Gurl X12. The bestseller no one knows

Eight units were ever registered in the Netherlands. And yet it was a great success. This Gurgel X12 was the absolute bestseller of the Brazilian car company of João do Amaral Gurgel. Guaranteed attention when you throw the keys of a real Gurgel on the bar.

As long as it's not in someone's beer, of course. Because if you have to flee quickly with your Gurgel X12, you have a problem. The basis of this somewhat larger buggy was formed by the world's favorite, the ancient Beetle. With the exception of the chassis. Unlike its predecessor, the Ipanema, this all-terrain dachshund had a chassis designed by Gurgel himself, instead of that Beetle platform. The rest of the technology, such as the engine, gearbox and axles, still came from that bolle million seller. So it wasn't very fast, the Gurgel X12.

Very different indeed. Short, stocky and chunky; that suggests something tough. A bit in perspective, of course, and also strongly dependent on which company he was in. Or in what terrain. Because four-wheel drive was a bit too ambitious for João, regularly referred to as “Brazil's Henry Ford” in his attractive part of the world. This Gurgel X12 simply had the drive on the rear wheels. And a winch at the front, for when it became serious dredging and slogging. The X12 did have a system on board called Selectraction. An interesting name for a system that is as simple as it is effective: this principle actually consisted of two individual hand brakes on the rear wheels, with which the force on a spinning wheel could be transferred to the other wheel. You could still manage with that in not too alien terrain. Especially because of its modest own weight.

You could not say the latter of a Lamborghini LM002. Because real fans of the Gurgel claimed that it looked a bit like that. If you narrow your eyes. Or completely closed. And that Italian crybaby (V12, revs!) Was not from Plasteel, like the X-12, which kept the weight well within limits. Plasteel consisted of a mix of steel and fiberglass and was therefore light and strong. Moreover, it was much less susceptible to corrosion than steel alone, which is a major advantage in Brazil. Or wait.

Perhaps that was more of an advantage in our part. It will probably not have been a convincing argument to import the Gurgel X12, but our own Ruska, the very successful Amsterdam buggy builders, brought the special model to the Netherlands. They saw something in it for forest rangers, lifeguards or other companies and government institutions that sometimes had to leave the asphalt. Apparently the forest rangers themselves were not like that, it wasn't exactly a storm on the Lauriergracht in the early eighties.

Every now and then a rare Gurgel pops up, even more exclusive than such a rambo Lambo. And you also have a lot more money left to break at the bar. But watch your keys.

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