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The legendary "penny" or how did the first "Lada". The history of "Lada": a symbol of the past century VAZ 2101 story

24.12.2021
8.5 (8.8 before 1973) Supply system: two-chamber vertical carburetor with sequential opening of throttles Cooling: liquid closed type with forced circulation of liquid The order of operation of the cylinders: 1-3-4-2 Recommended fuel: AI-92

Characteristics

Mass-dimensional

Dynamic

Acceleration to 100 km/h: 20 s
Max. speed: 142 km/h

On the market

Other

Modifications

VAZ-21011, VAZ-21013

VAZ-2101 Zhiguli- Soviet rear-wheel drive passenger car with a body type sedan. The first model produced at the Volga Automobile Plant.

On the basis of the VAZ-2101, the so-called "classic" family of VAZ cars was created, which is still on the assembly line.

For the release of this model in May 1972, the Volga Automobile Plant was awarded the International Prize "Golden Mercury". In 2000, the VAZ-2101 was named the best domestic car of the 20th century according to the results of an all-Russian poll conducted by the magazine Za Rulem. For the entire period of production (from 1970 to 1988), the Volga Automobile Plant gave life to 4.85 million VAZ-2101 cars of all modifications with a sedan body.

History of creation

In the summer of 1966, the first acquaintance of domestic specialists with an Italian car took place.

During tests on our roads, the cars revealed serious problems with the durability of the body and rear disc brakes. A small ground clearance and the absence of towing eyes made it problematic to operate cars on a country road. The dissatisfaction of Soviet engineers was also caused by the lower engine - absolutely unpromising from the point of view of further development of the design. All remarks of our specialists were taken into account by Italian designers.

No less serious changes have been made to the chassis and transmission. As a result, the VAZ-2101 began to differ from the Fiat 124 in brakes (drum mechanisms appeared in the back, calmly enduring bad roads), suspension (the front was reinforced, the rear was completely replaced with a more modern one with five jet rods instead of a jet tube), cardan transmission (an open shaft with an intermediate support), reinforced clutch and a modified design of synchronizers in the gearbox. Even in terms of comfort, the VAZ-2101 turned out to be better than its prototype due to the possibility of transforming the seats into full-fledged sleeping places, which were subsequently appreciated by thousands of owners. Interestingly, some innovations were applied at zero first in order to unify with the luxury model Fiat 124S (VAZ-2103). First of all, these are safety external door handles. Also, the VAZ-2101 received an outside rear-view mirror. In total, over 800 changes were made to the design of the Fiat 124, after which it received the name Fiat 124R. The "Russification" of the Fiat 124 turned out to be extremely useful for the FIAT company itself, which has accumulated unique information about the reliability of its cars in extreme operating conditions.

The first six VAZ-2101 cars were assembled on April 19, 1970, while the rhythmic work of the main conveyor began in August. By the end of the year, 21,530 “ones” were assembled in Togliatti, in 1971 this number increased to 172,175 cars, and the peak of VAZ-2101 production came in 1973, when 379,007 copies were collected. The plant reached its design capacity in 1974.

origin of name

Normal 1966

It should be noted that the VAZ first-born cars turned out to be the first domestic cars to which a new industry document was applied - the OH 025270-66 normal, which regulates the classification and designation system of rolling stock: each new model of a car or trailer is assigned an index consisting of four digits, where the first ones indicate class of car (trailer) and its purpose. The second two digits are the model. Modifications of models have an additional fifth digit indicating the serial number of the modification. The sixth digit is the type of execution: 1 - for a cold climate, 6 - export version for a temperate climate, 7 - export version for a tropical climate, 8 and 9 - a reserve for other export modifications. Some machines have in their designation through a dash the prefix 01, 02, 03, etc., indicating that the model or modification is transitional or has additional equipment. The numerical index is usually preceded by the letter designations of the plant that developed or produced this model. For example, the VAZ-21011 car index stands for: VAZ - manufacturer: Volzhsky Automobile Plant; 21 - a small class car with an engine from 1200 to 1800 cm³; 01 - the first model registered in this class; 1 - the first modification of the base car, which is distinguished by the installation of another engine, in this case with a volume of 1300 cm³.

Zhiguli

There is an opinion that the name "Zhiguli" was born thanks to the competition announced by the magazine "Behind the wheel" in August 1968. However, according to the testimony of VAZ veterans, the name "Zhiguli", proposed by the designer A. M. Cherny, was approved by the plant director V. N. Polyakov back in early 1967. At the same time, it was proposed to FIAT to develop a decorative inscription for the rear panel of the body.
At different times, two nicknames stuck to the VAZ-2101 among the people: at first - “one”, and already at the end of the 1980s, when the model was no longer considered prestigious, - “penny”.

Modifications

Bulk:

RHD:

  • For export to countries with left-hand traffic, the Volga Automobile Plant mastered the production of two versions of the Zhiguli - VAZ-21012 And VAZ-21014(based on VAZ-2101 and VAZ-21011). They were distinguished by a reinforced spring suspension of the right front wheel, since when the controls were transferred to the right side, the distribution of the mass of the machine turned out to be uneven.

Small series:

  • VAZ-21018- rotary engine VAZ-311 (1 section), 70 hp;
  • VAZ-21019- rotary engine VAZ-411 (2 sections), 140 hp;
  • VAZ-2101 pickup- as was customary in the USSR, VAZ practiced converting defective Zhiguli bodies into pickup trucks, which were subsequently used for their own needs both inside the plant itself and outside it. The cars simply cut off the entire rear of the roof, a new rear wall of the cab was mounted behind the front seats, and to increase rigidity, the rear doorways that became unnecessary were welded. The carrying capacity of such pickups was 250-300 kg.

The export version of the car was called Lada 1200. Over 57 thousand cars were sent to the countries of the Socialist Commonwealth - the GDR, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, Hungary and Yugoslavia. Soon "Lada" appeared on the roads of Germany, France, Great Britain, Austria, Switzerland, Egypt and Nigeria.

The production of the VAZ-21011 car was stopped in 1982, and the VAZ-2101 was discontinued in 1983. Then they began to produce only a modification of the VAZ-21013, the production of which was completed only in 1988.

"Limousine" VAZ-2101

The VAZ-2101 car became the ancestor of a whole family of cars called "classics". In Cuba, practically on a semi-industrial basis, "limousines" VAZ-2101 are produced, which are widely used as fixed-route taxis.

Machine evaluation

Much of the Soviet car owners VAZ-2101 was the first time. The high degree of development of the design and the quality of manufacture of the car made it possible to operate it without observing excessive precautions in the initial period of operation. Restrictions concerned only the movement at maximum speeds during the break-in of the car. It was thanks to the Zhiguli that motorists learned that in a small car at high speed you can talk without raising your voice; that in a harsh winter it can be as warm as home in a car; that you can tirelessly cover almost twice as long distances as on other domestic cars. VAZ-2101 clearly demonstrated to our motorists how easy it can be to start the engine in winter. When owners of passenger cars of other brands were forced to go for buckets of hot water and blowtorches, the driver of the Zhiguli often managed even without the help of a crank. Much of the credit for this belonged to the two-chamber carburetor DAAZ-2101 (Weber 32 DCR), more perfect than the Soviet counterparts of that time. Not without reason, a few years later, AZLK and Izhmash products began to be mass-produced with domestic variations of Weber. However, "Zhigulev" carburetors began to appear under the hoods of "Moskvich" and even "Volga" much earlier - by the efforts of the owners themselves, who were tired of fighting the vagaries and voracity of regular units of the series K-126.

