The appearance of a new car model on the market is preceded by a lot of painstaking work. The design, simulation, testing, and launch processes have been refined down to the smallest detail. Lada Roadster was created in record time.
Incentive motive
Most car owners have little idea of the entire production cycle, at the final stage of which a ready-to-use vehicle appears. At the same time, almost everyone watches with interest the presentation of a new car. Information for potential car owners comes from various sources. "Lada Roadster", after the car passed sea trials, was put on public display. This model was written about in newspapers, published photos and reported in the news on TV.
Today the Russian automobile concern "AVTOVAZ" occupies a dominant position in the domestic market. At one time, the plant's products were supplied to the countries of the so-called socialist camp. Moreover, some models were successfully sold in England. When Russia opened its markets to foreign manufacturers, the demand for domestic cars dropped noticeably. Both managers and technicians had to deal with the problems that arose before the eyes of the world community.
First of all, a top manager from Europe was invited to the enterprise. Together with him, the developers came to the production site. Coincidentally, in 2000, automotive designer Sergei Nuzhny returned to his native plant after studying in Italy. A specialist armed with creative ideas was offered to realize his potential in practice. He was given production space. Determined the size of the budget. Mikhail Ponomarev and three workers were appointed assistant designer.
Technical task
The creative team received a specific technical task. In this context, it is important to know that the design of any vehicle is not a creative process. The smart design system assumes the maximum use of existing developments and experience. The following vehicle concepts are presented on the modern vehicle market:
· Family;
· Executive;
· Increased cross-country ability.
The VAZ "Kalina" model is included in the family car category.
On the basis of this particular car, young and ambitious designers undertook to create the original "Lada Roadster". At the first stage, the general configuration of the exterior was created. As the roadster is a two-seater convertible, the aesthetics had to be maintained in all roof positions. After calculating the volumetric spatial form, a specific list of works was determined. It became clear that the original running base would have to be shortened.
It should be noted that the management did not set specific deadlines for the completion of work. The project was viewed as an improvisation that can end in any ending, either winning or losing. The performers themselves were interested in showing a worthy result of their efforts as soon as possible. To this end, they have reduced the amount of development work to a minimum. We quite deliberately abandoned the prototyping stage and started working on real material right away. With a positive ending, this approach justified itself. Nobody thought about a negative outcome.
Manufacturing process
It so happened that the creators of the roadster set a record in the framework of Soviet traditions. The car of the original design was "driven" to the proving ground seven months after the start of work. The history of the domestic automotive industry knows no such precedents. It is interesting to note that almost half of this period of time was spent on the design of the idea in drawings and sketches. No secrets or miracles are hidden here. On the face of a systematic approach to solving a specific problem.
Interior sketches were created on the basis of already available components and assemblies. The dashboard was simply taken from one model. The windshield frame is from the other. Frameless doors from the third. Lighting fixtures from the fourth and so on. This principle is used by specialists from all world manufacturers. At the same time, the Ford brand can never be confused with the BMW brand. In the same way, the Lada brand can be easily distinguished in the flow of cars on any continent.
The car was equipped with a standard engine designed for Kalina. Front-wheel drive provided the Lada Roadster with stability on the road. The car easily accelerated to a speed of two hundred kilometers per hour. Some road safety experts considered this to be an overkill option. The fact is that the car body is made of polymer materials. Polymers are not suitable for mass production, but they are often used in small-scale production.
In the fall of 2000, an international car exhibition was held in Moscow. It was decided to demonstrate to the respected public the concept of "Lada Roadster". A sample of the car, which still needed to be finalized, was put on public display. At the same time, the compact and outwardly attractive car attracted positive feedback from those present. Reputable experts even assessed the sales prospects of the concept in the international market.
Creativity of an idea
The main distinguishing feature of the Russian roadster is the folding roof. It is important to emphasize that the principle of movement of the protective material is fundamentally different from the mechanism that is used in classic convertibles. Electric motors quickly removed the roof and fixed it to the trunk. At the same time, the volume of the luggage compartment remained completely free. This method has never been used either in the Soviet Union or in modern Russia. The authors received a patent for their development.
On their own, the creators of the compact car conducted research on the domestic market. Young people aged 15 to 35 showed interest in the vehicle. The data obtained fully correlated with the results of foreign studies. Almost sixty percent of the respondents expressed a desire to buy a car for recreation and leisure trips. If we summarize the information received, then every third household is ready to purchase Lada Roadster.
With high production profitability, there is no need to adjust the vehicle assembly line. Following the experience gained, the developers proposed to allocate a minimum production area for the production of Lada Roadster. This approach is used in Japan, Europe and America. However, top managers of AVTOVAZ considered this proposal insufficiently worked out.
Lost perspectives
Independent economists have made the appropriate calculations. According to the results obtained, "Lada Roadster" could have cost ten thousand dollars. In the countries of the European Union, the demand for cars of this class is from three thousand per year. With a retail price of thirteen thousand bucks, it's not hard to calculate the profit made. It was possible to enter profitable production within a year and a half.
Through the efforts of a group of enthusiasts, two full-fledged cars were assembled. After the Moscow Salon, the developers took part in the 2001 Geneva Auto Show. The model attracted the attention of foreign experts. Some of them frankly admitted that Lada Roadster could seriously compete with European and American manufacturers. They confessed how they did it. The management of VAZ, as they say, "hushed up" this project.
