On the eve of the 49th anniversary of the start of production of the SUV, the plant in its Telegram channel presented a number of interesting facts from the history of the VAZ-2121 Niva. AvtoVAZ recalled that the SUV was designed by leading designer Pyotr Prusov, and designer Valery Semushkin worked on the appearance. Prototypes of future cars were tested in extreme conditions – in the Urals in winter and in hot Central Asia in summer.
“The famous, recognizable Niva style did not appear immediately. The first prototypes of the SUV had an open tilt body. For their angular shapes and green color, they received the nickname “Crocodile” from engineers,” notes the video posted on the official Telegram channel of AvtoVAZ.
During the same period, VAZ was designing a minicar, which had a comic nickname “Cheburashka”. AvtoVAZ also recalled that at the time of release, the design of the Niva was different from the SUVs produced in those years: the VAZ-2121 had a high-speed engine, differential all-wheel drive and a monocoque body.
Niva was exported to more than 100 countries around the world, with up to 70% of produced SUVs going abroad. A floating version of this car was also built – the VAZ-2122 “Reka”, which did not go into production.
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