Text submitted by Igor Nikitin.
I had lived in Canada a number of years when I started shipping Ladas from Russia to North American clients (if I may call them that), in December 2011. I still remember deregistering the first car I exported – a 1986 Lada 2106 sedan.
My first import, on transit plates.
Everyone in the Road Police office thought I was joking when I said the car was going to the USA. I didn’t mean to surprise anyone, but they just couldn’t help to wonder, like “Where’s the car going, why are you deregistering it?”
Apparently, on the other side of the ocean people were also surprised to see a Russian vehicle parked on an American street, and soon upon the car’s arrival to Indiana, an article appeared on someone’s web blog. Maybe it is still there.
My previous failed import.
By the summer of 2019 I wanted to ship a Lada 2106 (my favorite Lada model) for myself, but one that I could actually register and drive in Canada. A previous attempt in the summer of 2016 didn’t work out; a 1990 Lada 2013 I brought over, but required repairs which I couldn’t afford back then.
Heading to a new home in BC.
I had also started a family and my child had been recently born, so the car was sold in BC, where it is used to this day.
So, in August 2019 I successfully imported and registered a purple 2003 Lada 2106 in Ontario. This model was in production without major (or should I say – any) changes from 1976 until 2005, therefore whoever approached me at parking lots used to say: “A great survivor!” – but it was not. It was simply a 15-year old car that was only driven in the summertime. It had original paint all over, 44K kms mileage and no rust. The only defect was a small barely noticeable dent on the front passenger door.
I enjoyed that car to the best of my abilities. In particular, I used to drive it in snowfalls that were rare in our region of Ontario. A heavy Ford wheel in the trunk contributed to a better traction (as Ladas are rear-wheel driven), and a 4-cylinder carbureted 1.6 liter engine was just enough for me to have fun and not get into trouble.
The next year, which happened to be a COVID year, the car was sold to a Hungarian enthusiast, who several months later sold it to another Russian-speaking guy, who sold it to… a guy from India. Eventually the car ended up in the garage of a guy with Italian roots. Around that time, I stopped monitoring my ex’s (what I used to call the Lada) fate after I messaged back and forth with that Italian guy. I got the impression that the car had finally found its long-term home.
Would I repeat this experience of shipping over another unusual car? Definitely! Imho, it is very important for a guy to have a toy – something that makes him excited to open the garage door each time. I do believe that grown-up men are boys who were lucky not to die in their early years, and thus, a toy is a must for a boy, even if he’s now not 5 but 45.
Talking about which, in 2021 for the sake of having a smaller toy, I imported a Soviet motorcycle – a 175cc Voskhod, but that is another story.
Related CC reading:
Vintage R&T Review: 1975 Lada 1500 – “… soon To Be Imported To The US”
Automotive History: An Unlikely Story – How Soviet Ladas Were Almost Sold In The US
I think during 1970-80s, Lada was legally imported into Canada. I often saw them running around in the streets of Montreal. If some of them still survive now, we could get one without going other countries to get them. Later time, Lada also introduced its Porsch design model to Canada along a small SUV. Back then, there was another East European car, Decia, from Romania was imported into Canada. It was based on French Rearult front wheel drive platform. Another one was very rare, Skoda, which had air-cooled rear engine. I read somewhere that Skoda is popular among the amateur dirt racing circles because of its over-steer characteristics. But those East European cars were not matched with Hyundai Pony, it was ultimate cheap vehicle in then Canada.
A good looking little sedan .
What is meant by “dergistering? .
-Nate
In Russia in order for a vehicle to be legally exported, it had to be taken off the local registry of vehicles, therefore “deregistered”.
Great little story, I recall lots of Ladas around in the early 1980’s, I got to drive a couple as part of my parking lot job. Honest simple cars that did not did not enjoy Canada’s salty winters, and quickly dissolved. The only one I’ve seen recently was derelict in a yard near Welland.
Circa May 1982, I recall the cars that regularly occupied the front row of the teacher’s parking lot, at my high school. The school was located in a small town of 5,000 in Southeastern Ontario, and had 1,000 students at the time.
From left to right, a recent model Lada Niva in beige. A high profile location, beside where the school buses exited the school property. Next a 1975 Oldsmobile Delta 88 sedan in medium green (Sage Green?), with a dark green vinyl top. Belonged to a Librarian. Next, a 1976 Buick LeSabre sedan in silver, with a dark red vinyl top. I liked that small window, Buick added to the C-pillar. Belonged to a senior history teacher. Next, a 1980 Pontiac Phoenix two-door notchback, in silver. Belonged to a geography teacher. Next, a motorcycle. Don’t recall the make or owner. A few others spots, were reserved for visitors.
