2012 Lada Niva

[mike r]

Fifth gear UK got there hands on a NEW lada niva
This is what they had to say about it

I had one in 88 that was my first 4X4



"If you happen to have a soft spot for ugly, inexpensive four-wheel-drive machines that can outperform substantially newer and more expensive vehicles, don't watch the video after the jump.

If you choose not to heed our guidance, you may just find yourself desperately searching for a way to get your hands on a Lada Niva. Fifth Gear recently undertook a unique challenge. While the Niva hasn't been sold new in the UK for years, specialty importers can still slide one your way for a small fee and a smile. The whole kit will set buyers back around £11,000, or about $17,00 at current conversion rates.

That makes the Niva the cheapest four-wheel drive on the UK market right now. But is it worth it? Fifth Gear took to the network of unpaved roads that envelope the UK countryside in a bid to crawl their way across the island by spending as little time as possible on paved roads. How did the plucky little Soviet-era machine do? Hit the jump to find out. Just remember: we warned you."

http://www.autoblog.com/2011/12/19/...across-england-in-a-brand-new-lada/#continued

 

[haven]

Great video, and great introduction to Great Britain's unpaved Green Lanes Association, or GLASS. They promote and protect the public's right to use the old unpaved rights of way. http://www.glass-uk.org/

 

[griffdog]

Good story and as a Lada owner a pretty good introduction to why they are such a likeable plucky car. A homemade 2 inch lift and some decent tyres and you are away.

 

[Hill Bill E.]

That's a cool little ride!

 

[greg mgm]

Excellent video and cool car.

 

[ihatemybike]

I'd love to see them available in the US as a kit car, along the lines on the AEV J8.

 

[wyojoe]

The Niva still looks like the same one that was built back in the mid 80's. I wonder if anything has changed at all on this vehicle in the years since.

 

[griffdog]

The only real difference between the new one and 80's/90's ones are:

- Hatch that opens to floor level rather than about a foot up. This also means different tail lights.
- Updated interior in an updating from 60's styling to 70's sort of way.
- Multipoint fuel injection on new model. (carb up to mid 90's, then single point injection until the change to multi point.
- 1.7 engine - 1.6 until mid 90's, but still same basic fiat 124 derived engine of 60's design.
- 3.9 diffs - 4.3's until early 80's then 4.1's until the move to 1.7 engine.
- Stainless trim on gutter has been changed to satin black instead polished. The models lost chrome or polished ss as time went on. The very earliest models had the most.

And thats about it. Everything else is pretty much the same. Transfer, gearbox, engine block, diffs and drive shafts and body shell are all as they were from the late 70's.

 

[Trout]

That looks like good cheap fun!

 

[VanIsle_Greg]

Good mileage, or reasonable... very capable, simple to fix, old skool kool too. I'd rock one of those!

 

[Riptide]

As a Suzuki Samurai driver, I'd love to have one of these; they embody what I value most: simple, cheap, and rugged.

 

[RangeBrover]

Would love to give one a good thrashing but I'm guessing parts are harder to find than ones for a series rover. Although it seems simple enough to work on that a backyard mechanic could make all the repairs.

 

[VanIsle_Greg]

Apparently they are almost identical to the ones from the 70's all the way to the 90's. My guess, parts are available online for just about everything? I think the engine is basically the same with the exception of the Multi-Point FI and a few details. Block and heads = same same.

I haven't seen one of the old ones here for years.

 

[NothingClever]

[video]http://www.autoblog.com/2007/10/13/lada-niva-goes-way-off-road/[/video]

 

[RangeBrover]

Now I just need to find a way to import one.