Curiously, the first units of the Biscuter 200-C They appeared in 1957. Exactly the same year that the SEAT 600 made its presentation and just a few months before the arrival of the Citroen AZU manufactured in Vigo. That said, the launch of this commercial version of the popular microcar could well establish a milestone, a hinge, between the old and the new.
But let's go in parts. This being the case, it would be best to place ourselves about ten years earlier, at the end of the 1940s. A time when Spain lived constrained by the postwar, autarky and its ration cards. In short, a country, a society, in which it was impossible to think about the mass motorization of the population through passenger cars and their derivatives.
However, beyond bicycles or animal-powered vehicles, motorcycles, mopeds and motocars covered the starving needs of the population in a meager but effective way. In fact, just by taking a look at the photographic collections of any municipal archive we can verify the abundance of motorized tricycles and other inventions related to motorcycling put at the service of small businesses.
Likewise, in relation to private transportation not only of goods but simply of people, the so-called microcars stood out widely during the 1950s. A decade in which, little by little, an obvious market began to exist for this type of models especially in cities. Thanks to this, while the Goggomobil found national production lines in Munguía, the Isetta made its way to the Motor Italia SA plant located in Carabanchel.
VOISIN, FROM THE HEAVENS TO THE EARTH
Given its iconic value in popular culture, the image of the SEAT 600 has tended to erase much of what was done in Spain before its appearance. Because of this, when we talk about massive motorization of the country The prologue played by microcars is barely taken into account until well into the sixties.
A vast field of study where the Biscuter appears as one of the early references when it began its production in Barcelona back in 1953. Of course, in order to find its origins we have to go back much further. Specifically until the beginning of the XNUMXth century, when its designer Gabriel voisin He was one of the most ingenious and daring men in the early days of aeronautics.
Pioneer in the use of materials such as aluminum, after the First World War this intrepid Frenchman decided bet on the automotive world creating luxury automobiles marked by excellent mechanics.
WHEN THE BISCOOTER TRANSFORMED INTO THE BISCUTER
However, after the Second World War its factory was state-owned and put at the service of national reconstruction. A time when it was time to make more sober designs, more appropriate to the needs of a society still shocked by the ravages of war.
At this point, at the end of the 1940s Voisin created for Gnome & Rhône an urban vehicle finished in aluminum that was even more concise than many of the microcars of the time. In any case, and despite having registered orders After its presentation in 1950, the company decided not to continue with the so-called Biscooter project.
Of course, just three years later the Catalan Autonational SA He bought the manufacturing rights, thus creating the biscuit -clearly a local adaptation of the first commercial term-. From here, and as would later happen with the Montesa Impala, this small vehicle would become an essential part of the urban landscape in Barcelona.
HEADING TO A COMMERCIAL VERSION
From 1953 onwards, the Biscuter experienced an interesting level of sales after having adapted to the circumstances of the local industry. In this sense, the French engine was dispensed with in order to install one of those produced in Barcelona by Hispano-Villiers, specifically with a single 197 cc two-stroke cylinder to produce 9 HP.
Anyway, something logical given the context since those mechanics created under a British license were successfully equipping a good part of the motorcycle houses of the time, very focused on eighth-liter touring frames. Likewise, the aluminum shortage As a result of international isolation, it was replaced with sheet metal panels.
In any case, even so the Biscuter was so light that it still did not need reverse gear since it could be lifted and turned without problems as if it were a toy. Of course, the competition posed by other microcars made Autonacional expand the range with new versions; from one with aestheticsSports" by Pedro Serra -quite a whim with obvious nods to the Z-102- up to at least three focused on industrial use.
THE BISCUTER GOES BLONDE
During the Great Depression experienced after the Crash of 1929, necessity had to be made a virtue. Due to this, and especially in the United States, many of the modifications made to the chassis of passenger cars They were made of wood. What's more, under this carpentry applied to the four wheels, thousands of vehicles received large cargo boxes suitable for various industrial tasks.
This is how the bodies were born “woody”, later applied to station wagons of all types - even Rolls-Royce chassis or Hispanic-Suiza– in what has already become a simple aesthetic trend with echoes well into the eighties. However, in Spain in the 1940s the so-called “blondes” -due to the light color of the wood used- they were used again not so much for pleasure as out of necessity.
In this way, hundreds of vehicles were converted by hand to cargo models. Of course, when in 1957 Autonacional decided to launch a commercial version of the Biscuter -Motor Italia did the same with the Isetta and soon MUNISA would try its luck with the Goggomobil F-350- the idea of make the cargo box out of wood It became a reality, thus making a “blonde” option for its Barcelona microcar.
BISCUTER 200-C, A VERSION THAT ARRIVED LATE
With limited but covered cargo space, the Biscuter 200-C offered a good rear opening as well as enough space for two people. However, the units with glass enclosure They even presented the possibility of mounting seats to accommodate up to four occupants in what, a priori, seems like a real challenge for the 197 cc Hispano-Villiers engine.
Likewise, shortly after the 200-C was launched, the 200-I made its appearance with a raised roof topped by a curved plate. By the way, all this with a larger loading surface by increasing the width of the box and, in the IP version, it found the possibility of a canvas roof to accommodate large packages such as a ladder or a long extension tube.
However, during that same 1957 SEAT launched its 600 as a definitive step towards replacing microcars with utility cars; even more so in cases like this, where the dealer himself provided financing facilities. Furthermore, just around that time Citroën launched the AZU within the 2CV range.
In short, given that those options only cost a little more than what microcars or motorcycles cost, it is logical to think about how the local vehicle fleet lived. one of his greatest transformations thus embracing passenger cars and their industrial derivatives. A context where the Biscuter 200-C could barely survive two years before being surpassed by the creations of SEAT, FASA or Citroën Hispania.
Images: RM Sotheby's