1963 Montesa Impalia 175 Sport

The Spanish motorcycle company Montesa was founded in 1944 by Pere Permanyer Puigjaner, Josep 'Jasu' Antoni Soler i Urgell, and Francisco X. Bultó, in Barcelona, Spain. Their first production motorcycle, 'Prototipo Definitivo con Marca XX' was based on the design of an early Motobecane two-stroke single. In 1958, Francisco Bultó left Montesa to form Bultaco. Montesa introduced the Impalia in 1959, and in 1962, it was awarded the ADI-FAD prize for industrial design.

In 1962, the Montesa factory was relocated to Esplugues del Llobregat, Catalonia, Spain. By 1962, 11,000 Impalia were produced each year, and in 1963, the Impala entered the US market as the Impala 175 Scrambler. In 1982, Montesa collaborated with Honda to form Montesa Honda S.A., producing the Honda MTX 75/50, Montesa Cota 304/75, Enduro 360H7, Enduro 80, and Montesa Impala 2. The Cota 4RT is still imported to the US market.