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Press Release Honda Motor Europe Spain 2020 Index 01 Precedents 02 The beginning until 1945 03 The start of mass production (1945-1947) 04 From the first international competitions to the production plant in Pamplona street 05 The first international fairs to the separa- tion (1953-1958) 06 The Impala and the production plant in Esplugues (1959-1963) 07 The period between 1963-1968. Moto- cross. The market in United States. 08 The beginning of trial 09 The height of trial and motocross in the 70s 10 Montesa, today 01 Precedents Montesa's history began in 1944, when the young industrialist from Barcelona Pere Permanyer Puigjaner, at the time 33 years old, started branching out from his industry of producer gas to the automotive industry, opening a new branch of his activities towards the motorcycle sector. The gas generator industry was very representative of post-war life in Spain. During the Second World War (1939-1945) and amid Spain's reconstruction after the devastating Civil War (1936-1939), the shortage of fuel had paralyzed transport in Spain. This meant that the application of the producer gas system (a skillful procedure for obtaining fuel by burning almond shells) was an almost magical resource, be it for the propulsion of cars, trucks, or electric current generators. Pere Permanyer learned about vegetable fuels through the family business, founded by his grandfather, which dealt in the import and distribution of coal. The Permanyer Coal Company acquired raw materials from the islands of Corsica and Sicily and transported it to Barcelona through two schooners of its own. A fleet of trucks then distributed the product throughout Spain. Pere Permanyer Puigjaner was born in Barcelona on 21 July 1911. When he was only one year old, he moved with his parents to a new family home in the Sant Martí district of Barcelona, where the company was located. His integration in the area and his cooperation in the progress of the youth, as well as the development of the district during his years of residence there, made him worthy, in 1975, of the prize "San Martín de Oro with international transcendence", awarded the District's Municipal Board. Although for some time he collaborated in the family industry under his father's orders, he soon showed a natural inclination towards manufacturing and a passion for mechanics. As a child, the game of "Meccano" helped him develop a natural leaning towards industrial innovation. When he finished his studies in Industrial and Commercial Expertise in 1931, his interest drove him to develop one of his first youthful ideas: in anticipation of possible energy restrictions, he studied the propulsion system using gas generators applied to internal combustion engines. He traveled to Madrid, and then to London and Paris, where the system had been studied academi- cally, to gather as much information as possible. In the French capital, he even drove a garbage truck powered by the gas generator system, to check its operation first hand. During the Spanish Civil War, Pere Permanyer took over the management of a repair and reconstruction workshop for air force vehicles in Zaragoza. During this period, he developed a great friendship with Josep Antoni Soler i Urgell "Jasu", with whom he shared the difficult years of the war. Permanyer was in charge of that workshop, which had more than 50 welders, mechanics, fitters, turners, carpenters, bodyworkers, and assemblers. The young director, then 26, developed a particular interest for the two-stroke engine of the German DKW vans, which would become the inspiration of his subsequent pro- jects. However, around 1944, with the foreseeable end of the Second World War, Permanyer realized that the supply of fuel would soon return to normal and, therefore, he would have to refocus his industry towards an activity other than producer gas, which was, in reality, an emergency resource, the result of the circumstances of the time. His first idea was to study a two-stroke engine for motorcycles, given the extraordinary demand for this type of light vehicles, and the complete lack of local manufacture and imports, due to two wars, the Spanish Civil War of 1936-39 and the World War II of 1939-45. 