ZAZ Tavria

[SambaS]

Did any of these find their way over to England? I'd like one =)

[SambaS]

[ProgRocker]

I remember a What Car? article about this in the early 1990s. Supposedly with a Lada badge and a sub £3,000 price. Possibly a bit too crude and unrefined for British motorists?

[skoda_fan]

I think well-known Eastern Bloc car buff Julian Nowill had one but I believe I read somewhere that he has moved it on. So there's at least one somewhere. I understand these are spectacularly shite, a kind of down-market Lada. This of course would make one irresistable, so if one ever turns up you'll have to beat me off to get to it!!

[garethj]

I think Julian Nowill of USSR club had one, I believe they imported three and he bought one with another being broken for spares.

 

EDIT: I looz at the internet

[SambaS]

[skoda_fan]

'kin' hell!! Am not into the Max Power/boom boom boy type of scene, but for some reason I love that! Bad taste supreme!!

 

EDIT: I looz at the internet

Sorry about that. Great minds

[RedSparrow]

There was one in the background of the Top gear 'Did Communism ever make a good car?' item a few years back, so I guess there must be at least one in the hands of an enthusiast here.

 

Go here, click on ZAZ and scroll down to recent models:

http://www.autosoviet.altervista.org/main-english.htm

 

Apparently still made in Korea?!!

[gtd2000]

I think well-known Eastern Bloc car buff Julian Nowill had one but I believe I read somewhere that he has moved it on. So there's at least one somewhere. I understand these are spectacularly shite, a kind of down-market Lada. This of course would make one irresistable, so if one ever turns up you'll have to beat me off to get to it!!

 

Somebody give the man a hand here

[wuvvum]

Didn't these have a ridiculous gearbox setup where fifth was to the right and back, next to fourth? I know they were sold officially in France for a time in the early '90s - don't think they sold many though.

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

I've seen one of them in Thessalonika when they were new. I think the local Lada dealer was considering importing them on the side and brought a couple of demonstrators in, but he must have come to his senses and decided not to go ahead with selling the buggers.

[maxpower]

'kin' hell!! Am not into the Max Power/boom boom boy type of scene, but for some reason I love that! Bad taste supreme!!

 

EDIT: I looz at the internet

Sorry about that. Great minds

 

and what is wrong with me....

[Split_Pin]

My Soviet Car book has a piece about one that was shipped to Bridlington by the UK Lada importer in 1992 or 3 to assess its suitability for the UK market. For a reason I can't now remember, it was decided not to proceed with the venture, but the red example was registered on a k plate and almost definitely survives.

[gricer]

I actually drove one of the Tavrias that was imported - round the car park at Wythall, near Birmingham, where the Lada/Proton importer was based. This would have been around 1992-93. It was red, and K-reg sounds right. It was like a badly maintained Mk1 Fiesta - very heavy for an FWD car, with flimsy plastic and cardboard interior. However it would have become the UK's cheapest car - they were aiming for about £3,995. Suspect they would have struggled to make any money at that price.

 

Quite a few sold in Europe though - and there were saloon and estate versions of the Tavria as well. Got pix somewhere of all this.

[gtd2000]

However it would have become the UK's cheapest car - they were aiming for about £3,995. Suspect they would have struggled to make any money at that price.

 

It's unlikely that they would have stuggled to make money at all - cars are cheap as chips to build.

 

The Dacia Logan (a much better car than that Lada) was estimated to cost around US$1069 per car to build in Romania - that's under £700 in real money

[skoda_fan]

I saw a Dutch-registered newish-looking car badged as a Dacia Logan on the motorway today. Kind of estate car thingy with uneven sized doors on the back. Presumably this is the latest version and is imported to some countries in Europe??

[gricer]

It's unlikely that they would have stuggled to make money at all - cars are cheap as chips to build.

 

The Dacia Logan (a much better car than that Lada) was estimated to cost around US$1069 per car to build in Romania - that's under £700 in real money

 

Not as simple as that.

 

You'd have to factor in marketing costs, logistics, spares back-up and, worst of all for shite East European cars, warranty costs, which were a real killer for most East European brands when pitted against relatively relible Korean or Malaysian shite, derived in the main from reliable Japanese tat.

 

Different now with Dacia - it's based on reliable parts bin stuff from Renault/Nissan so is no less reliable than a Clio or a Micra.

 

But a 90s Tavria, built in Ukraine in the post-communist era was way short of even Russian Lada standards (remember, it wasn't a Lada!)

[gricer]

I saw a Dutch-registered newish-looking car badged as a Dacia Logan on the motorway today. Kind of estate car thingy with uneven sized doors on the back. Presumably this is the latest version and is imported to some countries in Europe??

 

 

That'll be a Dacia Logan MCV, some of which have asymetric split doors instead of a tailgate.

 

Not the latest version - it's been out for a few years.

 

Dacia has quite a range now - Logan, Logan MCV, Sandero and Duster, plus van and pick-up versions of the Logan. Latest model is a 7-seater MPV called the Dacia Lodgy.

[Sam Glover]

RHD Sanderos and Dusters will be coming the the UK at the end of this year, but both are far too good to be interesting.

 

The surviving RHD Tavria is still in the Devonshire Avtofilth Collective. It's in fine fettle. They're really not that bad, appalling build quality aside. Borderline stylish.

 

Sam

 

 

[SambaS]

what's the Devonshire autofilth collective?

[eddyramrod]

Sounds like an exciting road trip to me! Especially for anyone who can bring a Polonez (should be worth free admission!).

[SambaS]

Well I'm game

[SambaS]

Sam > would it be a big ask to find out exactly what you've got in your collection?

[Sam Glover]

what's the Devonshire autofilth collective?

 

I mean the collective farm of superior Marxist vehicle appreciators in Devon. Everybody is equal in democratic socialism, but perhaps the most equal of their number is Mr Nowill.

[Sam Glover]

Sam > would it be a big ask to find out exactly what you've got in your collection?

 

Yes.

 

ARO 242

Anadol A1

Austin Apache

Barkas B1000

Bedford VAL

Bond 875

Citroën Ami 6

DAF 33

Dacia 1310

Dacia Coupe

Dacia Shifter

Datsun 120Y Coupe

GAZ Chaika

IZH 2125

Lada 2101

Lada Niva

Lada Riva

Leyland Princess 2

MGB GT6

NSU Ro80

Panhard Dyna Z

Pontiac Trans Am GTA

Rover 2200TC

Rover 3500S

Rover Maestro

Å koda 1000MB

Å koda Favorit Freeway

Tatra 603-2

Tatra 613-4 KATi

Tatra T600 'Tatraplan'

Trabant 1.1 Kombi

Trabant 601 Limousine

Trabant Kubelwagen

Volga M21

Volga M22

Volvo 66

Volvo 164

Volvo 240GL

Volvo 245

Volvo 262C

Volvo 343 Variomatic

Volvo 1800ES

Yugo 55 Sport

Yugo Sana

Yugo ZLM

Zaporozhets 968A

[SambaS]

Lordy lord! Impressed. I think I'd be playing with the Tatras first. Then the Yugo Sana

[eddyramrod]

...a heroic list!

 

WOW. I mean seriously, that's a hefty fleet there. I'm insanely jealous!

[mk2_craig]

I wonder whether how many RHD Tavrias were built. This one seen in Malta two years ago.

[YugoLada]

There is a Red K reg one around In the UK but its an Import.

[SambaS]

One of the 3 originally imported. I spoke to the guy who recently owned it. The guy he sold it to has it on the road, so that's good