1972 DE TOMASO DEAUVILLE (SERIES 1) is available now at classified from Car and Classic Classifieds

When Iacocca saw Jaguar’s XJ, he realised it was a game-changer for the luxury sedan market, and wanted Ford to produce an equivalent. Hand-in-hand with De Tomaso and Italian Carrozzeria Ghia, the Deauville was put into production, its wonderful design flowing from the skilled hands of Tom Tjaarda. The idea was that De Tomaso would benefit from the supply of Ford’s mighty Cleveland V8 and C6 transmission, while Ford would take bare shells from Ghia and rebadge them for the domestic market.

Sadly, with the oil crisis kicking into effect in the early 70s and other factors in the US market, it remained a limited run, De Tomaso only product. Just 244 are thought to have been built – although the real number may be significantly less as there are significant gaps in the VIN records. Eventually, production petered out and, what was once officially the fastest four-door production saloon in the world, ceased production in 1985.