Speaking about the VAZ-2101 engine, it would not be an exaggeration to say that at one time it had the highest liter power among all Soviet passenger cars. In combination with a reliable four-speed gearbox, one could confidently overcome mountain serpentine with long descents and ascents. It is impossible not to note such an innovation as a closed-type cooling system, designed to use only antifreeze. Previously, Soviet passenger cars did not have an expansion tank, and their radiators were most often filled with ordinary water, which in winter had to be drained before each parking lot - this procedure was considered quite commonplace. Only on the VAZ-2101 for the first time did high-quality plastic materials appear in the interior trim, which were not afraid of exposure to direct sunlight. Summing up all of the above, we can say that with the first VAZ cars, new technologies and new materials came to our country, thanks to which the entire industry (and not only the automotive industry) made a huge step forward.

Sports achivments

The sporting success of the Zhiguli was already laid down in the engine itself with a camshaft in the cylinder head. It turned out that the motor lends itself perfectly to forcing - Soviet racers got an excellent opportunity for building sports cars.
The debut of the VAZ-2101 in the sports arena took place at the beginning of 1971 in Riga at the team championship of the USSR Winter Rally Championship. Then - the USSR circuit racing championship, where Togliatti cars were even brought into a separate Zhiguli class. And already in the autumn of the same year, VAZ-2101 cars took part in international competitions: three Soviet crews started in the marathon "Tour of Europe-71". The route of this rally was laid on the territory of 14 countries of Western and Eastern Europe (including the territory of the USSR), and the total length of the distance reached 14 thousand kilometers. At the end of the tour, the team VAZ-Autoexport won the "Silver Cup" in the team competition, and the crews of Girdauskas-Madrevits and Lukyanov-Karamyshev also received awards in the individual competition. The regularity of this fact was brilliantly confirmed later and on Tour of Europe-73, where the teams participating in the VAZ-2101 got both gold and silver cups at once.
VAZ-2101 as a racing car was popular not only in the USSR. The British, for example, in the 80s organized a special rally championship Lada Challenge .
Subsequently, the "zero first" for many years did not leave the tracks of both intra-Union and international competitions, and in amateur rallies VAZ-2101 are sometimes found today.

Conquest of the Nurburgring

Car VAZ-2101 "Zhiguli" 1971 produced by the team CityMotorsport participated in the race of historical cars held at the prestigious Nürburgring track on October 1, 2004. The rivals of the “one” were the racing legends of past years: Jaguar E-type, Lotus Elan, BMW 2002 TI, Alfa Romeo Sprint GT, Ford Mustang and, of course, Porsche models Porsche 356 and Porsche 911. Only fifty collectible cars.
"Edinichka" started at the beginning of the third ten in accordance with the result of the qualification, which took place during the rain. The first laps were not easy - on a dry track, rivals in more powerful cars one by one bypassed the Zhiguli. team CityMotorsport it seemed that the race had already been lost, the main thing was to reach the finish line. But suddenly it began to rain, and power ceased to play a decisive role. The crew began to win position after position. First, they bypassed the leader of the classification of cars produced from 1966 to 1971 (the German championship of historical racing takes place in several stages) - the blue Alfa Romeo, which performed in the class up to 1600 cm³. It should be noted that this car already in those years left the factory assembly line with a twin-shaft engine and twin carburetors. Weber. And then the “one” began to overtake the Jaguars and Porsche one by one! The crew of the VAZ-2101 finished in thirtieth position and in first place in the class.
In 2010, the "one" again went on the track. This time Mikhail Gorbachev's team took part in the competition FHR Historischer Langstrecken Cup held on the full version of the Nürburgring. The fact is that from 1953 to 1983, the prestigious international 1000 km races were held on the Northern Loop. Cars of famous world manufacturers participated in them. There were never Soviet cars among them. Today this is possible, as the Germans have revived the legendary racing for historic cars.
The preparation of the car for the launch was carried out with the support of the company Rossauto. Modifying the body according to Group 1 rules is prohibited, so the white “one” looks even more serial than the silver one that participated in the 2004 race. The suspension remained standard - only shock absorbers were installed Koni Sport. The engine has undergone more serious changes. It was bored out to 1300 cm³, installed a sports camshaft and two twin carburetors Weber 40 DCOE. Theoretically, it was in this configuration that the car could participate in international races at the very beginning of the seventies. The main rivals of the "unity" were cars with an engine capacity of up to 1300 cm³, produced from 1965 to 1971.
The crew included Andrei Oleinikov, journalist and driving instructor Dmitry Sokolov and Alexei Mochanov, who knows the treacherous track very well.
In difficult weather conditions, both the car, which was well controlled, and the athletes, who did not make serious mistakes, proved themselves. Of the conditional classmates, the Russian-Ukrainian crew lost only to the riders on the NSU. Principal competitors on the Ford Escort 1300GT showed the best average lap speed, but were behind at the finish line.
In total, the VAZ-2101 was in the race for 7 hours and 6 minutes, having consumed more than 200 liters of fuel, on each lap it accelerated three times to a speed of 180 km / h (at 7500 rpm) and, as a result, driven by Andrey Oleinikov, saw the finish flag ! Of the foreigners, the team has the fourth result, and 56th overall. A total of 70 cars finished, so that in the overall standings, the “one” outperformed several crews in Porsche and BMW. Never before in its long sports life has the VAZ-2101 been continuously in the race for as long as 7 hours.

To the cinema

VAZ-2101 cars have repeatedly participated in the filming of films at various sites in the country. This car can be seen in the films "Sportloto-82", "Mimino", "Sunday dad", "Accident is the daughter of a cop", "Especially dangerous", "The traffic police inspector", "Brother-2", "The game is serious", " National Security Agent "(Series "Heir"), "Streets of Broken Lanterns", "New Adventures of Cops", "Hitler Kaput! "," The third take "," Love in the big city "and many others.

In 2002, under the slogan "A cult car in a whirlwind of passions", Ivan Dykhovichny's film "Kopeyka" was released, in which the VAZ-2101 car played the main role.

In 1983, "Kopeyka" appeared on Western screens: in the detective story "Gorky Park" the hero of William Hurt rode it, and in 2008 in the action movie "Wanted", filmed in America by Russian director Timur Bekmambetov.

In the film “Guest from the Future”, the pirates offered Kolya Gerasimov for the information they needed: “Do you want a Zhiguli? Imagine: so small, and already - "Lada"!

In the gaming and souvenir industry

A scale model on a scale of 1:43 VAZ-2101 (A9) was produced at the Radon plant from 1977 to 1987.

  • The VAZ-2101 (A17) PATROL car model was produced at the Radon plant from 1978 to 1987, initially had the A9 index, but then it was assigned its own number. Early models had a drop-shaped flasher, later a cylindrical one. There were also options with megaphones on the roof.
  • On January 19, 2010, the white VAZ-2101 model was released as part of the Auto Legends of the USSR series, number 25.

Handwork

  • There is a magazine series "Cult Cars of Poland" from the publishing house "DeAgostini" number 31. It contains a white VAZ-2101 export version.
  • The company "Holding INCOTEX" produces models of 1:43 scale. On the “wipers” model, they are made as on right-hand drive cars (not from left to right, but vice versa). With a stamp on the bottom "Made in the USSR, Made in USSR", the inscription on the package - "Automobiles of Russia". List of some models: "GAI" (yellow), "Rally" (blue), "Training" (white), "Post of Russia", "Standard" (green), "with trunk" (green, blue), "Taxi " (yellow).

Monuments and monuments

on a pedestal near the building of the Department of Internal Affairs of the WKO

Literature

  • Vershigora V. A., Zeltser V. I., Pyatkov K. B. VAZ cars. - Moscow: Transport Publishing House, 1974. - 368 p.
  • Kotlyarov V. A. High thought flame. - Togliatti: AVTOVAZ, 2000. - 357 p.
  • Auto legends of the USSR. VAZ-2102 Zhiguli // DeAgostini: Journal. - 2010. - No. 15.
  • Auto legends of the USSR. VAZ-2101 Zhiguli // DeAgostini: Journal. - 2011. - No. 25.

