The Seat Ibiza has just turned 40 years old with more than 6 million units sold throughout its five generations. Finding a first generation copy (1984-1993) with barely 1,000 kilometers is almost an impossible mission, unless one enters the A-122 warehouse of the old Seat factory in the Free Trade Zone of Barcelona. There, along with this unusual red Ibiza, are approximately 170 other vehicles of the 366 that are currently part of the Seat Historic collection, the division of the company that Isidre López has directed since 2010.
Historical Seat sounds good, but why not Seat Museum?
We don’t like to say museum because it is not a museum. It could be because we have the content quite controlled, with about 170 cars in the Free Trade Zone factory and 366 in total, without forgetting the archive, which is a very important part because it helps us understand everything, to recover the cars. The archive contains technical and financial information, documents and product photographs, presentations… And the most surprising thing is that every time a move is made in a department, documents that we did not have appear from the closets.
How did the idea to create this space come about?
A group of employees, led by Elvira Veloso, who was in charge of the fleet of press cars and was a woman very ahead of her time, decided to undertake the task of recovering the historic cars that were scattered throughout different parts of the press factory. Free Zone. Later, President Schleef arrived, who was interested in the collection and came to see it. Seeing the cars, which were in poor condition, he said they should be restored. It was then that a group of around 20 people affected by early retirement was formed. Under the leadership of Elvira Veloso, this team obtained space in warehouse A-127, and later in A-122, which has 3,500 square meters. All the cars were grouped in three areas: workshop, archive and warehouse.
In 2010 you arrived to lead the collection.
That’s how it is. I was head of the Seat Sport workshop and when I arrived here I realized that this space had many possibilities, that we could take the cars through the streets, participate in regular classic rallies, in static and dynamic events… More than a hundred actions annual. From there we started with this strategy to make Seat’s history known through its cars. We have even gone to other countries: England, Germany, France…
The collection is invaluable, there are cars of all types here.
We have everything from production cars to concept cars, competition vehicles, original cars that have not been registered and have never left the factory. They have a very important value, it cannot be quantified.
Let’s talk about those cars that were never registered.
One of the ones that attracts the most attention is a Seat 1400 Visits. It is a convertible version of the 1400 that was made for VIP visits. Businessmen, ministers and even heads of state on an official visit have boarded this car. Only two cars like this were made in 1954, one of which was restored and is in very good condition. We didn’t have to manufacture any new parts except for the tires, which are classic, but modernly manufactured.
And which ones would you highlight the most?
The penultimate Seat 600 that was manufactured, on August 3, 1973, was also not registered. It was used for the latest advertising campaign. Only the tires have been changed, as we occasionally take it for a ride around the factory and the original 50 year old tires could explode. I can also tell you about the Seat 127 frame 1, the Seat 133 frame 1, the Seat Ibiza frame 1… And the Seat one million that corresponds to a 124 that has a curious history.
What happened to this car?
The management of Seat decided to raffle among the workers the millionth car produced in the Zona Franca factory. The car in question turned out to be a Seat 124. Well, the winner was an employee who did not have a license and since he had gotten married a month before and had many expenses, in the end the management gave him a check with the value of the car and the 124 stayed at the factory. It’s not even 200 kilometers long. It only circulates when we put it on the truck to take it to the exhibitions.
There are cars that have been easy to collect because they have never left the factory. But what happens to the models that were not in the Free Zone?
Some, like the 1500 frame 1, have returned after service. This car belonged to the director of the factory at the time and when he left office the car returned here. But we had to buy the 1500 family car because we didn’t have it.
Are there any models that resist you, either because you can’t find it or they ask for an exorbitant amount of money?
There is everything. We have a list with more than 60 cars that we are missing. Now there are only around 50 left to get, but some racing cars have already been lost forever due to accidents or fires. Rather than resisting, I would say that there are cars that end up being relegated by others that are more interesting, even if they are not on the list. For example, the third generation 600 frame 1, that is, the 600-E, was not on the list, but it was made available to us. In fact, the older the car is, the more priority it is for us.
And what happened to an Ibiza that was left in a dealership without being sold?
About 10 years ago, a dealer offered us a first-generation Ibiza, from 1984, brand new and yet to be released. But we didn’t agree. About 7 or 8 years ago they offered it to us again and this time we did acquire it. It was a car with zero kilometers. To buy it and make the name change we had to register it. They assigned it a modern three-letter license plate, but on the same day we asked for the historical registration as it was a car that was more than 30 years old.
