GAZ-M1, the "Emka" — a passenger car of the Gorky Automobile Plant, produced from 1936 to 1943. It was the first Soviet series-production car with a closed all-metal body; counting all modifications, about 63,000 cars were built in total.[1] It became the country's main official car of the pre-war years.
Development
In October 1933 Andrei Alexandrovich Lipgart was appointed chief designer of the plant, and work on a new passenger car finally proceeded systematically for the first time.[1][3] The design took as its basis the documentation for the 1934 Ford Model B 40A, obtained under a technical assistance agreement.
In January 1934 the first mock-up was assembled — a Soviet chassis with a Ford-40 body — and by June of the same year prototypes with original closed bodies of the plant's own design were ready. Work on the improved model officially began in February 1935.[1]
The Gorky designers departed noticeably from the prototype: the car received a new frame with an X-shaped cross member that increased rigidity on poor roads, and the units were reworked for low-octane fuel, the local climate, and road quality. This was the first model from the plant in which the independence of its engineering school became evident.[1]
Production
The first series-production cars were assembled on 16 March 1936, and the next day they were shown to the country's leadership in the Kremlin.[1] Production of the base Emka ceased in August 1941; small-batch assembly from remaining parts was finished in January 1942.[1]
The upgraded GAZ-11-73 variant received a new six-cylinder engine producing 76 or 85 hp, a different radiator grille, an updated instrument panel, a semi-centrifugal clutch, and improved shock absorbers. The same family also included the GAZ-11-41 pickup and the GAZ-11-40 phaeton.[1]
Design
The four-cylinder engine, with a displacement of about 3.3 liters, produced roughly 50 hp at 2,800 rpm. Top speed was 105 km/h, acceleration to 80 km/h took about 24 seconds, and fuel consumption stood at around 14.5 liters per 100 km. Curb weight was about 1,370 kg, wheelbase was 2,845 mm, and ground clearance was 210 mm.[1]
Service
The Emka served as an official car for people's commissariats and enterprises, as a taxi, as an ambulance, and as army staff transport; its running gear was used to build the BA-20 armored car.[1] Widespread use of the car by the NKVD earned it the grim nickname "black raven" (chorny voronok).[4]
Sources
- mrchrome.ru — GAZ M-1: The Car That Made the USSR a Motoring Nation (archived)
- lib-avt.ru — Avtozavodsky District Library System — History of the Gorky Automobile Plant (archived)
- auto.ru — Auto.ru Magazine — A Car That Inspired Fear: The Story of the Grim but Legendary GAZ M-1