Gurgel (vehicle brand)

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Gurgel X-12
Gurgel X-15
Gargle Itaipu
Gurgel XEF
Gargle Carajas
Gargle BR-800
Gargle Moto Machine
Gargle supermini

Gurgel is a Brazilian vehicle brand under which passenger cars were also marketed in the past .

Brand history

Moplast Moldegem de Plástico

João Augusto Conrado do Amaral Gurgel had already gained experience in the processing of fiberglass at General Motors in the USA . In 1958 he founded Moplast Moldagem de Plástico in São Paulo . He made children's cars and karts . About 500 copies were made, some of which were exported to Germany and the USA. In 1964, João Gurgel left the company.

Macan Indústria e Comércio Ltda.

In 1964, João Gurgel founded Macan Indústria e Comércio Ltda. in São Paulo . He continued the production of children's vehicles and karts. In 1966 four automobiles were presented. The brand name was Gurgel . Production of these models began in a factory in Macan. João Gurgel left the company a little later. In 1968 the car production ended at this company.

Gurgel Indústria e Comércio de Veículos Ltda.

On September 1, 1969, João Gurgel founded the new company Gurgel Indústria e Comércio de Veículos Ltda. , also in São Paulo. He continued production while keeping the brand name. In 1974 a new plant was opened in Rio Claro . For 1987 and 1988 a company is also named Gurgel Motores SA . Production ended in 1995. On February 14, 1995, bankruptcy was filed and the company was dissolved in September 1996.

In total, this company produced around 43,000 vehicles. The best year was 1991 with 3746 vehicles.

Gurgel Motores

Paulo Emílio Freire Lemos founded the new company Gurgel Motores in 2004 in Presidente Prudente . It provides three-wheeled commercial vehicles forth. Around 200 vehicles were built in 2005. In 2005 the development of four-wheeled cars was announced, which were presented as prototypes in 2007 . Series production should begin in the second half of 2008. In 2016, the company announced its headquarters as Três Lagoas .

vehicles

Karts were built from 1958 to 1964. Initially, the vehicles were powered by a single - cylinder four-stroke engine from Briggs with a displacement of 125 cm³ and an output of 6  hp . The Gurgel II from 1961 had a tubular frame and a body made of GRP. The engine with 130 cm³ displacement and 10 HP power was air-cooled . The Mocar was a small transport vehicle used to carry loads. It had a two-stroke engine with a displacement of 125 cc and 7.5 hp.

From 1964, the previously known children's cars, karts and the transport vehicle were initially created. The Gurgel Jr II was a children's car with a length of 210 cm, which was similar to the Ford Mustang . Another children's car was modeled on the VW Karmann Ghia Type 14 . A further development of the Gurgel II led to a model with a water-cooled two - cylinder engine with 350 cm³ displacement and 12 hp. This was followed by the Gurgel G-400 with an air-cooled engine with 400 cm³ displacement and 18 hp.

1966, there was an agreement with Volkswagen do Brasil . Four vehicles with a plastic body on the chassis of the VW Beetle were presented at a trade fair. These were the sporty versions Ipanema , Enseada and Augusta as well as the Xavante as a commercial vehicle. These vehicles then went into production. The vehicles were powered by a four - cylinder boxer engine with a capacity of 1200 cm³ and an output of 36 hp. Motors with a capacity of 1300 cm³ and 1500 cm³ were at least planned.

The Ipanema has been handed down from 1968 . In 1970 the VW Buggy Bugato was introduced, which found around 20 buyers.

In 1972 the previous platform frame was replaced by a self-made tubular frame. The Xavante XT-72 was compared to the Jeep despite the lack of all-wheel drive . Further developments led in 1973 to the Xavante XT-73 , which was given a larger engine with 1600 cc upon request, and in 1974 to the Xavante XT-74 .

The Xavante has been further developed into the X-10 , X-20 , X-12 , X-15 , G-15 and G-800 .

The Itaipu was a prototype car with an electric motor . As a commercial vehicle, it went into small series production.

The MC-1000 was also a utility vehicle.

The XEF was a small sedan . Introduced in 1981, the model did not go into series production until 1983. The vehicle was 312 cm long and weighed 680 kg. A VW engine with 54 hp was mounted in the rear and drove the rear wheels. The plan was to produce 100 vehicles a month. But by 1986 only about 100 vehicles were built. The high price, which was higher than the price of a VW Passat , was to blame.

Launched in 1984, SUV Carajás was successful and was produced until the 1994th

The BR-800 was a microcar . Plans called for a two-cylinder engine with a displacement of 800 cm³, a length of 250 cm and a weight of 230 kg, later a single-cylinder engine with a displacement of 400 cm³, a length of 320 cm, a weight of 270 kg and half the price of a VW Beetle. Hopes for the engine of the Citroën 2 CV were dashed. A total of around 4500 vehicles of this model were built.

The Moto Machine was manufactured from December 1991. The supermini replaced the BR-800 in 1992 .

Since 2004 three-wheeled commercial vehicles, also as tractors and forklifts, have been produced .

literature

  • Harald H. Linz, Halwart Schrader : The International Automobile Encyclopedia . United Soft Media Verlag, Munich 2008, ISBN 978-3-8032-9876-8 , chapter Gurgel.
  • George Nick Georgano (Editor-in-Chief): The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile. Volume 2: G – O. Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, Chicago 2001, ISBN 1-57958-293-1 , p. 653. (English)

Web links

Commons : Gurgel  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p João F. Scharinger: Lexicar Brasil on the car brand (Portuguese, accessed on September 10, 2016)
  2. ↑ a b João F. Scharinger: Lexicar Brasil on the commercial vehicle brand (Portuguese, accessed on September 10, 2016)