Which Spanish Delicacy Would You Try? 1970 SEAT 1430 vs 1978 Chrysler 150

It’s day four of our exploration of international shitboxes, and today we’re off to sunnier skies to look at a couple of cars from Spain. And actually, both of these cars were built in Spain, under license from other manufacturers. You could get similar cars in other places, but not quite the same; these versions are uniquely Spanish.

Yesterday’s cars were in Ireland, which is still among my favorite places I’ve ever visited. Tip: If you’re ever in Cork, do yourself a favor and stop by Arthur Mayne’s for lunch. Great food, wonderful atmosphere, and absolutely delightful staff. But how would you get there? Well, though the vote count was lower than usual, the results were clear: the bright blue Peugeot 206 is your choice.

It’s mine too. I’m not going all the way to Ireland for a damn Toyota. I just put it in there because I know some of you don’t trust French cars. But really, going all the way there to drive something that’s basically the same as a Tercel you could get back home is like asking for a Bud Light at the pub. Don’t be that person. Get the Peugeot.

I’ve never been to Spain (though I kinda like the music), but it’s definitely a place I wouldn’t mind visiting. Any place where everybody takes a nap in the afternoon is all right in my book. It’s not a place I typically associate with cars, however, but maybe I should; apparently Spain is the eighth-largest car manufacturing country in the world. These two were both built there, and have spent their lives there. They’re both well over the minimum age for importing into the US now. Is either one worth it? Let’s check them out and see.

1970 SEAT 1430 – €6,900

Engine/drivetrain: 1.6-liter DOHC inline 4, five-speed manual, RWD

Location: Argamasilla De Calatrava, Spain

Odometer reading: 125,000 kilometers

Operational status: I have no idea, probably runs just fine

Sociedad Española de Automóviles de Turismo, or SEAT for short, is arguably Spain’s best-known automaker. These days, it is a subsidiary of Volkswagen, but it got its start making license-built Fiats for Spanish consumption. It cranked out its own version of the Fiat 600 by the zillions, doing for Spain what cars like the Beetle, 2CV, and Model T did for other places. After a while, SEAT branched out from Fiat’s designs, and this boxy little sports sedan is one of the results. It’s based on the Fiat 124, with elements of the 125 as well.

This particular online classified site is maddeningly short on details. There’s no description of the car at all, just a list of some facts and figures. And to make matters worse, this car is mis-listed as a SEAT 1200 Sport, which is a two-door fastback that looks nothing like this at all. I had to do a little digging to uncover this car’s true identity. The 1430 is powered by a twin-cam four-cylinder, which I assume is a license-built version of the Fiat Lampredi engine. It came in three different sizes; I was able to tell which one this car has because the power output is listed in the ad, probably for tax reasons. How does it run? I haven’t the faintest idea. For this price, though, it had better purr like a kitten.

It’s pure ’70s European sports sedan inside, with an upright seating position, nice little chrome accents everywhere, and not much else. It’s in great shape, from what I can tell, but it’s a pretty low-mileage car. It only has the equivalent of about 80,000 miles on it. As far as I’m concerned, it needs more; I’d love to hop in and put this car through its paces.

Between Fiat, SEAT, and the various VAZ/Lada variants, this car’s profile might be one of the most common car shapes in Europe. Not that there’s much “shape” to it; ask a five-year-old to draw a car, and they’ll either draw a Beetle, or a Fiat 124 sedan. I’ve always liked it, though; it’s no-nonsense and timeless. I like the Rostyle-esque wheels on it, and the driving lights are a nice touch.

1978 Chrysler 150 – €5,600

Engine/drivetrain: 1.4-liter OHV inline 4, four- or five-speed manual, FWD

Location: Madrid, Spain

Odometer reading: 44,000 kilometers

Operational status: Your guess is as good as mine

Chrysler’s history is a muddled, jumbled mess of acquisitions, mergers, sales, bankruptcies, and bailouts. But there’s one period of its history that’s not well known to its American fans: Chrysler Europe, which existed from 1967 to 1978. It was made up of Simca in France, the Rootes Group in the UK, and Barreiros in Spain. Chrysler sold the division to PSA Peugeot Citroën in 1978, which is ironic because both companies are now part of Stellantis. This car was built in the Barreiros factory in Spain, in the last year of Chrysler Europe’s existence, and is based on the Simca 1307.

Because of the lack of information in the ad, I can’t tell you a whole lot about this car either. I can tell you that the 1307 on which it is based is front-wheel-drive, powered by Simca’s “Poissy” four-cylinder engine. In smaller displacements, this engine was found in the back of the Simca 1000, and in larger displacements, it powered the early versions of the Dodge Omni and Plymouth Horizon. Here it displaces 1.4 liters and drives the front wheels, though I don’t know whether it has a four- or a five-speed transmission.

I wish I could show you the interior of this car, but the ad only shows the exterior. So I guess I’ll use the space where I usually talk about the inside to point out how much this car looks like the first-generation VW Passat, which was sold here as the Dasher. “All cars look the same” is nothing new.

It’s in great shape, as far as I can tell, but it’s practically new. There’s something comforting about the idea that low-mileage survivors exist in other places. You know that Cutlass Ciera that somebody’s grandma left behind, that looks like it just rolled out of the showroom? This is the Spanish equivalent of that.

One of my favorite aspects of automotive history is all of the license-built and complete knock-down kit versions of cars that pop up in unusual places. I love finding out that a variant of a car existed in a place I never knew about. These two I vaguely knew about, but not the Spanish versions, and I had a blast doing the legwork to find out their family trees. I hope you had fun reading about them, too. Which one would you rather have?