Barreiros was a Spanish manufacturer of

engine An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power ...

truck A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame constructi ...

s, buses and

automobile A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded ...

s. It was a

Chrysler Europe Chrysler Europe was the American automotive company Chrysler's operations in Europe from 1967 through 1978. It was formed from the merger of the French Simca, British Rootes and Spanish Barreiros companies. In 1978, Chrysler divested these ...

subsidiary from 1969 to 1978.

History

The company was founded in 1954 as "Barreiros Diesel S.A." by Eduardo Barreiros and based in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

. Established initially as a producer of diesel engines, at Ourense the company then expanded to make commercial vehicles, reaching licensing agreements with French Berliet (truck cabs), British AEC (buses and coaches), and German

Hanomag Hanomag (Hannoversche Maschinenbau AG, ) was a German producer of steam locomotives, tractors, trucks and military vehicles in Hanover. Hanomag first achieved international fame by delivering numerous steam locomotives to Finland, Romania a ...

(agricultural tractors) and Vidal & Sohn Tempo-Werke GmbH (light vans and trucks), all of them driven by Barreiros's own engines. Additionally a pay-in-kind contract with Polish

Star A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...

was active in the late 1950s, by which engineless Star chassis-cab trucks were exported to Spain, while Barreiros engines were sent to Poland; the whole resulted in Barreiros-engined Star tractors being sold in China (and Polish trucks in Spain). Later on Barreiros branched out into the production of passenger cars by means of cooperation (and capital links) with the

Chrysler Corporation Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automotiv ...

. An agreement was reached with Chrysler in 1963 to build the Dodge Dart, allowing the company to enter the car market. Sold as the Barreiros Dart, it had modified front styling, a four-speed gearbox, and all-around disc brakes. During that time, the Spanish automobile market was strongly protected, making entering it effectively only possible by domestic manufacturing. As the 1960s progressed, the range was extended with some smaller models from Chrysler's French subsidiary, Simca. The Barreiros-made Simca 1000 was launched in 1966, and later the Simca 1200 joined the range (in fact the French

Simca 1100 The Simca 1100 is a car built from 1967 to 1982 by Simca. It was replaced by the Simca-Talbot Horizon. History The 1100 was the result of "Project 928", started in 1962, finalized by engineers Philippe Grundeler and Charles Scales. The design ...

, but with a bigger standard engine for the Spanish market).

The Spanish Dodges

From 1965 to 1970, a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

version of the Dodge Dart based on the original from the United States was manufactured in the Barreiros Villaverde factory in

, using the same 111-in (2,819 mm) wheelbase, but with different sheet metal; the Dodge 3700 (commonly known as the Dart) was produced from 1971 to 1978.Dodge 3700 GT, Piel de toro.net
(in Spanish) - accessed 3 January 2012 A total of 17,589 units were manufactured of both models in Spain, they were produced as a

knock-down kit A knock-down kit (also knockdown kit, knocked-down kit, or simply knockdown or KD) is a collection of parts required to assemble a product. The parts are typically manufactured in one country or region, then exported to another country or region ...

imported from Argentina due to the

protectionist Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. ...

Spanish regulations of those years. The Dart and the 3700 were the largest national production cars available in Spain during all production years. It was an expensive luxury car with very low fuel economy by Spanish standards. The GL designation was a luxury model, while the GT was the sportier version. All

gasoline Gasoline (; ) or petrol (; ) (see ) is a transparent, petroleum-derived flammable liquid that is used primarily as a fuel in most spark-ignited internal combustion engines (also known as petrol engines). It consists mostly of organic c ...

Dodges had the biggest engine ever mounted into a mass-production car in Spain, the

Chrysler Slant 6 engine The Slant-Six is the popular name for a Chrysler inline-6 internal combustion engine with an overhead valve reverse-flow cylinder head and cylinder bank inclined at a 30-degree angle from vertical. Introduced in 1959, it was known within Chrysl ...

. The "3700" number is a reference to the 3.7 litres of displacement. No other six-cylinder engine car has been produced in numbers as numerous in Spain. A

diesel Diesel may refer to: * Diesel engine, an internal combustion engine where ignition is caused by compression * Diesel fuel, a liquid fuel used in diesel engines * Diesel locomotive, a railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engi ...

