CHEVROLET NIVA test drive since 2002 SUV

Between the two worlds

For a long time, Chevrolet Niva has existed as a ghost. It seems to be a car, but you can’t see. The VAZ management is not a car, but in the summer we almost encountered it on one of the St. Petersburg streets. Now the ghost has come out of the shadow ...
 
Russia and the USA unites a lot. In particular, large spaces and huge regions of the provinces (outback) with a low population density and far from ideal roads. Still - a variety of climatic zones: from hot deserts to ice tundra. By virtue of this, the American approach in the automotive industry should be closer to us than historically established - due to geographical proximity - European.
 
Classical domestic SUVs - UAZ and Niva - have always been famous for patency and practicality. Therefore, it is natural that as a result of cooperation between General Motors and AvtoVAZ, a car was supposed to appear that combines the comfort and attractive appearance of Americans with a low price and unpretentiousness of Russians.
 
In the appearance of the car, the features of the parents are easily read. So, if the radiator grille is a real Chevrolet, then the anterior optics with the upper arrangement of the turn signals - curtsy towards the classic field. The car is harmonious. Its design, completely worked out and solid, is not devoid of a concept. The quality of the body is on top. The doors are slammed easily, even a massive rear. The gaps of honey with panels are smooth.
 
When looking at the interior, the impression is that it was made at some other enterprise. Traditional domestic style. The kingdom of cheap plastic. Whatever you take, and look break off. The front seats with heating are wonderful, but, God, why is the wiring to them lying down right under the feet of the rear passengers and disappears under the lid of the central tunnel, simply hung with it?! When folding the rear seat, decorative panels sprinkled, but the operation itself is easily carried out. A small step still remains, but everything falls back in its place without a hitch. For unknown reasons, a heavy standard jack does not have not only its place, but even elementary fixation, so the trunk flies through the buggles on bumps.
 
The front seats are the most convenient of those that are primarily installed on domestic cars. The chairs are slightly reminiscent of French: the pillows are soft, strongly poured. In appearance, deprived of lateral support, seats acquire it under load.
 
The steering wheel of a small diameter fits comfortably in the hands, but is made of unpleasant plastic to the touch. The column is adjustable along the angle of inclination.
 
On the central console, the controls of the heater (ordinary stove), additional light and heating of the rear window, as well as an ashtray and even a cup holder, which, however, were not able to pull out the proximity of the KP lever, are located. He himself, although he was not pleased with the clarity of inclusions, has good selectivity and is conveniently located. Immediately - the transmission mode switch: neutral, ordinary and low rows. When driving on one and another row, you can use the forced blocking of the center differential.
 
A review from the driver’s place is good both forward (just the irregularities of the windshield are slightly distorting the picture), and back - thanks to the burdocks traditionally large for the vase (though the driver’s mirror trembled on the move, like a sheep’s tail, due to the malfunction of the adjustment drive).
 
The pedals block is convenient and does not require addiction. Thanks to the Roll hydraulic power steering, the machine, unlike the parent, is controlled comfortably, without stress.
 
We moved to the description of the movement, and here it is appropriate to consider the car in its two versions - asphalt and off -road. The impressions of both are significantly different.
 
There is clearly not enough motor on the road, you have to twist it to the top. During the test, the engine stalls several times at idle. In the cabin, something is constantly rattling. But handling is good. The new SUV in the city and on the highway behaves much better than all the vases. The steering wheel is informative. When maneuvering and parking, you do not have to strain hands. On the highway is always a clear zero and a confident move up to the limit of 140 km/h.
 
In the bend on dry asphalt, the reaction to the accelerator is practically absent - the torque is not enough for all -wheel drive. The behavior of the car is stable. On a more slippery coating in response to adding gas, the front wheels slide out the turn. That is, habits - front -wheel drive, within reasonable limits. The rolls are insignificant.
 
A city trip, like in the previous field, tires more than on most other cars. However, comfort has increased markedly: the gearboxes, although it is noisy, but slightly, besides, due to the elongated base, the effect of the goat has disappeared, and the suspension has become softer.
 
With the exit to the lane, the car is transformed, like a seal that has fallen from the shore into the water. Movement through the soil turns into a pleasant process. The suspension is endlessly energy -intensive (it has never been possible to break it off). There is enough thrust with more than. A small increase in noise only masks transmission sounds and is perceived for granted. The car itself spurks to an energetic driving.
 
