The De Tomaso P72 has taken its time moving from show lawn promise to customer reality, and that patience is part of the car’s appeal.
First shown as a concept at the 2019 Goodwood Festival of Speed, the P72 now arrives in production form with a bespoke first customer commission called Aurelian Night.
It’s a deeply romantic supercar in the old sense of the word, built around drama, mechanical feel and the kind of interior detail that asks you to slow down before you speed up.
At a glance
- The first customer De Tomaso P72 has been revealed in a bespoke Aurelian Night specification.
- The car pairs a carbon fibre chassis with push-rod suspension, manually adjustable dampers and a 700 hp supercharged V8.
- The commission features a deep blue exterior with rose gold accents, including the wheels and interior metalwork.
Aurelian Night gives the P72 a quieter kind of drama
The first production P72 wears a deep blue finish named Aurelian Night, a colour choice that suits the car’s long, low and sculptural bodywork.
Rather than leaning on exposed carbon or loud graphics, the specification uses contrast sparingly through rose gold detailing.
That finish appears across the exterior accents and wheels, giving the car a warmer and more tailored character than the usual supercar palette.
The P72’s shape was designed by Jowyn Wong of Wyn Design, with inspiration drawn from the De Tomaso P70 racing car.
It isn’t a literal retro exercise, but the proportions clearly favour the era of endurance racers and hand-formed curves over the sharper visual aggression of many modern performance cars.
A mechanical supercar with a racing echo
Under the skin, the P72 uses a carbon fibre chassis and a suspension layout aimed at feel rather than digital distance.
Push-rod suspension and three-way manually adjustable dampers give the car a more traditional performance engineering flavour, especially for buyers who still value physical setup and driver involvement.
The engine choice follows the same philosophy.
Power comes from a 5.0-litre supercharged V8 producing 700 hp and 605 lb-ft of torque, paired with a six-speed gearbox.
Short gear ratios are intended to sharpen in-gear response, which fits the P72’s brief as a more tactile alternative to the increasingly automated supercar norm.
Analogue theatre inside the cabin
The cabin is just as important to the P72’s identity as the bodywork.
Instead of chasing screen acreage, it uses analogue dials and bespoke switchgear to create a cockpit with a crafted, almost ceremonial quality.
Milled aluminium components are finished in rose gold, tying the interior to the exterior detailing without making the specification feel disjointed.
It’s the sort of cabin that should appeal to collectors who care about touch points as much as lap times.
The visual message is clear enough, with De Tomaso positioning the P72 as a car for drivers who want mechanical engagement wrapped in coachbuilt-style presentation.
Details & Specifications
| Brand | De Tomaso |
|---|---|
| Model | P72 |
| First customer specification | Aurelian Night |
| Chassis | Carbon fibre |
| Exterior colour | Deep blue Aurelian Night with rose gold accents |
| Designer | Jowyn Wong of Wyn Design |
| Design inspiration | De Tomaso P70 racing car |
| Engine | 5.0-litre supercharged V8 |
| Power | 700 hp |
| Torque | 605 lb-ft |
| Gearbox | Six-speed gearbox with short ratios |
| Suspension | Push-rod suspension |
| Dampers | Three-way manually adjustable dampers |
| Interior highlights | Analogue dials, bespoke switchgear and rose gold milled aluminium components |
The first customer P72 matters because it shows the project has moved beyond promise into something tangible.
In Aurelian Night, De Tomaso has delivered a car that doesn’t try to out-shout the supercar field, instead leaning into proportion, hardware and detail with unusual confidence.
