What's New for the 2004 Panoz Esperante?
A new 2004 Panoz Esperante GT model debuts this year, including lighter weight suspension pieces, exterior aerodynamic tweaks, slightly modified styling and an interior with sport seats and billet aluminum trim. Also included on the Esperante GT are 17-inch BBS aluminum wheels with Pirelli P Zero Rosso tires, Brembo brakes and a sport-tuned suspension. This year, for the first time, the Panoz Esperante is available with an automatic transmission, and a supercharged version makes 420 horsepower – 100 more than standard. Panoz has also tweaked the 2004 Esperante’s standard suspension setup, added a cupholder, and includes a new Rockford Fosgate audio system in the price of entry.

Advantages of the 2004 Panoz Esperante:

• Ford SVT Mustang Cobra V8
• Sleek styling
• Rarity in the marketplace
• Useful trunk space

Objections to the 2004 Panoz Esperante:

• Giant center-mounted gauge cluster
• Ford and Panoz parts mix
• Adding options adds plenty to the bottom line

Editor's Advice:
Danny Panoz has been handcrafting his own performance cars down in Georgia for a decade, creating highly competitive racing machines through his Panoz Motor Sports division. In 2000, Panoz began to produce his first road car, the Esperante, a low-slung gran touring roadster with sleek styling and a muscular Ford SVT Mustang Cobra V8 engine under the hood. Mounted aft of the front axle, the 4.6-liter aluminum V8 generates 320hp at 6,000 rpm and 315 lb.-ft. of torque at 4,750 rpm, driving power to the rear wheels through a five-speed manual transmission. Thanks to an aluminum chassis and body panels, the Panoz Esperante weighs just 3,125 pounds, making it easy to achieve acceleration to 60 mph in about five seconds. For 2004, a new supercharger option adds another 100 horsepower and a healthy dose of additional torque to the Esperante – good thing there’s a standard limited slip differential to help put all that power to the pavement. The Esperante rides on a four-wheel-independent suspension, double wishbones all around with gas shocks and anti-roll bars at the front and rear. Standard models wear 17-inch alloy wheels with P255/45 Z-rated B.F. Goodrich tires guided via rack-and-pinion steering, and there’s a wide range of wheel and tire options available – including 18s. The new Panoz Esperante GT gets Pirelli P Zero Rosso tires, mounted to unique 17-inch BBS alloy wheels, kept planted to the ground by an aluminum-intensive suspension system with more aggressive tuning. Four-wheel-disc brakes with ABS include 330mm front and 297mm rear vented discs. Uprated Brembo components are optional on the standard Esperante and standard on the GT. Inside the Esperante, hand-sewn leather and the buyer’s choice of wood, carbon fiber, or paint-matching metallic surfaces provide a touch of luxury. The GT model has sport seats with improved bolstering, and is trimmed in billet aluminum. Panoz’s reliance on Ford is most evident in the cabin, where a mixture of Ford Mustang bits and pieces – most prominent the oddly placed Cobra gauge pack atop the Esperante’s center stack – and bespoke Panoz parts blend in a design that would be convincingly sporty if it weren’t for the Saturn Ion-style center pod. Buyers can paint the Esperante in any color they like for a significant premium, or they can choose between five standard and four custom hues. Base price for the standard 2004 Panoz Esperante is just under $90,000, with the Esperante GT running a little over $95,000. That’s a ton of money to spend on a hand-built American GT, but every Esperante comes with a three-year/36,000-mile warranty for added peace of mind and an 11 cubic-foot trunk for utility on weekend getaways for two. Plus, the Esperante is far more exclusive than, say, a Porsche 911 Cabriolet.