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De tomaso Longchamp GTS Coupe (LHD) 5,769 cc 1974

General description : Formally owned by Le Mans race ‘Ace’ Claude Dubois
Uprated to GTS specification by the factory
1 of just 412 car’s built worldwide
Highly desirable Campagnolo alloy wheels fitted and ANSA dual exhaust
Tom Tijarda design, American muscle meets Italian panache
Possibly one of the ‘best’ driving examples available

1974 De Tomaso Longchamp GTS Coupe For Sale in London (LHD)

Introduced at the 1972 Turin Motor Show, the Longchamp was the last model ever made by the De Tomaso-Ghia-Ford collaboration.  A luxury, sporty 2-door 2+2 coupe; (some say a re-naming of the moth-balled Zonda prototype) it was De Tomaso’s reply to the Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC.

As with the Zonda, the Longchamp was built on a shortened version of the Deauville chassis, making it a lighter, coupe version of the sedan.  The styling of the vehicle was pre-dated by an earlier prototype from Tom Tjaarda, the Ghia Marica, but whilst the design was similar, De Tomaso had wanted the Longchamp to resemble the Mercedes as much as possible.

Production of Series 1 began in 1973.  A three-speed Ford automatic transmission was initially the only offering, however approximately 17 cars were built featuring a ZF 5-speed manual transmission.  The Longchamp had power-assisted rack-and-pinion steering and employed essentially the same suspension set-up as the Deauville; fully independent, with inboard, vented disc-brakes and dual shock absorbers at the rear.  These combined to allow confident handling and an exceptionally stable and comfortable ride.

The coupe’s interior was fully trimmed in leather, including the seats, door panels, dashboard and console areas.  Electric windows and a tilt steering column were also included, as were dual gas tanks and fuel pumps.

For 1980 the modernised series 2 was introduced, with slight modifications also occurring later, including an updated interior and exterior package.

At the 1980 Turin Motor Show De Tomaso presented a new version of the car called the Longchamp GTSE; essentially a Longchamp with (European Pantera GT5) Campagnolo wheels and fibre-glass, flared wheel arches.  The suspension was modified to cope with the wider Pirelli P7 tyres, resulting in an improvement in cornering power.  A Longchamp cabriolet ‘Spyder’ variant also appeared at the show, made by Carrozerria Pavesi of Milan.

Approximately four hundred and ten Longchamp were built in all, with only sixteen produced as convertibles.  Only a few of these were also GTS models, making the Longchamp GTS Spyder an exceptionally rare and desirable machine.  Although sold until 1989, is it suggested that the final Longchamps were produced in 1986.

Finished in steel Blu metallic coachwork with Nero hide and factory fitted 3-speed automatic gearbox. European delivered new and first registered 23rd November 1974 making our car 1 of the first 300 cars referred to the 2000 series. The Longchamp was first acquired new by internationally renowned Le Mans race ‘ace’ Claude Dubois ( Dubois was a nine-time starter of the Le Mans 24 Hours as a driver, and a long-time member of Equipe National Belge team. After racing he went into team ownership, and Dubois’ DeTomaso entry to the 1972 Le Mans 24 Hours was the only one of the Panteras entered that year which finished the gruelling endurance race) It was during Mr. Dubois ownership that the car was sent back to the factory in Modena to be uprated to GTS specification ( invoice for works on file.) The pizzazz of the GTS variant included: fitment of flared wheel arches, Campagnolo Pantera wheels and rear springs changed and made stiffer to name just a hand of the changes.

This particular example #02067 is well known to DD Classics, we had the privilege of selling the car some 5 years ago to its last lucky owner, where it formed part of significant car collection. Having had many of these iconic cars over the last 40 years, this Longchamp is possibly one of the best driving examples available.

Complete with a wealth of invoices, original owner-driver handbook and factory supplied sales brochure.

Ready for immediate viewing at DD Classics Dealership in London, please call 0208 878 3355 for more information.

http://ddclassics.com/car-listing/de-tomaso-longchamp-gts-coupe-lhd/

1974 De tomaso Longchamp GTS Coupe (LHD) 5,769 cc is listed sold on ClassicDigest in Surrey by DD Classics for £59950.

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