GAZ-33104 "Valdai": specifications, maintenance and repair, reviews

2024 Author: Erin Ralphs | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-19 11:41

Medium duty trucks are in high demand in Russia. If we talk about domestic cars, first of all, MAZ Zubrenok and KamAZ-4308 come to mind. Recently, the Next Lawn was added to this list. But for some reason, everyone forgot about Valdai. But at one time this car was quite popular. Why did this truck lose demand? Features of the GAZ-33104 Valdai car and reviews - later in our article.

Appearance

The design of this truck is very similar to the GAZelle. In fact, the Valdai medium-duty trucks have the same cab as the GAZelle. The differences are only in a few elements:

• Radiator grille.
• Bumper (more outward).
• More massive wheel arches.
• Additional footrest on both sides.
• Marker lights on top.
• Other rear-view mirrors (placed onarcs).

The rest of the cabin design is identical. As for the quality of painting, it is the same as on the GAZelle. The enamel, unfortunately, was not of high quality - it often peeled off and rusty marks formed everywhere. This was the disease of all GAZ vehicles of that time, and the Valdai cargo van was no exception.

Dimensions, clearance

The car is larger than the GAZelle. So, initially the car had a 3.5-meter cargo platform. The body itself is built on the basis of the GAZonovsky. A big plus is that the sides on this car did not rot, as on the GAZelle. And all thanks to the metal, the thickness of which was an order of magnitude higher. But back to size. So, the total length of the cargo van is 6.05 meters, the cabin height is 2.26, the width is 2.64 meters, including mirrors. The ground clearance is 18 centimeters. This is very significant. The car easily overcame any road obstacles and deep pits.

Note that the 3.5-meter onboard GAZ "Valdai" is not the only modification that was made at the plant. There are a lot of extended versions. So, the onboard GAZ "Valdai" could have a cargo area of 5 or even 6 meters. The plant also produced various types of vans. This is a furniture booth, manufactured goods, isothermal and refrigerator.

Salon

Since the Valdai cabin is identical to the GAZ-3302, there are no differences inside either. Amongfeatures can be noted except that the steering wheel from the "Sable". The instrument panel and seats, as well as the front torpedo are similar to those of GAZel. The disadvantages of this cabin are familiar to many. First of all, it is worth noting the poor sound insulation. The sound from the engine is no problem coming into the cabin. The cabin is also poorly insulated. In winter, it cools down quickly. On long-distance transportation, an autonomous heater is indispensable. Usually the owners put the Planar heater here. As for the seats, they are just as soft and without armrests. Therefore, many change them to chairs from foreign cars. These can be both passenger cars and seats from commercial trucks (for example, Sprinter or Ducato).

Mirrors on a GAZ Valdai truck are not informative - reviews say. For this reason, owners often attach additional ones.

GAZ-33104 Valdai: specifications

This vehicle is equipped with a Cummins diesel engine. This is a Chinese power unit of the ISF series, which meets the environmental requirements of Euro-3. Note that the technical characteristics of the GAZ-33104 Valdai car may differ, since the installed power units have a different volume. The base engine is 2.8 liters. This four-cylinder in-line unit develops 136 horsepower. In addition, a 3.8-liter Cummins is installed on the GAZ Valdai truck. Its maximum power is 152 horsepower.

As for fuel consumption, this parameter depends on the height of the cargo box and conditionsoperation (city or highway). On average, a car consumes about 12-15 liters of diesel per 100 kilometers. The most economical mode is the track (the speed should be 70 kilometers per hour). The resource of Cummins engines is 500 thousand kilometers. At the same time, the engine warranty lasts for two years or 100 thousand kilometers.

Among the disadvantages of Chinese engines, it should be noted the rupture of rubber couplings that are installed between the turbine and the intercooler. Also on these motors lies the speedometer and tachometer. As practice has shown, the readings are underestimated by about a third.

Valdai with D-245.7 engine

This power unit was originally offered for this car and was installed on all models until 2010. Now cars with such an engine are not produced, but on the secondary market "Valdai" with a Minsk diesel engine is still found. What are the technical characteristics of the old GAZ-33104 Valdai? So, this engine is a four-cylinder in-line turbocharged unit. With a working volume of 4.75 liters, it produces 122 horsepower. Injection - direct "Common Rail". The piston stroke is 125 millimeters with a diameter of 110. Torque is 422 Nm at 2.4 thousand revolutions per minute. The curb weight of the engine is 477 kilograms. Compression ratio - 15, 1.

What is the performance of this truck? With domestic diesel engine machineaccelerated to 80 kilometers per hour in 45 seconds. At the same time, the maximum speed was limited to 96 kilometers per hour. The control fuel consumption at a speed of 80 kilometers per hour is 18 liters per hundred.

Speaking of maintenance and repair, the GAZ-33104 Valdai needs an oil change every 10,000 kilometers. At a run of 20 thousand, the air filter is changed. The engine repair itself is required on a run of 300 thousand kilometers.

Transmission

The gearbox at Valdai is mechanical, with five steps. It has not changed since the development of the truck. So, among the problems, the owners note the increased noise of its work and the leakage of oil seals. Oil change according to the regulations should be done every 75 thousand kilometers. But it should be noted that the box itself holds loads well. It is not uncommon for Valdai to be operated with overload. The transmission and clutch withstand these loads.

Chassis

A simple GAZon suspension is installed at Valdai. So, there is a pivot beam in front, and a continuous bridge in the back. Semi-elliptic springs are used as elastic elements. At the rear there are additional suspension brackets. The suspension itself is simple and very reliable. There are no serious problems with it.

But the braking system has its own nuances. The thing is, it's pneumatic. After turning on the engine, you need to wait until the air is pumped into the circuits. The brakes themselves work well. Additionally, they are equipped with ABS, which is positiveaffects security. Steering - gearbox with hydraulic booster. Unfortunately, the power steering is not reliable and leaks over time. You have to periodically add fluid, or eliminate the leak. As for the steering tips and traction, these elements are quite hardy. The resource of elements is about 100 thousand kilometers. But the stabilizer bar bushings have to be changed every 30 thousand. In order to somehow increase the resource, the owners install more rigid, polyurethane bushings on the stabilizer.

How does this car behave on the go? According to reviews, the characteristics of the suspension on the Valdai are the same as on the old, Soviet GAZ-53. The car handles potholes hard, especially when empty. Any smoothness can be achieved only after at least a ton of cargo is in the back. In the turns on this machine you need to enter carefully - it's a very high center of gravity. Yes, and on a straight road you can’t accelerate much - the reviews say. Neither fuel consumption nor steering performance has this.

Summing up

So, we found out what the GAZ-33104 Valdai has technical characteristics and features. Why is this car not so popular? It's simple: it was forced out of the market by elongated GAZelles. And larger cargoes are already being transported at GAZons Next. It turns out that Valdai has become unnecessary. With the same profit as on the GAZelle, this car requires more attention and money for maintenance. Therefore, many refusepurchases of Valdai in favor of a younger brother.