Senate screenings: what new cars were shown at the SPIEF

The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) has become AvtoVAZ's main premiere venue. Key new products such as Lada Iskra and Azimut were shown here for the first time. Now other automakers have also caught up — a dozen auto premieres are presented to the attention of the forum visitors. One of the main ones is the new Senat car brand. About the new cars of the SPIEF — in the material of Izvestia.

Niva with improvements

This time AvtoVAZ brought a seemingly ordinary Niva Legend. However, the scale of changes is perhaps the most impressive in the long history of the model's existence — a hundred new and more than 60 upgraded nodes. Under the hood is a new, more powerful engine, which has already been tested on Niva Travel. For the first time, the front panel, hood, roof, tailgate and rear apron are made of double-sided galvanized steel. For the first time, the Niva was equipped with a frontal airbag — a steering wheel from Granta with tilt adjustment was used.

To improve handling and smoothness, the front suspension has been upgraded, and the front brake discs are now ventilated. Interior ventilation has been improved, noise and vibration have been reduced, the transmission lever has been moved closer to the driver for convenience, and the transfer case is now controlled by one lever instead of two. At the same time, the spare wheel was still laid under the hood.

All these innovations suggest that it's too early to say goodbye to the legendary SUV.

"I am sure that the conveyor life of Niva will surely cross the 50-year milestone and will last for a very long time. This is today's. And the future of AvtoVAZ is, of course, the Lada Azimut car, which will enter industrial assembly line production literally next quarter," said Maxim Sokolov, head of AvtoVAZ.

Lada for a monocup

The Azimut crossover has arrived at the SPIEF in the status of a production car and in the new Serenade color. Lada Iskra is shown in the TMS racing version with a 1.6-liter turbo engine with a capacity of 218 hp (280 Nm) and a six-speed sequential gearbox and reinforced suspension with adjustable shock absorbers.

The body is lightweight and equipped with a welded safety frame. Lada Iskra TMS is designed to participate in the Monocup, which is scheduled to start in 2027. The competitions are aimed at maximum entertainment with a low entry threshold and a predictable budget without an "engineering arms race" and will be held on the best racing tracks in Russia.

The new face of Aurus

Prices for the updated Niva Legend have not yet been announced, but it is obvious that this is the most affordable SPIEF novelty. The updated Aurus Senat is at the other extreme, it is the most expensive car presented at the forum. A regular sedan will cost about 50 million rubles, and the Long version is twice as expensive. This is the first deep facelift of the car introduced six years ago. In general, the style remained the same, but the radiator grille received a new pattern, optics and bumpers changed. The interior has been redesigned in the spirit of modern trends. There is an enlarged touchscreen in the center of the new front panel, the multimedia control washer has disappeared from the central tunnel, and the transmission lever has been replaced with a small joystick.

The seat control buttons are now located on the doors, and the doors themselves will be equipped with an electric drive as an option. They promise a driver fatigue monitoring camera and a night vision system. Changes have been made to the braking system, wheel suspension, fuel supply system and automatic transmission, the company said.

The Long version is new, without an insert, but with elongated rear doors that increase the comfort of landing.

First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Denis Manturov has already noted the maneuverability and comfort of the updated Aurus Senat Long.

"First of all, maneuverability. Secondly, a comfortable suspension and a comfortable fit. I liked the seats because not all cars have seats adapted for different heights. Therefore, it is convenient to drive and as a passenger," Manturov stressed in a conversation with Izvestia correspondent Nikolai Ivanov.

Another Senat

At the SPIEF, Senat was introduced as a separate brand, located one step below Aurus. His firstborn, the 900 sedan, is based on the Chinese Hongqi H9, but with a design in the style of Aurus. The length of the car is 5.14 m. Under the hood is a three-liter V6 with mechanical supercharging, which is combined with an 8-speed hydromechanical automatic and an all-wheel drive transmission.

The engine power is 326 hp (340 Nm), acceleration from zero to "hundred" takes 6.5 seconds. Suspension of all wheels is pneumatic, independent: the front is mounted on double wishbones, the rear is multi—link.

The interior is decorated with natural materials, and the top version has an airplane-type folding table on the second row. The seats have electric drive, massage, heating and ventilation. The Senates will be produced at the former Toyota plant in Shushary.

A prototype of the Senat 1000 sedan with a wheelbase increased by 20 cm was also shown at the SPIEF. It was built so that the manufacturer could collect feedback from potential buyers and find out their equipment requirements, the company explained.

Chinese Luxury

Hongqi itself presented the new flagship model Guoya to the SPIEF visitors. Earlier, this car was shown at a closed presentation at the museum of the Special Purpose Garage of the Federal Security Service of Russia in Moscow.

The 5.4 m long Hongqi Guoya is aimed at large businessmen and top officials. Rare varieties of natural wood and fine nappa leather are used in the interior. The rear row of seats offers multi-point massage, ventilation and individual backrest tilt settings.

The car is equipped with either a 3.0-liter V6 engine (326 hp, 570 Nm) or a four-liter V8 (476 hp, 680 Nm). The price starts from 27.7 million rubles. This is the only novelty of the forum that is not planned to be assembled in Russia, at least for now.

New Russians

The SPIEF also became the premiere venue for the revived Volga. The Volga K50 serial crossover, based on the Chinese Geely Monjaro, was shown to the public. The car is equipped with a turbocharged 2-liter engine with a capacity of 238 hp, an all-wheel drive system and an 8-speed automatic transmission. The length of the car is 4770 mm, the wheelbase is 2845 mm. The design uses adaptive suspension.

Production is deployed at the Nizhny Novgorod plant, which previously produced Skoda and Volkswagen cars. The project is being led by Nizhny Novgorod Passenger Cars. The crossover and two other models of the brand will go on sale in June. The price of the K50 starts from 4.2 million rubles.

Another Russian brand that debuted at the St. Petersburg Forum is Jeland. Jaecoo crossovers are produced under this brand at the former GM plant in Shushary. Interestingly, the J6 crossover, the most affordable model of the brand, initially stood on a stand with closed nameplates.

In addition to the new brand, AGR holding also showed a turbo engine, which is planned to be produced in Kaluga.

The appearance of new car brands on the Russian market is natural, says Igor Morzharetto, partner of Autostat, an auto expert.

— It is obvious that now and in the future, a company that wants not only to remain in our market, but also to be successful in it, should produce cars in Russia: under its own or under a new brand. Honghi, whose models are the basis of the presented Senat brand cars, chose the second option. — Igor Morzharetto told Izvestia.