"Volin" LuAZ-969M ("Волынь" ЛуАЗ-969М)

"Volin" LuAZ-969M ("Волынь" ЛуАЗ-969М)

Manufacturer	Lutsk Automobile Plant (Luaz)
Model name	"Volin" LuAZ-969M ("Волынь" ЛуАЗ-969М)
Years of production	1979 - 1996
Body style	3 door phaeton
Car layout	4 × 4. front-engine, all wheel drive
Engine	MeMZ-969A, 4 cyl. 1.2 L. 40 hp.
Transmission	4-speed manual
Max speed	85 km/h
Fuel tank capacity	34 L
Fuel consumption	10 L / 100 km.
Dimensions	3370x1640x1790 mm.
Cargo capacity	400 kg.
Curb weight	970 kg.

The LuAZ (ZAZ) -969 was a Soviet four-wheel drive automobile built by the Zaporizhia Automobile Building Plant (ZAZ) the Lutsk Automobile Plant (Luaz). The first Soviet vehicle with front wheel drive, it was based on the LuAZ (ZAZ) -967.

Developing ideas from the unbuilt Moskvitch 415 prototype, designers used the LuAZ-967 as a basis for a four-wheel drive vehicle. They added a body to the LuAZ's bare form, and fitted a 30 hp (22 kW; 30 PS) 887 cc (54.1 cu in) MeMZ 966 air-cooled four-cylinder engine. No other mechanical changes were made.

A pre-production batch of fifty was created in 1965, dubbed ZAZ-969, and production was authorized in 1966 as the 969V.

Its pioneering (for a Soviet car) front wheel drive was due to a lack of drivable rear axles from the supplier, which was giving priority to the LuAZ-967. Nevertheless, the 969 performed well, with a weight of only 1,340 kg (2,950 lb) (thanks in part to a soft top) and an 1,800 mm (71 in) wheelbase.The transmission was a four-speed. Since 1967, the car has been manufactured at the Lutsk Automobile Plant (LuAZ), four-wheel drive became standard. Аlthough until 1975 it was produced under the ZAZ brand.

In 1975, the LuAZ-969A replaced the original 969, offering a new 40 hp (30 kW; 41 PS) 1,197 cc (73.0 cu in) MeMZ 969 four-cylinder engine. It survived until 1979.

This was followed by a hard-top panel van version in 1977, known as the 969F, with a 400 kg (880 lb) payload, which was only built in small quantities.
LuAZ began developing a replacement for the 969A in 1974, the 969M, exhibited in our museum. It entered production in 1979 and was named Volin, for the region around Lutsk (where the factory was located).

It retained the 40 hp (30 kW; 41 PS) engine, but changed to disk brakes with servo assist. Door locks were added. Folding windshield was standard.

Exports were limited, though it proved popular in Italy, where Martorelli also offered it with a Ford engine.

Since 1992, the production of the "Volyn" - a modernized version of the 969M with Tavria 53 hp engine (1992 - 2002) began.

Other modifications:

LuAZ 13021 "Volyn" a pick-up version of 1302 (1991-1998)

LuAZ 2403 airport tractor (1979-1992)

LuAZ vehicles have been notorious for poor crash test ratings. Consequently, countless people have been ejected from these vehicles in accidents. Seatbelts did not become optional until the 2006 model year.

(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)