Lada (Žiguli) 1200 vs. Москвич Иж 412 спорт The VAZ-2101 is a compact sedan car (small class, passenger car, model 1 in Soviet classification) produced by AvtoVAZ and introduced in 1970. The estate version was known as the VAZ-2102. VAZ had been founded in the mid-1960s as a collaboration between Fiat and the Soviet government, and the 2101 was its first product. Better known as the Lada outside the former Soviet Union, the 2101 is a re-engineered version of the Fiat 124 tailored for the nations of the Eastern Bloc, but was widely exported to the West as a budget "no-frills" car. Although the facelifted VAZ-2105, 2104 & 2107 versions largely replaced it in the West in the early 1980s, it was still produced for the domestic market as late as 1988.
Known as the Zhiguli within the Soviet Union, the main differences between the VAZ-2101 and the Fiat 124 are the use of thicker gauge steel for the bodyshell, an overhead camshaft engine (in place of the original Fiat OHV unit), and the use of aluminium drum brakes on the rear wheels in place of disc brakes. Early versions of the car featured a starting handle for cranking the engine manually should the battery go flat in Siberian winter conditions, and an auxiliary fuel pump.
AvtoVAZ were forbidden from selling the car in competing markets alongside Fiat 124; however, exports to Western European nations began in 1974 when the 124 was discontinued in favour of Fiat's newer 131 Mirafiori model. The 2101 was sold in export markets as the Lada 1200, Lada 1300 and Lada 1200S until 1989; it was sold in the United Kingdom from May 1974, until the arrival of the Riva in 1983. It was the first Lada to be sold in the United Kingdom.
The Moskvitch 412 (Moskvich 412, M-412), also called 2140 in 1975 prior to discontinuation and 1500 SL outside USSR, was a small family car produced by Soviet manufacturer MZMA/AZLK from 1967 to 1976. It was also built as the Izh 412 by IZh in Izhevsk from 1967 to 1982 and replaced by the spun off Izh Comby series thereafter. The 412, although featuring many flaws gradually fixed with its replacement, was one of the best known third generation Moskvitches and, until 1974, the best selling car in the history of AZLK.
Basically, the Moskvitch 412 was an upgrade of the 408 model in terms of engine features, just as the second generation M-403 was an upgrade of the 402/407. Both cars are often wrongly considered as one chain of succession; in truth, the 412 was in planned development before the 408 production began, simply offering more features to the driver for a higher price. Unlike the 407, the car was made affordable by the absence of concurrency in many Eastern Bloc countries (besides its own relative, the 408).
The 1500 cc was a slant inline-4 engine. Block, head and inlet manifold were aluminium castings. Steel cylinder liners were replaceable to enable easy repair of the engine instead of having to replace it entirely. The same engine was used on Moskvitch cars until the sixth generation (2142).
In 1969 both the 412 and the related 408 had their body and taillights redesigned. These were notable for being the first Moskvitch models to feature square headlights and vertical rear lights and triangular turn signals, which passed on to the 2138/2140 in 1976. Until then, the 412 profited from heightened tailfins and tanned headlight lamps on export models. Another notable (but not unique, since it was used in other Russian cars at the time) feature were the so-called side lamps, mounted on the C-pillars on some vehicles (something like the American "opera lights").
It was launched in the United Kingdom in 1969, when the first 20 dealerships were set up and some 300 cars were sold; sales peaked in 1973 when some 14,500 cars were sold through a 268-dealer network. However, sales fell soon afterwards and the Moskvich was withdrawn from the United Kingdom before the end of the 1970s, by which time it had fallen behind fellow Soviet brand Lada in the sales charts.[1]
Outside the USSR, the 412 received contradictory reviews. At the time, Soviet automotive industry was mainly focusing on powertrain and speed handling, overlooking such issues as design, seating comfort and safety.