Motorcycle "Izh Planet 5": the history of domestic motorcycles

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

Probably, the desire to saddle a horse, even a steel one, came to us from our ancestors. Now a motorcycle is a kind of symbol of freedom and independence, which is probably why many young people (and not only) dream of buying their two-wheeled unit. But before talking about specific models, it is worth plunging into the history of the creation of such a wonderful vehicle.

History of motorcycle construction

For the first time, the Russian Empire learned about motorcycles at the end of the 19th century, but they were foreign models, no one could even think about their production. But already by 1914 in Riga, at the Lightner factory, the first light motorcycle based on a bicycle was assembled. True, parts for them were brought from Switzerland (Motorev firm). The subsequent revolutionary events and the First World War did not allow the development of this industry.

Everything changed when in 1928 a talented young engineer Mozharov got down to business: he designed a number of motorcycles, they were called "IZH 1-5" (prototypes "IZH Planet 5"). SoOver time, technology improved, but the war stopped production, forcing the plant to produce weapons again. And only after the victory, motorcycle construction began to rise uphill, many different models and their variations were released, and it became popular to have your own motorcycle. Unfortunately, the success did not last long - after two decades it became fashionable to have a car. In this regard, production began to die and eventually almost disappeared. But to this day the old ones

"Ural", "Java" and "IZH" (including the legendary "IZH Planet 5" with a sidecar) serve motorists faithfully. Attempts to revive the Russian motorcycle industry continue, who knows, maybe we will also hear about a new model from the Izhevsk Motorcycle Plant.

Motorcycle "IZH Planet 5"

The "Planets" line has ended with the creation of this two-wheeled unit with a single-cylinder engine. Serial production began in 1987 and continued until 2008. The main characteristic of the model is high traction at low speeds, as well as the possibility of attaching a passenger sidecar, cargo module, trunk or knee guards. This motorcycle has undergone many upgrades, for example, the IZH Planet 5-01 version had a contactless ignition system, that is, it could start without the help of a battery. The standard characteristics did not change during the entire production period: the weight was 160 kilograms, the volume of the gas tank made it possible to fill 18 liters of fuel, andthe maximum speed of the machine was 120

km/h. The engine "IZH Planet 5" is a two-stroke, single-cylinder, its power is about 22 horsepower, and the working volume is 346 centimeters in a cube. The cooling system is the same as most motorcycles - air. Gasoline consumes economically: at a speed of 60 km / h, 4 liters of fuel burn out, in urban conditions it reaches 6.5. In general, Izh Planet 5 was positioned as a third-class motorcycle designed for Russian roads. It has found application everywhere: both simply as an urban means of transportation, and as a transport for country trips (to the country or fishing), as well as agricultural machinery. It is also noteworthy that, despite the modifications, it has remained practically unchanged since the start of production and is presented in its original form by some owners.