- Bultaco
Infobox Defunct Company
company_name = Bultaco Compañía Española de Motores S.A.
company_
slogan = "Built to go"
fate = dissolved
foundation = 1958
defunct = 1983
location = flagicon|SpainBarcelona
industry =Motorcycle
key_people = Francisco Xavier Bultó
products = Bultaco Sherpa trials bikes
Bultaco Pursang Motocross bikesBultaco were a Spanish manufacturer of
two-stroke motorcycles from1958 to1983 .Origins
The origin of the Bultaco motorcycle company dates back to May 1958. Francisco "Paco" Bultó was a director of the Montesa motorcycle company founded in 1944.cite book |last=Walker |first=Mick |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Spanish Post-war Road and Racing Motorcycles |year=1986 |publisher= Osprey Publishing Ltd|location= London |isbn=0-85045-705-X ] After several years of steady growth and
road racing success, in 1957 Montesa moved to larger facilities.cite book |last=Walker |first=Mick |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Spanish Post-war Road and Racing Motorcycles |year=1986 |publisher= Osprey Publishing Ltd|location= London |isbn=0-85045-705-X ] The move was protracted, disrupting production and was followed by a downturn in the Spanish economy.cite book |last=Walker |first=Mick |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Spanish Post-war Road and Racing Motorcycles |year=1986 |publisher= Osprey Publishing Ltd|location= London |isbn=0-85045-705-X ] This slump bought to a head disagreements between Bultó and the other senior directorPedro Permanyer .cite book |last=Walker |first=Mick |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Spanish Post-war Road and Racing Motorcycles |year=1986 |publisher= Osprey Publishing Ltd|location= London |isbn=0-85045-705-X ] As an economy measure, Permanyer (the majority shareholder) felt that the company should withdraw from racing. Bultó, the driving force behind the racing program and responsible for much of the companies technical expertise was violently opposed. Failing to reach a compromise, Bultó decided to leave Montesa to concentrate on his other business interests.cite book |last=Walker |first=Mick |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Spanish Post-war Road and Racing Motorcycles |year=1986 |publisher= Osprey Publishing Ltd|location= London |isbn=0-85045-705-X ] Perhaps unsurprisingly, the majority of Montesa's racing department left shortly afterwards as well.cite book |last=Walker |first=Mick |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Spanish Post-war Road and Racing Motorcycles |year=1986 |publisher= Osprey Publishing Ltd|location= London |isbn=0-85045-705-X ]Bultaco is formed
The suggestion to form a new company is said to have come a few days later when Sr. Bultó was invited to a meeting by several of the former staff of Montesa's racing department. Keen to return to racing, they persuaded him that their greatest hope lay in forming a new company.cite book |last=Walker |first=Mick |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Spanish Post-war Road and Racing Motorcycles |year=1986 |publisher= Osprey Publishing Ltd|location= London |isbn=0-85045-705-X ] Setting up shop in very primitive conditions at an old farm owned by Bultó, things developed quickly and in February 1959 Bultaco held a press day, launching their first bike, the road-going 125cc Bultaco Trala 101.cite book |last=Walker |first=Mick |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Spanish Post-war Road and Racing Motorcycles |year=1986 |publisher= Osprey Publishing Ltd|location= London |isbn=0-85045-705-X ] Just two months later Bultaco entered its first Spanish Grand Prix taking seven of the first ten places.cite book |last=Walker |first=Mick |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Spanish Post-war Road and Racing Motorcycles |year=1986 |publisher= Osprey Publishing Ltd|location= London |isbn=0-85045-705-X ]
The company name and logo
BULTACO comes from combining the first four letters of Sr. Bultó's surname with the last three of "Paco", his nickname (BULT)+(ACO).cite book |last=Walker |first=Mick |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Spanish Post-war Road and Racing Motorcycles |year=1986 |publisher= Osprey Publishing Ltd|location= London |isbn=0-85045-705-X ] CEMOTO is an
acronym for "Compañía Española de Motores". The other part of company logo, the "Thumbs up " symbol, came after Sr. Bultó witnessed British motorcycle racerDavid Whitworth giving the signal to his pit crew to signify that all was well.cite book |last=Walker |first=Mick |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Spanish Post-war Road and Racing Motorcycles |year=1986 |publisher= Osprey Publishing Ltd|location= London |isbn=0-85045-705-X ]Notable products
Although they made road and road racing motorcycles, the company's area of dominance was
off-road , inmotocross ,enduro s, and observed trials competition.Perhaps the most famous Bultaco model is the Sherpa T, a trials bike, which revolutionised the sport in the 1960s. At that time trials was almost exclusively a British sport using big heavy
four-stroke machines. Irish trials aceSammy Miller worked with señor Bultó to produce a lightweighttwo-stroke machine which, overnight, rendered the heavy four-strokes obsolete. This coincided with and, perhaps, stimulated the growth in the popularity of trials in Europe and later the USA, which provided a lucrative market for Bultaco in the years to come.Bultaco's premier model in the USA, the Pursang, was an excellent handling and powerful 250 cc competition model that could readily compete in virtually any type of speed-based off-road competition. In later models this was expanded to 125cc, 360cc and 370cc Other models, such as the Sherpa T (trials), the Astro (flat tracker) and the Matador (trail bike), provided more targeted approaches to specific types of races.
Bultaco motorcycles were mainly powered by single-cylinder, air cooled, two stroke engines, but they also made
water cooled versions. The rider was required to mix the oil andgasoline manually. Built in Barcelona, Spain, Bultaco motorcycles were exported throughout the world, but their largest market ultimately became the USA, allowing aspiring racers to purchase legitimately competitive motorcycles rightout of the box .Due to
industrial unrest and market pressures, Bultaco production closed in 1979. The factory reopened in 1980, but closed again in 1983.MotoGP star,Sete Gibernau is the grandson of the founder of Bultaco, Paco Bultó. Legend has it that Mr. Bultó asked to be buried "with his Bultacot-shirt and his moustache properly waxed".In 1998, rights to the Bultaco name were purchased by
Marc Tessier who used it to help launch a range of purpose-built trials motorcycles from his company Sherco Moto S.A.R.L. The bikes were initially named Bultaco Sherco's, then in 2000 the bikes became 'Sherco by Bultaco' and in 2001 the Bultaco name was dropped altogether.References
External links
* [http://cemoto.tripod.com/bultaco.htm Bultaco Model Reference Guide]
* [http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/teambultaco/ TeamBultaco: Bultaco Discussion Group]
* [http://www.motocra.com/bultaco/Bultaco.htm Large collection of Bultaco motorcycles in Spain]
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