Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace): Motoring Motoring Discussion forum

Motoring Discussion > Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace)
Thread Author: VxFan	Replies: 43

View Threaded

Tue 17 Apr 12 21:20

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - VxFan

After more than 40 years on the road, Russia has finally decided to consign the much-ridiculed Lada to the scrapheap.

tinyurl.com/cmryca6 - Daily Mail

Also

themoscownews.com/business/20120417/189639979.html

Last edited by: VxFan on Tue 17 Apr 12 at 21:21

Reply to this message | Report message

Tue 17 Apr 12 21:30

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - RattleandSmoke

Its about time, it was out of date even 40 years ago.

I still have very fond memories of my dads Ladas though.

This car was just ten years old when this picture was taken! They really don't make them like this any more!

i167.photobucket.com/albums/u141/amazingtrade/lada.jpg

At 67,000 miles the piston rings had worn to nothing (hence clouds of blue smoke), and only 3 out of the 4 gears worked. In the picture it was being towed away to the scrap yard as the MOT was due in a few days time and we didn't even bother.

Last edited by: RattleandSmoke on Tue 17 Apr 12 at 21:31

Reply to this message | Report message

Tue 17 Apr 12 21:33

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - RattleandSmoke

PS the middle picture on the Daily Mail is not even a Lada! They can't get anything right! Looks like a Wartsberg or something. Also I believe they are still being made under licence in Egypt.

It is also one of the best selling designs of all time, with over 20 million produced.

Last edited by: RattleandSmoke on Tue 17 Apr 12 at 21:34

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 00:57

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - VxFan

>> PS the middle picture on the Daily Mail is not even a Lada!

I think it's a Moskvitch 2140 (In western countries it was known as Moskvich 1500)

www.oldrussiancars.com/archives/moskvich-2140

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 01:36

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - Badwolf

A taxi firm in Southport ran a couple of Rivas until about 1997-ish, if I remember correctly. Both were driven by blokes that closely resembled Riff-Raff from The Rocky Horror Picture Show. If I ever ordered a taxi from this particular firm, I'd end my call by stating firmly that I did not want a Lada, due entirely to the fact that the drivers of them were, in my opinion, downright dangerous.

A friend of mine ran a 1984 Riva in around 1994 and I drove it occasionally. I don't honestly recall it being too bad to drive to be honest. There's a couple of Rivas on Fleabay at the moment - this one is very nearly tempting: tinyurl.com/cyloclv

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 08:34

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - RattleandSmoke

From my dads it was heavy steering and poor brakes which were the main problem. Handling was a bit of an issue too.

I remember it being spacious and comfortable though, and he paid £800 for a four year old car which was almost as big as a Sierra.

The build quality could only be described as laughable with trim regularly falling off but was probably no worse than the 70's BL stuff but for the late 80's it was appalling.

Engine was pretty good I remember, my dad had the 1.2 which was an OHC 8v unit which produced around 60bhp. The problem was the car was so heavy and only had 4 gears so it took an age to get to 60. MPG was poor too.

PS If I had the money I would buy that Lada and stick in the lockup but I am not sure its worth any more than £500 despite it being extremely rare now.

Last edited by: RattleandSmoke on Wed 18 Apr 12 at 08:36

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 09:06

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - Dave_

>> There's a couple of Rivas on Fleabay at the moment - this one is very nearly tempting

"1500 catalyst model" - weren't they the only cars ever sold in the UK with a catalytic converter and a carburettor?

It would be bad enough getting any carb to stay in tune enough to meet the lambda conditions and not destroy the cat, but on an 18-year-old Lada? Forget it.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 09:08

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - bathtub tom

>>weren't they the only cars ever sold in the UK with a catalytic converter and a carburettor?

Mini (and Metro IIRC)

KIA Pride - how do I know that?

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 09:15

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - Dave_

>> Mini
>> KIA Pride

Out of the Lada and those two, there's only one I'd trust to keep working... ;)

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 09:17

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - RattleandSmoke

Legend has it than in 1995 there were a load of 1992 Ladas going in for the first MOT and failing badly on emissions.

My parents almost bought an ex demo Lada in 1992, but the dealer wanted £2500 and I think they decided it was just too much to spend on a Lada despite it only being a J reg. The E plate they did buy lasted 6 years so they probably did the right thing. The 200 mile J plate they nearly bought was a cat model.

Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 19 Apr 12 12:47

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - apm

Ironically BW, the description of that car on ebay describes it as a 'Time-Warp vehicle (sic)'.

Must explain why driven by Riff-Raff...

Reply to this message | Report message

Sat 21 Apr 12 11:19

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - Badwolf

>> There's a couple of Rivas on Fleabay at the moment - this one is very nearly
>> tempting: tinyurl.com/cyloclv

It ended up going for £825! Blimey!

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 09:14

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - Dog

The end of an error.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 09:19

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - RattleandSmoke

To be fair Ladas have done far more to people than BMWs or Audis. They have provided transport for people who otherwise could not afford it. They were crap in many ways but they were massive and from memory as late as 1997 they cost just under £4000 new. That was the 1.5 model as well which had about 80bhp.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 09:27

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - CGNorwich

I had two Lada's. As Rattle says they provided cheap family transport and in their day were not as bad as is often made out. In fact compared with other cars of the time they did offer quite a lot. Poorly made and finished certainly but mine got me to work and took the kids on holiday. I retain a certain affection for them.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 09:41

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - RattleandSmoke

They were very well equipped compared to the base spec super minis of the day. My dad had to L models. While neither had a radio or clock as standard they did have things like a cig lighter, lights in the glove box, head rests, light in the boot, the infamous toolkit etc.