Dart (named "Barreiros Diesel") was also produced. These models were very basic and very slow, and used the round tail lights from the first-generation Simca 1000. A

station wagon A station wagon ( US, also wagon) or estate car ( UK, also estate), is an automotive body-style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door ( ...

version, as well as other variants (diplomatic motorcade cars,

ambulance An ambulance is a medically equipped vehicle which transports patients to treatment facilities, such as hospitals. Typically, out-of-hospital medical care is provided to the patient during the transport. Ambulances are used to respond to med ...

hearse A hearse is a large vehicle, originally a horse carriage but later with the introduction of motor vehicles, a car, used to carry the body of a deceased person in a coffin at a funeral, wake, or memorial service. They range from deliberately a ...

s, etc.) were produced. Production of the Spanish Dodge Dart/Dodge 3700 stopped in 1977.

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French brand of automobiles owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was founded in 1810, with a steel foundry that soon started making hand tools and kitchen equipment, and then ...

bought the Villaverde factory, as Chrysler was

divesting In finance and economics, divestment or divestiture is the reduction of some kind of asset for financial, ethical, or political objectives or sale of an existing business by a firm. A divestment is the opposite of an investment. Divestiture i ...

European operations in Spain,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

. Spanish Dodges were popular with members of the Franco government during the 1960s and 1970s. Admiral

Luis Carrero Blanco Admiral-General Luis Carrero Blanco (4 March 1904 – 20 December 1973) was a Spanish Navy officer and politician. A long-time confidant and right-hand man of dictator Francisco Franco, Carrero served as the Prime Minister of Spain and i ...

was killed on 20 December 1973 while travelling in his Dodge 3700 GT. On 12 June 1975,

Fernando Herrero Tejedor Fernando Herrero Tejedor (1920–1975) was a Spanish jurist and politician who was a member of the FET y de las JONS (FET), the ruling party of the Francoist Spain. He served as the minister-secretaries general of the movement between March and J ...

, a Minister Secretary General of the

Movimiento Nacional ''Movimiento Nacional'' ( en, National Movement) was a governing institution of Spain established by General Francisco Franco during the Spanish Civil War in 1937. During Francoist rule in Spain, it purported to be the only channel of participa ...

and the politician mentoring

Adolfo Suárez Adolfo Suárez González, 1st Duke of Suárez (; 25 September 1932 – 23 March 2014) was a Spanish lawyer and politician. Suárez was Spain's first democratically elected prime minister since the Second Spanish Republic and a key figure in th ...

, died in a car accident while travelling in his official Dodge 3700 in the municipality of

Adanero Adanero is a municipality of Spain located in the province of Ávila, Castile and León. The municipality has a total area of 31.42 km2 and, as of 1 January 2019, a registered population of 196, according to the INE. History Adanero was granted ...

Barreiros Imperial limousines

After the last ten

Ghia Carrozzeria Ghia SpA (established 1916 in Turin) is an Italian automobile design and coachbuilding firm, established by Giacinto Ghia and Gariglio as "Carrozzeria Ghia & Gariglio". The headquarters are located at Corso Guglielmo Marconi, 4, Tu ...

-built Crown Imperial limousines were completed for Chrysler, Ghia sold its tooling to Barreiros. Barreiros built ten limousines, much like those built by Ghia, and similar to the last ten built by Ghia, built as 1965 models with 1966 exterior styling.

Chrysler subsidiary

In 1969,

took complete control of the company. In 1975, Barreiros became for the first time the sole source for a Chrysler Europe model when the production lines of the slow-selling Chrysler 180 series were moved to Madrid from Simca's factory in Poissy. Unlike in most other European countries, the Chrysler 180 became relatively popular in Spain. Barreiros also continued to assemble other Chrysler Europe models for the domestic market, including

Simca 1307 The Simca 1307 is a large family car produced by Chrysler Europe and subsequently PSA Peugeot Citröen from 1975 to 1986. Codenamed 'C6' in development, the car was styled in the United Kingdom by Roy Axe and his team at Whitley, and the car wa ...

(renamed Chrysler 150 in Spain to be more in line with the popular 180) and

Simca Horizon The horizon is the apparent curve that separates the surface of a celestial body from its sky when viewed from the perspective of an observer on or near the surface of the relevant body. This curve divides all viewing directions based on whethe ...

