The South Korean owner of Panther, Y. C. Kim, made the decision to amend the Solo after taking a vacation in Guam where he saw one of the early MR2s.

The restyled car featured a slightly larger 2+2 layout with a composite upper body, permanent four wheel drive and a mid-mounted engine from a Ford Sierra Cosworth.

[4][5] It was mated to a Borg-Warner T-5 5-speed manual transmission (same as in the RS),[6] which drove a Ferguson four-wheel drive system modified by Panther to use XR4x4 components, including both differentials.

[6] The company decided also to stretch the wheelbase to accommodate 2+2 seating,[4] which was partly done by ex-Ford Europe engineers who had worked on the Sierra Cosworth and XR4x4.

This was a custom made part, the internals were chain-driven and the chains had a propensity for self-destruction under heavy engine load.