MiniMort

Pretty sure they're based in Izhevsk, Russia - ZAZ was the Ukrainian car brand.
Definitely have also heard that IZH cars were better built, though. And they had the unique Moskvitch hatchback - the IZH 2125:

Some spots in Darwin:

Bad photo of a Holden Statesman, which I don't think I've ever seen in the flesh before.

Proton Jumbucks are surprisingly very common, but this is the only bright yellow one I've seen - like a knockoff Felicia Fun.

Driven all the way up from Victoria, a 1995 Mazda 323

A pretty late ('84) Mk1 Land Cruiser

And finally, a 1976 Holden Kingswood Utility

Some spots in Darwin:

Bad photo of a Holden Statesman, which I don't think I've ever seen in the flesh before.

Proton Jumbucks are surprisingly very common, but this is the only bright yellow one I've seen - like a knockoff Felicia Fun.

Driven all the way up from Victoria, a 1995 Mazda 323

A pretty late ('84) Mk1 Land Cruiser

And finally, a 1976 Holden Kingswood Utility

Pretty sure they're based in Izhevsk, Russia - ZAZ was the Ukrainian car brand.
Definitely have also heard that IZH cars were better built, though. And they had the unique Moskvitch hatchback - the IZH 2125:

Some spots in Darwin:

Bad photo of a Holden Statesman, which I don't think I've ever seen in the flesh before.

Proton Jumbucks are surprisingly very common, but this is the only bright yellow one I've seen - like a knockoff Felicia Fun.

Driven all the way up from Victoria, a 1995 Mazda 323

A pretty late ('84) Mk1 Land Cruiser

And finally, a 1976 Holden Kingswood Utility

Some spots in Darwin:

Bad photo of a Holden Statesman, which I don't think I've ever seen in the flesh before.

Proton Jumbucks are surprisingly very common, but this is the only bright yellow one I've seen - like a knockoff Felicia Fun.

Driven all the way up from Victoria, a 1995 Mazda 323

A pretty late ('84) Mk1 Land Cruiser

And finally, a 1976 Holden Kingswood Utility

Some spots in Darwin:

Bad photo of a Holden Statesman, which I don't think I've ever seen in the flesh before.

Proton Jumbucks are surprisingly very common, but this is the only bright yellow one I've seen - like a knockoff Felicia Fun.

Driven all the way up from Victoria, a 1995 Mazda 323

A pretty late ('84) Mk1 Land Cruiser

And finally, a 1976 Holden Kingswood Utility

Pretty sure they're based in Izhevsk, Russia - ZAZ was the Ukrainian car brand.
Definitely have also heard that IZH cars were better built, though. And they had the unique Moskvitch hatchback - the IZH 2125:

Some spots in Darwin:

Bad photo of a Holden Statesman, which I don't think I've ever seen in the flesh before.

Proton Jumbucks are surprisingly very common, but this is the only bright yellow one I've seen - like a knockoff Felicia Fun.

Driven all the way up from Victoria, a 1995 Mazda 323

A pretty late ('84) Mk1 Land Cruiser

And finally, a 1976 Holden Kingswood Utility

Some spots in Darwin:

Bad photo of a Holden Statesman, which I don't think I've ever seen in the flesh before.

Proton Jumbucks are surprisingly very common, but this is the only bright yellow one I've seen - like a knockoff Felicia Fun.

Driven all the way up from Victoria, a 1995 Mazda 323

A pretty late ('84) Mk1 Land Cruiser

And finally, a 1976 Holden Kingswood Utility

Some spots in Darwin:

Bad photo of a Holden Statesman, which I don't think I've ever seen in the flesh before.

Proton Jumbucks are surprisingly very common, but this is the only bright yellow one I've seen - like a knockoff Felicia Fun.

Driven all the way up from Victoria, a 1995 Mazda 323

A pretty late ('84) Mk1 Land Cruiser

And finally, a 1976 Holden Kingswood Utility

Some random shots from across France, some old some new all shite!
Will start off with a couple of blinders complete with failure to proceed!


Future shite we never got offered:

Where the streets have no shame:





Just parking….






French Ramrod:

FIN.

Apparently IZH ones were better built, and were regarded as more robust than the original Moskvitch, certainly by those who lived way out in the Soviet sticks.
Think I’m right in saying IZH, a massive engineering factory, is/was Ukrainian? 

They had square lights since about 1969, but the 2140 with it's fancy tech (and Girling brakes!) that would have made it much more desirable was the one the UK didn't get. But because they were withdrawn from sale here in 1976, it is easy to forget just how long production of the 412 continued. I know someone from the USSR who sold their 1979 2140 for a brand new IZH 412 in 1990, and even then you could still buy a new one at the end of that decade. Apparently the Samara that replaced it felt like a spaceship.

That rang a bell in the old grey cells - haven't seen one of those in years - had a look at HowManyLeft - maybe that's why - 49,000 back in 1994, 104 today

They had square lights since about 1969, but the 2140 with it's fancy tech (and Girling brakes!) that would have made it much more desirable was the one the UK didn't get. But because they were withdrawn from sale here in 1976, it is easy to forget just how long production of the 412 continued. I know someone from the USSR who sold their 1979 2140 for a brand new IZH 412 in 1990, and even then you could still buy a new one at the end of that decade. Apparently the Samara that replaced it felt like a spaceship.

There was a guy in the village I grew up in that had one of the these (I think it was white and a nagging feeling it may have been an estate).
This would be around 1976 - no idea if it was RHD - he was a Glasgow guy and would be up and down the road to there (so I think the dealer would have been up that way).
The robust* machine did not fare well with our seaside air and the salt on the roads - it was replaced by a Lada which fared similarly well*

Not quite photographic evidence but here's a classified listing of one from 1991. If you're wondering it was only £2,995, for a then-recent sportscar! 

Average wage was a little over £3,600, so probably the real wages equivalent of paying a smidge under £30k. Basically then the equivalent of some flashy nearly-new BMW or Audi coupe thing.

On the subject of classified ads...

...it seems that some Dacias were sat on the forecourts for a few years. 

Not quite photographic evidence but here's a classified listing of one from 1991. If you're wondering it was only £2,995, for a then-recent sportscar! 

Not quite photographic evidence but here's a classified listing of one from 1991. If you're wondering it was only £2,995, for a then-recent sportscar! 

I went to Rome on a press trip earlier in the week, and had enough time to go car spotting in the city!

No first generation Pandas with the off-set grille, I'm afraid - though this late 80s 1000 Super was incredibly stuff-free by Roman standards.

Good to know there are still plenty of Fiat 500s around the city. Is that an early Panda door mirror?

The modern day version of the 500 is undoubtedly the Ami. They are literally everywhere over the city with all manner of orange or green stickers on them, but I do like the boggo trim-less version.

Not so many French cars in Rome, but this early Twingo certainly caught my eye.

As did this Lancia Kappa, a car I don't think I've ever actually seen in the flesh before. 

But my favourite find of the day was probably this Alfa Romeo 75, a posh family saloon that still didn't come with a passenger door mirror!

Diplomatic 5n Polo from the Vatican in Rome!