Labor Day: remember the success story of popular cars in Brazil – News

2023-05-01 14:00:02

While the federal government and automakers are debating a new policy for popular cars in Brazil, the R7 Autos Carros, on Labor Day, recalls the success story of popular vehicles already sold here. See the trajectory.

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Volkswagen Beetle

Certainly, the Volkswagen Beetle is the most iconic model on this list, since it was launched in Brazil in January 1959 and sold until 1986. In fact, the model has two commemorative dates in the country, one being celebrated on January 20 and the other on June 22nd. It is also important to remember that in 1993 President Itamar Franco revived the Beetle to be the new popular Brazilian car. There was an even simpler “pé de ox” version launched in 1965 to meet a popular funding program at the time. Without chrome, friezes and without even a fuel gauge, it made some success at the time.

Over the years, the Volkswagen Beetle has changed little in design, which is still beautiful today. The engine went through several changes, ending with a 1600 cc engine with 58.7 hp from the famous “Beetle Itamar”. In the world, Volkswagen sold over 21.5 million units of the Beetle. In Brazil alone, 3.1 million units were licensed over the years.

Volkswagen Gold
In May 1980, Volkswagen launched the Gol, which would replace the Beetle. With a modern look for the time, the model was quite successful, which lasted until 2022, when it was no longer produced by the brand. In its place was the new Polo Track.

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It is worth remembering that from 1990 there was the Gol 1000 version following the popular car program at the time. The version had a 1.0 CHT engine and gave up items such as a fan and sunshade. From the 1980s until last year, Volkswagen sold more than 6.9 million units of the Gol, which was the best-selling vehicle in Brazil for 26 consecutive years. Visually, the design left the square for the ball generation, ending in a modern design of the last generations of the 2010s.

Fiat Uno

Certainly, the Fiat Uno has been Gol’s great rival over the years, since it was sold between 1984 and 2021. The Italian automaker sold more than 3.2 million units of the small hatchback, which went out of line to make room for the current Fiat Mobi.

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A successful basic version was the Mille, also from the 1990s. It only had solid colors, it was much simpler and with a panel that had a speedometer and fuel gauge. Like the Gol, the Fiat Uno was born with a square look and has been modernized over the years. In addition, it is a popular car known for being easy to maintain and inexpensive to repair.

Renault Dauphine

It may even be forgotten by most, but the DKW Vemag car, the Renault Dauphine, later Gordini, had a rear engine and was compact, originating from a French project that arrived here in 1959 and lasted until 1968. It debuted with a 747cc engine and then went up to 845cc that reached 40hp, good performance for the time. It had a very affordable price to rival the Beetle despite the bad mechanical reputation that it would break easily.

Chevrolet Chevette

Launched in 1973 and sold until 1993, the Chevrolet Chevette was a strong rival for the Volkswagen Beetle. This dispute also took place in Europe, as the sedan was sold there by Opel under the name of Kadett.

With a modern design for the time, the Chevrolet Chevette had a 1.4-liter engine with rear-wheel drive and transmission with softer couplings, different from the rival of the German brand. With the arrival of ethanol, the model in the 1980s gained a 1.6-liter engine powered by alcohol and even had a three-position automatic transmission imported from Australia.

There was even a Junior version with a 1.0-liter 40hp engine in the 1990s, which was not very successful, being the cheapest model in the compact sedan range. However, in the 1990s the model began to lose strength in sales and was discontinued. Chevrolet sold more than 1.6 million units of the Chevette in the country.

Chevrolet Corsa

To replace the Chevette, Chevrolet launched the Corsa in 1995, which over the years was sold in sedan and hatchback bodies. Sold until 2016, the brand sold more than 1.5 million units of the model, which was discontinued under the name Chevrolet Classic, which had the same look as the Chevrolet Corsa Classic. The model even had 1.0 8V, 1.0 16V and 1.6 engines.

Ford Corcel

Between 1969 and 1985 the Ford Corcel was the brand’s popular car, which today no longer has any model in this segment in the country. In these 16 years, the automaker has sold more than 1.3 million units. Over these years, the model came to have a 1.3 liter engine, 1.4 liter 85 hp and 1.6 liter 90 hp in the Corcel II.

Volkswagen station wagon

It is obvious that the Volkswagen Kombi is one of the most iconic models made by the industry.
world automotive. Sold between 1950 and 2013 in Brazil, the Kombi has always maintained the rounded design that made it famous over the years, in addition to being a robust, versatile car with low maintenance costs. Due to these attributes, Volkswagen sold 1.5 million units in the country during 63 years.

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The Kombi even had a 1.2 engine with 36 hp, 1.5 with 52 hp, 1.6 with electronic injection and 1.4 flex. For lovers of the model, Volkswagen is already testing the ID.Buzz here, which is the electric version of the Kombi.

Chevrolet Celta

With the success of the Volkswagen Gol and the Fiat Palio and Uno, Chevrolet launched the Celta in 2000. During 15 years of sales, the North American automaker sold more than 1.7 million units in Brazil. Around here, it even had a 1.0 and 1.4 flex engine, in addition to having a modern look with few variations.

Gurgel BR-800

Launched in Brazil in 1987, the Gurgel BR-800 was a 100% national popular car with just over 7,000 units sold in Brazil. The model followed the design trend at the time, which was to have a square look. The model, which was sold until 1992, had a two-cylinder engine, which delivered 32 hp.

It was the cheapest model in the late 1980s, but the Gurgel crisis and pressure from competing automakers led to a crisis of confidence in the company and the car was discontinued in 1992.

Chevrolet Onix e Hyundai HB20

Both the Chevrolet Onix and the Hyundai HB20 arrived on the Brazilian market to move the sales leaders. Both were launched in 2012 and are the best-selling popular hatchbacks in Brazil since then.

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The Hyundai HB20 already has three different looks, one of which has a controversial design. The first generation Chevrolet Onix, on the other hand, had a more classic look with a wide front grille, which is different from the modern traits of the current generation.

Currently, the Hyundai HB20 is equipped with a 1.0 liter turbo engine with up to 120 hp in the most expensive versions. The entry level engines have a 1.0 liter aspirated engine with up to 80 hp. The Chevrolet Onix also has an aspirated 1.0-liter engine of up to 82 hp in the entry-level and turbo 1.0 versions of up to 116 hp.

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Unlike the popular models of the past, the Hyundai HB20 and Chevrolet Onix have more standard equipment such as ABS brakes, airbags, stability control, air conditioning, Bluetooth radio, multifunctional steering wheel, among other items. In addition, the more expensive versions may have a multimedia center with connection to Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, lane keeping assistance, automatic emergency braking, tire pressure monitoring, automatic transmission, among other equipment.

Regarding sales, just this year Hyundai sold 16,194 units of the HB20 and Chevrolet sold 21,528 units between January and March. That’s just the hatchback versions. The Chevrolet Onix Plus sedan had 18,392 units sold in the same period and the HB20S had 4,807 units accounted for in the first three months of 2023. The data is from Fenabrave.

*With the collaboration Felipe Salomão