How do they find the cars they are missing?
There are people who know that we are after these cars – motoring clubs, journalists… – and when they find out that there is one that we may be interested in, they let us know. We also found out through social networks. Sometimes it’s hard to find one of those cars. I remember the time we managed to find a Ronda Crono 2000. It is a car that is highly sought after, because it is a GTI of the time, from the 1980s, of which only 390 units were manufactured. Well, we had to go look for it at the house of a boy who lived in the mountains, in a very strange house, and had the car inside a container. To access it we had to jump in front of another car and we saw that yes, it was frame 1.
The worst thing must be when they find a car that is missing but is in poor condition…
Yes, this happens especially to us with Formichettas, 600 type vans that have generally led a hard life and when they change hands no one cares to take care of them. They are difficult to restore at the sheet metal level, due to corrosion, because they normally remain outdoors. On the other hand, the owners of 600, for example, take maximum care of them: one paints it, another always keeps it in a covered garage.
What process do you follow to restore a vehicle?
When we decide to restore a car it is a bad decision for us because we are standard bearers of originality. We almost prefer to have an original car that is more or less good and maintain it without being abusive with the restoration. When we decide to restore a car we go for it. We collect all the necessary information: from the reduced technical sheet to each detailed characteristic, including the original color, the type of upholstery, the wheels and tires used. Once we have everything, we are ready to start.
A complicated job, but beautiful at the same time…
We (Seat) do not have the glamor of Mercedes or the sportiness of Porsche. Throughout our history, cars have always reflected the evolution of society. Our responsibility when it comes to originality is to keep them authentic and in optimal working condition, applying the techniques we know: from the suspension and steering to the brakes, making sure they work even better than when they left the factory. These cars are not here just to show it, but we have them so that the specialized media can test them, enjoy them and get a feeling of real quality.
Is it difficult to get original spare parts?
It seems incredible, but there are still original spare parts, although it is also true that there are parts that are impossible to find. We got some materials from Italy because between 1950 and 1980 our technological partner was Fiat and we have many common parts with other Italian brands. Sometimes we travel to Italy to attend fairs and find the material we are looking for. But it’s not always like this. For a 1400 van that we restored we had to manufacture the valves and engine mounts because we couldn’t find spare parts anywhere.
One of the cars that attracts the most attention in the collection is a glass Seat Panda that John Paul II used on his visit to Spain in 1982, the Popemobile…
Yes, yes… It is a car that does not go unnoticed by anyone. It is so emblematic that we resist restoring it. We have painted it and it is as it was then. Internally, we have only replaced the brake master cylinder and the tires, which deteriorate over time and would end up exploding. If you want, I’ll tell you a curious story about the Popemobile…
Forward!
A few weeks before the Pope’s visit to Spain, a Vatican commission traveled to Madrid to finalize all the details. They reviewed the routes, the places where John Paul II was going to go and when it seemed that everything was fine they realized that the official car of the Vatican, a Range Rover in which a glass urn had been installed after the attack a year before in Saint Peter’s Square, did not pass through the access doors of the Camp Nou and the Bernabéu. The Vatican security team wanted the Pope to drive to the center of the field where he had to make the speech. As at that time Seat was still a state company, part of the INI, they called the company’s managers and ordered them a custom car.
This is how the famous Popemobile was born, from a Seat Panda…
Yes, from the measurements given by the Vatican they saw that it fit on the base of a Panda and that’s how the Popemobile was made in two weeks. It is, without a doubt, one of the jewels we have. We have taken it to more than one television studio because we have been asked for it for a special program that has been made about papal visits, and I even remember a quick trip to Germany for another television program. It is a car that always gives us a lot of joy.
Have you received any offers from anyone who would like to buy the Popemobile?
No, not about the Popemobile specifically. But they have asked us for a car. For example, a person from the Czech Republic wanted to buy us the prototype of the Seat León that was presented in Geneva, which is not very old because it is now about to turn 25 years old. From what he told us, he is linked to a Seat dealership and the car coincided with his beginnings at Seat. They also wanted to buy us the second 1400 Visits that we have in the collection. But we don’t sell, we only buy.
When a production company comes and asks for a car for a series or a movie, do they let them have it?
This was one of the discussions I had with the company when I arrived at Seat Historicos. Our cars are unique, proof of this is that we are only allowed to have one per family, and they are in very good condition, as if they had just come off the production line. A car in the hands of a production company is still a prop and if the director decides that the actors get on top of the car, they get on, and if he says that the car has to be hit, it is hit. For that, there are already companies that are dedicated to this. They paint the cars, they burn them, they repaint them… On the screen you can’t tell if they are original or not. It’s like asking the Prado Museum for the Las Meninas painting because in a movie there is a scene where you see the painting hanging on the wall.
