[Hokieman]

I have a god deal of personal experience with Ladas from my years in Russia. The early ones were based on the 1975 model Fiat 124, and Fiat actually helped build the AutoVAZ car factory in Russia. The early ones used a very good Soviet steel in the bodies, and can be seen running around still all over Russia. Over time the Russians began evolving the design to accommodate the needs and requirements of their particular market, so it diverged substantially from the Fiat designs of the Eighties. These things were still coming from the factory with carbs and manual chokes as late as the 2000 model year.

The first Lada Niva was the biggest piece of junk I've ever been associated with. We (Pepsi) bought four new ones in 1998, and one I was riding in literally had its transmission and transfer case fall out of the car when we driving down the road at 45 mph. It seems the first thing a new Lada owner is supposed to do with his shiny new machine is take it to a local mechanic and pay him $200 to tighten up every bolt and nut in the car! How's that for assembly line QA/QC? When I left last year nobody wanted to buy Ladas any longer - the Ford Focus made in St. Pete was the biggest selling car in Russia and the Korean and Japanese makes weren't far behind. Interestingly, a small Chevy made in Ukraine is also quite popular now, and I think GM just opened its first full assembly line in Russia recently (talk about timing).

Sorry didn't mean to crap the thread, but Russian car talk is quite fun. Every Russian man over 25 fashions himself a Smokey Yunick / Michael Schumacher combination. They are handy with wrenches - they had to be.