GAZ-M20 'laqua; Victory» — car with a saying name. This car appeared at the age of 'nbsp; light when its 'nbsp; Rodina was lying in the 'nbsp; ruins after the worst war in the 'nbsp; world history. It was < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < << <> > > <> <i> <i> < <i> <i> <i> <i> <i> <i> <a 0; <a 1; <a 2; > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Well, a 3; produce one of a 4; the most famous autonaecdotes, of course.
Victory before Victory
The work on Victory began in the midst of the Great Patriotic War. In early February 1943, immediately after the end of the Battle of Stalingrad, an important meeting was held at the Middle Engineering Drug Control Center. GAZA’s chief designer, Andrei Alexandrovich Lipgart, presented the country’s leadership with a bold plan for a post-war model factory. It also included a brand-new car, which was to replace the pre-war Emke (GAZ-M1). As early as 1938, GAS studied world autoprom trends and concluded that the future was behind the body, hydraulic brakes, and independent front suspension. The German Opel Capitan of 1938, which became a kind of technical donor for some of the units of the new Soviet machine, became a living example to study these nodes shortly before the war. As early as November 6, 1944, Lipgart personally brought the first running prototype out of the factory. The machine he was testing had a 6-cylinder engine, but soon a more economical 4-cylinder version was created on its base.
Was there a Rodina?
In the summer of 1945, on 19 June, the future models of the GAZ were shown in the Kremlin. There’s a similar version of what the car originally wanted to call «Rodina,» but supposedly Stalin, when he heard the sentence, said ironically, «How are we going to have a homeland?», and then the name was quickly changed to «Victory» today. In fact, the relevant name of the car was given in advance to its project. They called him that, apparently, in honour of the approaching victory of the Soviet people over Nazi Germany. However, it was Stalin who insisted on launching a more cost-effective version of Victory. It was initially a 6-cylinder engine (2.7 liters), but Stalin preferred a 4-cylinder engine of 2.1 liters, which spent less than 5 litres of fuel. Thus, the M-20 index (which was part of a new family with «about two liters» in size) became the main index, while the M-25 was abandoned.
Technical specifications
For 1946, Victory looked like an alien guest. It was one of the world’s first production cars with a pontoon-type body, with no protruding wings, footsteps and separate headlights. The design, in which painter Benjamin Samoylov played a key role in the design (accidentally killed shortly after the designs were created), was so perfect that the machine did not seem obsolete even after 10 to 15 years. The characteristics of the first generation (before the modernization of 1955) were as follows: 1. Engine: row 4-cylinder, working volume 2112 cm³ 2. Power: 50 — 52 l s at 3,600 l/min 3. Transmission: 3-stage mechanical (without syncs in first versions, since 1951 with synchronised II and III transmissions) 4. Maximum speed: 105 km/h 5. Charged mass: 1350 — 1460 kg The GAZ designers managed to achieve a low centre of gravity by moving the engine forward, which had a positive effect on the stability of the car. The aerodynamic resistance coefficient was only 0.34, an outstanding indicator for those years. The car received a hydraulic brake drive, an independent front suspension and a 12-volt electrical equipment — all new to the Soviet autoprom.
Tough childhood and popular love
The series officially started on June 28, 1946, but only 23 copies were collected by the end of the year. In fact, it was a manual assembly: the plant had not yet been ready for mass production of such a complex machine. The quality of the first «Victory» left much to be desired, and by the end of 1948, some 1,700 cars had been released, and the production had even temporarily stopped to adjust the design and transfer the assembly to the new building. The second birth of the car took place on 1 November 1949. The updated «Victory» (sometimes called the second series) received a salon heater (which was not available for first-borns), new springs and more reliable knots. Despite a high price of 16,000 rubles, the car became a cult. As of January 1955, some 50,000 people were waiting for their victory.
Five pedals and daddy.
A lot of domestic legends have to do with Victory. One of them says that the rear couch in the car had to fall five centimetres after the tall passenger in the papa had his head in the ceiling. Whether this was the case is not known, but the fact that the salon has been modernized is evident. Moreover, drivers of that era had to get used to unusual driving. The starter at Victory was launched with his foot (the button was near the gas pedal) and the switching of the driving and passing beam was followed by another foot button to the left of the clutch pedal. In general, driving a car required a special skill: the three-stage gearbox in the early models did not have any syncs, requiring double clutch compression during switching. However, the gentleness of the move and the smoothness with which the Victory has gone beyond the unevenness of the road, has struck the moderns, and the restorers have so far been pleased with it.
The Victory Legacy
The victory was released until 31 May 1958. A total of 241,497 copies were produced, including modifications for taxis and convertibles (M-20B). The car became truly international: since 1951, its licensed copy, called Warszawa, was released in Poland at the FSO plant. GAZ-M20 has proven that the Soviet Engineering School is capable of creating cars that do not yield but are capable of a number of parameters (aerodonemics, layouts) and advance products of recognized world leaders. Even Mercedes-Benz came to the pontoon bodies only in 1954.
Victory was a symbol of an era when a country that had just survived a terrible war was able to create a car that gave its people faith in a bright, happy future.
