"RussoBalt", the car: the history of the brand and the model range. Cars "Russo-Balt": technical characteristics, owners reviews

Do you know what was the first Russian car? Many do not even guess. Today we will get acquainted with the automotive brand "RussoBalt", which you can rightly call the pioneer of the Russian car industry.

Prehistory

For the first time a car with an internal combustion engine hit the territory of the Russian Empire in the distant 1891. It was the car of the French company "Panar-Levassor". It belonged to the editor of the Odessa leaflet Vasily Navrotsky.

In St. Petersburg, the first car appeared in 1895, and in Moscow - in 1899.

The first production car produced on the territory of the Russian Empire was the model of Freze and Yakovlev, presented to the public in 1896. But this car did not arouse the interest of official circles.

The engine and transmission were manufactured at the Yakovlev plant, while the chassis and wheels were made at the Frese factory. Both externally and constructively the model was very similar to the Benz car. Nevertheless, the prospects for the car were. At the moment it is not known how many such cars were produced, but their history was very short. This is due to the fact that in 1898, Yevgeny Yakovlev died. First, his partner Peter Freze bought engines abroad, but then decided to sell his power to the Russian-Baltic wagon plant. At this enterprise not only wagons were made, but also agricultural machinery, as well as airplanes on kerosene engines. The plant was very large and had its branches in different cities: Riga, Tver, St. Petersburg, and later also in Taganrog and Moscow.

First models

The automobile department of the plant was formed in 1908 in Riga. And in May of the next year the first car "RussoBalt" appeared. The car was created on the basis of a prototype of the Belgian model "Fondue" unknown for a wide range of people. The creation of the Russian version involved Belgian designer Jallien Potter. Domestic experts, namely Ivan Fryazinovsky and Dmitry Bondarev, also made a significant contribution to the creation of the car. The well-coordinated work of the three designers led to the production of a series of machines. It included passenger cars - K-12, C-24 and E-15 - and cargo - T-40, M-24, D-24 - cars. The most popular model was the C-24. It accounted for 55% of the issue.

The car "Russo-Balt": recognition

Models produced at the car factory were robust and reliable. They have repeatedly participated in various international competitions: rallies and runs. In Monte Carlo and San Sebastian they were among the best. Speaking about the reliability of machines, one always remembers how one copy of the C-24 in 1910 released 80 thousand kilometers without serious breakages. At that time, it was an incredible achievement of the whole car industry and the brand "RussoBalt".

The car was recognized at the highest level - the imperial garage in 1913 got hold of by two cars of RBVZ. The first of these was the sensational model of the C-24, and the second was the K-12. 64% of the plant's products were purchased by the Russian army. Machines were in demand mainly among staff and medical personnel. Incidentally, there were models on the chassis of which the armored body was mounted.

Production features

The car "Russo-Balt", photo of which cause a sense of pride, had a simple, but very solid construction. The main parts, namely: crankcase, cylinders and transmission, poured out of aluminum. Rotating parts: the wheels and gears of gears - were put on ball bearings. Casting cylinders together with the block was a curiosity and was used only in models C-24 and K-12 - the flagship models of RussoBalt.

The car was produced in large batches. It is noteworthy that the details in the car of one lot were completely interchangeable. And between batches of one model there could be significant differences: the number of gears, engine power, wheelbase, the design of individual parts. The geometric parameters of the parts were measured by the metric system. Almost all parts of the cars were manufactured directly at the wagon plant. On the side, you had to buy ball bearings, oil pressure gauges and tires.

Crew departments were both in St. Petersburg and in Riga. Each of them produced bodies for certain models. The body of "Russo-Balt" had many modifications: closed limousines, open phaetons, popular landmarks among Europeans, cigar-shaped torpedo and others. At the exhibition in 1910, held in St. Petersburg, the car factory presented five models at once. A year later they were already six.

The country of the Soviets, apparently, cars were not needed. Therefore, their output was gradually reduced, and in 1926 completely ceased. And the factory capacity in all its scope was reconfigured to the defense industry.

We will analyze in more details what the cars, produced by the company "Russo-Balt", were. Technical specifications will help us in this.

