"VAZ 1111" - people's car

2024 Author: Erin Ralphs | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-19 11:42

The story of the smallest VAZ car called "Oka" is similar to the scenario of an adventure movie. A group of enthusiasts from among the engineers of a plant for the production of wheelchairs in the city of Serpukhov set out to rebuild production from single-seat motorcycles to a four-seat vehicle for the disabled. But since the capacity of the stroller plant was insufficient for such transformations, the engineers turned to the leadership of AvtoVAZ, having previously coordinated the issue with the Ministry of the Automotive Industry.

The call of enthusiasts from Serpukhov was heard, and the project to create a microcar was launched. The future car received the working name "VAZ 1111". The work was not easy, since there was no finished chassis and engine, wheels of the right size, too. There has been a period of compromise. Tires decided to use 13 inches instead of the calculated 12 inches. This immediately removed many problems, because all VAZ small cars run on 13-inch tires. The issue of the engine was also resolved in a radical way: they took a standard VAZ 2108 engine and cut off half. After refinement, it turned out to be a two-cylinder, four-valve, not very reliable, but still an engine."Vaz 1111". Although later they began to install a standard 3-cylinder Chinese-made engine with a volume of 1.0 liters, a power of 33 hp, with fuel injection.

While the issue of the power plant of the future car was being decided, body parts were being developed at the same time. It immediately became obvious that the thresholds were not strong enough due to the very wide doorway. But since the VAZ 1111 car was being prepared for the disabled, the reduction of the opening was in opposition to the main tasks and could significantly limit the freedom of boarding and disembarking a person with disabilities. The doorway still had to be reduced by a minimum amount. The further development of the project suddenly revealed the trend of the transition of the microcar from the category of a wheelchair to a full-fledged vehicle. The laws of the market were inexorable, and the new car began to be designated everywhere as another AvtoVAZ model called the VAZ 1111 Oka. Financing was opened, completely different figures appeared in the plans of the factory management on top of the previous ones, and the production of Oka began to unfold in a different capacity. Nobody mentioned the option of a microcar for the disabled.

The VAZ 1111 Oka was produced for almost 20 years, and since the car was cheap, it quickly became a "people's" car. The increased demand for the Oka lasted for quite a long time, but in the end the excitement began to subside a little, and by 2006 the car was no longerbe interested. Retail sales froze, and after a while the production of the people's car had to be stopped. Nevertheless, during the years of production of the Oka, two significant modifications were made to the main model, an open-body pickup truck and a van. But both developments remained without application, there was no demand. In 2008, the production of the VAZ 1111 Oka microcar was finally curtailed. And in January 2013, the leadership of AvtoVAZ OJSC made a statement about the resumption of production of the people's car in full by 2020. Of course, in an updated, modernized version, using the latest technology.