Chevrolet Niva: Ready For War
The Niva moniker will certainly bring up memories of the small Russian truck that was sold here quite a few years ago. Originally sold by Lada, the little 4x4 had a mixed reputation: it was reliable and simple enough to be repaired with a piece of string and a hammer, but it also rusted quite badly and would sometimes break in two when taken off-road. After only a few short years, the Niva was discontinued.
The company that owns Lada, AvtoVAZ, was eventually bought by Nissan/Renault. But before that, the Russian company had tie-ins with GM, among others. One of those deals saw the creation of the Chevrolet Niva, spiritual successor to the Lada, in 1998.
In Europe, the Niva sells relatively well, so to generate even more buzz for the new version of this SUV, Chevrolet just unveiled a modified version of it at the Moscow Auto Show. The Niva is equipped with an off-road suspension and tires, auxiliary headlights, a roof rack, matte black paint job and even a snorkel. The truck looks like it is ready to roll unnoticed into enemy territory… which may not be the best image to present, if you think about what is happening in Russia these days!
