Beutler

Beutler, formally known at different times as Gebrüder Beutler, Gebr. Beutler & Cie., Carrosserie Beutler, and Carrosserie + Spritzwerk Beutler AG, was a Swiss coachbuilding business founded in 1943 by brothers Ernst and Fritz Beutler. Based in Thun in the canton of Bern, the company produced individually commissioned bodies and very small production runs rather than mass-market automobiles. Its work was concentrated on sporty coupés, convertibles, special saloons, commercial bodies, and other bespoke designs built on chassis supplied by established European manufacturers. The company emerged during the postwar period when independent coachbuilders could still obtain separate rolling chassis from automobile manufacturers. Beutler worked across a remarkably broad range of marques, including Austin, Bentley, BMW, Bristol, Bugatti, Citroën, Delahaye, Fiat, Healey, Jaguar, Jowett, Lancia, Maico, Packard, Porsche, Rolls-Royce, Salmson, Simca, and Volkswagen. The firm’s output generally combined hand-formed aluminum or steel bodywork with chassis, engines, fittings, and mechanical components from the donor manufacturer. Its designs were often characterized by compact proportions, light construction, restrained ornamentation, and carefully integrated fastback, pontoon, or open-body forms. Beutler’s best-known work included early Porsche 356 convertibles, later Porsche 356 B coupés, special bodies for Bristol and Bugatti chassis, and a range of Volkswagen Beetle-based commercial and passenger vehicles. The Porsche work was particularly important: between 1948 and 1949 the company produced a small series of six 356 convertibles, while a later 356 B coupé program resulted in only a handful of completed cars. Beutler also built limited bodies for the Citroën DS19, Lancia Aurelia, Jaguar Mark VII, and other prestigious or technically distinctive models. Some surviving vehicles have been restored and remain part of historic-car collections. As automobile construction moved toward unitary, self-supporting bodies in the 1950s and 1960s, the supply of separate chassis declined and the commercial environment for traditional coachbuilders deteriorated. Beutler responded by exploring commercial vehicles, replicas, and later aftermarket customization. Around 1970 it advertised planned Bugatti Type 57 convertible replicas, although the number, if any, actually completed is uncertain. During the 1980s it entered the tuning market with Porsche 911 conversions marketed as Beutler California and with Twin-Top T-Top conversions for the Mazda RX-7. The business changed its legal name as its activities evolved: it became Gebr. Beutler & Cie. in 1955, Carrosserie Beutler in 1966, and Carrosserie + Spritzwerk Beutler AG from 1981. Bankruptcy proceedings were opened on 8 September 1987, marking the end of the company as an operating coachbuilder. Beutler is now primarily remembered through surviving special-bodied cars and through the history of Swiss postwar coachbuilding.

Ernst and Fritz Beutler established their coachbuilding company in 1943 at Gwattstrasse 40–42 in Thun, Switzerland. In its early decades the firm operated within the traditional European coachbuilding model: customers or manufacturers supplied a rolling chassis, while Beutler designed and constructed an individual body. The company emphasized one-off commissions and very small series, with a particular interest in sporty bodies for relatively light European chassis. The postwar market gave independent coachbuilders access to a wide variety of chassis. Beutler therefore developed bodies for both mainstream and luxury automobiles. Its portfolio included Austin, Bentley, Bugatti, Jaguar, Packard, and Rolls-Royce projects, as well as designs for Bristol, Citroën, Delahaye, Fiat, Healey, Jowett, Lancia, Maico, Salmson, Simca, and Volkswagen. The work ranged from elegant convertibles and coupés to commercial vehicles and special-purpose bodies. A Rolls-Royce Phantom II chassis, for example, was extended for use as a hotel bus, while Volkswagen Beetle-based vehicles included pick-ups, station wagons, and small delivery vans. Beutler also developed a relationship with Porsche. In 1948 and 1949 it built six small-series convertibles based on the early Porsche 356, reportedly in connection with Swiss importer AMAG. Later, the company created prototypes and a very small number of 356 B coupés. The aluminum-bodied design drew on Beutler’s earlier styling language, while using many factory Porsche fittings. Although Ferry Porsche approved the design, the program did not develop into sustained production, and Porsche subsequently stopped supplying components after difficulties in customer and order processing. The company’s Bristol projects illustrate both its design ambition and the limits of independent coachbuilding. Beutler exhibited Bristol 401-based coupé and convertible bodies at the Geneva Motor Show, competing with designs from Touring Superleggera and Pininfarina. In 1957 Bristol asked Beutler to design a prototype body for the forthcoming 406. Beutler produced a two-seat pontoon-style coupé with a delicate roof structure and subtly suggested rear fins, but Bristol selected a more conservative body from Jones Bros. in Britain. During the 1950s Beutler’s work also included a convertible based on the Austin A70 and A90, a 1953 Jaguar Mark VII convertible, a Fiat 600 body with extended front and rear sections, a Jowett Jupiter convertible, a Lancia Aurelia coupé, and a Simca Aronde 1300 coupé. Its Citroën DS19 convertible, produced in a small and uncertain quantity around 1959–1960, was a less ornate alternative to the better-known Chapron conversion. The company built four Maico 500 Sport convertibles and designed a Maico coupé prototype that was shown in New York, although financial problems at Maico prevented series production. The legal identity changed as the business developed. In 1955 the company adopted the name Gebr. Beutler & Cie.; in 1966 it became Carrosserie Beutler; and from 1981 it operated as Carrosserie + Spritzwerk Beutler AG. These changes coincided with an increasingly difficult market. The spread of self-supporting, unitary automobile construction reduced the number of manufacturers offering separate chassis, undermining the economic basis of traditional custom coachbuilding. Beutler sought additional opportunities through replicas and tuning. Around 1970 it began offering Bugatti Type 57 convertible replicas, though available historical material does not establish how many were completed or what mechanical specifications they used. By the 1980s the company was producing or advertising aftermarket conversions. The Beutler California package modified Porsche 911s with spoilers and widened fenders, while the Twin-Top conversion gave Mazda RX-7s a T-Top-style roof and was offered in 1981 and 1982. Bankruptcy proceedings were opened on 8 September 1987. Beutler consequently ceased to exist as an operating coachbuilding company. Its legacy survives in preserved and restored examples, especially the early Porsche convertibles, Bristol bodies, and other rare special-bodied automobiles. The firm occupies a distinctive place in Swiss automotive history as a small workshop that connected traditional handcraft with the international postwar sports and luxury-car market.