So we are not going to see a copy of the Historic Seat in a movie or series…
As I said before, the company and I used to have different points of view on this aspect of lending cars. However, this changed after lending a Seat 800 for a scene in a series. This car, similar to the 600 but with four doors and 18 centimeters longer, was returned to us with a significant dent in the rear, the bumper dented and very dirty from having been used on inappropriate terrain. This incident changed our minds. If it is necessary to skid, it is better to use another vehicle.
Why do they have a Seat Ronda painted yellow and black if a car with these colors has never been on the market?
For me this is the most important car in the collection because it marks a turning point in the history of the company. In the 1980s, Fiat abandoned its investment in our factory, selling us its shares for a peseta and letting us use its technology for 5 years in exchange for manufacturing Pandas for them. Seat’s first independent car was the Ronda, different from the Fiat Ritmo, although Fiat sued us for plagiarism. We presented more than 400 documents and plans to demonstrate the differences and won the case at the Paris Competition Court. In the third and final session we presented this car as evidence, highlighting each yellow painted part that differed from the Fiat. The Court ruled in our favor. It was a key moment because the royalty payment had previously been devastating for Seat.
Can you say that the Ronda marks a before and after for Seat?
This car showed us the way to export. When Fiat made a very powerful investment in Seat, it did so to have a factory capable of producing half a million cars a year, which is what we have today in Martorell. Currently, we export 82% of our production to other countries. At that time, the national market could only absorb 80,000 cars a year, which led to a radical change in the company’s strategy. We now sell cars in 75 countries.
The first car that the current King Felipe VI had is also on display…
This car is a first generation Ibiza, it is a very special car that King Juan Carlos I gave to the Prince of Asturias when he turned 18. This car has special features, such as a unique rear axle width, two different spoilers, special Recaro seats and fog lights, even before they were introduced on this model. Although it was never designed with air conditioning, this example has it. Furthermore, its color is unique. The engine is injection, two years after the 100 HP SXI model came out, while these cars only had 80 HP.
Was it difficult to get this ‘real’ car back?
We recovered it 11 years ago and restored it after having stood still for 16 in Logroño. He belonged to a private individual, but I can’t tell you more. It is confidential. During the 30th anniversary of the Ibiza, 10 years ago, the King visited the factory and we showed him this car. He found it very funny, since everyone likes to remember his first car.
And what can you tell me about Seat’s first electric car, a 1992 Toledo?
Seat was the main sponsor of the Barcelona ’92 Games. We provided more than 2,000 cars to transport athletes, organizers and leaders during the event. As the athletics regulations required that the car that opened the marathon events be emission-free, we invented this electric Toledo. It’s very primitive. It has more than 500 kilos of lead batteries and a real range of 50 kilometers. Before participating in the marathon events, both men and women, the car performed a section with the Olympic torch as a test. It was registered as a normal car and we still have its registration. From time to time, we take him to Montjuic for some photo shoots.
In Seat Historicos there is a space dedicated to racing cars and another Panda stands out, this one driven by Carlos Sáinz…
This is the first official car of a Carlos Sáinz brand. By winning the Panda Cup, Seat Competicion left him this car, which is more evolved than the one he had, to do 5 rallies in the Spanish Championship with Seat Competicion. In one of those rallies, the one in Talavera, Sáinz obtained fifth place overall ahead of Porsches, Lancias and larger cars, which was a boost for his career. From there, Reanault signed him and he started in the World Rally Championship. Every time they have an event they call us to order the car and we are happy to take it to them.
The pity is that all these cars are not exposed to the public…
Since I have been in charge of Seat Histéricos we have made three projects to build a museum in Barcelona, ??but they have not come to fruition. Doing it here, in the factory, is complicated, both for security and confidentiality issues. You don’t know how many requests we receive to visit the space, but we are not prepared to receive visitors.
Don’t they make exceptions?
The only option to visit Seat Historicos is to get a ticket to the 48H Open House Barcelona. It is celebrated the penultimate weekend of the month of October and although it is an architectural event, we fit in perfectly. It allows you to visit buildings that won the 1957 Reynolds Architecture Design Award for the use of aluminum in their structure and that are normally closed to the public. The problem is that the tickets fly out in five minutes.
