History and description of the Chevrolet Niva car

Chevrolet Niva — is a mini-SUV produced by the joint venture of AvtoVAZ and General Motors since 1998. The car is a further evolution of the Lada Niva SUV (VAZ-2121). At the design stage it was called VAZ-2123. The engine is located in the front transversely with permanent all-wheel drive. It is possible to lock the center differential and engage a low gear. In total, more than 600 thousand cars were produced.

First generation (2002–2017)

The development of an alternative to the regular Niva at AvtoVAZ began in the late 1980s. The concept of the new VAZ-2123 Niva was shown to the public at the Moscow International Motor Show in 1998. Small batches of cars were produced in 2001, and in 2002, the joint venture GM-AvtoVAZ was created and the rights to this model were transferred to this company. The initial price was almost twice as high as the classic Niva VAZ-2121.

Shniva is produced in two trim levels - the basic L trim level and the improved GLS, which includes leather seats plus heated front seats, a more advanced audio system, isothermal tinted glass, fog lights, etc. You can also see the LC and GLC badges, which correspond to the already described trim levels, but with air conditioning. Since 2004, all exterior rear-view mirrors have been electrically driven and heated. Almost all parts of the car (98%) are Russian.

Only one engine variant was installed - a petrol injection engine with a volume of 1.7 liters and a power of 80 hp at 5000 rpm, a torque of 127 Nm at 3800 rpm, a 4-cylinder in-line engine. The transmission is also one 5-speed manual.

In November 2006, they began to produce the FAM-1 modification with the factory index VAZ-21236. It was equipped with an Opel Z18XE engine with a volume of 1.8 liters and a power of 125 hp at 5600 rpm and a torque of 170 N·m at 3800 rpm. In addition, the car had a richer configuration and options (airbags, air conditioning, ABS system, etc.). In 2008, the FAM-1 project was closed and only about a thousand of these vehicles were produced. There is also a modification called "Trophy", designed for off-road driving.

In 2009, the car was restyled. This was done by the Italian design company Stile Bertone. That same year, 150 cars were released in a special black non-metallic color with chrome elements for the seventh anniversary of Shniva production. In 2010, 300 cars were released in a light lilac color with unique elements. For the 100th anniversary of the Chevrolet company, 300 anniversary cars were released - 250 in dark gray-green metallic and 50 in bright red metallic. For the 12th anniversary of the car, a limited special series in silver-green metallic ("Tundra") was also released.

The car's safety was checked in the ARCAP crash test in 2003. The result was rather sad - only 1.6 points out of 16 and not a single star was awarded.

Second generation (2017–present)

The concept of the second generation of Shniva was presented to the public at the Moscow Motor Show in 2014. Production was planned to begin in 2016, but in March 2015, development was suspended. At the moment, stamping and body shops have been built, construction of a plant for the production of engines developed by PSA Peugeot Citroën has begun, and road tests of the pre-production model have been completed.

Chevrolet Niva concept, second generation

Chevrolet Niva, second generation, back view

Chevrolet Niva, second generation, front view