LAZ-A073: "lasik" as a failed competitor of "pazik"

Perestroika has already rumbled in the "yard", the country was actively switching to a market economy. Having abandoned the mass production of sadly identical models for decades, car factories in the Russian Federation and the CIS were looking for more effective ways to make money. New models were created, it was time for trials, errors and unexpected successes. At the Lviv enterprise LAZ, known for its comfortable tourist buses, they tried to assemble a compact car, unusual for the plant, with a small number of passengers.

LAZ-A073

In order to achieve unification, and hence reduce the cost of production, the designers used in the new bus many components, bodywork and other parts from already produced, serial equipment. For example, in the design of the front end, you can guess the elements of the LAZ-4202.


The only double door, as well as rear optics, were borrowed from the LAZ-5252.

Engine

Here they did not particularly philosophize and adapted the power unit from the “Bull”, model 5301, which was then produced on ZiL. The motor developed enough power for a small bus of 99 “horses”. Other technical characteristics of LAZ-A073:

✅ model and engine size - MMZ-D-245.12 in 4,75 liters
✅ average speed - 90 km / h
✅ diesel fuel consumption - 13,5 l / 100 km
✅ length, width, height and wheelbase - 6,84, 2,28, 2,73 and 3,65 m
✅ weight - 6,95 tons

There was also a version with a Hungarian-made RABA bridge and a Polish diesel power unit Andoria ZT 4CT 107 / a7 (model A-0731).



The maximum capacity of the bus was forty people, the number of seats was twenty-four. After the alteration of the cabin, there was no space left for storage areas.


According to external data and technical parameters, many saw the similarity of the Lviv bus with the Russian "pazik", which was then very popular and produced in considerable circulation.

Comparison with PAZ-3205

The car was launched into large-scale production since 1989. From the short-haired semicircular predecessor PAZ-672, the novelty was distinguished by a modern exterior, a different engine, and a modified interior design. The bus was released on time: just at the time of the crisis that broke out in the country. Large cars were bought poorly, but compact equipment was at the right time in the right place. Pavlovsk buses scattered like hot cakes, which they could not help but notice at the Lviv plant, where they also decided to create their own “lasik”.


Unlike the LAZ-A073, the PAZ-3205 had 42 “standing” and 23 “seating” places - that is, a little more. At first there was also one door, but in later modifications a second one appeared. The maximum speed is the same there and there - 90 km / h. But the Pavlovsk bus, because of the gasoline engine, consumed more fuel - 19 l / 100 km. And in terms of dimensions, the PAZ-3205 was larger than its competitor and heavier. Length, width, height - 7, 2,53 and 2,88 m, respectively, the mass of the "groove" - ​​7,61 tons.

What happened to the Lviv "miniature"

Despite the similarity of characteristics with the Pavlovian technique, the bus from LAZ was not widely used. The car was supposed to be used mainly for commercial transportation. However, the latter in Ukraine were not as much in demand as in the rapidly developing Russian Federation. If we take other CIS countries, then LAZ-A073 could not compete with the “authority” recognized in this area - PAZ and, surprisingly, KavZ.


For some time, Lviv buses ran along urban routes in Ukraine: mainly in Kyiv and Lvov. In total, in 1998, seventeen (according to unconfirmed reports) copies were released. After the buses ran out of service life, they were written off. So unsuccessful was the attempt of Lviv designers to create small equipment for private transportation: the plant was simply ahead of its time, which proved the success of the PAZ-3205.