KAvZ-685. Soviet middle class bus

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

The hero of today's article is the KAVZ-685 bus. These cars have been produced at the Kurgan Bus Plant since 1971. This bus is more of a small class than a medium one. He did not have a specific purpose, this general-purpose machine. This transport was calculated to work in rural areas, mainly on dirt roads. To do this, he was well equipped technically, had the necessary safety margins and had a high cross. Let's take a closer look at this vehicle. Old buses are very interesting. They have a special history, now almost no one rides them anymore.

Model history

The history of this bus begins with the opening of the factory. This was in 1958. The first thing that was done at the Kurgan plant was the 651st model. Work on the development of these machines began in the 40s of the last century. The model was built on the chassis and main components from the GAZ-51. So, when in the 60s GAZ began to produce new GAZ-53A, the Kurgan plant prepared to create new buses on this chassis.

In the late 60s, the first prototypes of KAvZ-685 began to appear. These first cars had a slightly different design, not the same as on the base GAZ-53A for them. Here was another radiator lining. Lighting was presented as a four-factor system. A little later, the designers decided to abandon this design. And buses with the traditional front part of the base GAZ came out in the series.

To launch mass production of bus vehicles, the plant management carried out a complete reconstruction of the enterprise. Thus, production areas have expanded significantly.

The reconstruction was successful, and in 1971 the first KAvZ-685 rolled off the assembly line. Production models had a standard hood, but still differed slightly from the main series in the design of the windshields. Full-fledged serial production was launched in 1973. In 1974, the 100,000th copy rolled off the assembly line at the enterprise. During the entire production period, the model has changed several times both in design and technical equipment.

KavZ-685: specifications

This model replaced the 651st bus. However, the design has not changed much. Here we can see a car with a bonnet layout and not too much capacity. The bus was very easy to operate and, as we already know, was designed to work on dirt roads.

Although the chassis of the old and new models still had differences, and the old Kurgan bus was also very different from the new one, we see large overall dimensions in the new model, modern, given that we haveUSSR buses, design. The new vehicle could accommodate 28 people, had good technical, dynamic and traction characteristics. The characteristics of this ancestor of modern buses fully met the requirements of that time.

Engine

The first KAVZ-685 models were equipped with four-stroke eight-cylinder carburetor engines. These were ZMZ 53A. The cylinders in these power units were arranged in a V-shape.

The power of this motor is 120 hp. With. The rotation frequency was 3200 rpm. The engine had a good torque at that time - 245 N / m. The engine capacity was 4.25 liters. The car needed 24 liters of fuel per 100 km. The tank of the bus had a capacity of 105 liters. The maximum speed on this motor was 90 km/h.

Transmission

Here everything is the same as in GAZ. KAVZ-685 was equipped with a four-speed gearbox. It is known that the box was a slightly modified model of the GAZ-5312 gearbox. The transmission, after improvements, received synchronizers in third and dash gears.

The clutches on these machines were dry, single-disk. The mechanism was spring, peripheral. The clutch was engaged by means of a hydraulic actuator.

Brake system

The brakes were implemented as a two-circuit system. The brakes themselves were drum brakes that worked on all wheels. To apply the brake, the engineers also used a hydraulic drive, which was also equipped with a vacuum booster.

Geometry

The body had a length of 6.6 m, a width of 2.55 meters, the height of the bus was 3.03 m. The wheelbase was 3.7 m, and the ground clearance was 265 mm.

The curb weight of this vehicle is 4.08 tons. The gross weight is 6.5 tons. The wheel formula of the chassis is 4 x 2. The smallest turning radius of this vehicle was 8 m.

Body

There is nothing new to say here. Like all other buses of the USSR, the body of this bus was also made of solid metal. The body was made in the bonnet layout. The hood made it possible to significantly simplify the access of drivers and auto mechanics to internal components and the power unit. Thanks to this, service and repair work can be carried out quickly and efficiently.

Inside

The interior of the bus allowed 28 passengers to fit comfortably. There were 21 seats. So that passengers could sit down, the designers provided them with only one side door. The interior also had an emergency exit through the back door. There is not much to say about the salon either, but it had an excellent heating system. Even in extreme cold, she warmed up the interior perfectly. The ventilation system is natural. For this, engineers and designers have provided side windows, as well as hatches.

To make it more comfortable for passengers to use this vehicle, soft seats were provided for them in the cabin. Separately, I want to say about the fabric of the seat trim. It was very durable and could easily last more than one or two seasons before being replaced. The driver did not separate from the passengers. So, the safety standards did not provide for partitions. The driver got to his workplace using a separate door.

Driver's seat

The workplace had all the conditions for the driver not to get tired on regular flights. The chair could be adjusted away from the dashboard, and there were also adjustments for the angle of inclination.

Older buses were not equipped with power steering, but the steering wheel of this car had a large diameter, which made it easier to control. All the necessary knobs and switches were in convenient places.

On the dashboard was only the bare necessities. So, the designers and engineers made sure that the driver's attention is not scattered.

The mirrors were unrealistically large. They spoke for the dimensions of the body. So it turned out to significantly improve the visibility of the road. The windshield had a baffle. Each part was equipped with a glass cleaner. This kept the glass clean and did not interfere with driving.

About repair and service

It is worth saying that these models practically did not cause problems for either drivers or auto mechanics. The car was based on the GAZ-53A, which, before using it to build a bus, went through many tests. The chassis at the Kurgan plant was perfectly prepared for work in the absence of asph alt roads.

Since the engineers at that time, creating a new model, tried to build the car in such a way as to unify as much as possiblethe main components with old models, then at that time they got the necessary spare parts without any problems. The KAVZ-685 bus and its design allowed mechanics to easily detect malfunctions in the event of a breakdown and work on elimination just as quickly.

Modifications

Various modifications came out on the basis of this model. They were created for use in parts of the country with different climates. Model 685C was developed for driving in the northern regions. Very low air temperatures prevailed there, so the car was equipped with warmer skin, double glazing and engine heating.

There were also other models. For example, 685G was intended for mountainous areas. So that the car could more safely overcome the serpentines of mountain roads, the bus was equipped with special additional brakes and retarders, and seat belts were installed in the cabin for passengers.

As a conclusion

For its time it was a great bus. The engineers did a good job. Sometimes these cars can still be seen somewhere on rural roads. They are still working somewhere - that's what Soviet quality means.