Moskvich 400-420

Moskvich 400 is a prominent representative of the Soviet "midget car" of the post-war years, which was produced on MZMA plant from 1946 to 1956 and is almost an exact copy of the German car Opel Cadet K38, manufactured by General Motors in 1937-1940

Moskvich-400-420 (1946-1954)

A bit of history "Moskvich-400-420"

As you know, before the war the Soviet Union massively produced vehicles of high and middle class, with an emphasis on the unique design and high quality of finishing. Most of these models were the pride of the Gorky and the Stalin plants. As a result, they were either distributed in the national economy or among the "upper class" population. Very rarely, but still to be found simple worker driving the elite Soviet car, which, however, was presented to him as a gift for some special services.

Watching the mass "motorization" of other European countries, the Soviet Union also began to think about creating an inexpensive and compact "city car" that any working person would afford or which would become a luxury, but at the same time, not very expensive "present" by encouragement or motivation in various fields.

Prototype of Moskvich-400 - Opel Cadet K38, 1937

By the way, an attempt to create such a vehicle had already been made. It happened at the Moscow plant of Communist Youth International, when the first KIM-10 and its modification KIM-10-51 were produced in 1940. Although British Ford Prefect, which was produced much earlier, served as a model for the creation of it, KIM was quite decent and modern for the Soviet Union. This car didn’t go to the mass production, only 450 pieces were produced, which, oddly enough, were sold out almost instantly. After that, a small amount of the 4-door sedan KIM-10-52 rolled off the assembly line, but the war forced to refit the plant and it began to specialize in the production of military vehicles.

So ... The Great Patriotic War ended and the first work on the design of the Soviet budget midget car started at the Moscow automobile plant. In 1945 the delegation of the Soviet engineers went to Germany with a visit to see interesting and advanced industrial facilities. They examined the company "Scientific-technical automotive bureau" and "Bayerische Motoren Werke" together with the plant, there they took some copies of the cars for the presentation to the leader, which would serve as the basis for the creation of the Soviet vehicle. Since Stalin did not want to see any more either KIM or something resembling it, he decided in favor of "Cadet K38". Right after it the order was issued to take away a small part of tooling from the German factory.

Pre-purchase advertising poster

As the result, a new Russelsheim assembly line was set, which began to produce the first parts for future car. Dybov O., who at that time served as deputy chief designer, offered to call a vehicle “Moskvich” in honor of the holiday "800 years of Moscow" . The "top" of the USSR undoubtedly liked it and the leaders approved it. Externally, the differences between the Soviet car and the German Cadet were virtually invisible, if you do not look precisely at the nameplates. But as Opel belonged to General Motors Company, the measurements were given in inches, Moskvich had to be processed and all the parts in the metric system had to be replaced by the domestic ones.

The 10,000th copy of Moskvich-400 rolled off the assembly line

And then in the early December of 1946 there was the first copy of a car called "Moskvich" - 400 with 1.1-liter engine and a capacity of 23 horsepower fully assembled. One of the most memorable features of this car was a front independent suspension "Dubonnet". Unfortunately, the first models had a number of shortcomings such as small cracks in the metal and flowing, frequent breakdowns of interior and hood locks, bad "tightness" of the interior and the low quality of its upholstery, the tendency to corrosion, etc. But 2 years later, most of these "blunders" were eliminated, the capacity was increased, the overall weight was reduced and the comfort was improved. Three years later Moskvich got an improved gearbox lever near the steering wheel. At the same time they decided to strengthen the structure and thus significantly increased the estimated mileage. But in 1954 Moskvich was "reborn" because of the comprehensive modernization of the technical characteristics, in consequence of which they decided to go with an index of 400 to 401. This modification was produced only for 2 years. For all 10 years of production 247 439 copies of the car rolled off the assembly line (17,742 of which were convertibles) and had been named, as the first Soviet mass-produced cars, designed for personal usage, regardless of the status of the buyer.

Basic modification of Moskvich at a police service

By the way, in different sources Moskvich has single and double index. Neither the first nor the second is an error, because the first number represents the model of the engine, and the second one - the body type. The base model had the index 400-420.

The construction and design solutions

Moskvich-400 was four-door sedan at the base modification, the main feature of which was elongated bonnet, projecting wheel arches and almost complete absence of sharp corners. The body itself was a carrier and was made of the solid metal seams.

