22 POCA Profiles 2001 No. 2

2001 De Tomaso GuaráStory and Photos by Mike Drew

De Tomaso of

T he De Tomaso Guará was firstunveiled back in 1994, and at thetime it represented a giant leapforward for De Tomaso who,

Ferrari F-355 and the Porsche 911Turbo, the Guará represents the high-water mark of De Tomaso engineeringachievement. Starting with a cleansheet of paper, De Tomaso engineersdesigned a new chassis that was a com-plete departure from the Pantera, andin fact hearkened back to the earliestDe Tomaso design, the Vallelunga. For2001, the car has received a few subtledesign updates which warrant givingthe car a detailed look.

The heart of the Guara is its uniquecentral spine, a sophisticated trapezoi-dal-shaped extrusion of aluminum andcomposite honeycomb, whose hollowcenter doubles as the car’s 21-gallonfuel tank. A lightweight alloy subframebolts to the front to support the front

with the Pantera, had spent the previ-ous 25 years building what was essen-tially the same car. While the Panterawas certainly state-of-the-art in theearly ‘70’s, it had grown decidedly longin the tooth by the time productionceased in 1991, although admittedly theNuevo Pantera did boast some usefulchassis improvements.

Rather than making another smallevolutionary design change, De Toma-so was determined to once again re-es-tablish his company as a maker of cut-ting-edge cars. Designed to competein the marketplace with the likes of the

suspension and cooling system, whilean elaborate forged aluminum castingbolts to the rear and supports the en-gine and gearbox. Another large ribbedcasting between the engine andtransaxle forms the bellhousing and alsoprovides the anchor points for the rearsuspension.

At a time when competitors wereequipping their cars with Pantera-styledouble wishbone-and-coilover suspen-sions, De Tomaso utilized the latestFormula-1-derived design, where un-equal length A-arms are controlled byco-axial Koni springs and dampersmounted horizontally and operated bypushrod. The British race-engineeringfirm KIA helped design the suspensionto produce anti-dive and anti-squat ge-

2001 No. 2 POCA Profiles 23

the Quartersuch as the Ferrari F-40and the Porsche 911Turbo. Massive four-piston front caliperssqueeze 13-inch venti-lated and cross-drilleddiscs, while smaller,lighter rear calipers anddiscs (ventilated but notdrilled) are used in therear. They are actuatednot by a power-assistedservo, but rather by twoconventional non-powermaster cylinders work-ing in tandem, for supe-rior pedal feel and infi-nite front/rearadjustability.

The Guará’s uniquewheels are cast in mag-

The central spine is the heart of the Guará’s chassis. The front subframe holdsthe suspension and radiator, while two massive extrusions are joined by a cradlewhich supports the engine. The rear suspension attaches to the rear casting

The front suspension arms and steering bolt to a triangular subframe

Rocker arms actuate the inboard mounted frontshocks. Note the sophisticated swaybar

ometry. Thewheelbase is102.75 inches,with a 64.2 inchfront track and65.4 inch reartrack. The turn-ing circle is avery respectable35.75 feet.

The brakesare sourcedfrom Brembo,and are nomi-nally identical tothose used onother Supercars

nesium, following a long-standing DeTomaso tradition, and are 8.5J x 18”front and 10.5J x 18” rear, fitted withMichelin MXX3TL tires in 245/40 and285/35 sizes.

The Guará was originally engi-neered to utilize a 4-liter all-aluminumBMW V-8, but shortly after productionbegan, the 4.6 liter double overheadcam four-valve Ford V-8 became thepowerplant of choice. Originally pro-ducing 305 horsepower, the latest ver-sion features subtle internal tweakswhich boost the power to 320.

The early Guarás utilized a Getragsix-speed gearbox whose input shaftdidn’t line up properly with the engine,requiring the use of an intermediatetransfer gear between them. This hadthe effect of altering the gearing to ren-der first gear so low as to be almost use-less, and also generated an objection-able howling noise. The current pro-duction cars use a different designwhich eliminates any such engineeringcompromises.

The design of the body has neverbeen formally attributed to any indi-vidual or design house, but it is rumoredto have emanated from a firm known

24 POCA Profiles 2001 No. 2

as Synthesis Design in the Turin area.The body is formed in several piecesout of a sophisticated composite mate-rial (but not carbon fiber.) The car hasrecently been facelifted with a new nosesection which features two deeply scal-loped vents to help extract hot air fromthe radiator. This is the second time

the nose has been changed; originallyit was rather plain with no venting what-soever, then later one wide, broad ventwas introduced.

