Penny: the main vehicle of the Soviet Union

In 1965 the title of "Car of the year" gets a chic Italian development engineers, model FIAT-124. In the following year, the Ministry of foreign trade, at the direction of the party leadership, the company entered into FIAT contract: the Soviet Union was to receive only the best cars.

From that moment began a long and glorious path of VAZ-2101 on the road of our beloved homeland. For the project, it was decided to build a plant in the Soviet Union — he had become one of the best brands on the entire area of the Union. According to the agreement with FIAT, we decided to release three models of cars: VAZ-2101, station wagon VAZ-2102 and a luxury version — VAZ-2103. On the last two machines we will tell you later, today our article about how was invented and created by the legendary "penny" forever entered the history of Soviet engineering.



The beginning of work of course, just copy a good car, Soviet designers did not. In addition to basic ethics, FIAT-124 is just not suited for operation in our conditions. Ground clearance was very small — which means the car almost could not function normally on the back roads. Body our specialists were recognized as short-lived, the engine is too weak, the rear and front suspension it was decided to completely replace.





Changes In the work model has changed almost beyond recognition. The ground clearance of the car became more, drive axle was replaced with a new design. The engine is also replaced one of the latest developments of Soviet engineers. Generally, only the car was made more than eight hundred changes, both large and small. So talking about "pennies" as "stolen" from the Italian model developers to put it mildly.

VAZ-2101 was the first major international project of our industry


The advantages of the First instance of VAZ-2101 was rolled out from the conveyor of the Volga car factory on 19 April 1970. It was a real breakthrough: the machine was quiet, comfortable on the road and in operation, it possessed a number of qualities that have not yet implemented on the roads of the Soviet Union. The salon was recognized as one of the most comfortable in its class — largely due to the end of the folding seats and the overall volume.

FIAT is recognized the resulting project is much more successful original FIAT recognized the project much more successful than the original. Many of the developments were used by the Italians in other machines: the back roads of the Soviet Union gave the "Westerners" a unique opportunity to assess the strength of their developments on extreme terrain.
 

In addition to internal adaptations, slightly changed the appearance of the machine. On the left side put the rear view mirror, door handles are recessed into the body, making them collapsible. The Italians worked on the project along with Soviet engineers — VAZ-2101 can be called one of the first international projects of this kind.
 



Security, Now cars, passing the crash tests with the same success as "penny", just not to be released on the road. At a speed exceeding 60 km/h collision with a stationary object turns VAZ-2101 in the present iron coffin. For each test, the wheel was turned the chest and head of the dummy in scraps of plastic.

At the time of the release of the "penny" was one of the safest cars in the country Got and front passenger, which at least got my head to the dashboard and back: the safest forecast — multiple broken ribs. However, at the time of the release of the "penny" was one of the safest cars in the country, not least thanks to the quality build of the body.
 



The recognition of the First cars VAZ became a real breakthrough for the Soviet automotive industry. Petty improvements together into one perfect whole: the machine was able to start in the cold without using a bucket with hot water, the plastic interior was not afraid of sunlight, and the cooling system with antifreeze is not allowed to drain the water from the radiator at each Parking lot.

"Lada" became the ideal machine traveler — comfortable and very reliable Front disc brakes were gripping the pavement tightly — pedal no longer had to be embedded in a floor, doing this muscle efforts. The serpentine was overcome with a Bang, which, coupled with a folding seat, turned the "the Zhiguli" in a perfect world a car travelling about the country person.





Name the Name "Lada" was invented by designer Alexander Black, but the people in it, for some reason, does not matter. VAZ-2101 was known as a polite and even respectful "unity". So it was called until the early 1990s, when the abundance of new cars have dispelled the prestige models to ashes, and turning it into a rather condescending "penny". But if, at the time, the designers of the two countries have not gathered the most notorious "penny", has long remained the best car of the Soviet Union, our auto industry would be in much worse condition. published
 

 

 

 

Source: dnpmag.com/2015/04/20/kopejka-glavnyj-avtomobil-sovetskogo-soyuza/