AvtoVAZ produced the first millionth car in recent history

The Russian automaker has produced a million cars over the past 2.5 years, namely after the departure of its foreign partner, Renault, in 2022. The anniversary car was Lada Aura, a business sedan based on Vesta. AvtoVAZ noted that “contrary to forecasts of long downtime, the company demonstrated an exceptional ability to adapt.”

AvtoVAZ was forced to suspend car production in the spring of 2022. Then the French shareholder of the Russian automaker, the Renault group, suspended operations in the country, and later got rid of all Russian assets, including a stake in AvtoVAZ. Already in June, the plant in Tolyatti resumed work, then the first “simplified” Lada Granta Classic 2022 model year rolled off the assembly line without some options that the company had to replace with imports.

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Gradually, AvtoVAZ completely restored production and returned to the previous pace of car production – after Granta, production of the Niva family resumed, Vesta returned in 2023, and Largus this year. Gradually, models began to be equipped with air conditioning, airbags, multimedia and other systems.

“A symbolic point in the restoration of the model range was set in September 2024, when Vesta again acquired one of the most important safety systems – a localized electronic stability control system (ESC),” noted the brand’s press service. Today, the localization level of Lada models exceeds 95 percent.

“Today we produced the first millionth car since the flight of our former foreign partners from Russia in 2022,” said AvtoVAZ head Maxim Sokolov. “It was they who predicted a long downtime for us after their departure, and it was they who were mistaken and underestimated our potential.” He added that half of the million cars produced were produced in the outgoing year 2024.

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