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Panther 400 - The 3-liter car from 1954 could have been a success

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Created on April 27, 2020

Text:

Daniel Koch

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Archiv

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Archiv

15

Panther 400 D (1954) - Zagato signature

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Panther 400 D (1954) - with Colli bodywork, shown at the 1954 Turin Motor Show

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Panther 400 D (1954) - The first Carrozzeria Colli model

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Panther 400 D (1954) - Innovative diesel coupé

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Panther 400 D (1954) - with Zagato bodywork

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Panther 400 D (1954) - There was even a trunk

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Panther 400 (1954) - Was available with 480 cc petrol or 520 cc diesel engine

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Panther 400 D (1954) - with Zagato bodywork exhibited at the Paris Motor Show in 1954

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Panther 400 D (1954) - Interior of the smart coupé

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Panther 400 D (1954) - 520 cc diesel engine

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Panther 400 B (1954) - view of the air-cooled 480 cc petrol engine, from which around 18 hp could be coaxed

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Panther 400 D (1954) - The Zagato coupé was designed to seat four people

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Pantherbus (1954) - minibus variant with 6 seats

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Pantherbus (1954) - Innovative 6-seater concept

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Panther Lima (1978) - nostalgic roadster, together with the De Ville (with lady), modeled on the Bugatti 57 - Geneva Motor Show 1978

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Summary

Unknown Italian road racer from the 1950s with diesel and petrol engines and a displacement of around 500 cc: it would have fitted in perfectly with the times, but something went wrong - were more than a handful of these little revolutionaries built?

This article contains the following chapters

Microcar
Advanced technology
Astonished and enthusiastic trade press
Forerunner of the Fiat 600 Multipla?
Zagato lends a hand
New Panther

Estimated reading time: 8min

Preview (beginning of the article)

In 1954, a small car bearing the name of a big cat was presented in Italy. However, the Italian had very little to do with the ferocity of a panther (i.e. the big cat), as the Panther 400 D was a small car with a top speed of around 85 km/h. But the Italians invented the 3-liter car at an early stage. But the Italians invented the 3-liter car early on and clothed the creation in a smart coupé body. Was the Panther 400 D therefore the great-great-grandfather of the 3-liter Lupo from Volkswagen? In the 1950s, the population in Italy was increasingly mobilized with small and very small cars; Fiat Topolino, Fiat Nuova 500 and Iso Isetta were part of the street scene. The Panther 400 also fitted into this category, but is hardly known to anyone today. There are some rather mysterious stories surrounding the history of the little Italian.

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