You can treat “Niva” in different ways ... For someone it is a car “of a long-time outdated design”, for others it is a “super passable vehicle” with which an imported SUV cannot be compared, even though a foreign car is several times more expensive. There are people for whom Lada Niva is a "time machine" - got into it and remembered childhood or what happened ten years ago, almost always such memories are warm.
But for many people, in countries with not very good roads, Lada 4x4 (as the Niva is now called) is not only a cross-country vehicle, but also a small truck. On such a machine, you can transfer agricultural goods, building materials and much more. It is for such people that AvtoVAZ produces the VAZ-2329 model. This car differs fundamentally from the usual VAZ-21213 - they have different types of bodies: VAZ 2329 has a pickup body.
The exterior of the car Lada 4 × 4 Pickup is "painfully" familiar. The same grille as on the base "Niva". The grille is made of black plastic; today it is no longer possible to choose a car with a chrome grille. Above the round headlights are the turn signal indicators and dimensions. On the side, the car is slightly longer than the VAZ-21213.
The rear part can change its appearance depending on the chosen "cover" for the cargo platform. It can be a plastic cover that is higher than the roof level, a plastic cover of another version will be flush with the car roof ... A soft awning can be offered. The door handles are the same as those installed on the first classic models, with them the car looks quite neat.
In the cabin, this pickup is a "regular Lada 4x4". Instrument cluster with a simple instrument cluster, where the speedometer and tachometer take the main place. The engine temperature gauge stands out quite clearly. New "Niva", in any of the versions, have much more comfortable seats. The fact is that they received a little lateral support, the back became higher, and the profile itself is more successful for the back of a person - you don't get so tired in such a chair. The vents from the doors have disappeared, now the front glass is large, resembles a "seven", and not a "penny" - in shape. If in the Zhiguli cabin the handles for passengers were something foreign, then in Lada 4 × 4 they are very useful. When the car is going fast on a bad road or going up a steep hill, it is very good to have something to hold on to.
For a car with a "Pickup" body, the rear leaf spring suspension is traditional, but for the VAZ-2329 it is a "feature". She makes some adjustments to the movement of the car. Small irregularities the car passes quite comfortably, but on large irregularities sitting in the car - throws up. This statement is true for an empty car, but if you load it up (and pickups are always designed specifically for driving with a load), then the chassis becomes much more "even". The springs allow you to carry more cargo on board compared to the shock absorbers.
The Lada 4 × 4 pickup truck is mainly designed for driving on broken provincial roads, or on dirt roads. It will not be as easy for her to walk on difficult terrain as in the short-base "Niva". After all, the VAZ 2329 is a heavier and longer car - this in itself is a minus when driving over rough terrain. Nevertheless, the car inherited a center differential lock, low gears and permanent four-wheel drive. The wheel travels of the Lada 4x4 are great - the car is able to set an example for many foreign all-terrain vehicles, and even more for pickups, where a good road ends.
If we talk about the characteristics of the Lada 4x4 Pickup in detail, then in comparison with the standard Lada 4x4, the VAZ-2329 model has added in length, and its wheelbase has increased to 2700 mm. The height and width of the standard machine remain the same. Dimensions are as follows: 4520 mm (length), 1680 mm (width) and 1640 mm (height).
More often, under the hood of a Lada 4x4 pickup, you can find a power plant with a volume of 1.7 liters. The engine develops 80 horsepower and 127 Nm of torque. The torque itself is not bad, but if you turn on a lower gear, the car will go without pressing the gas pedal. This is very useful on difficult off-road terrain where the likelihood of a jerk should be minimized. The main pair installed on the VAZ-2329 and 21213 is the same as on the "sixes" - 3.9. According to the Zhiguli classification, this G.P. was considered the fastest (it was installed only on the most powerful "1.6-liter six").
Lada 4 × 4 Pickup with 1.7-liter engine is capable of 135 kilometers per hour on the highway. Well, this pickup simply does not have "dynamics" - acceleration to one hundred kilometers takes 21 seconds.
There are also engines with a volume of 1.8 liters - these are the engines originally intended for the Nadezhda model (VAZ-2130). Such an engine has a volume larger by 100 cubic meters (it was achieved with a crankshaft with a stroke of 84 mm, instead of the "Nivovsky" one - 80 mm). On the move, the difference in thrust is noticeable, the 2130 engine is more high-torque, but the passport data indicate that the set of speed is only one second faster in comparison with the “base engine”.
Fuel consumption with the 1.7-liter engine is 10.1 liters at a speed of 90 kilometers. And with a 1.8-liter at a speed of 90 kilometers, it consumes 10.3 liters.
The carrying capacity of the Lada 4 × 4 Pickup is 600 kg (despite the fact that the curb weight of the car is 1320 kg). In terms of carrying capacity, this pickup has good performance.
The price for the VAZ-2329 in 2010 starts at 387,000 rubles. This is not a small cost, because for this money you can buy a passenger car, a relatively new design, but for its class it is a very low cost. In the minimum configuration, the Lada 4 × 4 Pickup will not be equipped with an awning, and the engine will be basic - 1.7 liters.
There is also a little-known version of the Lada 4 × 4 Pickup - VAZ 2329 MSI. The car has a redesigned body: its width, height and length have grown. The dimensions of such a car are: 4700, 1780, 1840 mm. As a rule, such vehicles are purchased by rescue services. After all, the machine is already equipped with a winch and a crane as standard. The lifting capacity of the crane boom is 300 kg, it is designed for clearing debris and helping in construction.
