The Volkswagen SP2 is a lesser-known, niche sports car from VW Brazil. As such, information about it is not as common. Here are some facts about the SP2 that you might not know.
The SP2 was the first car designed specifically for the Brazilian market
Volkswagen do Brasil had been mostly separate from VW’s worldwide operation since the late 1950s due to Brazil’s ban on import on many foreign goods, including vehicles. Despite this, until the early 1970s VW Brazil hadn’t designed a vehicle specifically for the domestic market, as the Beetle and the ‘Kombi’ van had been very successful. But as the Brazilian market demanded a newer sports car, and VW Europe refused to replace the Karmann Ghia, the design team at VW Brazil created the SP2 for the Brazilian market.
When launched, the SP2 was the lowest car built in Brazil
Due to the SP2 being a sports car, VW Brazil wanted to give it a sleek and modern look. Due to this, the car had a much lower roofline than the Karmann Ghia. To complete the sports car look, Volkswagen also lowered the ride height of the car in order to get the driver lower to the ground, allowing for a better road feel. These changes meant that the car was not very tall. In fact, at the time it was the lowest car produced in Brazil.
The SP2 was not very fast
Although a lot of work went into the design of the SP2, the engine used in the car was still the standard VW 4-cyliner boxer engine. As VW Brazil didn’t have a big enough budget to modify the boxer engine or build their own engine, they used a slightly upgraded version of VW’s 4-cylinder engine. This meant that although the car was light and handled well, it was not powerful at all. This led to many people in the Brazilian public nicknaming the car “Sem Potencia”, meaning “without power”, a play on the SP abbreviation.
Only one Sp2 ended up in Europe
The SP2 was popular in Brazil, popular enough to make VW Europe take an interest in its design and production. Despite this, VW Brazil never allowed the Europe division to produce the SP2, believing that the SP2 should remain exclusive to Brazil. After the import ban was lifted in Brazil, more SP2s found homes around the South American continent. However, due to the many new sports cars in Europe, interest in the SP2 was non-existent. However, one Portuguese SP2 enthusiast decided to import the car to Europe. Although a lot
more SP2s have now found their way to Europe, until recently there was only one known example of the Brazilian sports car driving around the roads of Europe.
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