De Tomaso Under Chinese Ownership
After being purchased over a month ago, De Tomaso once again finds itself with a new owner.
The once-storied Italian automaker is now in the hands of Consolidated Ideal TeamVenture, a consortium of Chinese investors based out of Hong Kong with its legal headquarters in the Virgin Islands, Europe Online Magazine reports. The consortium paid just over €1 million ($1.1 million USD) for De Tomaso at auction and has plans to build vehicles in China wearing the De Tomaso name.
The latest change in ownership comes after Swiss investment group L3 Holdings bought the name for €2 million ($2.2 million) last month, only to lose the rights when the group was investigated for failure to honor its financial commitments.
Other former De Tomaso owners include Gian Mario Rossignolo – who was arrested in 2012 for misuse of public funds in trying to revive the automaker – and Automobili Turismo e Sport, though the group later withdrew its bid.
[Photo credit: Jack Snell/ Flickr/ CC BY-ND 2.0]
Seattle-based writer, blogger, and photographer for many a publication. Born in Louisville. Raised in Kansas. Where I lay my head is home.
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Oh yeah.. Chery ,Gili , Greatwall ,Dong Feng, Hupei, De Thomaso ,those names roll off the tongue so easily.
If you look around and you can Panteras at pretty good prices. And there's tons of engine parts at least.
I always thought it was a shame the US didn't get the DeTomaso Pantera GT5 and its wacky Countach body kit.
A friend of mine has one. They don't drive as well as they look, and of course they have all the reliability you'd expect of an Italian, hand built, no-two-quite-the-same supercar of that era.