Lenny and I agreed to write a story around the restoration of my Volkswagen Karmann Ghia 1967 at your workshop in Fullerton, Los Angeles and to document it as much as possible with pictures. Enclosed please find 2 pictures taken 40 years ago at the inauguration of our assembly plant Motor Peru SA, in Puente Piedra, Lima, Peru. The gentlemen in the picture, are from left to right, Economy Minister Dr. Sandro Mariategui, the President of Peru, Arquitecto Fernando Belaunde, the Mayor of Puente Piedra (I do not remember the name of the lady), the German Ambassador Dr. Northe. In the background my stepfather Don Enrique Teuber (President of the Board), the Minister of Industry Ing. Sixto Gutierrez and next to him -yours truly-.
At the right end of the picture one can see the presidents personal escort "The Husares de Junin" and in the background a staple of wooden boxes containing the CKD. The CKD (complete knock down) system of assembly is defined as one in which "all" parts are supplied disassembled, and are slowly replaced by locally produced components, according to a a preestablished contract with the government, as to comply to over a certain period of time. Our yearly production was 15,000>20,000 vehicles, VW 1300 - 1500cc (type1), VW Kombi 1600cc (type2) and Mercedes Benz 190 and 220S under license with the local MB representative.
My job at this facility as the Director of Logistics included besides Purchasing also Warehousing, feeding the assembly lines - "just in time"- and of course, the development of local suppliers to replace the imported components. The list of components is large, but let me give you some idea of its scope.
We started with the batteries, tires, rugs, seat frames incl. the total upholstery and tapestry, the roofing, wheel rims, nuts and bolts, hub caps, all ABS moldings or poliuretane knobs, all "Securit" window glasses, complete exhaust system, all pressed metal parts parts that could be manufactured by a 500 ton Hydraulic or a 250 ton eccentrically press.
All the chrome fittings. the brake drums, the set of forged pedals, brake fluid, the electric harness, fuse boxes, only to name only a few. After 4 years we managed to bring the local content up to 39% per value of the vehicle, surpassing by 4% the agreement with the government won by public bid.
The interesting part of the assembly as you surely know is the elaborate painting process at that time, in which the bare metal -after being point welded- was protected with a coat of Zinc Chromate, then the Filler was applied and wet sanded, and then an intermediate coat of Primer (lightly sanded) and then finally the color coat (Melamine) which was cooked at 120 Celsius for over an hour.
At the begging we imported the paint from "Glasurit" in Germany but soon we were able to develop two excellent local suppliers.
Well it would unfair not to mention my long time boss and CEO, engineer Jorge Grieve (on the very right on the picture of the plant in the background) for who I had the pleasure to work in this plant for 10 years. The ever changing political situation of Peru made us leave the Volkswagen Group and join a Joint Venture Project between the Peruvian Government and Volvo AB Skövde and Perkins Engines (Peterborough) to establish an Engine assembly facility in Trujillo, in the north of Peru. The whole story all over again.
I have send copies of this mail to my four children, as a document of my involvement with Volkswagen and Mercedes, but specially in view of Grandmas last owned Karmann Ghia in which she so often has driven them to school.