On a heavier off -road, it is worth turning on a lower row, and there will be practically no insurmountable barriers on the path of a car. He takes any slopes playfully, without tension - crawls to himself and crawls without disruptions and other surprises. It is very difficult to hang it diagonally, and if you do not do it on purpose, it is hardly possible. We traveled along frozen soil covered with a layer of snow, on city wheels - and not the slightest hint of a slip. But you can still connect locks ...
 
Clutch deserves separate compliments. Soft and slightly stretched out on the closure, it, coupled with a comfortable handbrake, allows you to move on the rise of any steepness without a hint of rollback. When using a lowering, the engine looks painful enough so that you are confident in it.
 
Chevrolet Niva has more advantages than disadvantages. Moreover, all its advantages are fundamental. Here is a successful layout, an excellent suspension, and controllability in combination with the weight and balance of the tires - another passenger car will envy this. An important role is played by a finished design that does not require ennoblement.
 
Well, you can save the car from flaws: improve the assembly quality, equip it with a more powerful engine, replace excessively cheap details in the cabin. Such work on the shoulder and the factory (we hope that it will not stop there), and the tuning workers. The most important thing is that we have not seen a single problem for which we would have to get into the geometry and body design, the location of units or governing bodies.
 
At the moment, there is more a field in the car than Chevrolet. However, it is indisputable that we have the most progressive domestic car. It is a little sad because all the high -quality jumps of our automobile industry are somehow connected with foreign companies. First, Ford - Gas, then Opel - AZLK and FIAT - VAZ, now here GM. However, it is also true that each such injection brought us to a new level.
 
I would like to believe that Chevrolet Niva of subsequent issues will get rid of childhood diseases, preserving the solid baggage of their advantages.
 
Technical characteristics of Chevrolet Niva
 
The body is a station wagon
Number of places, people. - 5
Equipped mass, kg - 1350
Dimensions (length/width/height), mm - 4048/1770/1652
Base, mm - 2450
Maximum speed, km/h - 140
Control consumption of fuel, l/100 km:
- City cycle - 10.8
- Zagorod - 8.6
Engine:
- Type - gasoline., In order, 4 -dig.;
- working volume, cm3 - 1690
- Power, L.S. at MIN -1 - 80/5000
- torque, NM at min -1 - 127.5/4000
- power supply - distributed injection
Transmission - mechanical., 5 -speed, constant full. drive unit
Tire size - 205/75R15
Wheel suspension - spring;
- the front - independent, 2 -crap
- rear - dependent, 5 -stang
Brakes (front/rear) - disk/drum
Steering - with gur
Price, $ - 9300
 
A few questions to John Milonas, General Director of the SP GM-Autsovaz.
 
- How do you assess the quality of Russian components?
 
- There was a stereotype that Russian enterprises are in principle unable to produce quality products. This is not true. Often, components have to be rude only due to external defects due to poor packaging. It is not so difficult to achieve high quality products, and many of our partners were able to do this without significant costs: it is easier for small enterprises to rebuild for our requirements, unlike giants with a ossested management structure and quality control.
 
- Will your compatriots manage the enterprise?
 
- Here, from the very beginning, the philosophy and standards of GM are being introduced, so people with extensive experience in the corporation were assigned to key posts. However, this does not mean at all that the Russians are retreating from the management process: four of the eight directors of the joint venture are Russian citizens.
 
- You say that you are striving for the quality standards of GM, what is this expressed?
 
- Full quality control of components is carried out on the joint venture. For example, at the VAZ section for assembling gearboxes for Chevy Niva, the same quality control system was introduced as at GM factories. The organization of the production process also fully meets the requirements of GM. So, any collector can stop the conveyor when a defect is detected or in a different kind of problem: the work will continue only after their elimination. That is why we are so slowly increasing the production of cars.
 
- What are the priority goals of the joint venture?
 
- Our main goal is to take one of the leading places in the automotive market of Russia, having entered it with a product of European quality, affordable for the price for the Russian consumer.
 
Text: Dmitry Sokolov
 

Source: Magazine 5 wheel [12/2002]