Sources and notes

Links

The veteran of the Volga Automobile Plant - the legendary "penny" (VAZ-2101), was the prototype of the Italian car FIAT - 124. The model was modified by Russian and Italian designers, finalized and put into production. All changes, of which there were more than 800, were carried out taking into account Russian operating conditions and existing production conditions at the Volga Automobile Plant. Proposals to improve the car came from Italian designers, up to the release of the new Zhiguli-VAZ-2103 model.

What changes were made to the base model FIAT - 124? They touched the curb weight of the car, which increased from 855 kg to 945 kg. To do this, it was necessary to increase the rigidity of the entire structure, from the frame and body, to the springs and front suspension arms. Now they were made by cold stamping, from metal of increased diameter. The bumper has also been changed. Additional fangs were installed on it, a hole for the crank was provided.


FIAT - 124 was equipped with rear disc brakes. The design of the VAZ 2101 provided for their replacement with drum-type brakes. According to the designers, they were more reliable. In addition, the car was equipped with rear-view mirrors, folding front seats, recessed door handles, which were much more convenient and safer than before. But the most important changes have affected the engine. After refinement and modernization, it was possible to increase its power to 64 hp. and reduce fuel consumption. At the same time, the torque characteristics did not suffer at all, but even became better. The engine was equipped with a two-chamber carburetor. The second chamber opened when the car reached a speed of 90 km / h, which provided significant fuel savings. The suspension was strengthened, which allowed to increase the ground clearance by 3 cm and provide reliable operating conditions for the car. Thus, the VAZ has become ideal for Russian roads.

VAZ-21013 and VAZ-21011

A little time passed, and in 1994 VAZ began production of a new Zhiguli model - VAZ 21011 with an increased engine capacity, up to 1.3 liters. At the same time, its power did not increase much, and amounted to 69 hp. The fangs were removed from the bumper and replaced with a rubber pad. The appearance of the car has become more presentable. The interior has also undergone changes, in which more comfortable front seats were installed, ashtrays were moved from the rear armrests to the door trim, and the controls were somewhat changed. The rear pillars of the body were equipped with holes for the exhaust ventilation of the passenger compartment, covering them with plastic grilles. The car was equipped with a reverse signal and additional reflectors for turn signals and brake lights.

Work on improving the car continues, and already in 1977 another Zhiguli model, VAZ-21013, which is equipped with a 1.2-liter VAZ-2101 base engine, rolls off the assembly line of the plant. Its release continued until 1981. A year later, the base model VAZ-2101 was also discontinued. For the entire period, 2,702,657 such cars were produced. Among them is the police version - VAZ -21016, equipped with a 77 hp engine.

1972 is characterized by the creation of the domestic station wagon VAZ-2102. This is a five-door Zhiguli model based on the VAZ-2101 car. The filling of the cabin, torpedo, dashboard, control - remained unchanged. The car was equipped with three types of engines: 1.2, 1, 3, 1.5 hp, which were previously installed on the VAZ-2101, VAZ-21011, VAZ-2103.



In 1985, the VAZ-2102 was replaced by the VAZ-2104 model, on the basis of which the first domestic electric car VAZ-2801 was created, with a nickel-zinc battery. It is installed at the rear of the machine on a special frame, which is made of a lightweight aluminum profile. The car had three doors and a special hatch for servicing the battery, which was located in place of the left rear door. For all the time, 50 electric vehicles were produced, which, unfortunately, were not widely used and were discontinued.

Sports development and export.

In February 1971, VAZ cars were exported. The first country to accept the Zhiguli was Yugoslavia. Cars receive a new brand "Lada", and the station wagon comes out with the prefix "Kombi". Very soon they become popular and in demand in a number of foreign countries. The export version of the VAZ-2102 is additionally equipped with a washer and wipers for the rear door glass, more comfortable seats for the VAZ-2106. Gradually, cars flood the Western European market. In 1979, 318 thousand Zhiguli were sent for export.

In 1971, VAZ-2101 cars equipped with Fiat engines take part in auto racing. Despite the lack of experience, the racing drivers of the Volga Automobile Plant leave their rivals on the Volga and Moskvich far behind. In the autumn of 1971, at competitions in Germany, the USSR team won gold and silver medals in VAZ cars.

If you are wondering where you can buy sectional garage doors, then you are here.

Specifications VAZ-2101 / VAZ-2102:

VAZ-21011, VAZ-21013 VAZ-2102, 21021, 21023
Release years 1970-1982 1972-1981, 1977-1984 1972-1984, 1971–1985
Dimensions (L x W x H), mm 4073 x 1611 x 1440 4073 x 1611 x 1440 4059 x 1611 x 1458
Wheelbase 2424 2424 2424
body type 4-door sedan 4-door sedan 5-door sedan
Engine capacity, l 1.198 1.300, 1.200 1.198, 1.300, 1.198
Number and location R4 R4 R4
Curb weight, kg 1355 1355 1020
Weight full, kg 1420
checkpoint Fur. 4-speed with synchronizers Fur. 4-speed
Engine power, l. from. at rpm 64/5600 69-70/5600, 64/5600 64/5600, 70/5600, 64/5600
type of drive 4x2, rear 4x2, rear 4x2, rear
steering type hypoid worm and roller hypoid worm and roller Worm gear
Supply system dual barrel carburetor dual barrel carburetor dual barrel carburetor
Curb weight, kg 1355 1355 1020
Brake system drum mechanisms drum mechanisms drum mechanisms
Front suspension independent on transverse swing arms with coil springs, hydraulic shock absorbers, telescopic helical spring
Rear suspension with coil springs and torque rods, hydraulic shock absorbers, telescopic double wishbone
Acceleration dynamics 0-100 km/h, s 20 (22) 18 20, 23
Fuel consumption per 100 km 9,2 – 9,4 8.2 -10.9 (AI-92)

The appearance on the network of spy photos of the new "Penny" VAZ 2101 came as a surprise to many. Modern design, more than worthy specifications, a possible release by the end of 2017 - all this has become the reason for the informational hype. What should be expected from a domestic manufacturer?

Appearance analysis

The exterior of the new car is in many ways similar to classic American Mustang models and new Mercedes developments. Appearance is a harmonious combination of retro style and aerodynamic requirements. It is worth noting the smoothness of the lines, the low landing of the car, the enlarged wheel arches.

When analyzing a photo of the new "Kopeyka" 2101, the following features can be distinguished:

  • recognition of the classical form;
  • stylish grille;
  • minimalist rear design - square lights, straight lines;
  • unique stamping of the body on the sides;
  • new shape of the headlights with reflectors;
  • wide air intake;
  • good rear view.

Photos of the interior have not yet hit the Web, so it is impossible to evaluate it. If it matches the external style of the model, the interior should harmoniously combine classic controls, convenience and new technologies.

Possible characteristics of the new "Penny"

There is little information about the configuration and configuration options for the 2101 Zhiguli 2017. Judging by the latest data, this will be the most powerful model from the entire Lada line. How much this corresponds to reality - time will tell.

To date, the following information is known:

  • Power point. Power - 200 hp, turbocharged.
  • Fuel consumption - 6 liters. in the urban cycle.
  • Gearbox - mechanics or "automatic".

Body dimensions practically do not differ from the original model. But it will be possible to judge this only after the official release.

Release date and price

Judging by external data and known characteristics, the price of the new Kopeika VAZ 2101 Zhiguli in 2017 will be above the average. According to available information, the cost and the start of production will be announced only at the end of this year.

The price should depend on the following factors:

  • possible configuration options;
  • the cost of the model;
  • characteristics of the materials used;
  • options installed for a fee.

After the official presentation, the release date of the new model should be announced. Then the first samples will go to car dealerships . And then, based on the available information and real reviews, it will be possible to judge the prospects of the new Kopeyka.

exposure

All the above information, including photos, is nothing but a free flight of fancy. AvtoVAZ does not plan to resume production of 2101 in any version. This was announced earlier, when the manufacturer was preparing to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the release of the first model.