Lada sedans, Lada Nivas, Skoda 120s, the Dacia 1300, were not uncommon in larger cities. Rare in rural regions. By 1984, the Hyundai Pony was popular on a much larger scale. Unlike the European makers and Lada, Hyundai opened dealerships in smaller communities, outside of large cities. Flash in the pan, describes the Pony. As it turned out to be highly vulnerable to rust. Comparable to, or surpassing, Chevrolet Vega-level vulnerability to rust. Lada did regularly run quarter-page sized black and white print ads, in major daily newspapers.
Forty years later, South Korea is heavily courting Canada, to become a new major military supplier.
Some car makers tested the small Canadian market, before considering entering the large US market. As road salt use is so heavy here, with cold winters, not a great market for fragile cars.
Great story – and I’m glad these cars have some enthusiasts in North America.
A few years ago I saw my first Lada in person – I think it’s a 2105, though I’m not positive about this – and it’s been done up in autocross-type style. I presume the owner actually races it, but regardless it seemed to be in excellent condition, so I wondered at the time whether it was imported this way or restored after having been imported.
Wow! Great discovery. Pride of ownership, on display. The tomato red, adds a solid Italian vibe.
That is a 2105 model indeed, and most likely it’s been imported this way. Restoring in the US is expensive, especially bodywork.
Thanks for confirming it’s a 2105. It was in great condition – here’s a picture of the interior:
A Russian made Fiat… what could possibly go wrong! Rust was standard equipment from the factory.
Being a vintage bike fan too, I’d like to see that Voskhod 175.. dirt or street ?
Regarding, rebranded rustbuckets: “Fool us twice. Shame on us.”
Canadians should have learned their lesson when GM rebranded the Vega, as a Pontiac. While selling it exclusively, in perhaps the harshest country on the planet, for exposure to road salt, and vulnerability to rust.
Street. I plan to submit the article to the editors soon.
“Rust was standard equipment from the factory”.
Even in dry places, like Australia, but it raises an interesting question: did the Ladas dissolve in Russia also? In fact, does Russia use salt?
I do know from a Classic & Sportscar article that these Ladas used thicker gauge steel than the Fiats, but still…
If I recall correctly, in Russia they use mostly sand, especially in smaller communities. In Moscow they used some kind of chemical mixture that melts the snow and makes it a black(!) liquid. I have a photo of my white VW Passat all black after a trip to Moscow.
“..my ex’s”
I really laughed at that. I’d hazard a guess that 95% of CCers would confess to thinking that way about their former cars. If a great car, “I hope they’re treating it well”, and if it was a dud (and you didn’t like the new partner, aka the buyer), “I hope it drains their bloody wallet too!”
“I do believe that grown-up men are boys who were lucky not to die in their early years..”
Philosophically, I have to disagree with that (the man-child thing has excused far too much crap behaviour by men), but on another level, yeah, you’re not wrong: like most boys, I was an idiot. And as a grown-up, I’d like a toy…
As a Californian, I’ve seen many Canadian-plated, mostly British Columbia, cars here. Almost all Japanese or domestic brands, maybe Hyundai’s and Kia’s recently. But I’ve only seen one Lada in California, along with one or two British cars that weren’t sold in the US (Ford Cortina Mk3 is one I remember). Perhaps just a function of their relative popularity; but probably also an indicator of their owners’ confidence in driving 1000 miles from home. Still, as mid-60’s boxes go, the Lada and its Fiat 124 progenitor are still very handsome to me.
In a Canadian movie titled “1987”, the producers of the movie disguised a Fiat 124 into a Lada.
https://imcdb.org/vehicle_685858-Fiat-124-Special-132A9-1974.html
I love stories like this; every brand deserves an enthusiastic following.
Great car and story. What is the process like to deregister and export? Perhaps harder these days?
I’d love a UAZ van but would not know where to even start.
In fact, even now it is possible to import any vehicle or bike from Russia.
In terms of UAZ: if you want a “bukhanka” van – they are harder to import nowadays. However, a US dealership that I work with is currently in the process of shipping a couple of them. If you want a UAZ SUV – there are lots of them in the EU. I live in the EU for the last 1.5 years and shipped several Eastern Bloc cars to Canada and the US from here.
Ideally a bukhanka van but I do like both. The problem is I am generally a bit cheap so I probably would not stomach the probable price tag. How much do they generally go for?
If you import yourself (instead of buying the one already imported and titled) expect to spend (purchase + shipping) not less than 10K USD for a decent UAZ that looks good and drives. Dealers will be likely charging double (judging by the listings that I saw in the past).
The Lada had kind of a cult following in British Columbia. They were bought mostly by aging hippies trying to show the man that communism works. The problem with the Lada was quality control. You could get one that motored along nicely and one that was total junk. It was a crapshoot which one you got.
The Nanaimo area of Vancouver Island was full of granolas in the early 1980s and dead Ladas were in many back yards.
These cars can run forever, provided they received a cavity treatment when they were young and then repeated every few years.
In the land behind the “Iron Curtain,” this was regularly done because waiting times for a new car were horrendous (usally several years!).