The 1400 was the only model manufactured by SEAT in its early years. For this reason, when producing a light van, SEAT used this saloon as a base, even though it was a luxury car in the domestic market of the ‘50s. The result was the Spanish brand's first own model.

Coachbuilder José Armengol worked with SEAT for the construction of the 1400 Furgoneta Cerrada (closed van), developed from the 1400 A and launched at the 1955 Barcelona Motor Show. It went on sale at the end of that year. From 1957, the van was produced from the 1400 B model (recognizable by the outer fuel cap).

At the front, the van was identical to the equivalent saloon, with an estate bodywork at the rear, but without side rear doors and with blind windows. At the rear axle the roof descended in a gentle line, and had double back doors that opened to the sides.

The 1400 van kept the rear seats, to access which it was necessary to fold the right side of the front bench, due to the absence of a second side door. The rear bench could be folded down to provide a flat load surface of 2.35 m2 and a load volume of 1.75 m3.

The powertrain was identical to that of the saloon: engine, brakes, steering, transmission and front suspension. For its part, the rear suspension was reinforced to allow the 1400 van to carry up to 500 kg of load, or 430 kg with two passengers. The top speed was 120 km/h.

Interestingly enough, the 1400 van weighed 65 kg less than the 1400 saloon. The weight saving was due to the absence of the chrome mouldings and trims of the touring car, and its most austere equipment. In this way, SEAT produced the first Spanish-built light van. Being a derivative of an expensive and luxurious saloon made the 1400 van a very rare model, in addition to being an exclusive SEAT derivative. Therein lies its historical importance, since it was the first exclusively designed and produced SEAT.

However, its production was very limited, with some 1,600 units manufactured until 1959, also with a 4 door, 3 side windows Familiar model available from 1958. Subsequently, between 1960 and 1962 (already with the 1400 C in production, powered by the same engine, but with the bodywork of the future 1500 model), SEAT produced another variant of the 1400 B van, now with a single tailgate and more squared roof line.

SEAT HISTÓRICOS keeps in the Collection a unit of the 1400 B Van, originally registered in 1959 and decorated with the lettering "SEAT Fabrica de Automoviles" (SEAT car factory) of the period. After almost a year of careful restoration in Nave A-122, the vehicle was shown for the first time in the AutoRetro Barcelona classic car show in December 2014, in a spectacular stand that recreated the streets of Barcelona in the ‘50s.

In the following years, the SEAT HISTÓRICOS 1400 B Van has taken part in all kinds of events. For example, in 2015 it competed in the Hamburg-Berlin-Klassik rally in Germany, a regularity event of more than 2,000 kilometres. Not only did it complete the course without any problem, but it became one of the event’s main protagonists due to its rarity and exclusivity.

Besides, since 2016 the 1400 B Van is used as a roadside assistance car in the annual TraveSEAT event, a route in stages for owners of the iconic SEAT 600, in which around a hundred vehicles usually participate.