All about GAZ
Born: 1929
Nationality: Russian
Eight out of 10 trucks on Russia's roads were Fords when Stalin's USSR government set up its own automobile operation in collaboraton with Ford to build Model A cars and AA trucks. The first truck, the GAZ-AA, rolled out at Nizhny Novforod in January 1932 and the first car, the GAZ-A, in December of the same year. "Russianised" Fords had tougher components to cope with driving conditions in the USSR.
Other vehicles quickly followed, including a 3-axle truck, a dump truck and an ambulance bus. It took until just 1935 for the 100,000th vehicle to roll off the line, a GAZ-A car.
Meanwhile, a second car originally planned on a Ford V8 model base was completely redesigned by GAZ engineers, and became the GAZ-M1 with a 50hp 4-cylinder engine and a strongther chassis. It had a European look, and variants included the GAZ-415 pickup, and engines that were later developed for wartime use in tanks and self-propelled artillery.
By the end of the 1930s, GAZ had produced some 450,000 vehicles, had a range of 17 models and had completely reversed Ford domination of the USSR market.
During the Second World War GAZ produced a range of military vehicles and motorised weapons, as well as ammunition. In 1946 the company went back into the civilian market with the GAZ-51 truck, destined to become the mainstay of road haulage, construction and agriculture in the USSR for some 29 years. Cross-country, bus and even Arctic tractor variants were built and the vehicle was also produced in Poland, China and Korea.
At the car end of the business, the brand-new GAZ-M20 Pobeda was also launched in 1946, as a 5-seater that was the first Soviet car of unitary construction. Produced for more than 12 years, it became a firm favourite with taxi-operators.
A larger passenger car, the GAZ-12 Zim, went into production in 1950, with luxuries such as heated rear seats and self-cancelling indicators. It was produced in sedan and convertible forms, and a special ambulance variant. The company was also producing off-roaders based on vehicles initially produced for military use. Typical was the 1952 GAZ-69 which earned a reputation for simplicity and robustness.
The 1956 GAZ-21 Volga was the first version of a nameplate that endures in the Russia today. The styling appears to have been strongly influenced by the American Ford Custom of the time.
That original Volga had a 0-100 km/h for 34 seconds, 11 seconds faster than the Pobeda. A central lubrication system for the front suspension had to be operated manually every 100 kilometres, resulting in many pools of oil on Russian roads.
Over the next decade station-wagon and ambulance versions of the Volga were produced. The styling of each generation tended to follow US designs of the period. A famous Volga fan was Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space, who was presented with an M21 Volga (pictured). After his death it was installed in the factory as a memorial.
Volgas were built in Belgium during the 1960s, powered by diesel engines produced in succession by Perkins, Rover and Peugeot. It was also used in rallying, winning the 1959 1,000 Lakes Rally in Finland.
In 1959 a new flagship appeared. The GAZ-13 Chaika had seven seats, a wraparound screen and highly-styled side mouldings, rather like the Chevy Bel Air. It had a V8 engine, push-button gearshifting and electric windows. Limo and convertible variants were produced in small numbers.
The GAZ-24 Volga launched in 1970 had the looks of the Opel Rekord B being produced by GM's German subsidiary. Improved performance was reflected in the 23 seconds sprint to 100 km/h. The third-generation GAZ-14 Chaika came along in the late 1970s, a more compact and lighter version of its predecessors.
The GAZ-24-10 Volga of the early 1980s was specified for purchase by private citizens. Large and square in styling, it had such modern niceties as electronic ignition. An executive car, the GAZ-3105, was produced in the late 1980s in small numbers.
In December 1995, just 15 years after producing its 10 millionth vehicle, GAZ achieved its 15 millionth.
Today GAZ's main vehicles are the 3110 Volga, the Sobol LCV, the GAZelle light truck and a series of medium trucks.
BEST CAR: Because of its importance to the general Russian motorist, the Volga of the middle 1960s and its counterpart in the early 1980s
WORST CAR: Environmentalists would say the early M21 with the leaky suspension lubrication system
WEIRDEST CAR: The mid-1980s Chaika Convertible comes close