Another week, a new Lada message. The Russian brand makes a very striking announcement. Immediately, Lada has two Niva’s on the menu, which have very much and very little to do with each other.
In Western Europe, the Lada Niva is perhaps the Lada that has stayed with us the most, even more than the Riva series and the ancient 1200. This is partly due to the fact that the Niva presented in 1977 in virtually unchanged form has been sold in our parts. Although the Niva was actually sold as Niva in the Netherlands, the model went through life under a different identity elsewhere in the world. In Austria they spoke of the ‘Taiga’, while in the United Kingdom the ‘Cossack’ could be purchased. Meanwhile, the once called Niva all-rounder has been called ‘4×4’ for years, but Lada is now turning that back. The international primal Niva is called Niva again! At least, more or less.
Lada Niva Travel
That is of course an interesting development for the Lada connoisseur. Until recently, the model name Niva was used by Chevrolet for the Chevrolet Niva. With its more modern-looking body, it was initially intended as a successor to the Lada Niva / 4×4, but the Russian Avtovaz decided to carry the Lada 4×4 and the Chevrolet Niva side by side. Meanwhile, the partnership between General Motors and Lada has ended and the Chevrolet Niva has been transferred to Lada. That model recently appeared in facelifted form as Chevrolet Niva Travel. With this, Lada has cleverly made room to return the model name Niva to the angular off-roader that has entered its 44th year of life this year. Is the primal Niva called simply Niva again? No, Lada has decided to call him Niva Legend. The Legend and Travel thus form a new Niva family.
Renaming the 4×4 in Niva Legend goes hand in hand with a tiny update. For example, Lada has installed new outlets for the ventilation system in the C-pillars to ensure slightly less noise in the interior.