To expose this news, it is enough to find the source of one of the photographs, compare it and a copy.

The next factor is the technical capabilities of Avto VAZ. The existing equipment is not designed for the mass production of such body elements. The maximum that a manufacturer is capable of is to create a prototype. But there is no information about this on his official website. If the car really existed, there would be an official presentation or news.

For a final refutation, you can analyze the technical nuances of the description:

  • Power plant 200 hp turbocharged. Alas, such units are not produced by the plant. This will not allow the height of the cylinder blocks.
  • Wheelbase. For this model, it is necessary to develop a fundamentally new basis. Existing bases, judging by the photo, will not work.
  • Fuel consumption. Leading European manufacturers cannot achieve such results - 6 liters per 100 km for a 200 hp engine. These values ​​contradict each other.

Similar fake news can be made on the basis of an independent supercar design project from AvtoVAZ Voron.

In fact, this image and all of the above are nothing more than skillful work in a graphics editor.

Only once the manufacturer showed the draft of the new "Kopeyka".

But this car remained only in a draft version. Therefore, talking about the appearance of an updated version of 2101 impractical. It is enough to compare really spy photos of any new model of a European manufacturer with the presented images.

VAZ-2101 Zhiguli

common data

Characteristics

Mass-dimensional

On the market

Other

Modifications

On the basis of the VAZ-2101, the so-called "classic" family of VAZ cars was created, which was on the assembly line until September 17, 2012.

For the release of this model in May 1972, the Volga Automobile Plant was awarded the Golden Mercury International Prize. In 2000, the VAZ-2101 was named the best domestic car of the 20th century according to the results of an all-Russian poll conducted by the magazine Za Rulem. For the entire period of production (from 1970 to 1988), the Volga Automobile Plant produced 4.85 million VAZ-2101 cars of all modifications with a sedan body.

History of creation

origin of name

Normal 1966

It should be noted that the VAZ first-born turned out to be the first Soviet cars to which a new industry document was applied - the OH 025270-66 normal, which regulates the classification and designation system of rolling stock: each new car or trailer model is assigned an index consisting of four digits, where the first two the numbers indicate the class of the car (trailer) and its purpose. The second two digits are the model. Modifications of models have an additional fifth digit indicating the serial number of the modification. The sixth digit is the type of execution: 1 - for a cold climate, 6 - export version for a temperate climate, 7 - export version for a tropical climate, 8 and 9 - a reserve for other export modifications. Some machines have in their designation through a dash the prefix 01, 02, 03, etc., indicating that the model or modification is transitional or has additional equipment. The digital index is usually preceded by the letter designation of the plant that developed or produced this model. For example, the VAZ-21011 car index stands for: VAZ - manufacturer: Volzhsky Automobile Plant; 21 - a small class car with an engine from 1200 to 1800 cm³; 01 is the first model registered in this class; 1 - the first modification of the base car, which is distinguished by the installation of another engine, in this case with a volume of 1300 cm³.

Zhiguli

There is an opinion that the name "Zhiguli" was born thanks to the competition announced by the magazine "Behind the wheel" in August 1968. However, according to the testimony of VAZ veterans, the name "Lada", proposed by the designer A. M. Cherny, was approved by the plant director V. N. Polyakov in early 1967. At the same time, it was proposed to FIAT to develop a decorative inscription for the rear panel of the body.

Among the people, two nicknames “stuck” to the VAZ-2101 at different times: first - “one”, and already at the end of the 1980s, when the model was no longer considered prestigious, - “penny”.

Modifications

Bulk:

  • VAZ-2101 Zhiguli- the original version, the engine is 1.2 liters. (1970-1983);
  • VAZ-21011 Zhiguli-1300- the so-called "zero eleventh" - the main changes occurred in the modification of the body, the interior of which received more comfortable front seats and slightly modified controls, as well as ashtrays transferred directly from the rear armrests to the door panels. In addition to this, the modification received a more powerful 69-horsepower engine with a displacement of 1.3 liters. These cars were equipped with a different grille with more frequent vertical bars, four additional slots appeared in the lower part of the front panel for better air flow to the radiator of the cooling system. The bumpers lost their “fangs” and received rubber pads around the perimeter in return. On the pillars of the body of the VAZ-21011, holes for special exhaust ventilation of the passenger compartment began to be located at the rear, which were covered with original grilles, brake lights and direction indicators received reflectors. A reversing lamp was installed on the car (1974-1983).
  • VAZ-21013"Lada-1200s" - differs from the VAZ-21011 in the VAZ-2101 engine of lower power (working volume 1.2 l) (1977-1988);

RHD:

  • For export to countries with left-hand traffic, the Volga Automobile Plant mastered the production of two versions of the Zhiguli - VAZ-21012 And VAZ-21014(based on VAZ-2101 and VAZ-21011). They were distinguished by a reinforced spring suspension of the right front wheel, since when the controls were transferred to the right side, the distribution of the mass of the machine turned out to be uneven. Years of production: 1974-1982.

Small series:

  • VAZ-21015 "Carat"- modification for special services, equipped with a VAZ-2106 engine, an additional gas tank, rear suspension springs from VAZ-2102, points for installing special equipment.

The production of VAZ-2101 and VAZ-21011 cars was discontinued in 1983 due to an increase in the production of the new VAZ-2105 model. Then they began to produce only a modification of the VAZ-21013, the production of which was completed only in 1988.

On the basis of the VAZ-2101, the VAZ-2102 station wagon was also created. The VAZ-2101 car became the ancestor of a whole family of cars called "classics". In Cuba, practically on a semi-industrial basis, "limousines" VAZ-2101 are produced, which are widely used as fixed-route taxis.

Sports achivments

The sporting success of the Zhiguli was already laid down in the engine itself with a camshaft in the cylinder head. It turned out that the motor lends itself perfectly to forcing - Soviet racers got an excellent opportunity for building sports cars.

The debut of the VAZ-2101 on the sports arena took place in early 1971 in Riga at the team championship of the USSR Winter Rally Championship. Then - the USSR circuit racing championship, where Togliatti cars were even brought into a separate Zhiguli class. And already in the autumn of the same year, VAZ-2101 cars took part in international competitions: three Soviet crews started in the marathon "Tour of Europe-71". The route of this rally was laid on the territory of 14 countries of Western and Eastern Europe (including the territory of the USSR), and the total length of the distance reached 14 thousand kilometers. At the end of the tour, the team VAZ-Autoexport won the "Silver Cup" in the team competition, and the crews of Girdauskas-Madrevits and Lukyanov-Karamyshev also received awards in the individual competition. The regularity of this fact was brilliantly confirmed later and on Tour of Europe-73, where the teams participating in the VAZ-2101 got both gold and silver cups at once.

VAZ-2101 as a racing car was popular not only in the USSR. The British, for example, in the 80s organized a special rally championship Lada Challenge .

Subsequently, for many years the model did not leave the tracks of both intra-Union and international competitions, and in amateur rallies the VAZ-2101 is sometimes found today.

Conquest of the Nurburgring

Car VAZ-2101 "Lada" 1971, prepared by the team CityMotorsport, participated in the race of historical cars, held at the prestigious Nürburgring track on October 1, 2004. The rivals of the VAZ-2101 were the racing legends of the past: Jaguar E-type, Lotus Elan, BMW 2002 TI, Alfa Romeo Sprint GT, Ford Mustang and Porsche models Porsche 356 and Porsche 911. Only fifty collectible cars.

