ZAZ Factory Catches Fire!

ZAZ, producer of legendarily bad-yet-lovable Soviet-era automobiles, saw its factory in Ukraine catch fire the other day. The paint plant went up in flames and produced much smoke for the glorification of mother Russia. More »

ZAZ Fire

Engine Of The Day: MEMZ-968

All these Engine Of The Day honors, and no Russian iron? And yesterday was May Day, comrades? We're going to remedy that oversight right now!
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Cars Of The Soviet Union: The Definitive History, by Andy Thompson

Whether you're wrenching on a flying Spitfire or a leaking Spitfire, Haynes has a shop manual for you. Very useful, but hardly the sort of thing you'd keep on your coffee table. More »

Catastrophic ZAZ Rollover Leaves Russian Hoons Miraculously Unharmed

Where would we be without English Russia? We wouldn't have heard about the Stalinmobile, for starters! Most of all, we'd have to do without the all-important ZAZ hoonage! The Russians can bash 'em into trees, do epic donuts, and- of course- roll 'em. Today, we get to see in-car video of a quartet of Russians taking a Zaporozhets up to the lunatic speed of 90 KM/H, wipe out in spectacular fashion, and walk away from the wreck. That's sure to be a long trudge back to the village for these guys. [English Russia]

Hoon of the Day: Zaporozhets Donuts

We've seen Russian hoons roll a ZAZ and we've seen them smash a ZAZ into a tree. But how about taking the little air-cooled, 26-horse Russian car and adding another 150 or so horsepower? Excellent idea! Of course, when you build such a Zaporozhets, a certain amount of hoonage seems inevitable.

And Now, Your Jalopnik Moment Of Zen...

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Bear Demolition Team Hates Your Non-Hybrid Sub-Compact

I should have been listening to Steven Colbert this entire time, but noooo. And now I witness a sub-compact ZAZ being subjected to the wrath of...bears! I know what's the source of the bears' rage, too—it's the environment. If we don't shape up and start driving the hell out of hybrids and other alternative energy vehicles, the bears will do this to all of our pre-hybrid rides. Yes, all holdouts will become victims of the number one threat of Colbert Report Threat-Down. We have been warned.[Presurfer]

In Russia, Astroturf ZAZ Confounds YOUR Hoodlums!

While trolling the tubes for more ZAZ-related goodness by searching for "запорожец" (Zaporozhets), we stumbled across this enigmatic camera-phone video of what appears to be a ZAZ completely covered with a nicely-applied coat of Astroturf. What are we to make of this, dear readers? Are these junior hoods gearing up to bash it into a suitable tree? You tell us!

In Russia, Safe Driving Benefits YOU!

There's apparently no end to the amazing car-related stuff the folks at English Russia provide for us; here's a vintage Russian driver's-ed handbook with scary illustrations and lines such as "Don't use vodka as a fuel/Or you'll crash your engine cruel." Best of all, the cars seem to be Zaporozhets! [English Russia]

Illegally Parked ZAZ? Into the Dumpster With It!

This story probably deserves a clever "In Russia, noun verb YOU!" title, but sometimes even Los Jalops get a bit burned out on that schtick (and besides, the car may be Russian, but the setting is Lithuanian). What's important here is the ruthless manner in which an illegally parked ZAZ gets removed; instead of the usual tow-away deal, a huge claw picks up the offending car and drops it in a dumpster. Betcha San Francisco is studying this system! [English Russia]

In Russia, ZAZ Shuts YOU Down!

Straight outta Holy Mother Russia comes this video of a ZAZ-968 Zaporozhets with quite a few more air-cooled horses in the back than the stock 42. We're not sure what's in the other lane, but it's not as quick as the ZAZ. And damn, that engine sounds meaner than Lavrenty Beria with a hangover.

ZAZ Meets Tree

We're not exactly sure what the mode of thinking was here beyond, "Hey Yuri! I think I'm gonna run my Zaporozhets into a tree!" "Sure, Pyotr! I know of a suitable tree! Now gimme another swig off that jug of Popov."

ZAZ + Bored Russians + Video Camera

It's pretty easy to picture the sequence of events leading up to this hoonage. After consulting with several econo-size jugs of vodka, four young Russians eyed the ol' Zaporozhets, then the empty stretch of dirt road, then the ZAZ again. The rest is hoonage history. According to the YouTube poster, "Everybody servived, only two of them hit their heads." We're assuming- well, hoping- that there were no serious injuries. This one gets +5 bonus points for the economical video editing and the obligatory Iron Curtain Vehicle 15-point bonus for the choice of car. Hoon-O-meter reading: 45 points!

Gonna Move into The Country, Gonna Drive Me a Lot of ZAZes!

If you're a dork in 1984 and your phone rings while you're washing your car, what do you do? Well, if you're a ZAZ man, you hit the fuckin' road, snackcake! And that's exactly what this Estonian man does, tearing up Baltic roads like Walter Rörhl on bad PCP. No, really.

In Russia, Air Brushes YOU!

The inimitable English Russia has a gallery from Russia's Aerograph 2007 show, featuring a smattering of obsessively-artified vehicles. Sadly, there's only one ZAZ among the bunch, but as Murilee is wont to say, "...And one Zaporozhets to rule them all!" In fact, most of the vehicles are of German origin, suggesting that while they may have turned around the Germans at Volgograd, Russia's well-heeled would rather drive Mercs than Volgas. [English Russia]

Get ZAZzed With Russian Ingenuity!

There's a lot of talk about DAF this and FAF that around these parts, but there's really no question that the mighty ZAZ stomps through the three-letter-acronymmed car world with the authority of a vodka-swilling Russian bear packing a PPSh-41. Thanks to the always-amazing English Russia, we can see what can be done with the air-cooled Zaporozhets in the hands of Russian madmen customizers. [English Russia]

Monster ZAZ, Y'all!

The Zaporozhets was generally considered a sub-optimal car for use on heavy snow during the Russian winter. However, give a Russian mechanic any vehicle and he'll do some Field Expedient Engineering that solves the problem! More »

ZAZtastic! The Incredible Tavria!

When Yevgeniy ran out of fuel in his Tavria, he stopped to grab a smoke and be alone with his thoughts. Could this proof that cigarettes are better than Mentos when it comes to inspiring bouts of improbable ideas? Was the Tavria truly this amazing? Or does Yevgeniy's lighter contain some sort of super-fuel? ZAZ for one! ZAZ for all! – Davey G. Johnson More »

It's Got ZAZ! Zaporozhets!

What a wonderfully dippy little Soviet automobile! Built at the ZAZ plant in the Ukraine, the Zaporozhets featured an air-cooled, rear-mounted V4 powerplant ranging up to 1.2L and had a face only Boris Yeltsin could love. Production of the 968M model ended in 1994, and with that, the Ukrainians got with the program and built a water-cooled front-driver called the Tavria. Is the Zaporozhets a prime candidate for the 'Busafication Politburo? Duh, comrade! – Davey G. Johnson More »