Test: Fiat Hispania 514, the first Fiat manufactured in Spain under license

Fiat was the second great world automobile manufacturer to settle in our country after Ford. It is curious that these two foreign firms present before the Civil War later returned to Spain with very ambitious projects, although, due to various circumstances that we will now analyze, the production of Fiat in our country it was brief. Both in time and in the number of units manufactured.

Until the start of SEAT and FASA in 1953, in Spain the technology capable of producing automobiles in large series had not existed, something that began in the United States with the Ford T in 1908 thanks to the assembly line. This was significantly improved in 1912, a system adopted in Europe from 1919 by Citroën, Renault, Opel, Austin, Fiat and, of course, Ford's European subsidiaries in the UK and Germany. This inability to carry out production with efficient methods was the reason why the Spanish brands that tried to make medium-sized or popular cars they were disappearing given its lack of competitiveness.

The Fiat 514 looks like it did in its best days. Photographs Jesus Maria Izquierdo.

Another thing was the luxury car manufacturing in which it was possible to continue being competitive with a semi-artisanal production method given the few units manufactured. As was the case with trucks and coaches, whose lower production did not require the strong investment required for a car assembly line.

BARCELONA SALON OF 1919

Therefore, it is not surprising that when the Barcelona Hall It opened its doors in May 1919, after four years in which the European industry had been focused on military productions, supplying Spain to a large extent with national vehicles, the Spanish brands present were nine. They were Hispano-Suiza, Elizalde, España, América, TH (Talleres Hereter), DyG, David, Abadal-Buick and Nike. Meanwhile, at the 1933 Barcelona Salon the only national firm present was Hispano-Suiza

As an anecdote, we will say that in the Salon of 1935 there was another local brand called national sitjes with an average car that was said to soon reach a production of two units a day! The data with which it was intended to generate confidence in the new firm meant in fact announcing its non-viability in the very act of its presentation.

We will point out that Sitjes was the surname of its promoter Anthony Sitjes, so that car has nothing to do with the famous tourist town near Barcelona.

THE PESCARA PATERAS BROTHERS

Now we change register in a somewhat radical way and we go with the brothers Raúl and Enrique Pateras Pescara of which Raúl had the title of Marquis of Pescara. I imagine that some reader will wonder what the National Pescara with Fiat Hispania which is the subject of this article. The answer is that the paths of both entities coincided at a given moment, as we will now see.

Raul Pateras, Marquis of Pescara, was always a very restless man in everything that were mechanical innovations. He created a company in France that designed a helicopter that made some experimental flights, continuing its development in Spain. To this end, he set up, together with Jorge Loring -one of the pioneers of national aviation- the company “Pescara Helicopter” based in Barcelona where he set up a large, well-equipped workshop.

In addition, and this is what matters in this article, they created another company called "National Automobile Factory SA", which designed and produced in 1930 a luxury car named Nacional Pescara. This was presented by Raúl Pateras to the King in Santander that same year. Alfonso XIII He was a good driver and, after testing the car, he told the Marquis of Pescara that he would take the necessary steps so that his company could have the subsidies and aid provided by law to promote the development of the national industry.

The existing political instability at the end of 1930 it made the Pateras Pescara brothers give up their purpose of producing automobiles. And this despite having acquired for this purpose a large piece of land and warehouses in the Barcelona town of Cornellá, where many recently purchased machines were stored. Yeah they continued with the helicopter in order to finish the last of its prototypes, which they did in 1931 or early 1932, having decided to continue its development in France.

Our protagonist rolling through the fields of La Mancha. Photographs Jesus Maria Izquierdo.

FIAT DECIDED TO SET UP IN SPAIN

Let's go now with Fiat, the main actor in this story and for which Spain had always been a good market. The Italian brand decided set up a factory here of cars that was going to start its activity through what we define today as a system ckd. That is, assembling the car with most of the components from Italy, to progressively nationalize production, reaching the 80% “nationalization” of the vehicle in four or five years. All of which was agreed with the Administration.

After having been represented for several years in Spain by the "Sociedad General de Automóviles", Fiat had become directly present as Fiat Hispania, with registered office in Barcelona. When they learned of the intention of the Pateras Pescara brothers to cease their automobile manufacturing project, one of their managers, the mr carbonaro, contacted them in order to sell them the company “Fábrica Nacional de Automóviles SA”. And not because they were interested in his car, but because they already had granted some of the subsidies promised by Alfonso XIII to set up a car factory, thus allowing Fiat to benefit from them.