Russo-Balt K-12

K-12/20 series V cars, produced in 1911, had a maximum power of 20 horsepower, which is indicated in the name. In 1913, the next series appeared - XI, its capacity was already 24 liters. from. The car was called accordingly - K-12/24. Among the features of this model can be identified:

- cylinders cast by a common block;

- one-sided arrangement of valves;

Thermosyphon cooling system.

The gearbox was installed separately from the engine, and the torque was transmitted to the rear wheels using a propeller shaft. The car weighed about 1200 kg, so the rear springs were ¾-elliptical rather than semi-elliptical. In the early series, the wheelbase was 2655 millimeters, and in the later series - 2855 mm.

The K-12 model was most often bought for personal use, because it was the cheapest among cars of the car factory. Nevertheless, wealthy people often chose it. Among the owners of the K-12 in the body of the landola are several outstanding personalities: Prince Constantine, Prince Boris Golitsyn, Count Sergei Witte, industrialist Eduard Nobel.

In total, the plant produced 141 copies of the K-12. They were presented in five series. Here is a description of the V series in 1911:

- the motor - in-line, 4-cylinder, 2.2-liter, with the bottom arrangement of valves;

- power - 12 horsepower at 1500 revolutions;

- Gearbox - mechanical, three steps;

- frame - spar;

- Brakes - drum, rear;

- Suspension - spring, dependent;

- maximum speed - 50 km / h;

- body - open, 4-seater.

Russo-Balt C-24

The most expensive passenger car model was the C-24, which was manufactured before 1918. A car with a 6-seat body found wide application among the staff of the Russian army. On its chassis installed and other bodies: double racing, luxury landola and limousines. There was even a semi-caterpillar winter version - a car show. The main feature of this car is the motor. Its cylinders were cast in two blocks, and the valves (bottom) were located on both sides of the cylinders. The water circulated through the cooling system by means of a centrifugal pump. Behind, between the springs, was a gas tank, fuel from which was supplied to the engine compartment by means of the pressure of the exhaust gases. To ride on cobbles and a primer was more comfortable, the rear suspension included three interlocking semi-elliptic springs: two longitudinal and one transverse. Depending on the type of body, the mass of the car was 1540-1950 kg.

The model was produced in nine series, each of which was better than the previous one. In 1912, the plant abandoned its carburetor and began installing the French carburetor Zenit on the C-24. This, together with the change in the profile of the cams of the cylinder, allowed to raise the rated power from 30 to 35 horsepower. In the same year, the wheelbase was extended from 3160 to 3165 mm. In 1913, the power of the car was again increased by the introduction of a 4-speed transmission.

During the nine years 347 C-24 models were produced. Of these, 285 had an open body of a torpedo. The rest approximately equally distributed among limousines, landola and double phaethons. This was the flagship "Russo-Balt" - a car whose owners' reviews noted mainly its reliability and ease of maintenance.

Concept Impression

Cars of the car factory were not forgotten, and more recently, there was an attempt to revive Russo-Balt. The car, whose history is even shorter than the legend about it, is associated with the native Russian automotive industry, so there are those who want to return it. Since the beginning of the 21st century, the brand belongs to the company A: Level. In 2002, it was renamed Russo-Baltigue. In 2006, the Impression concept was introduced, in the development of which the German studio German Gerg GmbH took part. It was planned to produce only 15 cars a year and sell them to collectors. However, the unusual concept of virtually no one could interest, and production curtailed.

Model for the tuple

After the attempted revival in 2006 about the brand "Russo-Balt" they started talking again. In 2013, it was proposed to establish special models for the presidential cortege. This would allow paying tribute to the great brand "Russo-Balt". The 2013 car was to be assembled on the Rolls-Royce-Phantom platform. Unfortunately, to this day this project has not been implemented.

Conclusion

So we found out what "Russo-Balt" (car) is. The review of models, technical characteristics and expert opinion helped us to give the fullest evaluation to the first Russian auto brand. It's a pity that it's really hard for Russians to call this car. After all, it was built on the prototype of the Belgian model. Nevertheless, without the work of domestic designers, perhaps the world would not have recognized the brand of RussoBalt. The car clearly deserves attention, and it is possible that he will still remind of himself.