Volkswagen commemorates 50 years of its SP model

Considered one of the most representative models in the history of Volkswagen in the world, the SP celebrated its 50th anniversary, after being launched in Brazil in 1972. Within the framework of this anniversary, the company has highlighted the process of creation and development of this iconic model, both in its SP1 and SP2 versions, which became a design reference for other models of the brand, and in the automotive sector in general.

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Part of the brand’s celebration included a meeting in Brazil, in which 18 SP2 models in excellent condition were exhibited by fans of the brand and members of the SP Club in the country, which was where it was born. The event was held in the city of Sao Paulo, at the Motorpark, the first theme park dedicated to cars in that territory.

“The SP was an icon, a unique model. The design team at the time were brilliant in developing this car, bringing a rear engine, but with a very elongated hood, and a spectacular tail line, with a surface treatment involving the headlights and bumper with exceptional work. And, of course, it is possible to see traces in the other projects that were created in our studio here in Brazil, such as Gol, Brasilia and Fox”, commented José Carlos Pavone, Head of Design at Volkswagen Latin America.

For his part, André Drigo, Executive Manager of Product Development for the brand, stressed that “the commemoration of 50 years is not only for SP; Well, that car represented a milestone in the industry as a whole in the 1970s. It is very interesting that we can see several items and definitions that arose at the time, but that are still functional to this day. We certainly used some theories and concepts from that time, and applied them to the new models being developed.”

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The designer of the model was José Vicente Martins, known as ‘Jota’, and the mechanical engineer in charge of the project was Claudio Menta. Both participated in the meeting, in which, in addition, they told exclusive stories of the birth of the vehicle. “At the request of the president of Volkswagen at the time, Mr. Rudolf Leiding, we started the first drawings of the SP in the 1960s. I tried to draw it quite low and with sloping windows, giving the air of sportiness that I thought. In the first sketch I was able to leave it the way I wanted,” Martins recalled.

Claudio Menta added that, with the first designs in hand, the challenge of creating a model and producing it at scale arose, for which executives from all areas came together to find the best way to design the sports car. “The first challenge we had was to build a body with components that were riveted and not loosened. After studies and attempts, we came to the conclusion that this production process was not viable. So we switched to the traditional body manufacturing process.”

As it was not common to develop cars in Brazil at that time, the SP originated from a German car, using the Variant’s chassis, and building a new car on top of it.

It was June 26, 1972 when the Volkswagen SP was officially launched. It had a 1.6L engine and 64 hp. For its part, the SP2 was equipped with a 1.7L engine, generating 74 hp. With sporty and luxurious lines, the interior offered exclusive seats, as well as a console and center panel in one piece. The instrument panel, advanced for the time, had an oil temperature gauge, an ammeter and a clock.