02 The beginning until 1945 His friend “Jasu", well aware of Pere Permanyer's industrial potential, introduced him to his brother-in-law, Francisco X. Bultó, a big fan of motorsports and an expert biker. It was during June 1944 when, among the three of them, they decided to produce light motorcycles in Permanyer's workshops, at 408 Córcega Street, in Barcelona. A Motobecane B1V2GR38 that Bultó had given as a present to his nephew Juan Soler Bultó (son of "Jasu" who would go on to become a prominent speed and test rider) would serve as the basis for the first prototype that started to appear in the streets of Barcelona at the end of October of the same year. With some improved features, the prototype was modified, and on February 11, 1945, it was registered for a team motorcycle regularity test, organized by the Real Moto Club of Catalunya with the XX anagram, the name of the brand still undecided on. The rider on the motorcycle was José Luis Milá, who sadly wouldn’t finish the test due to a failure in the ignition system. This setback did not discourage the company in the slightest, in fact, it became yet another incentive to accelerate the technical evolution of the design, on which intense work was done. At the time, the difficulties of sustaining a mass pro- duction were enormous, so much so that even a true believer would have had trouble not giving up. Spain didn’t have the required auxiliary industry and the current political isolation of Spain made it extremely difficult to obtain the necessary raw materials and components. During these years, one of the most desired components, and probably the hardest to obtain, was the magnetic flywheel for the engine ignition. Fortunately, Manuel Giró, who had a film projector manufacturing industry (Orfeo Sincronic S.A.- O.S.S.A.) had imported, before the war, some Bosch flywheels with the purpose, then rejected, of making motorcycles. Permanyer and Bultó bought the batch of 100 units for 22,000 pesetas and started to build the first hundred mass-produced motorcycles. To acquire the necessary materials, given the particularity of these circumstances, Permanyer had to use his imagination and resources in a way that today would be seen as impossible. There were no means of production at all, and no spe- cialized personnel. That is why he traveled almost non-stop looking for information to Madrid, Bilbao, and even abroad, and had to resort to picturesque maneuvers such as exporting Spanish wines from La Rioja to obtain, in exchange, a license to import the raw materials needed for the industry. Meanwhile, Bultó was designing prototypes. His friend Carles Carreras, also an engineer, helped him with the first sketches. Those days, Bultó could only spend a few hours of "spare time" on the project, having to attend his own business, the company Barella y Bultó S.L., with a production plant in Vilanova y la Geltrú, (Barcelona) dedicated to the production of piston rings and cylinder sleeves for the automotive industry, sold under the brand name "Bolaco". In June 1945, three units of the new motorcycles were showcased at Barcelona’s Trade Fair. The name of the brand had been chosen, Montesa, selected after analyzing a wide variety of alternatives. It was the A-45 model, a motorcycle with a rigid frame, a 98 cc (45.6 x 60mm) engine and a three-speed manual gearbox. They also made a ladies' version and a version with rear suspension. The carburetors used were made by the French brand Gurtner, although later versions would incorporate one of their own making. In the first balance sheet of the recently created company, on 31 December 1945, the partners were Pere Permanyer Puigjaner and his father, Marcelino Permanyer Grifoll, with 630,003.36 pesetas, which represented 89% of the company; and Francisco X. Bultó with 80,619.75 pesetas, who owned 11%. Pere Permanyer was the company's first manager. The combination of his competitive and adventurous spirit present since the company's foundation, together with the need to test the motorcycles to complete their development, led to the organization, in July of 1945, of an ascent to the Caldes de Bohí spa. A place that had never been reached before with a motor vehicle, as there were no roads or paths, the only way to get there being through climbing, cross-country, or by animal traction. Five motorcycles reached the spa, and the riders, true heroes and forerunners of mountain biking, were Paco Bultó, José Luis and Alfonso Milá, J. M. Llobet "Turuta" and Juan Soler Bultó. In November 1945, they took part for the first time in a speed race at the "First Motorcycle Prize of Montjuic", where the local Montesa motorcycles proved to have an incredible performance, taking the first four places of the 100 cc class, to the great surprise of a large crowd of fans. The first place was won by J.M. Llobet, "Turuta". 03 The start of mass production (1945-1947) Mass production started on June 19, 1945, the first unit appearing on the market, with the chassis number MB-0001. The buyer was Pere Permanyer himself. The second unit was for Juan Soler Bultó, the third (the Lady version) for Ana Mª Villavecchia, the fourth for Carlos Carreras and the fifth for F.X. Bultó. The sale prices were 8,500 pesetas for the normal version and 9,000 pesetas for the lady's one.