Considerable time was spent on thedesign of the interior, which is vastlysuperior to any previous De Tomaso au-tomobiles. Due to the early association

with BMW, virtually all the instru-ments, controls and vents are lifted di-rectly from the 5-Series BMW, whichis decidedly a good thing.

Fine leather is used throughout,with suede atop the dashboard to pre-vent unwanted reflections. The dash-board has two pods, one containing the

The front brakes feature massive calipers and fully vented and drilled rotors, while the rear brakesutilize smaller calipers and smaller vented rotors for lower unsprung weight

De Tomaso has done a masterful job of packaging. The highly advancedrear suspension attaches to castings, one between the engine and gear-box and the other attached to the rear of the gearbox

main instruments and the otherthe glovebox; these areswitched for right-hand-drivecars. Radio and HVAC con-trols occupy the center of thedash, mounted on carbon-fiberpanels, with the cigarettelighter and window switchesmounted on the center consoleat the base of the shifter.

The shift knob is a workof art in itself, machined frombillet aluminum. It goes with-out saying that a proper Italianchrome shift gate is used to de-lineate the six forward gearsplus reverse.

The seats are importedfrom Germany minus seat cov-ers; they are then covered withthe same leather used to line thecabin. They are thin and light-weight, offering ample supportand telegraphing road feel to

2001 No. 2 POCA Profiles 25

the body without beinguncomfortable. Al-though conventionalthree-point seat belts arefitted, tellingly the seatis configured to allowfour-point shoulder har-nesses, which are a fac-tory option.

The first Guaráshad virtually no storagespace at all, but in a con-cession to practicality, a5-cubic-foot hard plastictrunk with its own lid isnow installed atop thegearbox.

While the designmay be highly contem-porary, the actual con-struction of the Guará isdecidedly old-school,Italian artisanship at itsfinest. The major com-ponents of the car (chas-sis, body, suspension in-

The cabin offers comfort and luxury unlike any previous De Tomaso. The rela-tionship between steering wheel, shifter, pedals and seat is virtually perfect

The seats are extremely comfortable and supportive

The foot box is surprisingly roomy The shifter is elegantly gated

The side view mirrors are highlyeffective, if a bit odd-looking.Due to their high placement,they are at the driver’s eye leveland enable him to see over thebulbous rear end of the car

terior etc.) are all fabricated by variousModenese suppliers, but all assemblytakes place on the grounds of the fac-tory.

Construction begins by placing thebody pieces into a jig, where they arehand-fitted and bonded together. A

26 POCA Profiles 2001 No. 2

bare chassis spine is setinto another jig, andthe center cabin is setatop the chassis.

The suspensioncontrol arms are matedto their respective hubcarriers and spindles,and then the brakes areadded. The front sus-pension and steeringrack are bolted to asubframe, along withthe radiator, and this isthen bolted to the frontof the spine.

The engine is setinto a small tub, withmassive aluminumforgings at each end,and they are all boltedtogether to form a veryrigid structure. This isthen wheeled over to

An insulated fiberglass box lies atop the gearbox to serve as a trunk, sized to hold two sets of golf clubs

The Guará bodies take shape in this area, and final assembly takes place on theother side of the partition. The machine shop is at the rear of the building. Barechassis lie on the pallet on the left

The body panel pieces are assembled and hand-fitted in a jig, then bonded together

The cabin is attached to the spine chassis (barelyvisible here) and the subframes are bolted on

2001 No. 2 POCA Profiles 27

the rear of the spine and attached; therear suspension and brakes are then at-tached to the forgings and gearbox.

The interior and wiring are in-stalled, and the plumbing components

but in fact, this car absolutely exudesquality wherever you look.

Sliding behind the wheel reveals adriving position that is virtually perfect.The extreme pedal offset of the Pantera

Santiago De Tomaso takes a short break, standing before a bareblock resting in its cradle, part of a jig used to hand-fabricate thesubframe for the rear suspension and gearbox

is largely gone. The front wheels havebeen pushed to the extreme edge of thebody, resulting in increased foot room.In fact, the pedal box is wide enough toallow a dead pedal, always a very nicefeature in a performance car. (The ex-perienced eye will also notice thefitment of a Pantera front hood releasehandle, apparently the only Pantera partincluded on this otherwise-new car.)

The steering wheel and shifter falleasily to hand, with none of the awk-wardness customarily found in Italiansports cars. The high center tunnel pro-vides a natural arm rest and helps tocovey a very comfortable, cozy feel.With a turn of the key, the dashboardlights up, and the multipoint sequentialfuel-injected engine fires instantly, rev-ving by itself above 2000 rpm beforesettling down to a smooth, subdued idle.

