Jalopnik: vladimir putin

Vladimir Putin's Lada Niva Is Totally Bad-Ass

Ben Wojdyla — Tue, 19 May 2009 12:00:00 EDT

The Lada Niva is the coolest Soviet-era vehicle still in production. Given that, it makes sense Russia's alpha-male "not-president" Vladimir Putin has purchased a totally awesome camouflaged and off-road-ready version.

The car is as much a publicity stunt as anything else, with Russia's de facto leader posing in the car in order to encourage buyers in Russia's down automobile market. That doesn't cloud the sheer awesomeness of this Niva though. It's outfitted with an array of available options including a grille guard, winch, roof rack, a snorkel and... what's this? Gasp! American-made BF Goodrich All-Terrain T/A tires? The greedy hand of the capitalist pigs reaches very far. Anyway, the car was trotted out for the press where the Prime Minister of Russia extolled the virtues of the brutish little car and invited some of the press to take it for a drive. Wonder if he'd let us take it for a spin? (Thanks for the tip Michael)

[USAToday]

At Least The Volga Will Be Remembered Fondly

Matt Hardigree — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 18:00:00 EST

Another photo from the happy past shows former Presidents Bush And Putin driving the Russian leader's awesome 1956 Volga around Moscow. Four years later and Russian-American relations have never been stronger!

Official Caption
This May 8, 2005 file photo shows US President George W. Bush (R) and Russian President Vladimir Putin waving as the two leaders take a ride in Putin's 1956 Volga before dinner at Putin's residence outside Moscow.

Photo Credit: TIM SLOAN/AFP/Getty Images

We Will Bury You! The ZIL-111

Mike Bumbeck — Tue, 01 May 2007 21:00:00 EDT

While Ladas and Zastavas were all fine and good for the workers, the big shots rolled in a ZIL. The company was born as ZIS at the hands of the Fathers of the USSR - including but not limited to Stalin himself. The Post-Stalinist ZIL brought American styling cues into the mix with the likes of Yuri Gagarin and Nikita Kruschev waving from the drop top. Current Russian President Vladimir Putin rolled into the 2001 G8 Summit in a restored ZIL-111, but did not take off any shoes. – Mike Bumbeck

Meet Me At The Red Star Drive-In, Comrade! [Internal]

The Russians Are Coming! The Russians Are Com... Oh Crap, They're Here

Jonny Lieberman — Sun, 04 Feb 2007 03:01:08 EST

Westlake, California, February 3, 2007. Apparently the Russian uber-multinational is going to save us American consumers money by not wasting it on a team of graphic designers obsessed with the finer points of signage. And if rumors hold, Gasprom Chairman Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is going to swap jobs with Putin in 2008. Meaning that ex-KGB chief Vladimir himself will be selling premium fuel to yuppie Benzes in bourgeois paradise. A brave new world, indeed. – Jonny Lieberman

Gasprom [wikipedia]

Related:
Meet Me At The Red Star Drive-In, Comrade! [Internal]