ZIL-5423: where is the promising Russian hood-tractor today?

Any fan of Soviet and Russian automotive technology will confirm: in the USSR and the Russian Federation, many cars worthy of their time were created that did not go into series. They were shown at exhibitions in the form of models, prototypes, prototypes. Some of them are in museums, others are lost, and some are still in operation. However, the majority never made it to the conveyor


ZiL products are familiar to everyone: many of its samples, released decades ago, such as, for example, the XNUMXth truck, are still found on the roads. But the little-known factory development, which the company was already doing at the “depletion” of its existence, is unlikely to be met.


We are talking about the ZiL-5423: a Russian “trucker bonnet driver”, designed to oust the “Americans” popular at that time.

Design features

The main tractor was first shown to the public in 1995. The car immediately made an impression: an elongated hood, plastic body kits, a large “sleeping bag” designed for two - everything looked like American trucks. The novelty was designed to transport goods weighing up to 30 tons as part of a road train. The plant considered that it was not economically viable to produce tractors capable of carrying less cargo.


Initially, the car was equipped with "their" power unit ZIL-6451, which produced 210 "horses". However, another option was also proposed with a 3116 hp Caterpillar 250 engine. With. A truck tractor with an imported engine received the ZiL-54236A index.

Other options

Complete with an imported engine was a transmission with a nine-speed gearbox from Eaton. The option with a foreign gearbox and motor meant the installation of a more powerful axle, designed for 11,5 tons of load. The speed of the ZIL-5423 reached 85 km / h. The basic version of the truck was “attached” with an engine heater and a pair of fuel tanks with a capacity of 360 liters each. Dimensions and other characteristics:

✅ length, width, height - 6,6, 2,49 and 3,2 m
✅ wheelbase - 5,6 m
✅ weight of the tractor in full gear - 5,61 tons
✅ permissible load on the fifth wheel coupling - 8,1 t

The plant planned to produce two- and three-axle versions of the tractor, depending on the wishes of the customer.

Modification ZIL-54233A

It was distinguished by the installation of a turbocharged eight-cylinder power unit ZIL-6453 with volumetric mixing. However, the power was the same as that of the 6541 motor - 210 "horses" at 2600 rpm. crankshaft. The clutch was equipped with reinforced springs and a more durable disc.


This modification was considered "luxury", because the cabin was wider and higher, the interior decoration was carried out with better and more expensive materials.

Who is the customer?

The mayor's office of the capital wanted to buy 100 ZIL-5423 vehicles from the plant, which the company was counting on very much. The plant itself in the "dashing 90s" was simply not able to ensure the implementation of the project. Nevertheless, the cars were produced in the form of individual copies by order and in some places they can be found even today. True, not in such a presentable form as at the first shows.


The plant's proposal did not find a response among potential Russian buyers. Those who had enough money bought foreign cars. Organizations or private traders preferred foreign-made tractors with mileage. How many ZIL-5423 were produced in total? If you "dig" on the Internet, you can find photos of cars with six different numbers: that is, the minimum number is 6 units. Cars that are operated today or stand in the yards already have an unsightly appearance.


But a brand new car can easily be seen in the popular computer game "Truckers-2".

Results

What to say in conclusion? Like many factories created in the Soviet era, ZiL developed a car with perspectives. But for some reason, it didn’t work out to make her interested. You can, of course, blame everything on the 90s, but there are many examples for the time when models were created and went into series, albeit not immediately.