| • Science | • People | • Locations | • Timeline |
Lada is the trademark of the AutoVAZ (Volzhsky Automobilny Zavod) company. This Russian automobile manufacturer, originally set up in collaboration with Fiat, produces nearly one million cars a year, including the Samara, a small hatchback, and the Niva, a 4x4 vehicle. Their first car, the model ВАЗ-2101, based on the 1966 Fiat 124 and introduced in 1970, is still produced and remains the car most associated with the Lada name.
The plant was set up as a collaboration between Italy and the Soviet Union and built on the banks of the Volga river. A new town named Togliatti, named after an Italian communist, was built around the factory. The Lada was envisaged as a "people's car" like the Citroën 2CVThe 2CV deux chevaux French, literally "two horses", from the tax power rating) was a popular French car made by Citroen. 3,872,583 2CV sedan, 1,246,306 utility models and even more derivatives were produced from 1948 to 1990. History suicide doors" Pierr or the VW BeetleThe Volkswagen Beetle or Bug is a small family car, the best known car of Volkswagen, of Germany, and almost certainly the world. Thanks to its distinctive shape and sound, its reliability, and presumably other factors, it now enjoys a " cult" status..
The original Fiat-based Lada (model numbers 2101 to 2107 to denote various headlight, trim and body styles) were built in several different body styles. Among them, the original, Fiat style car, with two or four round lights. The model with two round headlights was manufactured up to 1988, the model with four headlights is still being manufactured, though not at the Togliatti plant.
In 1981Events January-February January Sarawak Chamber found January 1 Greece enters the EEC January 1 Palau becomes self-governing January 4 Sheffield police arrests Peter Sutcliffe, the Yorkshire Ripper January 16 Protestant gunmen shoot and wound Bernadette D a newer body style with updated 80s styling was introduced. Square headlights and new body panels distinguish this style from the old.
The lightweight Italian Fiat 124 was adapted into something intended to survive treacherous Russian driving conditions. Among many changes, aluminiumAluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is the chemical element in the periodic table with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. A silvery and ductile member of the poor metal group of elements, aluminium is found primarily as the ore bauxite and brake drums were added to the rear, and the Fiat engine was revised and converted to overhead camshaft operation. The suspension was raised (to clear rough Russian roads) and the bodyshell was made from thicker, heavier steel. The first Lada models were equipped with a starting handle in case the battery went flat in Siberian conditions, though this was later dropped. Another feature specifically intended to help out in cold conditions was a hand pump for the gas pump.
Engines fitted to the original Ladas start with the 1.2 liter carburettor in the original and go up to the 1.7 liter export model set up with a General Motors single point fuel injection system. More modern gas and diesel engines may be available within Russia. The drivetrain is a simple rear wheel drive setup with a stiff rear axle. The engine is an inline four with two valves per cylinder and a single overhead camshaft.
The domestic market Lada is called Zhiguli. Their other cars include the Oka, Tarzan , 110 , Kalina and Nadezhda , in addition to the Samara and Niva.
The original Lada is often thought of as a 'rugged' car, lacking in most modern luxuries expected in modern cars.
While sanctions banned their export to the United States, Ladas were available in several Western countries during the 1980s, including Canada and Britain, where, due to a perception of poor quality and their low price, they became the subject of jokes such as these:
They were along the same line as jokes known for other affordable car models:
Changes to emissions- and safety-legislation meant that AutoVAZ withdrew from most Western markets by the late 1990s; often, there were also problems with spare parts.
Though the original Lada, and as of the early part of the new millennium the Samara, have now been withdrawn from Europe, the 110 and the Niva are still sold on the European market, as are the more modern models. The Lada is widely available in many Central- and South American countries as well as Africa, the Middle East and in all of the former Soviet Union.
The Lada factory is one of the biggest in the world, has over 90 miles of production lines and is unique in that most of the components for the cars are made in-house. It produces over 800,000 cars a year.
Lada's recent cooperation with General Motors has resulted in the Chevrolet Niva. VAZ have also tried to get into the sportier markets, several Ladas were factory tuned and given a Momo steering wheel. A convertible was also produced. In 2003 VAZ presented the concept car VAZ Lada Revolution, an open single seater sportscar powered by a 1.6-litre engine producing 215 hp. [1]
Under perestroika AutoVAZ was allowed to sell cars to private dealers. Mathematician Boris Berezovsky arranged to resell the cars to the public and later acquired the company from the government in 1991. AutoVAZ has since developed a new generation of Lada cars and is bidding to return to the Western European market.
The Official English name of the company is JSC AVTOVAZ
See also: List of automobile manufacturers