Fans of the Pantera’s exhaust notewill initially be disappointed. In orderto meet modern noise restrictions, theexhaust is muted, sounding exactly likea current production Mustang Cobra. It

for the brake, clutch andcooling systems are at-tached and filled.

After the body ispainted, the front andrear body panels arethen installed, the lightsare wired up, wheelsand tires fitted, and thecar then undergoes a se-ries of test drives andshakedown runs prior tobeing delivered to thecustomer.

Due to the ex-tremely labor-intensivenature of the Guará’sconstruction, advertiseddelivery time is fourmonths from the initialorder, although in prac-tice it often takes sub-stantially longer thanthis. The selling price is228,600,000 lira, or$105,429 at today’s ex-change rates.

Given the nature ofits construction, onemight expect it to havea decidedly kit-car feel,

is pleasant and stillquite audible, butlacks the muscular au-ral presence of earlierDe Tomaso cars.

The brake pedalfeels quite firm, whilethe clutch pedal ispleasantly light, andthe gearbox quite eas-ily snicks into firstgear. The shift throwis extremely short andquick. With a blip ofthe throttle, the car issmoothly underway.

The doors are un-usually high, whichcreates a rather oddsensation of sitting toolow in the car, but theview out the front isunlimited as the nosequickly falls away; infact it’s all but impos-sible to see the nose atall. Headroom isample, as the carstands 47.25 inchestall, a good five or sixinches taller than a

28 POCA Profiles 2001 No. 2

The Guará Barchetta is actually thefirst model produced, and draws muchof its inspiration from the short-livedMaserati Barchetta (which was de-signed and built at the tail end of DeTomaso’s ownership of Maserati, andshared the basic chassis design with theGuará which followed.) Mechanicallyit is identical to the other versions ofthe Guará, but it is a stripped-down,minimalist pseudo-legal race car for thestreet as opposed to a high-performanceGT car. Lacking anything not directlydedicated to the missions of going, turn-ing or stopping, it weighs in at a mere2314 lbs.

Historically, Barchettas weresmall-displacement, lightweight Fer-raris designed for competition in long-distance road races such as the MilleMiglia and Targa Florio. Barchetta isItalian for “little boat”, and the carswere so named because they resemblednothing as much as an overturned row-boat. They were equipped with the bareminimum equipment to make themroad-legal, but they offered absolutelyzero amenities; windscreens were usu-ally minimal at best.

The Guará Barchetta differs fromthe standard model most obviously bythe complete lack of any wind protec-tion whatsoever. The body is config-ured in a manner that would seem toinvite the fitment of a simple, short,curved windscreen, but curiously noneis normally installed.

All of the carpeting and sound-deadening is absent, as well as the in-terior leather. Since there are no sidewindows or window mechanisms, thedoors are feather-light. The standardseats are replaced by extremely support-ive Sparco racing seats. The modern-appearing steering wheel of the coupeis replaced with a classic ‘70’s three-spoke Momo wheel. The instrumentpanel is lacking most of the instrumen-tation found in the coupe; only a ta-chometer, speedometer, oil pressuregauge and a few idiot lights are in-stalled. (Curiously, a fuel gauge isdeemed unnecessary!)

Driving the Barchetta is certainlyan eye-opening experience. Italian lawdictates that anyone driving a car with-out a windshield must wear a helmet,so if the appearance of the car wasn’tdistinctive enough, that alone guaran-tees attention!

The deep seats are considerablylower than the stock seats, and as a re-sult, the top of the door is practically ateye level and the steering wheel seemstoo high. The experience is not unlikewhat a ten-year-old feels when sittingbehind the wheel of daddy’s car!Oddly, no center rear-view mirror is fit-ted; instead a curious aerodynamic de-vice is nestled between the two dashpods, nominally to smooth airflow intoand through the cabin. This means thatthe door-mounted mirrors take on evengreater importance. Due to the driver’s

low position in the car, the mirrors areabove eye level, again adding to the oddfeeling.

All this is forgotten the momentyou turn the key. The engine lightsimmediately, and due to the lack of anysound absorption material, every hum,buzz and click is transmitted directly tothe driver’s ears along with the melo-dious exhaust note.

The car feels palpably lighter thanits road-going sibling; this translatesinto faster acceleration out of cornersand even more pronounced stoppingability. The thin seats, solid steeringwheel and solid pedals means that ev-ery message, no matter how subtle, istransmitted directly to the driver’sbody—minor nuances in the road sur-face can easily be felt.

However, these messages are of-ten overwhelmed by the violent airflowwhich absolutely bombards the driver.Helmet buffeting is considerably worsethan on a motorcycle, as is wind roar.This absolutely spoils the driving esca-pade at anything above about 50-60mph, and triple-digit speeds are virtu-ally impossible to bear.

