Vehículos Industriales y Agrícolas, S.A

Vehículos Industriales y Agrícolas, S.A. (VIASA) or VIASA was a Spanish automobile company, a division of parent company Construcciones y Auxiliares de Ferrocariles (CAF).[1]

The company was founded in Zaragoza in the late 1950s to build agricultural equipment and vehicles Willys Overland Jeeps under licence from Kaiser-Willys. It was one of three companies specializing in the production of commercial vehicles, two of them, ENASA and AISA, were controlled by the Spanish government through the INI. The third was VIASA, a division of parent company Construcciones y Auxiliares de Ferrocariles (CAF) that built railway cars and locomotives.[1][2] Production began in 1960, and soon local content of all components was achieved. Vehicles used Perkins and Barreiros gasoline or diesel engines.[3]

In the early 1960s, VIASA also manufactured FIAT models 211R, 411R, and 421R tractors under license.[3]

The Jeep "SV" line of Forward Control vans made in Spain

In 1963, Forward control versions went on sale offering a range of models with an advanced cockpit. These were completely unique from any other Jeep-based vehicles anywhere in the world.[4] Versions included pick-up, van, chassis cab and duplex cabin. All carried a Perkins diesel engine that allowed them to cruise at one hundred kilometers per hour.[3]

In 1968, VIASA merged with Material Móvil y Construcciones S.A.[1]

In 1974, it was absorbed by Motor Ibérica and placed under Ebro trucks.[1] In the early eighties the Viasa vehicles disappeared from the Motor Ibérica catalog, to be replaced by the Nissan Vanette and Nissan Patrol.[3]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 Redmond, Derek (12 February 2009). "Los Jeeps: Made in Spain". The CJ3B Page. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
  2. Maxcy, George (2013). The Multinational Motor Industry. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9780415657662. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Jeeps in Spain on The CJ3B Page". Film.queensu.ca. 2009-02-12. Retrieved 2010-07-04.
  4. Foster, Patrick R. (2004). The Story of Jeep (Second ed.). Krause Publications. p. 15. ISBN 9780873497350. Retrieved 24 June 2014.

External links

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