Avtovaz, which came into Russian hands when Renault fled the country in 2022, has given the Lada Niva 122 horsepower and called the car "Sport".
The base model has no airbags, ESP or ABS. Lada can't get seatbelt pretensioners either. But the 'new' Niva Sport has 124 horsepower.
That is, from a technology that has been on the market since 1977. You can hardly call the Niva Sport a revolution. Nevertheless, the Russians say that the model is new.
Under the hood lies a small excuse for a 1.6-liter, 4-cylinder gasoline engine. This means that the Niva can easily reach 0 to 100 km/h. At least in theory.
On the other hand, the base model has to make do with 83 horsepower. So what do the Russians really have to complain about? No, right? The extra horsepower has also meant that the Lada people have had to upgrade the gearbox with a reinforced fifth gear.
In addition, the car is said to have had a more 'sporty' chassis and larger brakes. However, the Russians do not elaborate on how this is connected. Despite these upgrades, you still cannot get a Niva Sport with colored bumpers. We do not know the price either.
But in the Russian media, there is speculation that starting prices will start at 2 million rubles. This is equivalent to just over 143,000 Danish kroner. In comparison, the base model costs from 70,000 kroner. That's a lot of money for a car that hasn't developed since the 1970s.
