Founded in 1989, Panoz Auto Development of Hoschton, Georgia is part of Panoz Motor Sports Group. The group owns several professional racing series and tracks, and manufactures chassis for professional open-wheel racing. Since 2000, Panoz has produced coupe and roadster versions of the Esperante, an American interpretation of the European Grand Touring car, that are powered by a potent four-cam Ford SVT V8. The Esperante is hand-built in small numbers, and Panoz tailors each car to the customer's taste. This upscale sports car is built almost entirely of aluminum, and features hand-sewn custom leather interiors. It provides a balance of handling and acceleration, finesse and muscle. The Esperante is offered in several models, using variants of the Ford V8 rate from 305 to 420 hp.

As part of a racing-focused enterprise, Panoz cars have also proven themselves on the racetrack. From 1999 to 2002, Panoz built an all-out race car - the LMP01 Le Mans prototype - and raced it with considerable success in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS). In 2003, Panoz introduced the GTLM version of the Esperante, which added a number of racing-insprired enhancements, including the 420p-hp V8, more aggressive suspension geometry, reduced weight, increased structural stiffness and downforce, and higher-performance brakes and tires. All-out racing versions of the GTLM compete in the ALMS GT2 class.

Operations Personel

Danny Panoz Co-Founder (2000-2010)

Don Panoz Co-Founder (2000-2010)

Primary Headquarters