Wow chaps! I really appreciate all the people who came in to offer their suggestions. Thank you for taking time out of your day to post and try to help. I didn’t expect so much help. Really, thanks.
Some great suggestions there. I can surely see that looking like a Pantera can be very subjective.
Some cars there have no passing resemblance and are in a very different category. But it’s all fine. Yes, sometimes something out of left field ends up being the ticket.
Since so many suggestions were given in the meantime, instead of quoting and replying one by one I will just address it all here. Easier.
But I want to thank everybody individually for posting suggestions.
So on with the suggestions :
Corvette: Couldn’t be further from what I want.
. I think even a 3rd generation Firebird looks more like a Pantera than an old Corvette.
McLaren/Coyote replica: This also has nothing to do with a Pantera. It’s a kit car replica of a track car. I’m also not sure about kit cars. They always look poor and cheap. But it’s an inspired and left field suggestion. Just not what I’m after.
Cizetta, Vector or anything by Isdera: I think this is the opposite direction of what I want. Those are low roof line, low stance cab-forward type sports cars. The Pantera is a different type.
Any Porsche: There is nothing by Porsche that would fit. Not their style I guess?
AC3000me: I had totally forgot about this car.
The 300 ME, the Fiero from the 70’s. Left field suggestion for sure. But it’s a very small car. It’s more Fiero, MR2, X19 than Pantera.
Esprit V8: I drove a few Esprits as I know people who have them. Even the 4 cyl cars drive very nicely. The V8 is indeed a nice sports car. But not really better in the problems side than a Pantera and not really much cheaper for a V8. And the wedgy shape is more dated than the swooping Pantera lines.
Ferrari 308: The 288 GTO would definitely fit. But we know how rare and how much that goes for. The 308 has too effeminate lines compare to the Pantera. I was never a fan of them, or 328, 348 etc.
Alfa Montreal: Nice GT. Not Pantera category. I also agree that any of these old Italians will probably be the same headache as the Pantera. If the style at least fit, OK. But the Montreal is not it. It suffers from the same design problems as most 60’s and some 70’s cars. It has that boat like look, which the Pantera, Countach etc do not.
Espada: Same as Montreal. Old Italian, boat style and on top of that it is also now very expensive.
Merak/Bora: I always liked these. The Bora V8 is gone up too much. But the weaker Merak V6 still can be had for reasonable money. I had considered this as an option for the Pantera. It’s more in line with a Lambo than a Pantera though. It doesn’t have the muscular look. Only sporty. But it’s a very nice looking car and I think could be a viable option. But yes, I doubt any less trouble than the Pantera. Probably more. At least the Pantera engine is bullet proof and easy to work on. An Italian engine on the other hand…
Bitter SC: I don’t think this fits. It’s a GT with a square look. More of a sedan type.
Bitter CD: Yes! This is a very nice looking car. I had totally forgotten about it. Thanks for bring it up. Probably the closest style wise to the Pantera, along with the Monteverdi. But rare and VERY expensive, right? How about headaches?
Monteverdi: This would be almost perfect. I had not considered it. The only thing that makes the Bitter CD more suitable is the ugly Monteverdi drop-butty rear end. It’s the same thing I hate about the De Tomaso Mangusta. A Monteverdi with a Bitter CD rear would be almost a Pantera.
.
Almost.
But it's impossible to get a Monteverdi Hai anyway.
Jalpa: Somehow looks similar to a Pantera. I think way more than a Countach does. But the sides are very straight. Doesn’t have the swooping lines the Pantera and Monteverid have. Also, they have gone up A LOT lately. Specially the more rare Silhouette. I think for the price I can get a Pantera. But are the old Lambos less headache?
Countach: Same as the Vector, Isdera and all the others that came since like Pagani, königsegg etc. It’s a cab-forward low profile sports car. Not the same proportions as the Pantera at all. I think people say it looks like a Pantera because of the rear end. High up with the quad exausts coming out, which I still think Lamborghini stole from the Pantera (1970) for their Countach (1971). The Miura rear end is much more GT40 than Pantera for example. But the Countach is wrong. It’s made almost entirely of flat panels. Wedgy. The Pantera is much more round. Also, Countach is crazy expensive anyway.
GT40 replica: The GT40 is also a great design. It’s more Lambo than Pantera again. But from all of the very low sports car types like the Countach, Merak etc, is the one closest to a Pantera. The problem is an original costs what, 500K? And replicas are hit and miss. I know there are several. Some looking nothing like the real thing. And if there are good ones, are they cheaper than an original Pantera? Since the original GT40 is so high, how much does a great replica costs?
Pantera from the U.S.: Yes, they are much cheaper there. Probably because for them it’s only a shell with a Mustang run of the mill engine. But also because Ford only sold them there from 1971 to 1974. Those are the most problematic years. Later on many of the problems were taken care of. If you buy one from a Pantera club member then they probably did all the work. But then I doubt it would be cheaper than here. The cheap ones in the U.S are the ones in bad condition.
But I see the point of all those saying I won’t be happy with anything but a Pantera. You are probably right. But this thread already brought cars up which I had not thought of and that would quite fit, such as the Bitter CD and Monteverdi. But they are very rare. So maybe somebody will dig out something else which fits and is not so rare.
It’s really not about being ultra-exotic for me. I don’t care if it was a mass produced Japanese car. It’s about capturing the same spirit as the Pantera. That muscle car+sports car blend I mentioned. Most of the above suggestions are either only sports cars or straight boat like GTs. The Pantera somehow stays in between. Maybe I’m not making sense for you. It’s hard to explain. Sorry.
But again thank you very much for all the contributions. I’m taken aback by how many have tried to help. I hope I have addressed all the suggestions and not left anybody out. And please don’t feel I’m shooting you down if your suggestion didn’t fit. I still appreciate it. Keep them coming.
Thanks to all of you.