APAL

From 1961 up to 1965 approximately 150 Apal Coupé's were sold, among which about 30 with real Porsche-mechanic.
These Coupé's, built on a VW-pan, were purebred racers and feared competitors on the race-circuits.
The grey number 32 car is still owned by Edmond Pery, founder and owner of Apal.

In 1965, a formula V single-seater was developed to an idea of Roland D'Ieteren, a student at that time. This racecar was presented to the public on the circuit of Zandvoort in April 1965.
Hereby, Apal introduced racing with VW Beetle technique, which already was very popular in America, to our continent, and makes him to one of the absolute pioneers of the formula V car builders. 350 Copies were built for the European market.

In 1966 & 1967, 200 Triumph Spitfires were provided with a kit.
This coupé-kit on an open Triumph Spitfire basis was one of the first kits which Apal completely developed in its own workshop.

From 1967 up to 1968, Apal produced 50 Muschang's, all-terrain cars with two - and even 10 of them with four wheel traction.
This little car still looked a lot like the original Renault R4 that was used as a basis . The floor pan as well as all the  technique, dashboard and lights of the Renault R4 were used. The lines of the Muschang body however were rounder than those of the original Renault Rodeo's and the Renault 4 Plain-Air's which were built by Renault themselves in 1968.

The Samtrack, an open off-road vehicle, was also built in 1968. The car had a special designed tubular frame and VW-1600 technique.
What makes this car look very special is the fact it's equipped with three seats in the front row, with the driver's seat in the middle. Provided with a back seat, there's place for 5 people.
Sam Jeuris, whom the vehicle got its name from, also was responsible for the tuning part of the Samtrack.

A sports car for two people based on VW-technique which was built in the middle of the sixties.

The Rancho was an open 4/5 seater on Renault basis.
This car was the first model that clearly looks more like a fun car rather then an all-terrain vehicle, and thus can be considered as a transition model between the earlier jeep style and the at that moment still future buggy style.

The Auki has the look of a top-chopped American Ford-T classic car.
This design from the hands of the Swiss duo Aubaret and Vicki offers place to 4 persons. It is a retro-buggy on unshortened VW-Beetle chassis basis.
This car is really something special.
Several constructors produced this model, with or without some minor adaptations. In the Netherlands there's the Ruska Classica who looks pretty much the same as this Apal Auki. Who copied who ?
Fact is that in the autumn of 1972 Apal exchanged a set of the molds for this model with the Four Seasons Buggy Company in the United Kingdom to obtain the molds for the Apal Jet in return.
The success of this model In the United Kingdom has been very limited (only 10 copies). They developed a hardtop version with four doors, but that one was only built once.

This is the standard buggy on a shortened (-27,3 cm) VW-Beetle chassis. The Buggy C offers place to 2+2 persons. C stands for "Court" or short. Typically Apal are the hollow bent side-skirts.
Regarding the production numbers this was the major break through for Apal. In those days the buggy craziness in the southwest of the USA really reached its heights, and Pery saw the potential which this concept could have here in Europe as well.
He developed a buggy with sufficient individual character to be really attractive. The design was characterized by a good isolation of the engine compartment. And also the very efficient soft-top ensured the rising popularity of  this buggy in our less sunny climate.
From 1971 on, this model was also imported in the  Kingdom and later built under Apal license by Cartune of Middlesborough. The English molds were handed to Lightspeed Pannels, then to GT Mouldings and finally to Country Volks.

The same buggy on an unshortened chassis is the Buggy L (Longue). This time with enough space to place the original front as well as the back seat of the VW-Beetle.
For those who wanted a buggy on an unshortened VW-Beetle chassis with enough place for four or five persons, there was the Buggy L.
A lot simpler to build at home because with this long version there was no need to shorten the chassis.
Also loved, but perhaps a little less elegant compared to the short version.
From 1969 up to 1981 Apal built approximately 5500 copies Buggy C and Buggy L. The cars were exported to 20 countries among which virtually all European countries but also to countries much further away, such as Angola.

Once again built on a shortened VW-chassis, but this time with more accentuated round lines. It's more like a  road-version, deliverable with a linen soft-top in one piece or as a targa-version with a linen roof in 2 pieces.
Although the contours of this buggy are a lot more fluent than these of a classic beach buggy, the original classic buggy look still remained.
The origin of this Apal Jet on a shortened VW-chassis can be found in the United States. The Glassco Inc. company invented this kit. This model then moved to the United Kingdom where it was produced by PABC/Eresbug of London, then by the Four Seasons buggy Company as from 71 and last but not least by GP as from 75 to 76.
It was the Four Seasons buggy Company which exchanged a set of its molds with Apal in return for Apal's Auki molds.
Apal added its beautiful side-skirts and most likely also the targa-bar, but removed the original round windshield (from the Ford Anglia) and replaced it by a less elegant flat windshield.

With the Corsa, Apal took a further step towards the development of an open sports car. This buggy has a backwards folding linen roof or a hard-top with wing doors. The Corsa is a very streamlined model with plastic covers over the head lamps. (In 1980, production stopped).
This is an original Apal design. With the Corsa the transition to a small 2+2 roadster was made. This was an attempted to reach possible customers who were looking for something different and sporty.
This vehicle offers more comfort than an ordinary buggy.
It has an opening front hood with room for a spare tire and the linen doors or the roof.
The seats sit remarkably low and sporty. Both driver and co-driver can sit very comfortable, but the space in the back is very limited.
The roof can be folded towards the behind, which can be done in a half minute.
A hard-top with wing doors was also available as an option. This made driving comfortable the whole year round.
The first vehicles were built in 1975.
The Apal Corsa was briefly introduced in the UK by Cartune of Middlesborough.

This buggy designed for off-road and car-cross use has a special chassis, which is very similar to the Meyers Tow'd. The body is very basic with only place for two persons.
(Production stopped in 1979)
Without doubt inspired on the Meyers Tow’d and built for use in off-road rally’s.

The 4000 series was released in 1979, it looks very strong like the Type C and L with Jet influences. The mudguards around the front tires are more closed and have built-in head lights.
This buggy is a remake of the earlier Buggy C and L types. It is one of the last projects Apal realized.
Notice the modifications in the front (addition of two fronts to the mudguards). These fronts could hold head lights. Also the shape of the trunk lid was different; it contained a passage for the fuel tank inlet. In short, an improved version of the first generation. Both these types and the older types have their own loyal fans.

The Speedster, Apal's beautiful replica of the Porsche 356 Speedster was presented on the car show in Geneva in 1981. Basis for this fiberglass legend was a VW-Beetle chassis (shortened with 27.3 cm).  The Speedsters were available as kit or as ready-to-drive car. (Poor man's Porsche?)
The license was bought from Intermeccanica who sold these vehicles in California. In 1998, after 700 copies, Apal stopped with the production of the Speedster. This was also the end of their car production activities.

The Apal Francorchamps was designed on a Mercedes 190E basis and was a project meant for an American company.
The American dollar was worth 64 Bfr when they started the project and dropped down to a value of 42 Bfr at the end of the project. This 35% devaluation made further cooperation impossible. The Francorchamps never really made it to the production stage, only 2 copies were built.

1992 was the year of the Sport One, a Ferrari-like kit on a Pontiac Fiero basis.
The sales figures of this model remain a well kept secret.