Frederik Tjellesen Designs Ghepardo 4-Door for New DeTomaso

DeTomaso is a famed Italian brand that is on the verge of a revival. There was an attempted effort to bring the brand back a few years ago but they faltered.

However, in June and July of this year, assets including a factory and rights to the name were purchased by former Fiat executive Gianmario Mr Rossignolo.

His aim is to start producing vehicles soon, introducing a whole new lineup of DeTomasos. Designer Frederik Tjellsen has taken the time to design and offer up his interpretation of what a model in that lineup could look like.

It is indeed a four-door sedan, but one quite unlike anything you have seen before. It is highly aggressive and supercar-like in appearance, and aims to draw from iconic previous DeTomaso vehicles like the Pantera and Mangusta.

As for the odd name, Ghepardo, it is Italian for cheetah. Thanks, but we'll take the Pantera name instead. One of the things about the original DeTomaso Pantera was the use of a Ford V-8 engine. Tjellesen continues this usage in the Ghepardo, utilizing Ford's EcoBoost V-6.

We could definitely see this engine doing duty as a performance engine by small independent and coachbuilding companies. For duty in the Ghepardo, it would make 465 horsepower. The other option is a electric motors at each wheel and a power source from methanol fuel cells in the trunk.

This is a one-off (there is only a 1:4 scale mockup of the car actually in existence) but that is definitely pie in the sky. Could the Ghepardo get the attention of DeTomaso? Unlikely, but it is great to see ideas flying around about the future of the brand.