Spotted...A Moskvitch!!!

[Dave7601]

I though i would post this photo before my next batch of north-east shite.

I had to do a double take when i saw this parked up today.

Ive never seen one since the late 70's,and that was one that i remember seeing that had been dumped and vandalised after being joyridden.

I heard that these cars were banned from sale in the UK because of the crap brakes...true?

[warren t claim]

What a beauty! That's been loved since new.

[hennabm]

Looks like originally registered in Lincoln (VL).

My college mate had one at his father's works, although that was a pick up. What a heap of AS, even in the late 70s.

[retrogeezer]

Lovely, really nice styling on those I think. Got any more pics of it?

[Station]

Nice burgundy/cream colour scheme there.

[boobydoo]

I think I'd have crashed had I spotted that!! Thats one survivor then!!

[brammy777]

This is a fantastic spot, well done. Alot of Soviet car love tonight! What is the story behind the one used in Top Gear....this isnt the same one is it?

[barrett]

I heard that these cars were banned from sale in the UK because of the crap brakes...true

Not true, afaik. They do have appalling brakes though (so I hear).

They were, however, the last car to eb sold in the UK to cost under £1000 new, fact fans.

Awesome spottage btw, I dream about catching something like this in the wild

[reallyloud]

Inspired spot. I think these fell foul of fuel emissions - they were effectively replaced by Lada in terms of those looking for a VFM 3 box design with a little crudity mixed in.

[Vin]

Top spot

 

Apparently my builder Uncle had a van version of one these in the early Seventies. He had much mechanical grief (rear axle problems I think) but it was a cheap van. He said the heater was phenomenal though....

 

The Moskvich van replaced a 105E Anglia. Papa Vin talks of the tale with much hilarity when Anglia was damaged in accident and rear wing was repaired by his builder brother in law with numerous 6 inch nails hammered into rear wing and then a nice plaster render applied....

[Guest]

I thought that bannination story came from the Autocar test that was done at the time? The braking tests were so abysmal that the editor and journo responsible lambasted the car and beseeched the public not to buy it. One or two facts got mixed up, and this warning entered the realm of myth.

 

Nowadays, Autocar is the premier one stop for overblown VAG product love ins.

 

Thankfully, a Moskvich 412 is nothing like a Golf.

 

Very nice spot.

[Torsten2001]

A remarkable spot, i would so love one!

They sold well into the 1980's in the rest of Europe, Italy, Greece etc

[Spottedlaurel]

Excellent!

 

A family on the estate where we lived obviously liked them back in the day, they had a saloon then an estate back in the early '80s. Both were light blue.

 

I rode straight into the back of one of them once, when cycling along and looking at something else

 

As well as one or two of the saloons there was a van in Medler's scrapyard in 1996/97, I didn't even know they did such a thing or sold them here. Some years ago I saw a figure from the SMMT showing that only one van was left on the road.

[scooters]

COMRADES! AS ACOLYTES OF ALTERNATE KIT WE SHOULD WELCOME SUCH GLORIOUS MILESTONES IN THE HISTORY OF THE DICTATORSHIP OF THE PROLETARIAT AS AN IDEALOGICAL VICTORY AGAINST THE DECADENT CLEGGITE-CAMERONIST FACISM OF THE BOURGEOISE IMPERIALISTS!

 

love the car!

[carlo]

Inspired spot. I think these fell foul of fuel emissions - they were effectively replaced by Lada in terms of those looking for a VFM 3 box design with a little crudity mixed in.

I think it was actually the Wartburg Knight which was banned due to emissions, due to its two-stroke engine. The Wartburg always seemed to be seen as a nicer car by testers but the Moskvich is of course equally desirable because of its inherent awfulness (and rarity). I think this one is owned by a chap who also has a yellow GS, which co-incidently is up for sale on ebay at the moment.

 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... K:MEWAX:IT

 

[RedSparrow]

Top spot!

Those things just ooze miserable driving!

[Mash]

Excellent! I've seen a tidy red estate at a few shows but not for while and I thought I had a pic but damned if I can find it.

[Dave7601]

Lovely, really nice styling on those I think. Got any more pics of it?

Sorry i only got the one pic

Spottedlaurel wrote:

I rode straight into the back of one of them once, when cycling along and looking at something else

Nice bit of stuff was she then?

 

Obviously its the same car pictured with the citroen gs,i spotted it in Dipton,Co.Durham

[Magnificent Rustbucket]

COMRADES! AS ACOLYTES OF ALTERNATE KIT WE SHOULD WELCOME SUCH GLORIOUS MILESTONES IN THE HISTORY OF THE DICTATORSHIP OF THE PROLETARIAT AS AN IDEALOGICAL VICTORY AGAINST THE DECADENT CLEGGITE-CAMERONIST FACISM OF THE BOURGEOISE IMPERIALISTS!

 

love the car!

Comrade, it is my duty to caution you: Moskvich body is pure product of sound central planning and esteemed solidatrity of Soviet metalbashing, yet under its bonnet hides a guilty secret. It is true - it does not boast a true Russian heart, but an engine of doubtful national provenence and possible capitalist leanings.

[MrRegieRitmo]

I think this one is owned by a chap who also has a yellow GS, which co-incidently is up for sale on ebay at the moment.