Were this car to be equipped withtaller seats and at least a vestigialwindscreen, it could be an extremelyentertaining weekend play toy. In itscurrent configuration however, it’s adecidedly mixed driving experience,and it’s no wonder that relatively fewBarchettas have been sold.

Guará Barchetta—Performance Without Compromise

2001 No. 2 POCA Profiles 29

Pantera. A glance in the center rearview mirror reveals considerable distor-tion from the highly curved rear win-dow, but the two door-mounted mirrorsoffer an excellent view to the sides.

Due to the fundamentally tractablenature of a stock Ford V-8, the Guaráis perfectly comfortable amblingthrough Modena traffic, although theextreme width of the car (six feet, eightinches!) can be a bit intimidating onnarrow European city streets. Even inextensive stop-and-go traffic, the en-gine temperature never gets past thehalfway mark on the gauge, indicatingthat the cooling system is more than upto the task at hand.

Perhaps surprisingly for an Italiancar, the air conditioning system is fan-tastic. The controls are easy to usewithout looking at them, and the cabincan quickly be cooled to the point ofbeing uncomfortable even on an ex-tremely hot day. The electric windowsraise and lower quickly and quietly.

Leaving the city and climbing outof the valley on one of the myriad nar-row roads which surround Modenabrings the Guará into its element. Freefrom the constraints of traffic, it is freeto run with abandon, and indeed it does!

As a corner approaches, turn-in isreasonably crisp, and the traction pro-vided by the sticky Michelin tires seemsunending. Unfortunately, the Guará issaddled with a power-assisted steeringrack that delivers plenty of feel, but

quickly enough should the rear end sud-denly step out, and this effectivelyserves as an informal speed governorin the corners.

There is nothing preventing ridicu-lous speeds in the straight sections,however! The engine, by virtue of itsfour-valve design and relatively smalldisplacement, lacks the prodigioustorque commonly found in AmericanV-8 engines, although the torque is stillimpressive by European standards. Theengine is extremely willing to rev to-wards the stratosphere, and at higherRPM it is indeed quite rewarding. Duepartly to low gearing, and partly to lowweight (3086 lbs), the Guará absolutelylaunches out of corners. The exhausthowls pleasantly, and the gearbox shiftsextremely quickly and smoothly.

When a corner approaches, thebrakes do an absolutely spectacular jobof shedding excess speed. Brembobrakes are widely considered to be thebest in the world, and an aggressivedrive in the Guará quickly shows howthey have earned their reputation.

Over bumpy roads, the ride is firmbut well-damped; clearly somebody hasdone their homework in the chassis de-partment. Bump-steer seems nonexist-ent, and the car continues to tracksmoothly through corners even onrough, rutted roads.

If anything, the chassis is so com-petent that it sticks too well, making itvirtually impossible to discern its char-

acteristics at the limit on any publicroad. But it should go without sayingthat its combination of decent power,prodigious cornering grip andotherworldly brakes enable it to easilyleave any Pantera for dead on a twistyroad. It also feels quite stable and se-cure at speeds well over 100 mph, whilewind noise is pleasantly muted. Topspeed is listed as 168 mph.

The styling of the Guará has al-ways been criticized, and indeed eventhe most charitable will agree that itappears decidedly odd from someangles, although most agree that thenose is rather attractive. But fromwhere it counts—behind the wheel—the Guará really delivers the goods.The wealthy European driving enthu-siast desiring something a bit differentcan find in the Guará a very viable al-ternative to mass-market sports cars,one which will deliver genuine drivingexcitement at a competitive price.

Although the Guará has been ex-tensively (and expensively!) crash-tested and meets all current Europeanregulations, sadly it was never engi-neered to meet the more-stringent USAstandards, and thus it’s unlikely thatthey will ever be sold here (althoughSteve Wilkinson managed to get onelicensed for the street on amanufacturer’s plate, and Joe Mooreimported the very first Guará built as adedicated track car.)

But if nothing else, a drive in thewhose ratio isfar too slow, re-sulting in anundue amountof arm-twid-dling when theroad becomestwisty. Whilethe chassis iscapable of cor-nering so hardyour spleenwinds up on theother side of thecar, the slowsteering doesn’tinspire confi-dence. It wouldprobably be dif-ficult to react

Guará demon-strates just howfar DeTomaso’s engi-neers havecome. If thistype of techni-cal excellencecan be com-bined with anattractive body,and supportedby a compre-hensive andc o m p e t e n tdealer network,the new Valle-lunga promisesto be quite aspectacular car!