VAZ-2101 started at the beginning of the third ten in accordance with the result of the qualification, which took place during the rain. The first laps were not easy - on a dry track, rivals in more powerful cars one by one bypassed the Zhiguli. team City Motor sport it seemed that the race had already been lost, the main thing was to reach the finish line. But suddenly it began to rain, and power ceased to play a decisive role. The crew began to win position after position. First, they bypassed the leader of the offset of cars produced from 1966 to 1971 (the German championship of historical racing takes place in several stages) - the blue Alfa Romeo, which performed in the class up to 1600 cm³. This car already in those years left the factory assembly line with a twin-shaft engine and twin carburetors. Weber. Then the VAZ-2101 began to overtake the "jaguars" and "Porsche". The crew of the VAZ-2101 finished in thirtieth position and in first place in the class.

In 2010, the VAZ-2101 again entered the track. This time Mikhail Gorbachev's team took part in the competition FHR Historischer Langstrecken Cup held on the full version of the Nürburgring. The fact is that from 1953 to 1983, the prestigious international 1000 km races were held on the Northern Loop. Cars of famous world manufacturers participated in them. There were never Soviet cars among them. Today this is possible, as the Germans have revived the legendary racing for historic cars.

The preparation of the car for the launch was carried out with the support of the company Rossauto. Modifying the body according to Group 1 rules is prohibited, so the white “one” looks even more serial than the silver one that participated in the 2004 race. The suspension remained standard - only shock absorbers were installed Koni Sport. The engine has undergone more serious changes. It was bored out to 1300 cm³, installed a sports camshaft and two twin carburetors Weber 40 DCOE. Theoretically, it was in this configuration that the car could participate in international races at the very beginning of the seventies. The main rivals of the “unity” were cars with an engine capacity of up to 1300 cm³, produced from 1965 to 1971.

The crew included Andrei Oleinikov, journalist and driving instructor Dmitry Sokolov and Alexei Mochanov, who knows the treacherous track very well.

In difficult weather conditions, both the car, which was well controlled, and the athletes who did not make serious mistakes, proved themselves. Of the conditional classmates, the Russian-Ukrainian crew lost only to NSU riders. Principal competitors on the Ford Escort 1300GT showed the best average lap speed, but were behind at the finish line.

In total, the VAZ-2101 was in the race for 7 hours and 6 minutes, having consumed more than 200 liters of fuel, on each lap it accelerated three times to a speed of 180 km / h (at 7500 rpm) and, as a result, driven by Andrey Oleinikov, saw the finish flag . Of the foreigners, the team has the fourth result, and the 56th overall. A total of 70 cars finished, so that in the overall standings, the VAZ-2101 outperformed several crews in Porsche and BMW. Never before in its long sports life has the VAZ-2101 been continuously in the race for as long as 7 hours.

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Literature

  • Vershigora V. A., Zeltser V. I., Pyatkov K. B. VAZ cars. - Moscow: Transport Publishing House, 1974. - 368 p.
  • Kotlyarov V. A. High thought flame. - Togliatti: AVTOVAZ, 2000. - 357 p.
  • Kalissky V. S., Manzon A. I., Nagula G. E. A guide for an amateur driver. - Kyiv: Tekhnika Publishing House, 1975. - 256 p.
  • Auto legends of the USSR. VAZ-2102 Zhiguli // DeAgostini: Journal. - 2010. - No. 15.
  • Auto legends of the USSR. VAZ-2101 Zhiguli // DeAgostini: Journal. - 2011. - No. 25.

Notes

Links

An excerpt characterizing the VAZ-2101

Pierre lowered his eyes, raised them again, and again wanted to see her with such a distant, alien beauty to himself, as he had seen her every day before; but he couldn't do it anymore. It could not, just as a person who had previously looked in the fog at a blade of weeds and saw a tree in it, seeing a blade of grass, again see a tree in it, could not. She was terribly close to him. She already had power over him. And between him and her there were no longer any barriers, except for the barriers of his own will.
Bon, je vous laisse dans votre petit coin. Je vois, que vous y etes tres bien, [Okay, I'll leave you in your corner. I see you feel good there,] - said the voice of Anna Pavlovna.
And Pierre, recalling with fear whether he had done something reprehensible, blushing, looked around him. It seemed to him that everyone knew, as well as he, about what had happened to him.
After a while, when he approached the large mug, Anna Pavlovna said to him:
- On dit que vous embellissez votre maison de Petersbourg. [They say you are finishing your St. Petersburg house.]
(It was true: the architect said that he needed it, and Pierre, not knowing why, was finishing his huge house in St. Petersburg.)
- C "est bien, mais ne demenagez pas de chez le prince Basile. Il est bon d" avoir un ami comme le prince, she said, smiling at Prince Vasily. - J "en sais quelque chose. N" est ce pas? [That's good, but don't move away from Prince Vasily. It's good to have such a friend. I know something about it. Isn't it?] And you're still so young. You need advice. You are not angry with me that I use the rights of old women. - She fell silent, as women are always silent, waiting for something after they say about their years. - If you marry, then another matter. And she put them together in one look. Pierre did not look at Helen, and she at him. But she was still terribly close to him. He mumbled something and blushed.
Returning home, Pierre could not sleep for a long time, thinking about what had happened to him. What happened to him? Nothing. He only realized that the woman he knew as a child, about whom he absentmindedly said: “Yes, good,” when he was told that Helen was beautiful, he realized that this woman could belong to him.
“But she is stupid, I myself said she was stupid,” he thought. - There is something nasty in the feeling that she aroused in me, something forbidden. I was told that her brother Anatole was in love with her, and she was in love with him, that there was a whole story, and that Anatole was expelled from this. Her brother is Ippolit... Her father is Prince Vasily... This is not good, he thought; and at the same time as he was reasoning like this (these reasonings were still unfinished), he found himself smiling and realizing that another series of reasonings had surfaced because of the first ones, that at the same time he was thinking about her insignificance and dreaming about how she would be his wife, how she could love him, how she could be completely different, and how everything he thought and heard about her could be untrue. And he again saw her not as some kind of daughter of Prince Vasily, but saw her whole body, only covered with a gray dress. “But no, why didn’t this thought occur to me before?” And again he told himself that it was impossible; that something nasty, unnatural, as it seemed to him, dishonest would be in this marriage. He remembered her former words, looks, and the words and looks of those who had seen them together. He remembered the words and looks of Anna Pavlovna when she told him about the house, remembered thousands of such hints from Prince Vasily and others, and he was horrified that he had not bound himself in any way in the performance of such a thing, which, obviously, was not good. and which he must not do. But at the same time as he was expressing this decision to himself, from the other side of his soul her image surfaced with all its feminine beauty.