The conversations between both societies they took place between the end of 1930 and the beginning of 1931, quickly reaching an agreement, thus recovering the Pateras brothers part of the money invested in the National Pescara. Fiat, for its part and thanks to this purchase, was entitled to the subsidies granted. Thus, "National Automobile Factory" already integrated into Fiat Hispania, came to have its registered office in the Plaza de Catalunya no. 22 in Barcelona which was where the headquarters of Fiat Hispania was. He also kept the land, machinery and buildings of the planned Cornellá factory.

THE FIAT HISPANIA OF GUADALAJARA

Parallel, Fiat Hispania had started talks with Hispanic-Suiza that he wanted to end his non-aeronautical activity. They were primarily the army truck part of the “Hispano. Factory of Automobiles and War Material" that the Barcelona firm had in Guadalajara. It was commonly known as “The Hispanic Guadalajara”. He sold the “automotive” section to Fiat Hispania, which bought 10.000 shares for 3,5 million pesetas, with which it acquired generous warehouses, machinery, and services such as water, electricity, and others that already existed. Hispano-Suiza continued its activity in aviation and weapons in other ships of the same factory.

Fiat was very interested in quickly starting its industrial activity, sending engineers to Guadalajara for this purpose. Vittorio Bonade Bottino, responsible for the spectacular factory of mirafioriAs Ugo Gobatto, an engineer used to commissioning large facilities. Both were therefore two "heavyweights" of the transalpine society.

Gobatto would pass shortly after to Alfa Romeo as the highest technical manager of the same, being the direct head of Wilfredo Ricart. Once the factory in Alcarria started up, both engineers left, leaving the engineer as director Vincent Roa who was already working in Guadalajara with Hispano-Suiza.

FROM THOUSANDS OF UNITS ANNUALLY TO A HUNDRED

The model to be manufactured in Spain was the Fiat 514, of which at first only a few components were made here. Also the carpentry of the frame on which the metal sheets of the body were placed, which, yes, were imported like most of the mechanical elements. However, it was planned growing nationalization of the car from that first year.

The forecasts of manufacturing thousands of units were cut short. Photographs Jesus Maria Izquierdo.

With the advent of II Republic, these forecasts were distorted very soon, since there was a change in the legislation on the import taxes of vehicles and components without taking into account the forecasts made by Fiat and its profitability calculations. Existing tariff legislation did not apply to Fiat Hispania when the project was carried out, with which the manufacturing price of the car increased significantly with respect to the calculated price. Added to this was another problem, which was that political uncertainty caused the peseta to devalue significantly, making imports even more expensive.

CHANGE OF PLANS

In these circumstances, maintaining the expected price would imply a net loss of 1.500 pesetas per car. And increasing the sale price was not easy, since the market had suffered a recession due to the 1929 crisis, although, as there were already imported components, it was made in the order of a hundred cars in 1931 (1). It was at the end of April when the first unit was produced, persistently trying to reach an agreement with the Administration in order to temporarily achieve the reduction of tariffs on imported parts based on the calculations that had been previously made.

Fiat presented perfectly detailed studies of the stages planned to reach the 7.500 units per year from the fifth year, as well as the progressive nationalization of components to ensure that almost all of the car was manufactured in Spain. This would mean, among other things, going from the 600 employees that there were at that time to 3.000 direct plus indirect ones.

He then Industry Minister did not accept Fiat Hispania's proposal despite the support of local and provincial authorities. In this way, the Italian brand closed the factory in 1932, once the existing components were exhausted. A very unfortunate termination that would have been avoided by giving the Guadalajara facilities a free port regime like the one i had Ford Motor Iberica in Barcelona. Thus, an excellent opportunity was lost in Spain to have a large national automobile producer, which was also located in what was then an agricultural area for which industrialization would have been very important.

As is logical, Fiat Hispania continued with his usual activity to import automobiles, trucks, airplanes, and other products, all of which were well accepted in Spain, sometimes with such notable success as the one that was to have shortly after the Fiat Balilla.

LIQUIDATION

A Fiat Hispania He now had the always difficult task of trying to recover as much as possible the money invested. Thanks to the growth that aviation was experiencing at that time, both military and civil, its facilities in Guadalajara were repurchased by Hispano-Suiza that he needed to expand the aeronautical section. The entire set of warehouses and facilities from Alcarria thus became the property of Hispano-Suiza.

