Obscure Colombia Automotive History (vehicles, trucks, purchase, driver)

[PitterD]

Hello everyone, new here. I'm a retired American ex-pat living in Colombia and a life long car guy. Thought I'd share some obscure Colombian automotive history. If someone asks you in a trivia test of automotive history what was the first car in the country of Colombia the answer is the French made Dion Bouton. It was brought to the city of Medellin by mule train through the mountains from the coast in 1899 arriving on October 18th. It came equipped with a driver and various cans of gasoline. It was the second in production and the newest model. The purchaser was a wealthy paisa (person from Medellin) named Carlos Coroliano Amador Fernández who liked to show off his wealth and be the latest in fashion. The car could reach 15.5 mph. It's ultimate end isn't known for sure but it's said the last owner had the car buried when he found his grand children using parts of it to slide down grassy slopes.

Link in Spanish: Este fue el primer automóvil que llegó a Colombia | Turbo

[PitterD]

More trivia: the very first cars assembled in Colombia were Studebakers. They were assembled by a company called Dugand Hermanos y Cía. Ltda in the city of Barranquilla beginning in 1951. The cars were V-8s and the paint was done in ovens shipped from the U.S. The company failed some time after (no date) for lack of funds.

[PitterD]

The first large scale production of vehicles in Colombia began in 1962 at Colmotores in Bogotá with the production of 2,5 and 6 ton trucks and small jeeps (Gypsy) for the British Motor Corporation (BMC Austin). Vehicles were shipped to Colombia from England as complete knock down kits (CKDs). This project lasted only a few years. It turned out the trucks couldn't manage the steep and often muddy Andean mountain roads. Some from that early production are still around (albeit on flat ground). I see a few in Cali and some years ago saw a Colombian assembled Gypsy for sale. Problem with the Gypsies was they were two wheel drive.

Link to whole story in English: https://www.aronline.co.uk/around-th...orld-columbia/

[engineman]

I borrowed an Austin Gypsy once in New Jersey to move a refrigerator. It was not comfortable at all.