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Fiat that the USSR bought wasnm't exactly a pinnacle of automotive engineering to begin with (as an American joke goes, FIAT stands for "Fix it again, Tony", do
by Fins 8y ago
Fiat that the USSR bought wasnm't exactly a pinnacle of automotive engineering to begin with (as an American joke goes, FIAT stands for "Fix it again, Tony", doesn't it?)
Initially, while all the Italian equipment was operating within design tolerances, Italian expendables were used, and designs weren't tweaked, it wasn't terrible for what it was. But that did not last long, and quality went downhill.
To add insult to injury, Lada (or strictly speaking Zhiguli, Lada was the export name, and those were built slightly better) was a highest-end car a normal person could buy (after waiting in line for a few years, of course) without being "somebody".
- tonyedgecombe 8y agoThe Fiat 124 won care of the year in 1967. Although like most Italian cars of the era they didn't like the salted roads and damp air of Northern Europe. The Lada was quite different[1], in particular it was heavier to cope with Soviet roads. [1] https://jalopnik.com/the-first-lada-was-way-more-than-just-a-re-badged-fiat-1722260844 https://jalopnik.com/the-first-lada-was-way-more-than-just-a...
- Fins 8y agoBut "Car of the year" doesn't mean that it was better than a Ferrari, or a Royce either. Also, Fiat lacked Soviet build quality.