The 514 was the first Fiat built under license in Spain. Photographs Jesus Maria Izquierdo.

What was not so easy was to sell the factory and the machinery of Cornellá also bought from the Pateras Pescara brothers. Curiously, these facilities and part of the machinery ended up being sold some time later to the Giró family who, in 1928, had created the company BONEacronym for Orpheo Sincronic Limited Company. It was dedicated to the manufacture of 35 mm film projectors for movie theaters and, after the Civil War, it would also manufacture ossa motorcycles How successful they were.

THE FIAT 514

Going now to Fiat 514 object of this article, we will say that it was a medium-sized car that was presented and offered for sale in 1929 replacing with it the 509 model. It was in certain aspects mechanically simpler than its predecessor and that greater mechanical simplicity and the consequent reduction in price was almost providential considering that its release coincided with the wall street crash. That made the 514 a good commercial success thanks to a competitive price. In fact, when its manufacture ceased in 1932, 36.970 units of it had been made.

chassis and bodywork they were very classic, being the first of double girder. Above it, as we have already mentioned, a wooden frame was mounted on which the metal panels that formed the body were placed, whose lines followed, to scale, the style of the Fiat 6 cylinder.

It operates with solvency, at least flattening. Photographs Jesus Maria Izquierdo.

Part of its success was due to the fact that various versions were offered, the best-selling being the four-door saloon, which is the one made in Guadalajara. There was also a longer variant designated as 514 L (L for Lungo = Long) with a wheelbase of 2.770 mm instead of the 2.555 mm of the 514. This "long" variant was primarily intended for the taxi market by admitting carriers (small folding chairs).

There were other versions such as the two-door saloon and the two and four door convertibles, as well as the coupe. Another successful variant in its segment was the van built on the chassis of the 514 L, two sports models with spider-type bodies having been marketed as well, which were more powerful thanks, among other things, to an increase in compression. They were designated as 514S and 514MM with 35 and 37 CV respectively. The MM was a model with beautiful lines, and it goes without saying that the letters MM in its designation evoked the Mille Miglia , a then recent test, whose first edition took place in 1927.

In short, the 514 sedan, which is our protagonist today, was a good family car, reliable and good wheelerwhose 28 CV They allowed him to perform well on the road. It was in production until 1932 and would undoubtedly have been a successful car in Spain if events had allowed it. It could even have been produced here after the cessation of its manufacture in Italy.

THE FIAT HISPANIA

When this model was put into production in 1931 in Guadalajara his aesthetic was perfectly current. Although only the best-selling version was made, it seems that the 514 L was also planned, thinking mainly of the taxi market. One difference between the Spanish and Italian versions was in the radiator. In the Spanish model it was more “apparent” and elegant, with an H in a circle with the Spanish flag on top of it.

settling in your interior we find a car with good seats and well finished, wide for the passengers in front and very wide for those in the rear seats. It has a board well equipped for the time, and the consequent controls in the center of the steering wheel for the air and the hand throttle. It starts immediately and we take advantage of the fact that the car is in Trujillo to take photos in the impressive historical setting of that city under the watchful eye of Francisco Pizarro.

On the road the car moves with solvency and it is also noticeable that he is in his element, flattening perfectly, and even more so if the road surface is good, as was the case. Have a good torque that allows recoveries without having to change gear, and the behavior is good as long as we are aware that we are riding in a car that is over ninety years old. An age that makes us value their good behavior even more, something to which their superb state of conservation is not unrelated. When we think about all this, we can only regret that this car, called to be a best seller in Spain adjacent to Ford Y, will remain almost in anecdote.

IN COMPETITION

And finally we will point out that, although the 514 did not have a sporting vocation, we are aware of two participations that we cite as an anecdote. The first one was in a regularity test organized by the Motorcycle Club of Catalonia on May 8, 1932, in which a Fiat Hispania driven by Juan Boada ranked second.

Given the date of the test, it is obvious that it was one of the very first units produced in Guadalajara. Another Fiat Hispania appears registered with the number 26 in the Regularity Squire Trophy disputed on September 17, 1933 led by José Lasarte.

N. del A.- We are very grateful for the collaboration of Carlos Saavedra, owner of FIAT Hispania in this article, as well as Francisco Vallejuelo for his help with this report and Raúl Aranda, President of FEVA, for his collaboration.

(1) A good book talks about a total production of 300 units, and although we do not totally rule out this fact, the figure of about 100 units in total seems more credible to us.

Photographs: Jesus Maria Izquierdo.