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This is a bit of automotive lore that’ll only be valuable in the cars category at pub trivia—or during a one-in-a-million Bring a Trailer auction. But if you’re a fan of niche cars and trucks, this might be the holy grail. The Bertone Freeclimber is a RADwood-era SUV that started life as a Daihatsu Rugger/Toyota Blizzard, but received a high-power BMW engine and sculpted body by Bertone. Yes, that Bertone. In France, you could even buy a perfume-themed special edition.
The Daihatsu Rugger: The other SUV that conquered the world
The Daihatsu Rugger may be the most popular SUV you’ve never heard of. The boxy, two-door 4WD went by many names. In Japan, it was the Daihatsu Rugger. Elsewhere, it was the Rocky. In Indonesia, it was the Daihatsu Taft—unless it was a RWD version. Then it was the Hiline or Feroza.
Daihatsu sold the SUV in the United Kingdom badged as the Daihatsu Fourtrak. In the Japanese domestic market, buyers could get a rebadged version called the Toyota Blizzard. Toyota has owned a major share of Daihatsu since 1967.
In 1989, the automaker resolved to sell the Daihatsu Rugger/Toyota Blizzard in other European countries. It decided the answer was another badge-engineered version. Daihatsu even wanted to take a swing at the luxury SUV market, which was dominated by Land Rovers and G-Wagons. But to do that, it would need more power.
First, Daihatsu tossed the Rugger’s four-cylinder gasoline and diesel engine options. Instead, it bought an inline six-cylinder engine from BMW. Options included the M20-generation gasoline powerplants (1.9-liter or 2.6-liter) and the M21 turbodiesel (2.4-liter). That’s a lot of get-up-and-go for an SUV that could weigh in under 2,800 pounds. So Daihatsu decided to upgrade from styling seemingly inspired by a cinder block.
Daihatsu hired Bertone to build a body for its SUV. Gruppo Bertone is the Italian design and customization shop famous for custom Ferrari 250 GTOs and Aston Martin DB4s. Its star designer, Marcello Gandini, is the father of the wedge-shaped supercar, and his masterpieces include the Lamborghini Countach and Lancia Stratos. The house also worked with Fiat (X1/9), Alfa Romeo (Montreal), and Volvo (262C). So it wasn’t completely absurd for Daihatsu to pitch an SUV.
The Bertone Freeclimber
The result was the Bertone Freeclimber: a Japanese-built, Italian-bodied, and German-powered compact off-roader. Most Freeclimbers I’ve found have Bertone badges, but one SUV sold on Bring a Trailer had BMW grille badges.
The most unique Freeclimber, by a long shot, is the rare French-market Blue Lagoon. Most of the 2,800 Freeclimbers ended up in Spain. But the Bertone Freeclimber “Blue Lagoon” was a special edition for France. It was opulent, with a leather or Alcantara interior. Where did it get its name? A famous Nicolas de Barry perfume. But it probably didn’t smell all that wonderful: the Bertone Freeclimber Blue Lagoon was only available with the diesel engine option.
