the all time beauties of the automotive world, a truly iconic design. It had initially been created for Iso Rivolta whose racing minded head engineer Giotto Bizzarrini was pushing in that direction but Iso owner Renzo Rivolta, far more Grand Touring oriented, decided he was agaisnt the idea of a rear mid-engine model and turned down the project. Therefore de Tomaso wondering what to do with it decided he would make it his own next model, essentially a scaled-up Vallelunga with longer wider backbone chassis –based on the stillborn de Tomaso P70 Can Am racer- and a Ford V8.
Why the name you ask? De Tomaso had just fallen out with Carrol Shelby, the builder of the famous Cobras, and so our man Alessandro in a typical display of his fiery temperament chose to name his new car after the only animal who is expert at defeating Cobra snakes: the Mangusta, which is Italian for Mongoose.
Combining impossibly sober lines with uncannily perfect proportions, the Mangusta has been leaving onlookers speechless since its 1966 launch. Its trademark feature, the "Ali di Gabbiano" gull wing engine covers always stop people in their tracks. The engine chosen was a Ford 302 Cubic inch V8 for the US market and a more powerful 289 for Europe. Early Mangustas had single flip up headlights before a twin headlight configuration, better suited to the car’s pure yet aggressive styling, became standard.
The inside is roomy and will accommodate most drivers comfortably. In your hands is a strikingly unique steering wheel. Made by Ferrero it is partly in wood and partly in black leather. The engine, while right behind your head, is surprisingly quiet even on long trips - contrary to many first generation rear mid-engined exotics like the Lamborghini Miura. The steering is very light and pleasant to deal with, the clutch and brake pedals do take some effort but that is part of the experience with these cars. The performance is what you expect, very satisfying with major US V8 grunt. These are very docile non-stressed and therefore durable engines which are also far, far less expensive to maintain than complex Italian engines.
Driving a “Goose” as they are nicknamed is a very satisfying experience...that is once you have torn yourself from contemplating its beauty.
The handling is good though a driver should be mindful of 70% of the weight being on the rear wheels, which can make the steering a tad light, especially at speed. Visibility is excellent and there is a generous trunk in the front allowing sufficient luggage for a holiday. There are also very useful storage cubicles in front of the rear wheels.
Always an extremely rare sight since only 402 were made between 1966 and 1971, the Mangusta never fails to draw a crowd at any car event or in the street.
It is in the opinion of many more beautiful than its ubiquitous successor the Pantera, which was made in far greater numbers. You will see 100 Panteras before you see a Mangusta, including at major de Tomaso International meetings.
It is interesting to note that while countless Panteras have been heavily modified, the Mangusta is such a pure design with a formidable presence, that most of the cars were indeed left stock. Modifying a Mangusta is commonly considered sacrilege and indeed very few of them were; they are thankfully rare exceptions. This does not mean that finding a good example is an easy task, but the car on offer here might be your chance.