Logo of Moskvich 400

To ensure the availability of the necessary equipment and to begin work on the design of Moskvich based on Cadet was commissioned to 11 design engineering bureaus. Schwarzenberg vehicle body bureau headed by Dybov was working on the exterior of the car. They began to draw the first drawings of the new model and its separate parts at the end of 1945. Having all necessary samples from the German prototype, the designers managed to perform all the work planned from the beginning to the end easily and quickly. In March of 1946 a lot of different drawings, models and finished experimental cars were brought at the Moscow plant. The German experts, who actually worked on the creation of the Soviet midget car, could not only provide a good "copy" of Opel, but also offered a list of ideas how to improve and make it more comfortable. By the time of the launch of series production, it became clear that the unification with Opel Cadet K38 was nearly 97%. By the way, MZMA was not producing all the details for Moskvich, almost a third of them were supplied from the plants GAZ and ZIS.

As it was common for all the budget midget cars the interior of Moskvich was created with minimalism and restraint. The peculiarity of the front panel was the presence of two glove compartments - from left and right corners, and a separate tool box under the driver's seat. To the right of the steering wheel there were two round instruments - a speedometer and tachograph. As for the steering wheel, it had quite large radius and three thin spokes. For the additional comfort while driving there were sun visors, triangle vent windows on the front windows, the mirrors were easy to adjust and they ensured a good viewing angle. There was neither radio, nor heater. Another disadvantage of the design can be considered the construction of "wipers" which worked only from the engine. At the bad weather (heavy rain, snow, ice, fords, etc.) every sane driver was driving slowly and carefully, but the less was the engine speed, the slower were the wipers. Therefore, they often could not cope with their main task and brought a lot of inconvenience.

Front dash-board

The front seat was a solid cushion for 2 seats with separate slightly curved back. Despite a moderate softness, sofa was quite comfortable. Three passengers could well fit on the back seat, it had a soft reclining. The upholstery of the interior was simple, one-color, fixed on the perimeter with the round buttons. All the metal parts were covered with enamel in the color of the body.

Interior of Moskvich-400-420 with standard upholstery

Trying to describe the general appearance of the body of Moskvich-400, we would like to focus on a big amount of chrome details: door sills, handles, bumpers, wheel covers, side moldings, emblem "Moskvich", rims of the headlights, the upper radiator facing, 2 linings at the bumper fixing and facing vertical jumpers. By the way, regarding the emblem, the Kremlin tower with red letters "ZMA" was depicted inside the chrome trim. Rear light was made only in one color burgundy, the license plate had white lights. The front door with one outer loop was opened in and the rear one – against the direction of the movement. Also we should note the presence of a special figure hole for the handle on the front bumper in its central part.

Steering wheel of Moskvich-400

But the experts were constantly working on the design of the car, thereby continuously improving it throughout the period of production. After a year and a half they attached the horn to the bumper (on its left arm), the leg of a taillight was shortened, then the gear lever was set to the right of the steering wheel but not on the floor (it increased the comfort of driving). After 2 years the gearbox was already tied up with a box of rods and shafts, in 1954 there was an idea to increase the capacity of the car, setting a new engine. So actually that is how the existence of Moskvich ended with an index of 400, because an index 401 replaced the previous one (as you remember, this number indicates the model of the engine). The differences in appearance were very insignificant: the factory side lights were installed at the regular places, the steering wheel was plastic, but its spokes were made of steel, the scale test equipment and some elements of decoration were changed. As for the design, the dust resistance and corrosion resistance were finally improved due to the use of new amplifiers, 2-row spot electric welding and better coverage. Also, the kind of the storage site was little changed - instead of console welding, it partially "sank" in the engine shield.

Specifications of Moskvich-400 (401)

Moskvich possessed the ideal combination of simplicity, comfort and optimal technical solutions, thanks to which it became almost the most popular car of the time. The model 400 had a four-cylinder low valve engine. To reduce the cost of construction, cylinders and heads were made of very cheap alloy and to make it possible to repair the "heart" of Moskvich by illiterate drivers, the access to the most important units was made as easy as possible. By the way, in spite of the small capacity - only 23 hp, Moskvich could well accelerate up to 90 km / h, but only on a perfectly flat road. The car was filled with gasoline of octane rating 66, the engine had a compression ratio of about 5.8, and could boast with enviable longevity.

