Ignacio Saenz de Camara
The Munguía Industrial company (MUNISA) began manufacturing the Goggomobil microcar in January 1962. Quite a satisfaction, having overcome the bureaucratic obstacles that since 1958 had made it difficult to produce this German-designed stroller.
In the recently opened Munguía (Vizcaya) factory, the company built the bodies and carried out the assembly, while the engines were produced in the Bilbao neighborhood of Deusto. And it is that Munguía Industrial belonged to the Beltrán y Casado group, a metallurgical consortium that already produced mechanical parts and gearboxes for Movesa, the manufacturer of Peugeot motorcycles in Vitoria, and for Imosa, the construction company of DKW vans.
In 1962 1.100 units of the Goggomobil were manufactured and the following year production doubled, with adequate sales. But the four lost years were decisive so that the most successful period of the model was not taken advantage of.
With the Seat 600 well established in the Spanish market, it would soon be seen that sales of the T-350 sedan were going to decrease.
A short time later, the C-350 variant, a commercial Goggomobil with no rear seat and no glass rear side windows, was unveiled. This version, which was exempt from the Luxury Tax, had a discreet demand.
Goggomobil F-350 Van
In view of the rise of the AZU vans, derived from the Citroën 2 CV, in Munisa they produced the F-350 version. This variant had a higher rear half, in order to transport two people and up to 250 kg of cargo.
The upper rear area of the body was fitted with corrugated sheet metal to increase rigidity. And at the back, the F-350 had two glass rear doors, located above the area reserved for the two-cylinder, two-stroke cycle engine.
The flat, 1,75-square-meter cargo area was ideal for light transport in the urban environment, as the length of just 3,08 meters made the F-350 an agile and effective van for roaming around. our cities.
In addition, its cargo volume of 1.480 cubic meters, although it was less than that of the Citroën 2 CV and Renault 4F, had a shape without irregularities, as well as separation bars that prevented goods from entering the occupant space.
Of this F-350, added to another later mixed model that was called K-400S, around three hundred units were built until the end of production. And given the hard life that these types of vehicles usually lead, there are hardly any copies left.
The needle in the haystack
Uwe Staufenberg is a great German Goggomobil enthusiast, who spreads through his page goggomobil.com and who loved the van manufactured exclusively by Munguía Industrial.
As a result of his passion, he discovered four years ago in an old Goggomobil dealership in Madrid an F-350 van, which had remained unsold. It had only been used for commercial promotion, with test plates, and was not registered.
Logically, the four decades of inactivity had damaged the tires and other rubber components. On the other hand, the bodywork had been preserved by being kept indoors, as it was seen after a thorough cleaning.
The mechanics were also perfectly preserved, which had barely traveled a little over 500 km, but so many years of immobility forced Uwe to make a thorough revision, replacing parts out of use and checking settings.
However, with the van ready to roll, there was a slight drawback. It lacked a license plate, so in its premiere at the 2011 "International Microcotxes Trobada" and to wear something, it used a Madrid license plate from 1957.
During this concentration, which is held every two years around the Barcelona town of Manresa and whose next edition will take place on June 8 and 9, the Goggomobil F-350 van coincided with two other similar copies.
Both belonged to German fans, who find this Spanish version so little loved around here a marvel. One of them, blue in color, still had its 1965 Valencian license plate, while the other already had its German license plate.
And along with these three vans, almost a hundred microcars, including Goggomobil manufactured in Dingolfing (Germany), some assembled at the Munguía factory and a Teutonic Goggomobil 300, which in its day belonged to the German Post.
Uwe's F-350 van
Already shod with Michelin XZX tires, radial and in size 4.50-10, the F-350 van began to roll again. Outside, Uwe had renewed the lettering of the old Madrid dealership and installed the sun visor.
In the lower right corner of the windshield, keep a promotional card from the Guijarro Garage. It was an official Goggomobil service from Madrid, which barely released the van and which had its headquarters at number 22 Vallehermoso street.
He also fitted all four wheels with the characteristic chrome hubcaps, but was especially careful not to modify the body-color painted bumpers, used only on the van versions and the C-350 commercial model.
Once inside the small cabin, it is a pleasure to see the two-tone upholstery of the seats and the door trims so impeccable, together with the pristine presence of the steering wheel and the separation bars of the area reserved for the load.
With the odometer marking 00611, its simplicity stands out in the driving position. The only clock is the speedometer, while to know when to refuel we have the reserve key, as in the motorcycles of that time.
The metal dashboard includes an open glove box and windshield demisting nozzles. Plus four non-ergonomic controls that are used to activate the cold start choke, turn on the lights, activate the turn signals or start the windshield wipers.