I have fond memories of them because they allowed us to go to many family holidays in Wales on the brand new A55 expressway!.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 09:42

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - Dog

>>They have provided transport for people who otherwise could not afford it<<

I used to tune up Lada's, Polski Fiat's. FSO Polenez etc. etc. etc, I always gave them a roadtest afterwards and in all honesty that's about the best I could say about them really.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 10:22

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - VxFan

My old chargehand used to have a Riva Estate. It was quite literally built like a tank. The panels were twice as solid as my car at the time. The chassis rails basically consisted of two I beams running the full length of the car. He said it was the best car he ever had. Mind you, prior to that he had an old Austin 1100 for years.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 10:32

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - DP

Cheap, honest, simple cars. I drove a 2 yr old 1500 Riva once, and it was perfectly acceptable for the money. Nothing to shout about, but certainly not offensively bad. Went alright, steered and stopped alright, fairly spacious inside and felt more robust than anything British, French or Italian of the era (whether it actually was or not is debatable, admittedly).

I have driven far worse.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 10:45

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - CGNorwich

One of the good features was the heater. Designed for Moscow winters could provide an unbearable level of heat in minutes.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 12:08

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - Mike Hannon

The toolkits were good. Quid pro quo.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 12:34

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - CGNorwich

Still have and use the Lada tyre pump. Basic but it does the job

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 13:16

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - sajid

i remember when i passed my test in 1994 i was looking for a car and my mates had a contact number and told me that theres a car for sale for you, they neglected to mention to me what make it was, anyway i rang up and a lady spoke up telling me it got tax and mot and its 1300cc and i said what car was it you selling and she replied a lada i quickly put the phone down, obviously it was a joke from my mates

I ended up with a 85 civic 1300 dl 3 door hatchback, beautiful motor

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 14:03

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - Runfer D'Hills

Quite a long time ago, a Norwegian diving buddy of mine had a Lada 4x4. Cossack maybe? He used to be able to get that thing to the most inaccessible places loaded up with our gear. He reckoned it was deeply unpleasant on roads though. Unstoppable off them.

Last edited by: Humph D'Bout on Wed 18 Apr 12 at 14:06

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 14:09

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - diddy1234

isn't that what a proper off road car is ?

i.e. terrible on the road but brilliant of it.

Last edited by: diddy1234 on Wed 18 Apr 12 at 14:09

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 14:10

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - nyx2k

My late grandmother bought a new lada riva 1500 se in 1981.
it lasted about 5yrs before rust was terminal. one feature was it had a starting handle when battery was flat.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 14:39

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - -

The steering is usually heavy because as fast as you pour it into the steering box it flows out the bottom.

Timing chains rattled louder than the tappets on a 70's Simca.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 14:52

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - CGNorwich

Timing chains rattled louder than the tappets on a 70's Simca.

Owned both a Lada and a Simca 1000 but being mechanically inept never troubled by the noises! Lada was a better car than the Simca. Steering so light i had to put a bag of sand in the front luggage compartment.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 15:01

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - -

Steering so light i had to put a bag of sand in the front luggage compartment.
>>

Blimey CGN, you must have been wealthier than AC, i bet even he didn't stuff a £grand in the boot of the Bentley to stop it spinning out..:-)

Last edited by: gordonbennet on Wed 18 Apr 12 at 15:01

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 15:32

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - DP

My dad came close to buying a very tidy 3 yr old Niva in the late 80's. That was until a test drive showed it was completely intolerable on the road. I remember at 50 mph, you had to shout to hold a conversation through a combination of the engine screaming away due to ridiculously low gearing, and unbelievable tyre roar.

They are supposed to be unstoppable off road though.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 15:50

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - colino

When I was a boy at college, I made a healthy sum from buying rattling Ladas from the old meat market auction in Glasgow (bidding so fast the cars didn't actually stop, and newbies often bid on the wrong car!). That handy starting handle and 1/2 inch spanner made them silent in all of two minutes.

Reply to this message | Report message

Wed 18 Apr 12 16:22

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - Dog

Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 19 Apr 12 12:40

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - Dutchie

I had a lada,in good condition very comfy seats.Had a altercation with a Ford Sierra Lada won.

Reply to this message | Report message

Thu 19 Apr 12 22:09

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - slowdown avenue

recently in cuba where i had a lada taxi drive me a couple of hundred miles. it was 30 years old. had pistons made from cola cans ..
there were more horses in the road than cars . said to him you needed to be quite rich to have a horse in england. he repield ,in cuba, if you have a horse, your poor.

Reply to this message | Report message

Sat 21 Apr 12 12:43

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - Iffy

During an impecunious phase I had a secondhand Lada Samara.

Nowt wrong with it for £250, including 12 months MoT.

Reply to this message | Report message

Sat 21 Apr 12 13:34

Lada Riva - RIP (Rust In Peace) - Dog

>>I had a secondhand Lada Samara<<

Called a Sputnik in Russia.

Was yours a convertible Iffy:

www.cars-data.com/en/lada-samara-cabriolet-convertible-1995-1996-1250/photo.html

Is impecunious the same as being boracic?

Reply to this message | Report message