In November 1805, Prince Vasily had to go to four provinces for an audit. He arranged this appointment for himself in order to visit his ruined estates at the same time, and taking with him (at the location of his regiment) his son Anatole, together with him to call on Prince Nikolai Andreevich Bolkonsky in order to marry his son to the daughter of this rich old man. But before leaving and these new affairs, Prince Vasily had to settle matters with Pierre, who, it is true, had spent whole days at home, that is, with Prince Vasily, with whom he lived, he was ridiculous, agitated and stupid (as he should being in love) in Helen's presence, but still not proposing.
“Tout ca est bel et bon, mais il faut que ca finisse”, [All this is good, but it must be ended] - Prince Vasily said to himself once in the morning with a sigh of sadness, realizing that Pierre, who owed so much to him (well, yes Christ be with him!), does not do very well in this matter. “Youth ... frivolity ... well, God bless him,” thought Prince Vasily, feeling his kindness with pleasure: “mais il faut, que ca finisse. After Lelyna's name day tomorrow, I will call someone, and if he does not understand what he must do, then this will be my business. Yes, my business. I am the father!”
Pierre, a month and a half after Anna Pavlovna's evening and the sleepless, agitated night that followed, in which he decided that marrying Helen would be a misfortune, and that he needed to avoid her and leave, Pierre after this decision did not move from Prince Vasily and with horror felt that every day he was more and more connected with her in the eyes of people, that he could not return to his former view of her, that he could not tear himself away from her, that it would be terrible, but that he would have to connect with her own destiny. Perhaps he could have abstained, but not a day passed that Prince Vasily (who rarely had a reception) would not have an evening at which Pierre was supposed to be, if he did not want to upset the general pleasure and deceive the expectations of everyone. Prince Vasily, in those rare moments when he was at home, passing Pierre, pulled his hand down, absently offered him a shaved, wrinkled cheek for a kiss and said either “see you tomorrow” or “for dinner, otherwise I won’t see you” , or “I stay for you,” etc. But despite the fact that when Prince Vasily remained for Pierre (as he said it), he did not say a few words to him, Pierre did not feel able to deceive his expectations . Every day he said to himself one and the same thing: “We must, finally, understand her and give ourselves an account: who is she? Was I wrong before or am I wrong now? No, she is not stupid; No, she's a beautiful girl! he said to himself sometimes. “She is never wrong about anything, she has never said anything stupid. She doesn't say much, but what she says is always simple and clear. So she's not stupid. She has never been embarrassed and never is embarrassed. So she's not a bad woman!" It often happened with her to begin to reason, to think aloud, and each time she answered him either with a short, but incidentally said remark, showing that she was not interested in this, or with a silent smile and look, which most palpably showed Pierre her superiority. She was right to dismiss all reasoning as nonsense compared to that smile.
She always turned to him with a joyful, trusting smile that applied to him alone, in which there was something more significant than what was in the general smile that always adorned her face. Pierre knew that everyone was only waiting for him to finally say one word, to step over a certain line, and he knew that sooner or later he would step over it; but some kind of incomprehensible horror seized him at the mere thought of this terrible step. A thousand times during this month and a half, during which he felt himself drawn further and further into that abyss that terrified him, Pierre said to himself: “But what is this? It takes determination! Don't I have it?"
He wanted to make up his mind, but he felt with horror that in this case he did not have that determination that he knew in himself and which really was in him. Pierre was one of those people who are strong only when they feel completely pure. And from the day that he was possessed by that feeling of desire that he experienced over Anna Pavlovna's snuffbox, an unconscious sense of the guilt of this desire paralyzed his resolve.
On Helen's name day, Prince Vasily had dinner with a small community of people closest to him, as the princess said, relatives and friends. All these relatives and friends were given to feel that on this day the fate of the birthday girl should be decided.
The guests were at dinner. Princess Kuragina, a massive, once beautiful, imposing woman, was sitting in the master's seat. On both sides of it sat the most honored guests - the old general, his wife, Anna Pavlovna Sherer; at the end of the table sat the less elderly and honored guests, and there sat the family, Pierre and Helen, side by side. Prince Vasily did not have supper: he walked around the table, in a cheerful mood, sitting down first to one or another of the guests. To each he spoke a careless and pleasant word, with the exception of Pierre and Helen, whose presence he did not seem to notice. Prince Vasily revived everyone. Wax candles burned brightly, silver and crystal of dishes, ladies' dresses and gold and silver epaulets shone; servants in red caftans scurried around the table; there were the sounds of knives, glasses, plates, and the sounds of the lively conversation of several conversations around this table. At one end the old chamberlain could be heard assuring the old baroness of his fiery love for her and her laughter; on the other hand, a story about the failure of some kind of Marya Viktorovna. At the middle of the table, Prince Vasily gathered listeners around him. He told the ladies, with a playful smile on his lips, the last - on Wednesday - meeting of the State Council, at which Sergei Kuzmich Vyazmitinov, the new St. Sergei Kuzmich, he said that from all sides he receives statements about the devotion of the people, and that the statement of St. Petersburg is especially pleasant to him, that he is proud of the honor of being the head of such a nation and will try to be worthy of it. This rescript began with the words: Sergey Kuzmich! Rumors reach me from all sides, etc.
- So it didn’t go further than “Sergei Kuzmich”? one lady asked.
“Yes, yes, not a hair,” replied Prince Vasily, laughing. - Sergei Kuzmich ... from all sides. From all sides, Sergei Kuzmich... Poor Vyazmitinov could not go any further. Several times he began to write again, but Sergey would just say ... sobbing ... Ku ... zmi ... ch - tears ... and from all sides they were drowned out by sobs, and he could not go any further. And again a handkerchief, and again “Sergei Kuzmich, from all sides,” and tears ... so that they already asked to read another.
- Kuzmich ... from all sides ... and tears ... - repeated someone laughing.
“Don’t be angry,” Anna Pavlovna said, shaking her finger from the other end of the table, “c "est un si brave et excellent homme notre bon Viasmitinoff ... [This is such a wonderful person, our good Vyazmitinov ...]
Everyone laughed a lot. At the upper honorable end of the table, everyone seemed to be cheerful and under the influence of the most varied lively moods; only Pierre and Helene sat silently side by side almost at the lower end of the table; a radiant smile, independent of Sergei Kuzmich, was restrained on the faces of both - a smile of shame in front of their feelings. No matter what they said and no matter how others laughed and joked, no matter how appetizing they ate rhine wine, and sautéed, and ice cream, no matter how they avoided this couple with their eyes, no matter how indifferent, inattentive to her, it was felt for some reason, by occasionally thrown at them looks that the joke about Sergei Kuzmich, and laughter, and food - everything was feigned, and all the forces of the attention of this whole society were directed only to this couple - Pierre and Helen. Prince Vasily imagined the sobs of Sergei Kuzmich and at the same time looked around his daughter; and while he was laughing, his expression said: “Well, well, everything is going well; Everything will be decided today." Anna Pavlovna threatened him for notre bon Viasmitinoff, and in her eyes, which flashed briefly at Pierre at that moment, Prince Vasily read congratulations on the future son-in-law and the happiness of his daughter. The old princess, offering wine to her neighbor with a sad sigh and looking angrily at her daughter, with this sigh seemed to be saying: “Yes, now there is nothing left for us but to drink sweet wine, my dear; now is the time for this youth to be so defiantly defiantly happy.” “And what nonsense is all that I tell, as if it interests me,” the diplomat thought, looking at the happy faces of his lovers, “this is happiness!”
Among those insignificantly petty, artificial interests that bound this society, there was a simple feeling of striving of a beautiful and healthy young man and woman for each other. And this human feeling overwhelmed everything and hovered above all their artificial babble. The jokes were not funny, the news was uninteresting, the animation obviously fake. Not only they, but the lackeys who served at the table seemed to feel the same and forgot the order of the service, looking at the beautiful Helen with her beaming face and at the red, fat, happy and restless face of Pierre. It seemed that the lights of the candles were focused only on these two happy faces.
Pierre felt that he was the center of everything, and this position both pleased and embarrassed him. He was in the state of a man deep in some kind of occupation. He didn't see anything clearly, didn't understand, and didn't hear anything. Only occasionally, unexpectedly, fragmentary thoughts and impressions from reality flickered in his soul.
“It's all over! he thought. – And how did it all happen? So fast! Now I know that not for her alone, not for myself alone, but for all this must inevitably come to pass. They are all so looking forward to it, so sure it will be, that I can't, I can't deceive them. But how will it be? Do not know; but it will be, it will certainly be!” thought Pierre, looking at those shoulders that glittered right next to his eyes.
Then suddenly he felt ashamed of something. He was embarrassed that he alone occupied the attention of everyone, that he was a lucky man in the eyes of others, that he, with his ugly face, was some kind of Paris possessing Elena. “But, it’s true, it always happens like that and it’s necessary,” he consoled himself. “And, by the way, what did I do for this?” When did it start? From Moscow, I went with Prince Vasily. There was nothing here yet. Then why didn't I stop at his place? Then I played cards with her and picked up her purse and went skating with her. When did it start, when did it all happen? And here he sits beside her as a bridegroom; hears, sees, feels her closeness, her breath, her movements, her beauty. Then suddenly it seems to him that it is not she, but he himself is so extraordinarily beautiful that that is why they look at him like that, and he, happy with the general surprise, straightens his chest, raises his head and rejoices in his happiness. Suddenly a voice, someone's familiar voice, is heard and says something to him another time. But Pierre is so busy that he does not understand what they say to him. “I ask you when you received a letter from Bolkonsky,” Prince Vasily repeats for the third time. “How distracted you are, my dear.
Prince Vasily smiles, and Pierre sees that everyone, everyone is smiling at him and Helen. “Well, well, if you know everything,” Pierre said to himself. "Well? it’s true,” and he himself smiled his meek, childish smile, and Helen smiles.
– When did you receive it? From Olmutz? - repeats Prince Vasily, who supposedly needs to know this in order to resolve the dispute.
“And is it possible to talk and think about such trifles?” thinks Pierre.
“Yes, from Olmutz,” he replies with a sigh.
From dinner, Pierre led his lady after the others into the living room. The guests began to leave, and some left without saying goodbye to Helen. As if not wanting to interrupt her from her serious occupation, some of them came up for a minute and quickly left, forbidding her to see them off. The diplomat was sadly silent as he left the living room. He imagined all the futility of his diplomatic career in comparison with Pierre's happiness. The old general grumbled angrily at his wife when she asked him about the condition of his leg. Eka, you old fool, he thought. “Here is Elena Vasilievna, so she will be a beauty even at 50.”
“It seems that I can congratulate you,” Anna Pavlovna whispered to the princess and kissed her warmly. “If it weren’t for a migraine, I would have stayed.
The princess did not answer; she was tormented by envy of her daughter's happiness.
Pierre, during the farewell of the guests, remained for a long time alone with Helen in the small drawing room, where they sat down. He had often before, in the last month and a half, been left alone with Helen, but he had never spoken to her of love. Now he felt it was necessary, but he couldn't bring himself to take that last step. He was ashamed; it seemed to him that here, beside Helene, he was occupying someone else's place. This happiness is not for you, some inner voice told him. - This is happiness for those who do not have what you have. But he had to say something, and he spoke. He asked her if she was satisfied with this evening? She, as always, with her simplicity answered that the current name day was one of the most pleasant for her.
Some of the closest relatives still remained. They sat in a large living room. Prince Vasily walked up to Pierre with lazy steps. Pierre got up and said that it was already late. Prince Vasily looked at him sternly inquiringly, as if what he said was so strange that it was impossible to hear. But after that, the expression of severity changed, and Prince Vasily pulled Pierre down by the arm, sat him down and smiled affectionately.
- Well, Lelya? - he immediately turned to his daughter with that careless tone of habitual tenderness, which is acquired by parents who caress their children from childhood, but which Prince Vasily was only guessed by imitating other parents.
And he again turned to Pierre.
“Sergey Kuzmich, from all sides,” he said, unbuttoning the top button of his waistcoat.
Pierre smiled, but it was evident from his smile that he understood that it was not the anecdote of Sergei Kuzmich that interested Prince Vasily at that time; and Prince Vasily realized that Pierre understood this. Prince Vasily suddenly murmured something and left. It seemed to Pierre that even Prince Vasily was embarrassed. The sight of the embarrassment of this old man of the world touched Pierre; he looked back at Helen - and she seemed to be embarrassed and said with a look: "well, you yourself are to blame."
“I must inevitably step over, but I can’t, I can’t,” thought Pierre, and spoke again about an outsider, about Sergei Kuzmich, asking what this anecdote consisted of, since he did not catch it. Helen replied with a smile that she didn't know either.
When Prince Vasily entered the drawing room, the princess spoke quietly to the elderly lady about Pierre.
- Of course, c "est un parti tres brillant, mais le bonheur, ma chere ... - Les Marieiages se font dans les cieux, [Of course, this is a very brilliant party, but happiness, my dear ... - Marriages are made in heaven,] - answered elderly lady.
Prince Vasily, as if not listening to the ladies, went to a far corner and sat down on the sofa. He closed his eyes and seemed to be dozing. His head was about to fall, and he woke up.
- Aline, - he said to his wife, - allez voir ce qu "ils font. [Alina, look what they are doing.]
The princess went up to the door, walked past it with a significant, indifferent air, and peered into the drawing-room. Pierre and Helen also sat and talked.
“All the same,” she answered her husband.
Prince Vasily frowned, wrinkled his mouth to the side, his cheeks jumped up and down with his usual unpleasant, rude expression; Shaking himself, he got up, threw back his head, and with resolute steps, past the ladies, went into the little drawing-room. With quick steps, he joyfully approached Pierre. The prince's face was so unusually solemn that Pierre stood up in fright when he saw him.
- Thank God! - he said. My wife told me everything! - He hugged Pierre with one arm, his daughter with the other. - My friend Lelya! I'm very, very happy. - His voice trembled. - I loved your father ... and she will be a good wife to you ... God bless you! ...
He hugged his daughter, then again Pierre and kissed him with a foul-smelling mouth. Tears really wet his cheeks.
“Princess, come here,” he shouted.
The princess came out and wept too. The old lady also wiped herself with a handkerchief. Pierre was kissed, and several times he kissed the hand of the beautiful Helen. After a while they were left alone again.
“All this should have been so and could not have been otherwise,” thought Pierre, “therefore, there is nothing to ask, is it good or bad? Good, because definitely, and there is no former painful doubt. Pierre silently held his bride's hand and looked at her beautiful breasts rising and falling.
- Helen! he said aloud and stopped.
"Something special is said in these cases," he thought, but he could not remember what exactly they say in these cases. He looked into her face. She moved closer to him. Her face reddened.
“Ah, take off these… like these…” she pointed to the glasses.
Pierre took off his glasses, and his eyes, in addition to the general strangeness of the eyes of people who took off their glasses, his eyes looked frightened and inquiring. He wanted to bend over her hand and kiss her; but with a quick and rough movement of her head she caught hold of his lips and brought them together with hers. Her face struck Pierre with its changed, unpleasantly bewildered expression.
“Now it’s too late, it’s all over; Yes, and I love her, thought Pierre.
- Je vous aim! [I love you!] – he said, remembering what had to be said in these cases; but these words sounded so poor that he felt ashamed of himself.
A month and a half later, he was married and settled, as they said, the happy owner of a beautiful wife and millions, in the large St. Petersburg newly decorated house of the Bezukhi Counts.