. On the truck and bus side, a full range of light, medium and heavy models was offered, still marketed as Barreiros in Spain and as

Dodge Dodge is an American brand of automobiles and a division of Stellantis, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Dodge vehicles have historically included performance cars, and for much of its existence Dodge was Chrysler's mid-priced brand above P ...

or Fargo elsewhere, but eventually the Dodge badge prevailed in all markets.

In PSA and Renault hands

In 1978, Chrysler Europe was sold to

PSA PSA, PsA, Psa, or psa may refer to: Biology and medicine * Posterior spinal artery * Primary systemic amyloidosis, a disease caused by the accumulation of abnormal proteins * Prostate-specific antigen, an enzyme used as a blood tracer for pros ...

, which subsequently renamed all former Chrysler/Simca models Talbot (so, for example, the Chrysler 150 became Talbot 150). Barreiros continued to assemble Talbot car models launched under the PSA reign, such as Talbot Solara or Talbot Samba. The truck and bus division was sold to

Renault Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufactured ...

, also called RVI, and for a short time, the former original Barreiros models, mostly of them trucks, were sold badged as Renaults / Spanish Renault. The Barreiros Diesel SA motorvehicle factory at Villaverde in Madrid is now owned by the huge "Renault Trucks (Espana) SA" company where modern Renault trucks and heavy vehicles are produced.

Notoriety

Spanish Prime Minister Admiral

, who served under

Generalissimo ''Generalissimo'' ( ) is a military rank of the highest degree, superior to field marshal and other five-star ranks in the states where they are used. Usage The word (), an Italian term, is the absolute superlative of ('general') thus me ...

Francisco Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War and thereafter ruled over Spain from 193 ...

, was

assassinated Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...

in 1973 while riding in an armoured Dodge 3700 GT by an 80 kg bomb planted by the Basque separatist group

ETA Eta (uppercase , lowercase ; grc, ἦτα ''ē̂ta'' or ell, ήτα ''ita'' ) is the seventh letter of the Greek alphabet, representing the close front unrounded vowel . Originally denoting the voiceless glottal fricative in most dialects, ...

. The car, whose armoured structure resisted the 80 kg dynamite bomb, was blown over the roof of a building, landing in the building's inner courtyard. Carrero Blanco and his driver died. The car is now on display at the

Army Museum of Toledo The Museum of the Army (Spanish: ''Museo del Ejército'') is a national museum located in Toledo, Spain, attached to the Ministry of Defence. The collection was previously housed in Madrid, and the museum opened on its present site in 2010. It ...

Barreiros trucks

(1957–81) * Star 4x2 * Puma 4x2 * Condor 4x2 * Halcon 4x2 * Azor 4x2 * Saeta 4x2 * Super Saeta 4x2 * Super Azor 4x2 * TT90 Militar 4x4 * Comando Militar 4x4 * Gran Ruta 6x4 * Víctor 6x4 * Centauro 6x4 * Panter Militar 6x6 * Dumper 6x6 * Montblanc 8x4

Simca cars

* Simca 1000/900/1000 Rallye * Simca 1200 LS * Simca 1200 GL * Simca 1200 GL Special * Simca 1200 GLS (90 octanos) * Simca 1200 GL Special * Simca 1200 LX-TI * Simca 1200 Campero

Dodge cars

* Dodge Dart (1965–70) * Dodge 3700 (1971–77)

Imperial cars

* Imperial limousine (1966)

Barreiros tractors

(1961–80) * R335S * R350 * R350S * R438 * R438 Especial * R440 * R500 Labramatic * R545 * R545 I * R545 IA * 4000 * 4000V * 5000 * 5000 VL/VR * 5500 * 7000 * 40/45 * 50/55 * 70/70 * 90/90 (prototype)

References

* tp://ftp.funep.es/phe/hdt2003.pdf J.L. García Ruiz, "Barreiros Diesel y el desarrollo de la automoción en España"

External links

Fundación Eduardo Barreiros
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barreiros (Manufacturer) Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of Spain Defunct bus manufacturers Defunct truck manufacturers Bus manufacturers of Spain Manufacturing companies based in Madrid Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1954 Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 1969 1969 disestablishments in Spain Chrysler Companies based in Galicia (Spain) Spanish companies established in 1954