1974 DeTomaso Longchamp

Coupe

The Longchamp, produced by the Italian automaker DeTomaso, was designed by Tom Tjaarda of Ghia. It was developed from the DeTomaso Deauville four-door sedan, using a shorter wheelbase chassis with the same suspension, engine, and transmission. It was first exhibited at the 1972 Turin Motor show.

The De Tomaso Longchamp was built as a businessman's 2+2 coupe from 1972 through 1989. It was named after the Longchamp horseracing track in France. It was a spirited performer comfortable for long trips and could carry a small family. The Longchamp was powered by the famed Ford 351 Cleveland motor, which was mated to a Ford automatic transmission of the ZF 5-speed gearbox. The classic proportions of the car incorporated by Tom Tjaarda make the car's beauty and style timeless. It displays a quiet masculinity that draws onlookers and stops people in their tracks to this day.

Less than 400 were built, and less than 30 known Longchamps exist in the United States.

This 1974 Longchamp is the one built with detailed electronic health monitoring of the car. It has many prototype gauges and sensors that were never incorporated in other production cars. The car was totally disassembled and restored by Panteras by Wilkinson in Paramount, CA. The car has an improved motor and transmission and has been turned out in GTS livery.

Coupe
Chassis number: THLCN02107

This DeTomaso Longchamps was purchased directly from the factory in 1974 by Lebanese businessman Robert Chamoun. The car was flown to his home in Beruit. Serial #THLCN02107 is one of only 409 Longchamps built. It was used sparingly there until 1976 when he relocated the family to Illinois. After being flown here, the car saw little use and spent most of its time parked next to a Rolls-Royce in a garage. Due to the harsh summers and lack of garaging in Lebanon, the original paint deteriorated. Early in the 21st century, the car was stripped to bare metal and re-sprayed in its original light green and returned to its garage, still seeing little use.

In the spring of 2010, the family decided to sell the car. Removed from the garage, it was serviced for sale. The fuel system was cleaned, the radiator flushed, brakes bled, new exhaust installed, new tires mounted and tested for road worthiness.

This car is probably the best example of an unrestored Longchamps in existence. The current owners purchased the car with less than 14,000 kilometers on the odometer.

The DeTomaso Longchamp was designed by Tom Tjaarda who was working at Ghia at the time. It was a 2+2 Coupe based on the Deauville model but fitted on a shortened wheelbase. The Ford V8 Cleveland engine was placed in the front and sent its power to the rear wheels. Less than twenty examples (around 17) were given a five-speed ZF manual gearbox. The other transmission used was the 3-speed Ford C-6 Cruise-O-Matic.

DeTomaso introduced the Longchamp at the 1980 Turin Motor Show. A cabriolet version came out at the 1980 Turin Motor Show, which had been the work of Carrozerria Pavesi of Mila. There were only a few GTS versions built. It is believed that only 14 examples of the Spyder were created; 395 examples were coupes, making a total of 409 Longchamps built.

by Dan Vaughan