Old Prince Nikolai Andreevich Bolkonsky in December 1805 received a letter from Prince Vasily, informing him of his arrival together with his son. (“I am going to an audit, and, of course, I’m not a detour 100 miles away to visit you, dear benefactor,” he wrote, “and my Anatole escorts me and goes to the army; and I hope that you will allow him to personally express to you the deep respect that he, imitating his father, has for you.")

or simply "Zhiguli" - this is one of the most famous Soviet-made cars, the descendants of which were produced right up to 2012. During its existence, it has undergone quite serious changes and received several awards and prizes, so let's talk about what the life path of this car was like.

Where does the VAZ 2101 take its roots from?


The very first VAZ 2101 was produced at the Volga Automobile Plant in 1970. This happened due to the signing in 1966 of an agreement between the Italian company Fiat and the Soviet "Foreign Trade" on cooperation in the development of passenger cars. It was within the framework of this agreement that the project for the construction of a plant for cars on the territory of the USSR was adopted. According to preliminary agreements, several cars were to be produced at this plant at once. It was supposed to be 2 cars with a sedan body in the standard configuration, and one station wagon in the luxury configuration. If we talk about where the concept of cars of the norm class came from, then the Fiat 124 was defined as a prototype, which literally next year received the title of "Car of the Year"

What did not suit FIAT 124 Russian engineers

When Soviet scientists and specialists took up the study and testing of a car taken as the basis for the development of their own car, several shortcomings were identified at once that needed to be eliminated when developing a car that would be called in the future only VAZ-2101. First of all, experts noticed that the Fiat 124 is not suitable for our roads due to the extremely low ground clearance and the complete absence of towing eyes, without which the car would be difficult to use off-road. In addition, the car body itself was not sufficiently reliable and strong and could hardly withstand the intensity of operation that was expected for a Soviet car.