• 1987

  Bankruptcy proceedings opened

  [1]Carrosserie Beutleren.wikipedia.org

  Bankruptcy proceedings were opened on 8 September 1987.

• 1981

  Final corporate name adopted

  [1]Carrosserie Beutleren.wikipedia.org

  The business began operating as Carrosserie + Spritzwerk Beutler AG and offered later tuning work, including Mazda RX-7 Twin-Top conversions.

• 1966

  Name changed to Carrosserie Beutler

  [1]Carrosserie Beutleren.wikipedia.org

  The company adopted the Carrosserie Beutler name.

• 1961

  BMW 503 coupé built

  [1]Carrosserie Beutleren.wikipedia.org

  The company constructed a special coupé body on a BMW 503 chassis.

• 1957

  Bristol 406 prototype body shown

  [1]Carrosserie Beutleren.wikipedia.org

  Beutler completed and exhibited a two-seat prototype body intended for the Bristol 406.

• 1957

  Volkswagen Beetle coupé introduced

  [1]Carrosserie Beutleren.wikipedia.org

  Beutler presented a coupé with French-influenced styling based on the Volkswagen Beetle.

• 1955

  Name changed to Gebr. Beutler & Cie.

  [1]Carrosserie Beutleren.wikipedia.org

  The business adopted the legal name Gebr. Beutler & Cie.

• 1950

  Austin-based convertibles exhibited

  [1]Carrosserie Beutleren.wikipedia.org

  The company presented convertible bodies based on the Austin A70 and A90 at the Geneva Motor Show.

• 1948

  Early Porsche 356 convertible program

  [1]Carrosserie Beutleren.wikipedia.org

  Beutler began building a small series of Porsche 356 convertibles, with six cars produced across 1948 and 1949.

• 1943

  Company founded in Thun

  [1]Carrosserie Beutleren.wikipedia.org

  Ernst and Fritz Beutler founded the Gebrüder Beutler coachbuilding business in Thun, in the canton of Bern.

A Swiss bespoke coachbuilder serving customers and manufacturers with handcrafted, low-volume bodies for European automobile chassis.

• Coachbuilt sports-car bodies · 1948

  Porsche 356 convertibles

  Beutler built six convertibles on early Porsche 356 chassis between 1948 and 1949, reportedly for or in cooperation with Swiss importer AMAG. These cars represented one of the firm’s most significant early production projects. At least one example, identified as the third car in the series, has survived in Switzerland.

• Coachbuilt sports-car bodies · 1959

  Porsche 356 B coupés

  Commissioned during the late 1950s, the Beutler 356 B coupé used an aluminum body whose styling was related to the firm’s earlier Volkswagen-based coupé. Two prototypes were completed in 1959, and the total completed production appears to have been five cars. Factory Porsche fittings were incorporated, although the project did not continue after supplier and order-processing difficulties.

• Commercial vehicle bodies

  Volkswagen-based commercial vehicles

  Beutler produced special bodies on Volkswagen Beetle-based platforms, including pick-ups, station wagons, and compact delivery vans. The delivery version was reported to have a payload of 250 kilograms. These vehicles extended the company’s work beyond luxury and sporting automobiles into practical commercial applications.

• Automotive tuning

  Beutler California

  The Beutler California was a group of Porsche 911 conversions associated with the company’s 1980s move into aftermarket tuning. The modifications included spoilers and widened fenders, giving the donor cars a more overtly customized appearance.

• Automotive tuning · 1981

  Twin-Top

  Twin-Top was a Beutler conversion for the Mazda RX-7 offered in 1981 and 1982. It used a T-Top or Targa-style roof treatment and formed part of the company’s late effort to participate in the expanding vehicle-customization market.

• Automotive replicas · 1970

  Bugatti Type 57 replicas

  Around 1970 Beutler advertised plans to build hand-constructed replicas of the Bugatti Type 57 convertible. Available historical accounts do not establish whether these replicas entered meaningful production, how many were completed, or which engines they used.

• 1981

  Expansion into aftermarket tuningStrategy

  Background

  Traditional coachbuilding was under pressure as unitary construction reduced the availability of separate automobile chassis. Beutler sought additional work in vehicle customization.

  Action taken

  The company marketed Porsche 911 conversions under the Beutler California name and introduced Twin-Top T-Top conversions for the Mazda RX-7 in 1981 and 1982.

  Aftermath

  The tuning activity represented a late diversification effort, but the company entered bankruptcy proceedings in 1987.

  Source

1. 1Carrosserie Beutleren.wikipedia.org