At the former Renault plant in Moscow, where Duster and Sandero cars were also manufactured before the war, the production of new Muscovites began, bringing the brand back to life with the help of the Chinese. Reuters notes that the model closely resembles a model called Sehol X4 released by JAC.

The brand’s revival was announced in the spring, and many laughed and others marveled at the idea. Renault pulled out of Moscow’s Avtoframos plant in May after increasing international pressure amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFF9cpm17h4

The model is called Moskvich 3, it is a crossover, it has a gasoline engine, alloy wheels and a central display with a touch screen. It is obvious that parts from China were used and the Chinese played an important role in the creation of this model.

The first models have already been produced and deliveries are due to start in September, with 600 cars planned to be produced this year. To manufacture these Moskvich cars, the Kamaz company, known mainly for trucks, works with Chinese partners.

Photo by Ramil Sitdikov, Sputnik, Profimedia

The Russians say they have built a production line and want to reach 100,000 cars a year, but it seems very hard to believe that will happen.

The Russian market will end the year with the sale of less than a million new cars, which is the lowest figure in the entire history of statistics.

The history of the “Moskvich” brand began in 1929, when an automobile factory was founded in Moscow, which since 1930 produced Ford models under a US license with American spare parts.

However, “Moskvich” became one of the most beloved brands in the USSR, there were also sports cars, they reached export even to Great Britain, and in 2016 it was estimated that there are still a million cars of this brand on the streets of Russia. .

According to the latest data in the fleet, there are 543 Moskvich cars registered in Romania. Models of the Soviet brand were very popular in our country in the 70s and 80s, being considered somewhat more interesting in design than Lada. The Moskvich-408 model was particularly successful.

Moskvich also produced several sports cars, but it was a super-niche company, the core of which was serial models that sold well in the 70s and 80s, such as the Moskvich-2141 Aleko, released in 1986. The fact that cars of the brand could be repaired “by the block” was also of little importance, and many Russians had knowledge in auto mechanics, so there was no need to go to the service station often.

After 1995, production dropped so much and the situation became so dire that after a few months workers were paid in parts instead of money.

The last attempt to save was made in 1998, when the factory released a model that was considered premium and was named “Ivan Kalita” in honor of the famous Moscow prince of the 14th century.

The last wagons were manufactured in 2001, in 2003 the bankruptcy procedure began and in 2006 this procedure was completed. The plant produced very few spare parts until 2010.

Part of the “Moskvich” plant was absorbed and repaired by the “Renault” company, which in 1998 began the construction of the “Avtoframos” plant, which was handed over to the Moscow City Hall in the spring.