The Panther Solo is a mid-engined sports car that was made by the British company Panther Car Company.
It was available as a two-seat coupé, with the option of additional rear seats to make it a 2+2. SsangYong Motor Company, which had become the owner of Panther Westwinds, made a concept car called the SsangYong Solo as a tribute to the original Solo and Solo 2, as well as a racing version called the SsangYong Solo Le Mans, a retooled WR LM94.
Solo 1
The first Solo, the Solo 1, was a mid-engined rear wheel drive car, powered by a Ford 1.6 CVH engine producing (as fitted in the Ford Fiesta XR2), and designed as a replacement for the marque's volume model, the Panther Kallista. The car used relatively simple technology, had contemporary styling and was manufactured with a fibreglass body to reduce its weight.
While the Solo 1 was in development, Toyota launched its second-generation MR2. During a vacation in Guam, the South Korean owner of Panther, Y. C. Kim, test-drove an early MR2. After driving it, he concluded that the Solo 1 would be unable to compete with its rival and thus decided to have the car redesigned. He later explained "I drove the car, and straight after I rang up and told them to stop Project Solo". A new styling design for the Solo was created by Ken Greenley of the London RCA vehicle styling school. The restyled car featured a slightly larger 2+2 layout with a composite upper body, permanent four wheel drive and a mid-mounted engine from a Ford Sierra Cosworth. This would be called the "Solo 2". The body engineering designers involved were Martin Freestone (composites), Keith Hunter (underbody and structure) and William "Bill" Davis (engineering).
Solo 2 The Solo 2 used the turbocharged engine from the Ford Sierra RS CosworthHutton, Ray. "Preview: Panther Solo 2", in Car and Driver, 1/88, p.125. producing at 6000 rpm and of torque at 4500 rpm, around twice the horsepower of the Solo 1. It was mated to a Borg-Warner T-5 5-speed manual transmission (same as in the RS),Hutton, p.127. which drove a Ferguson four-wheel drive system modified by Panther to use XR4x4 components, including both differentials. The company decided also to stretch the wheelbase to accommodate 2+2 seating, which was partly done by ex-Ford Europe engineers who had worked on the Sierra Cosworth and XR4x4.Hutton, pp.125-6. March did the aerodynamics, producing a Cd of 0.33,Hutton, p.126. as well as producing the composite construction, encouraged by March chairman Robin Herd. One of the development cars had a twin turbo setup due to the known turbo lag issues.
A troublesome area was with the 4 wheel drive transfer box. This was a custom made part, the internals were chain-driven and the chains had a propensity for self-destruction under heavy engine load.
The lower body of the Solo 2 was a space frame made primarily of steel with the upper body being made from aluminium honeycomb sandwiched between multiple sheets of impregnated glass fibre bonded with epoxy. The upper body was to be glued using an aerospace adhesive to the lower chassis. No rollbar was needed. The suspension used Escort struts in front, while the disc brakes were fitted with Scorpio-derived ABS.
It is not known exactly how many vehicles were built, though 12 were reported to have be sold to customers. Three Solos were unsold; two were destroyed and one is still owned by the owner of Panther. One vehicle was written off by a motoring journalist who walked away unhurt from the wreckage.
As of 2020, 11 examples survive in the UK, with all but one listed as SORN (Statutory Off Road Notification, to legally notify the government that the vehicle will not be driven on public roads).
Solo 3 Following the disappointment sales failure of the Solo 2, the then new owners Ssangyong displayed a Solo 3 concept at the 1995 Seoul Motor Show. Fitted with a 3.2-litre six-cylinder engine with a reported 220bhp it was a showcase for what the company could do rather than an aim for a production car, and it remained a concept.
Cars Chassis Number Colour Owner Country Registration Number 012 Blue - South Korea F59SWC 013 Crash test vehicle 014 Red Y C Kim, passed on to his son South Korea G846 WEV 015 Silver Andie Wills United Kingdom D15 OLO (formerly G521 FNO) 016 Red - South Korea - 017 Red Scott McDonagh - - 018 Red Stephen Allan Vine United Kingdom G308 XAR (formerly SPC 21) 019 Metallic Red Bruno Eismark United Kingdom G307XAR (formerly RT 40) 020 No car produced 021 No car produced 022 Metallic Blue Jamie MacRae - G99 EDA 023 Red "Athan Athanasiou" United Kingdom H736 HEV 024 Metallic Green David Carter United Kingdom H732 HEV 025 Yellow - Japan G559VYW 026 Red Justin Ross United States of America D5 OLO (formerly H731 HEV) 027 Metallic Silver Robin Tracy United Kingdom BNZ 5010 (formerly 11 JKP) 028 Green Kenny Rogers Spain H733 HEV 029 Red - California, USA - 030 Metallic Red J Wootton United Kingdom H75 OLO 031 Red George Forrest - H734 HEV 032 Grey - South Korea -
Sources and further reading