Opel Kadett 38, Moskvich-400 prototype during the test run

The brake system of Moskvich 400 had rather unusual solution at the time, since hydraulic drive had not reached the peak of its popularity yet and the brake drum of Moskvich performed the function of the hub and the rims at the same time. Therefore, "Long live the rocking levers, cables and equalizers"! As for the drum, it was located on the bearings of the front axle and on the half shaft of the rear axle. The wheels did not have conventional disks, but only the rims with rebates as the studs were well positioned for the maximum allowable diameter. Yes, many people have seen a number of flaws in this design, but the fact is that it was possible to reduce the weight of the unsprung components and to increase the stability of the car.

After a few of years after the launch of line production of Moskvich base model, the designers basing on the experience of their European neighbors released a compact van with a wooden frame body having an index of 400-422. Its capacity was only 200 kg and because of its bakelised plywood this car was called "Pinocchio." Their production can not be called massive because of the apparent fragility and impermanence, so designers returned to the improvement of the main modifications. In the summer of 1949 Moskvich-400 got a fine filter, which had managed to improve the durability of the engine. In the early '50s the rear axle was reinforced by installing more durable semiaxes and bearings. Then it became clear that the existing capacity was not sufficient and the engine required complete redesign as well. As a result, 2 cylinders, shafts, water pumps and gasoline pumps were upgraded. The experiment was not finished at this point: during the development of a more powerful engine they had to redo the generator for three times, to change the carburetor for four times and to change the ignition for two times. The works lasted for almost 2 years, and as a result a brand new model of the engine with a capacity for 26 hp, the new collectors and the index of 401 were presented in 1954. That is how the old-new Moskvich-401-420 was created. Many past failures were eliminated at the upgraded model, although they practically didn’t affect the overall picture of this car. That is why Moskvich 401 was not accepted as a separate model.

Specifications

Modifications of Moskvich-400 (401)

Moskvich 400-420A - a four-door convertible with a folding top (soft canopy) and an elongated body. It was produced from 1949 to 1954 inclusive. 

Moskvich-400-421 - a four-door individual production station wagon. Cars of this modification could have a different sample of the rear doors and were produced from 1948 to 1950. 

Moskvich-400-422 - cargo-passenger van, with the wooden body shell. Years of production - 1948-1956. 

Moskvich-400-420M - medical car with the signal lamp, designed for the driving of doctors, but did not have any conditions for the transportation of patients. Usually painted in dark blue with the inscription on the sides "Home Aid", and with the sign of Red Cross in front. The trim was made of textile vinyl so it could be easily washed and disinfected.

Moskvich-400-420M "Home Aid" on the streets

Moskvich-400-420B - Chassis with a cabin

Moskvich-400-420K - commercial chassis

Moskvich-400 (401) -420K (chassis, designed for the installation by the third-party enterprises)

Moskvich-401-420 - the upgraded four-door sedan with a more powerful engine, new design of a gearshift and improved trim. It was produced from 1954 to 1956. 

Moskvich-401-422 - station wagon with a wooden body shell. Years of production - 1954-1956. 

Moskvich-401-422 (1954-1956) - wooden-metal van.

Moskvich-400 in the cinema industry and souvenir production

Unfortunately this Moskvich was not produced on a large scale as souvenir toys for a long time. Only in 2009 the fans of the Soviet auto industry could get a blue convertible Moskvich 400-420 along with the magazine "Autolegends of the USSR." A year later blue and beige Moskvich 400-420A in 1:43 scale was released for the project "Our Automotive Industry." In honor of the 300th anniversary of the Moscow Post Office company DIP Models released in small editions ordinary van and postal van from the modification 401-422. Last model of Moskvich-400-420 in gray color was produced and provided as a gift along with the magazine "Autolegends of the USSR" in 2011.

Souvenir model of Moskvich-400-420, "Autolegends of the USSR", 2009

Moreover Moskvich can be seen in many Soviet films, such as "Caution, Grandma," "Garage", "Adult children", "Ladies Invite Gentlemen," "She Loves You", "Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears "etc. Also domestic midget car took part in sport competition – the plant presented base sedan vehicle for the winter racing "Moscow - Minsk - Moscow" in 1949. The result exceeded all expectations - the first place and a new record for the average speed for the first 1,000 km, which was 83.8 km / h.

Souvenir Model of the post van Moskvich-401-422, 2011

See also: GAZ-12 ZIM и Moskvich-407