RUSSIA is ending its long love affair with a car that was
once prized by the nation but has come to symbolise the decline of its
automobile industry and, for some, the country itself.
The decision by state carmaker AvtoVAZ to halt production of
the last models in the Lada Classic series this year after four decades is more
than just the end of the road for an automobile.
Although the outmoded box-like series of family cars is
ridiculed abroad, many Russians consider it a last link with an era when they
believed the Soviet Union could win the Cold War, and see its demise as a sign
of Russia's diminished status.
"It's a case of national affection. For many years in
Soviet times the Classic was an unattainable dream for many men.
"It was very hard to get hold of one and people waited
in queues for years," said Vyacheslav Lysakov, a member of parliament and
the head of a motorists' association, Free Choice.
"A lot of things from that (Soviet) time have already
gone and the Classic was one of the remaining links."
AvtoVAZ halted production last month of the seventh model in
the series, the 2107, leaving only one Classic in production - the 2104 station
wagon. The company said it was also "time to say goodbye" to that
model at the end of this year.
Lada is often the butt of jokes abroad because of its square
shape and reputation for breaking down when you least want it to. One joke
asks: how do you double the value of a Lada? Answer: by filling the tank.
Jeremy Clarkson, host of the British TV car show Top Gear,
memorably called the Lada 2107 "simply the worst car ever".
Style-conscious young Russians would not be seen dead in one.
But many middle-aged and elderly Russians regret the
Classic's passing and see bad omens for the future.
"It was the best-designed car in the world. You won't
see a more beautiful car," Alexander Fyodorov, a 65-year-old architect,
said as he strolled across Moscow's Red Square.
"Russia has gone off course since then. The Russian
auto industry has been destroyed.
"I blame it on 12 years of Putin," he said,
gesturing towards the red walls and golden domes of the Kremlin where Russia's
long-term ruler, Vladimir Putin, will start a new six-year term as president on
May 7.
A Soviet-style Fiat
Under a deal with Italian car company Fiat, the first Lada
Classic 2101 was produced in 1970, based on the Fiat 124 four-door sedan which
was popular across Europe.
The Classic, or Zhiguli as it is also known in the former
Soviet Union, was a big hit in a country where car ownership itself was a
status symbol and Western brands were not on sale.
Resourceful owners, used to shortages and shoddy quality of
manufactured goods in the Soviet command economy, made do with what they had
and soon learned how to fix the car themselves.
Its simplicity was a selling point, so was its ability to
keep going in the severe cold. In later years, its low price and durability
made it attractive, especially in Russia's provinces.
"I love my car," said Nikolai Dashkevich, a
trained mechanic in Moscow who has a 25-year-old white Lada 2105, the fifth in
the series.
"More than half the parts are the original ones but
it's done more than 1 million kilometers."
AvtoVAZ officials said the seven cars in the series had sold
more than 17.75 million vehicles by March of this year.
But AvtoVAZ has struggled against foreign competition since
the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Side by side on the streets with hulking
SUVs favoured by the nouveau riche, it became a symbol of the gap between rich
and poor.
AvtoVAZ bowed to the inevitable last month by halting
production of the 2107 after 30 years, even though the current starting price
is low at 206 900 roubles ($7 000), provoking furious debate among car lovers
in Russia.
"Let's be reasonable and not dream of AvtoVAZ
continuing to produce models without changing them for 30-40 years," wrote
a contributor to an online forum who gave his name only as Sony.
But many contributors disagreed. "AvtoVAZ has
personally handed the market for budget cars to the Chinese auto industry,
surrendered without a fight," wrote one named only as Maxim.
Tough times
Times are tough for Russian carmakers even though Frances's
Renault and Japan's Nissan will take control of AvtoVAZ under a deal with state
company Russian Technologies.
Lada sales fell 15% year-on-year in the last quarter and
AvtoVAZ is recalling nearly 100 000 new Ladas because of technical faults,
including 70 000 Lada Kalinas, a model Putin promoted by driving it 2 000 km
across Siberia in 2010.
Putin also tried to promote the new Lada Granta last year
but took several attempts to start it when he test-drove it.
The decline in the national car industry is all the more
galling for domestic producers as Russia is on track to become Europe's biggest
car market by the end of the decade, driven by rising incomes and a surge in
consumer spending.
Car sales are expected to grow about 6% this year to 2.8
million vehicles and reach 4 million by 2015.
Renault, General Motors and Ford are among global players in
the early stages of expanding sites or moving into those owned by Russian
partners.
Many Russian experts are not optimistic for the future,
saying Russian cars simply do not compete with foreign brands, but some say
increased competition will benefit consumers.
"Despite all the criticism of the authorities that you
hear now, a new auto industry has been built on Russian soil, an industry which
produces Ford, Volkswagen, Renault, Hyundai cars and so on," said
Alexander Pikulenko, auto industry commentator for Ekho Moskvy radio station.
"The main thing is the consumer can get a good product
that's reliable, safe and cheap."
Some Russians, however, are unlikely ever to be appeased.
"You see all these fancy foreign models in Russia now
but we used to be proud to drive our own cars," said Nikolai Peshkov, a
businessman from Izhevsk, the city where the last 2107s were made in Russia.
"I suppose there was no real choice then, but the
Zhiguli was the real dream. If you had one, you had respect."