Lada

The factory producing the cars is called VAZ. On the domestic market Lada is called Zhighuli[?]. They also produce cars called Oka, Tarzan and Nadezhda[?], in addition to the Samara and Niva.

While the vehicle's basic designs were OK - indeed, at the time the Niva had superior mechanicals and suspension setup to comparably-priced small Japanese SUVs - the quality of manufacture was typically below-par. Whilst sanctions banned their export to the United States, they were available in several Western countries, including Canada, where they became the butt of jokes, for example:

Q: How do you double the resale value of a Lada?
A: Fill the tank with petrol.

Q: What happened to Lada? Probably disappeared with the USSR?
A: Lada still exists, nowdays they have a co-operation with General Motors.

Links

• Lada official site (http://www.vaz.ru/)
• Lada category at ODP (http://dmoz.org/Recreation/Autos/Makes_and_Models/Lada/)