 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... K:MEWAX:IT

 

Someone should get onto that GS, looks very nice for the money, even with the mechanical work it may or may not need!

 

[scooters]

COMRADES! AS ACOLYTES OF ALTERNATE KIT WE SHOULD WELCOME SUCH GLORIOUS MILESTONES IN THE HISTORY OF THE DICTATORSHIP OF THE PROLETARIAT AS AN IDEALOGICAL VICTORY AGAINST THE DECADENT CLEGGITE-CAMERONIST FACISM OF THE BOURGEOISE IMPERIALISTS!

 

love the car!

Comrade, it is my duty to caution you: Moskvich body is pure product of sound central planning and esteemed solidatrity of Soviet metalbashing, yet under its bonnet hides a guilty secret. It is true - it does not boast a true Russian heart, but an engine of doubtful national provenence and possible capitalist leanings.

Comrade, are you telling me that the designers of this epistle of Marxist-Leninism were proto-imperialist wreckers? Such counter-revolutionary trotskyism would never have happend in the 1930s when such activity would have resulted in a nice purge! Disgraceful! No wonder the USSR failed as a state - shooting would have been too good for them!

[martc]

I don't think the Moskvitch was "banned" but it was subjected to an hysterical media safety outburst which in the seventies was quite a novelty. Not only were the brakes dodgy but various switches and sharp edges could impale you in a crash. Much like many other seventies cars. But this one was cheap, likely to be bought by the proles and communist and therefore "deserved" such treatment (see Top Gear ad nauseum).

 

The campaign was so "successful" that Moskvitch sales collapsed overnight.

 

Similar campaigns were aimed at the Reliant Robin, rear engined Skodas, small Suzuki 4x4's and the Mercedes A type but by this time we had had so much media safety hype that it just washed over us and these cars remained relatively unscathed (although I do believe Skoda did some work on the handling of the Estelle as a response and Mercedes threw money at the A type).

 

Of course there is no such thing as media safety hype these days....

[Jack_Harpers_Teeth]

A neighbour had one of these back in the late 70's, almost the same colour as this except beige all over.

 

Remember Dad being called over by that neighbour to have a look as they had spotted a pool of liquid below it on the driveway (I went with him).

 

The top radiator hose had split near the radiator, Dad undid the clamp, pulled the hose off and a spurt of red rusty coloured water came darting out.

 

Coolant system seemed to be made up of 40% water and 60% rust flakes!! .

 

Dad shortened the hose, put it back on the radiator and refilled with water explaining to the owner he would need another hose and some liquid to go in the radiator rather than the red sludge and iron oxide that lived in there.

 

I don't think he ever did take it to be "properly" done, just carried on driving it that way.

[Andrew353w]

Oh my GODDD! A truly GGRREEAATT spot!!! As a driver, owner and frequent repairer of eastern European stuff this is an amazing vehicle!

 

Earlier comments re: why the imports stopped are interesting. The thing that firstly boosted sales was the decision in the early 1970's by the new importers, SATRA Trading (that's Soviet & American Trading Company) to cut the price of a new Mosky from that of a Cortina to just above that of a new Mini. Sales rocketed! Yes, it was a bit crude but it carried 5 people in fair comfort, with a load of luggage and would take you to 90 mph while doing it! Sales carried on growing until about 1973, when a "Which" report criticised the brakes, commenting that they were dangerous. I've read the report in question and some of the comments were a bit strong and the faults could have been corrected with a bit of adjustment. That said, the damage was done and sales of the cars collapsed. Oddly sales of the vans, although small, held up and actually carried on for a few years after the cars stopped. This was because The importers were bringing the Lada range into the UK but this range didn't have a van!

 

I could wax lyrical for ages on these cars but I reckon that's enough for now! Once again, I'd LOVE to own that car-they ARE rare!

[dollywobbler]

Andrew - I know someone selling a Moskie estate...

 

The owner has informed me that beige was the colour of Russian taxis and those rebuilt at the factory would have a red roof to identify them - which someone has copied on that delicious RHD spot.

[Andrew353w]

Oh, sorry, forgot to add; it had a 1500 cc overhead cam chain driven slant 4 cylinder engine, which bore a striking similarity to a B.M.W. engine.... because it WAS essentially a B.M.W. engine! I don't expect the built quality was identical, though!

[garethj]

I remember the handling was criticised a lot because on full lock at speed the steering didn’t self-centre. There was a picture in one of the magazines where the car was turning hard left, loads of understeer and lean and the driver had his hands on the windscreen – completely off the wheel

 

I’ve got the article in a Transport Source Books for Eastern Bloc cars

[Negative Creep]

Also came with a fag lighter, which must have been quite a novelty. Apparently it had a habit of springing out the socket, right onto the viynl seats

[ChinaTom]

I remember from my days at Halfrauds the RON imports fag lighter kit. We had a bad batch with an over-confident spring that shot the lighter clean over the front seats into the back seat.

 

Good job Lynn Faulds-Wood never heard about it.

[pogweasel]

Oh, sorry, forgot to add; it had a 1500 cc overhead cam chain driven slant 4 cylinder engine, which bore a striking similarity to a B.M.W. engine.... because it WAS essentially a B.M.W. engine! I don't expect the built quality was identical, though!

Hmm, can anyone else see scope there for an Evil Plan?