After deep modernization

Italian engineers took into account all the wishes of Soviet researchers and the future Zhiguli acquired drum brakes on the rear axle, improved front and fundamentally new suspension on the rear axle and an improved gearbox. This is not a complete list of improvements that were made to the Fiat124R, a Russified model of the Italian Fiat. In total, there were more than 800 changes, and some of these comments were subsequently used personally by Fiat in the development of new cars in their series. These requirements of Soviet engineers and researchers helped Fiat to collect unique information about the reliability and off-road capability of its brand vehicles.

The first cars off the assembly line

The very first six cars left the assembly line on April 19, 1970, so this particular day can be called the birthday of the Zhiguli. It is worth noting that the first cars were only in two colors and 2 blue and 4 red cars were produced. These first 6 prototypes showed excellent results in tests and improvements were minimal, so that already in August 1970 the plant was operating at full capacity. And the capacity of the plant was really impressive. By the end of the year, 21,530 cars had been produced at the newly built plant in Togliatti. The plant gradually increased its turnover and by 1973 had managed to produce 379,007 Zhiguli in a year.

Where does the name "Zhguli" come from?

In fact, the name of the VAZ-2101 could be completely different. According to one version, the name was born at the plant, and was approved back in 1976, and according to another, it was invented on a competitive basis. About the intermediate result of the competition in 1970, the magazine "Behind the wheel" wrote. There was also published a list of 1812 titles that were selected by the commission for consideration. In total, about 55,000 titles were sent, some of which were funny, some funny, and some just ridiculous.

What could the VAZ-2101 be called:

  • Violet
  • Falcon
  • Firstborn
  • Memorial
  • Youth
  • Dream
  • Directive
  • Falcon

One way or another, it was the Zhiguli that became the final name, and a little later the people called this car none other than the “Penny” for the unit at the end of the model number.

Classifications and numbering

It is worth mentioning that, in addition to significant improvements compared to the Italian prototype, the domestic Zhiguli became the first car produced in the USSR, which received such a document as the normal OH 025370-66. This document regulated the classification and designation system of rolling stock. Now, each new car of the series or trailer was assigned a four-digit number, the first two digits of which indicated the class of the car or trailer, and the last two - its model. Sometimes the fifth digit was also used, which indicated that this car was a modification of a certain model and it was possible to immediately understand what changes were made to this particular car. Also, sometimes additional numbers in the number were used. The sixth digit could show what climate the car was intended for and whether it was intended for import. In rare cases, additional numbers were added through a hyphen, which showed that this car was an intermediate modification of the car.

Existing modifications of the penny

It is thanks to this that, looking at the inscription VAZ-21011, you can immediately understand that this car was manufactured at the Volga Automobile Plant (VAZ), belongs to a small class of cars with an engine from 1200 to 1800 cubic centimeters (21) and is the first model of this car in this class (01) with the first version of the modification, which differs from the original by installing an engine of 1300 cubic centimeters.

VAZ-2101 . This is the very first version of the Kopeika, which was very popular among both motorists and the developers themselves. It is not surprising that this car became the basis for future modifications, because it was extremely successful. It is worth noting that the VAZ-2101 was equipped with a 1.2 liter engine.

VAZ-21011. The first modification, which we mentioned above. The main difference from the traditional "Kopeyka" in this model is the engine. It was much more powerful than the previous version of the car, and its volume was increased to 1.3 liters. The car has also undergone quite a lot of changes in terms of design. Basically, these changes concerned improving the ventilation of the cooling radiator - four additional slots appeared in front and the shape of the radiator grille was changed. Also, reversing lights were installed on this modification from 1974 to 1983 inclusive.

VAZ-21013. The main difference between this modification and the VAZ-21011 is a less powerful engine, identical to that installed on the original "Kopeyka" (1.2 liters), otherwise, the changes made in 21011 were preserved in version 21013. Zhiguli were also produced for export and these cars known under the name Lada 1200 in almost all countries of the Socialist Commonwealth. First of all, they appeared in Czechoslovakia, the GDR, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Hungary, and the total number of such cars totaled more than 57 thousand cars. Over time, Lada 1200 earned respect among foreign motorists and very soon these cars could be seen on the roads of Germany, Austria, France and even Nigeria.

VAZ-21012 and VAZ-21014. The glory of the Zhiguli was not limited to the Soviet Union. Especially for countries with left-hand traffic, two modifications of the Zhiguli were released at once. First of all, they differed in the right-hand drive and reinforced spring suspension of the right front wheel. The fact is that when the controls were transferred to the other side, the mass of the car began to be distributed unevenly and such a compensation system had to be organized. In total, these cars were produced from 1974 to 1982.

VAZ-2101 pickup. Nothing in the Soviet Union was wasted, and even defective Zhiguli. Instead of being written off due to body defects, they were converted into pickup trucks and later used for the needs of the factory. The entire back of the roof was simply cut off just behind the front seats and a new cabin wall was installed. The rear doors were welded to increase the rigidity of the structure and as a result, the carrying capacity of such pickups could be 300 kg. Of course, such cars did not go into the series, but some amateurs even independently carried out such improvements on their Kopeykas.

"Limousine" VAZ 2101. No matter how comical it sounds, but cars of this modification not only existed, but were also very popular in Cuba. Here they were used as fixed-route taxis and coped with this task quite easily.


Facts about the VAZ-2101

There are many interesting stories about this car, which has managed to fall in love with domestic motorists, but the most unusual of these facts should be described separately, because the Kopeyka, although it has already been discontinued, is still often found on our roads. Starter and crank The Soviet automobile industry cannot be reproached for hindsight. In the bag of repair tools that came with the car, you could find a starting handle. Of course, this could terrify foreigners, but the instructions said that it was intended solely for starting the car in very cold winters or after a long parking. According to the compilers of the instructions, it was necessary to turn the handle several times with the neutral gear and the ignition off, after which it was possible to carry out a normal start using the starter.

Starter and crank penny

The Soviet auto industry cannot be blamed for hindsight. In the bag of repair tools that came with the car, you could find a starting handle. Of course, this could terrify foreigners, but the instructions said that it was intended solely for starting the car in very cold winters or after a long parking. According to the compilers of the instructions, it was necessary to turn the handle several times with the neutral gear and the ignition off, after which it was possible to carry out a normal start using the starter.

Foreign spare parts in VAZ-2101

Naturally, not all parts used to produce the first Zhiguli were domestic. Under the hoods of some Kopecks, one could find Weber carburetors, some cars were equipped with foreign-made non-separable shock absorbers, which were much more reliable and durable than domestic ones. The same situation happened with spark plugs.

Not without curiosities

In total there were three types of emblems for Zhiguli. The most famous of them was a silver rook on a ruby ​​background, which flaunted on all VAZ-2101s since 1971. But the fact is that on the machines of 1970, the badge produced was also supplemented with the inscription "Togliatti". Very few such emblems were issued, since a year later it was ordered to remove the inscription unmasking the location of the automobile plant, which at that time was considered an extremely important strategic object. A car with this logo is a real rarity. However, an even rarer logo is an erroneously made logo with the Cyrillic letter “Ya” replaced with the Latin “R”. This happened due to the fact that the first batch of emblems was ordered at the Fiat plant in Turin, and there the Italians, through an oversight, simply mixed up the letters. All the emblems, and there were about 30 of them, were simply taken apart by VAZ employees for souvenirs, and now this emblem is very much appreciated, but it is almost impossible to get it.