Panto

"The giant German carmaker's leap into the micro market. Designed for the narrow, parking space deprived roads of Europe, this is sure to stick out on the eight lane freeways, and in the mile-wide parking lots of Los Santos, until you get crushed by an SUV driven by an over-medicated housewife."

- Southernsanandreassuperautos.com description.

The Benefactor Panto is a car featured in Grand Theft Auto 2 and Grand Theft Auto V. The car was meant to be featured in Grand Theft Auto III but it was dropped during development. The car makes a return in Grand Theft Auto V as part of the I'm Not a Hipster Update.

GTA 2
The Panto name first debuted in GTA 2 in the form of a two-door microcar (occasionally confused as a van) akin to the Dementia, but significantly larger. Its appearance alone makes the car generally unappealing, in contrast to larger, better designed cars in the game. The internal name given to the Panto is, implying the car's name originates from that of a similarly named Fiat Punto, but may otherwise be comparable to a 1949-1967 Tempo Matador Kleinbus. It best resembles the Fiat 500 K estate.

GTA III
The Panto was planned to reappear as a four-door compact sedan in GTA III, but was cut for unknown reasons. The car, like the Panto in GTA 2, bears some resemblance to a Fiat, specifically, a Fiat 128; little else is known about the car. A picture of the car can be found on the "Capital Auto Sale$" teaser website, along with many other beta vehicles.

GTA V
The Panto reappears in GTA V as a part of the I'm Not a Hipster Update. The Panto is now a compact 3-door hatchback. It is manufactured by Benefactor and resembles a 2007-present Smart Fortwo, however it has different shaped headlights. Other inspirations on its design may be taken from the Gordon Murray T27 and other vehicles such as the Volkswagen Up!.

GTA 2
The Panto's performance in GTA 2 mirrors its generally undesirable appearance. The car suffers from an underpowered engine, which results in a poor top speed and below average acceleration. However, helped largely by its speed, the Panto's steering is still acceptable, but its brakes are mediocre, being slightly below average. Even so, the vehicle is not practical when evading gunfire and hostile enemies, such as law enforcement. It takes less damage than a usual car, the same applies to the Schmidt.

GTA V
The Panto in GTA V is a small, light car with quick acceleration. However, its top speed is mediocre, and its short wheelbase makes it very unstable at high speeds and it is prone to spinning out. Its durability is unremarkable, as it can only take a few head-on crashes before its axle breaks and its engine ceases. The Panto is very maneuverable when airborne able to do multiple spins with ease. Never the less this is a great commuter car if you don't want to risk paying the insurance premium on one of your super cars.

GTA 2

 * The Residential and Industrial Districts of Anywhere City.
 * A green Panto is parked in the lot by the train station near the church in the Residential District, Anywhere City.

GTA V

 * Can be found in the player's garage in single player.
 * Can be bought in GTA Online from Southernsanandreassuperautos.com for $85,000.

Trivia

 * In GTA 2, when crushed, the Panto awards the player with grenades.
 * The Panto is one of two cars in Grand Theft Auto V with stickerbomb customization options. The other car is the Declasse Asea.
 * The GTA V edition of the Panto is one of the only cars to be small enough to be driven through many accessible doors, such as the double doors at the entrance to Michael's mansion.
 * This is the only Benefactor vehicle that doesn't resemble a Mercedes Benz. However, Smart is part of the Daimler AG group, which is also part of Mercedes-Benz.
 * The Panto is the smallest car in GTA V and GTA Online, surpassing the Weeny Issi.
 * The default radio station for the Panto is:
 * GTA 2: Osmosis Radio (Residential) or Lo-Fi FM (Industrial)
 * GTA V: Lowdown 91.1.
 * This is the second vehicle from GTA 2 to return in GTA V. The first vehicle from GTA 2 was the Z-Type.

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