This comes from the Club Lambretta Eibar website, good pics of the factory if you click " Historia" or "Fotos"
http://www.clublambrettaeibar.com/pagin ... marcos.htm( Sorry, Google translation
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late nineteenth century, the Basque Country, with a strong tradition of iron and steel production was oriented towards the industry products, weapons, machines, tools, etc., except automotive forgetting some very specific case in cars like the Donosti. However, this was not a bar to enjoy some of the best racing moment as the rally in San Sebastian in the 20s or Motorist Week of Bilbao and its famous TT.
Neither the bad road conditions helped the establishment of an automotive industry. At 31 December 1896, for example, had a network of only 32,512 km. of roads, mostly cars.
To complete this dismal development policy, the central government decided in 1932 to establish the right compensation advantageous tariff for vehicles of French production, compensation was subsequently extended to Great Britain, Italy, Germany and Belgium. In 1934 he supported a new Highway Code for motorcycles and humiliating situation, if anything, is more affected by an unusual increase in fuel prices.
Furthermore, the government prepared a draft law concerning the Stamp luxury tax the sale of motorcycles with the tax on luxury vehicles considered, 3% of their retail value, comparing not only cars but also to yachts, canoes, boats or sport, airplanes and luxury coaches.
But finally, in 1947, issued regulations under which the motor bikes were not subject to any restrictions on fuels, like electric cars. The result of this liberalization''''appeared in numerous companies Motorcito Euskadi Ancillary
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Beistegi Brothers. Between 1956 and 1962 BH produced a motor scooter with French Mistral.
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Care. Echave, Arizmendi and Co. also produced between 1954 and 1962 light motorcycles.
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Electrocyclic conjunction with the signature Orbea (1942-1944) built tricycles and electric motorbikes and now solo (1950-1955) industrial trucks powered by electricity.
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Phoenix. Mopeds with an auxiliary motor scooters Ires made towards the end of the 40s by the firm thrown out. Manufacturing ceased in 1953 by renaming.
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Honda. Scooters Honda 50cc four-stroke-cycle manufactured under license by signing Servet between 1968 and 1974.
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Lambretta, based in Eibar between 1954 and 1984 and between 1985 and 1989 Amurrio.
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Master Cycle. Moped manufactured between 1954 and 1960 by the signing Ayra Durex SA as an alternative to their firearms.
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Mobylette-GAC. Manufactured in our city between 1962 and 1977 and Abadiano until 1985, French license first and then their own.
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Motobic. Eibar Abadiano 1948-1966 and 1966-1972. Auxiliary engines, mopeds and light motorcycles manufactured by Lorenzo Zabala from the motor bicycle that was made to move in 1946-1947.
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Orbea, the firm founded in 1930 planned to manufacture motorcycles Catalan Simó, a project that buried the Spanish civil war.
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Work by a group of Basque businessmen, led by Alpha brothers ABC and Valencia, on 17 June 1952 it was officially constituted society Lambretta Locomociones SA for manufacture under license in Spain and scooters of the same brand motocarros Italian.
The works for the manufacturing facilities were initiated on 25 May 1953 and was inaugurated on 10 June 1954 with assistance of the highest provincial authorities of the time.
It is very striking that in those ships were only 28 producers direct, very logical thing if we weigh that Basque businessmen who had brought forward the idea wanted to do a pre-filming factory before doing everything inside the factory (which it that never would be effected at all, because the engines for example, almost always made Sewing Machines Alfa SA) and thus not subject to possible breaches of the production.
Lambretta production always remained uniformly parallel to the Vespa, having a first bump by 1958/59 on the occasion of National Stabilization Plan Gual Villalba Minister, which would be saved with the launch of the Li family in 1960 until the middle of that decade would think a new crisis, slump this time would try to trace the manufacturing of mopeds, the only two-wheeled vehicle engine production levels remained satisfactory in Spain.
The result of this new direction would be the agreement in 1967 with the Japanese firm Honda to import / manufacture some models in Spain. Finally, given that Honda had launched his dirt bike four times during a visit to Japan are raising the possibility of making a dirt bike Servetus for everyone, but with two-stroke engine because here I know industry had such a good assistant, but Honda did not want any of the two times in these types of motorcycles and the idea went down, but that yes, they sent two Elsinore (TT and cross) in Spain to working Serreta the idea.
Simultaneously and as Servetus still believed in the moped, was hired a young engineer trained in Catalonia Basque, Jose Maria Garagorri to design a new range of motorcycles, now with two-stroke engine, with the possibility of bringing the capacity up to 75cc, both as an automatic gearshift and with (4 and 6 speed) and a Honda minimoto Dax style, with many elements of the Lambretta 200, will be presented at the Barcelona Motor Show 1972, without reaching the productive series.
Mopeds on the contrary it would see the commercial light but for lack of experience (time and money) would prove too fragile.
It went from bad to worse and this would lead to lack of money finally in January 1979, submit the request for suspension of payments. Workers buy the company, although it remains a corporation, and is preparing a revival in two years and are abandoned mopeds.
In 1980, eligibility for a range of tax benefits are transformed into a corporation Labor, but with a good deal of inconsistency: the workers own the facilities (duties), but the march Lambretta still held by the Alpha Company (rights).
The thing, of course, could not work, and in 1984 closed the doors. 44 workers six months after buying the remainder of the company to try to liquidate it with honor, but Alfa is staying with manufacturing patents, tooling and stock. An entrepreneur buys ships.
In October 1984, Alfa purchase Innocenti (irrelevant regarding scooter since April 1971) the worldwide rights Lambretta progress.
