Rare Rides: A UAZ From 1991 Brings the Iron Curtain to the Midwest

Corey Lewis
by Corey Lewis

Earlier this week, we brought you a Rare Ride straight from the Eastern Block. The Skoda 120 was Czechoslovakia’s answer to the middle-market family sedan. Today we keep it Communist and look at Russia’s answer to the decadent and capitalistic Jeep Wrangler and Land Rover Defender, the UAZ-469.

This four-by-four can really do some work.

UAZ has been around for quite a while. Founded in 1941, the initials stand for Ulyanovsky Avtomobilny Zavod, or Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant. UAZ is a manufacturer of trucks, SUVs, and small bus and van models — and that’s it.

One of their most popular models, the 469, was the successor to the GAZ-69, which was in production from 1953 to 1972. Entering production in 1971, the 469 is still in production today. Minor modifications saw the model renamed as the UAZ-3151 in 1985. A few more minor modifications over the years, another renaming in 2003 to the Hunter name, and that carries us to present day. It’s most impressive what car companies can do (or not do) when regulations aren’t standing in the way.

The UAZ-469 isn’t produced in quite as many places as it used to. Presently, it’s being assembled in only five locales: Russia, Cuba, Azerbaijan, Vietnam, and the Ukraine. The only other vehicle produced by UAZ presently is the Patriot. That one is more luxurious, and sort of a cross between a Nissan Frontier and a 2004 Suzuki Grand Vitara. Onward to our Rare Ride!

For sale in Indiana (via Chicago’s Craigslist), this black UAZ is from 1991 (or maybe pre-1985), and has been imported from somewhere far away and titled here in the USA. It’s past the 25-year import age requirement either way, so the title confusion probably isn’t worth much worry.

With just 23,000 miles on it, things look neat and tidy — even in the engine bay. This particular 469 is powered by a 2.5-liter four-cylinder making 71 horsepower.

On the floor is a manual of four or five speeds, and there’s a two-speed transfer box for those mucky Communist America situations. The interior features seats and even a steering wheel. Don’t get any Land Rovery, aspirational ideas in here — it’s not going to happen.

Asking $15,000 seems a bit aspirational in itself, but the UAZ is the sort of rarity someone is likely to covet. Sort of the antithesis of everything the UAZ stands for, don’t you think?

[Images via seller]

Corey Lewis
Corey Lewis

Interested in lots of cars and their various historical contexts. Started writing articles for TTAC in late 2016, when my first posts were QOTDs. From there I started a few new series like Rare Rides, Buy/Drive/Burn, Abandoned History, and most recently Rare Rides Icons. Operating from a home base in Cincinnati, Ohio, a relative auto journalist dead zone. Many of my articles are prompted by something I'll see on social media that sparks my interest and causes me to research. Finding articles and information from the early days of the internet and beyond that covers the little details lost to time: trim packages, color and wheel choices, interior fabrics. Beyond those, I'm fascinated by automotive industry experiments, both failures and successes. Lately I've taken an interest in AI, and generating "what if" type images for car models long dead. Reincarnating a modern Toyota Paseo, Lincoln Mark IX, or Isuzu Trooper through a text prompt is fun. Fun to post them on Twitter too, and watch people overreact. To that end, the social media I use most is Twitter, @CoreyLewis86. I also contribute pieces for Forbes Wheels and Forbes Home.

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  • Flipper35 Flipper35 on Oct 06, 2017

    Faster than a 'mog then.

  • Tankinbeans Tankinbeans on Oct 08, 2017

    I think Slavuta above stated this was inspired by Jeeps that were left behind. Was this a backwards engineered vehicle? The first thing I thought when it rolled across the feed is that it bore a strong resemblance to a Jeep. *Caveat being I don't know Jeeps well enough to make an informed opinion on the similarities or dissimilarities thereof.

  • George How Could the old car have any connection with the new car as performance and wheel size?
  • ToolGuy Spouse drives 3 miles one-way to work 5 days a week. Would love to have a cheap (used) little zippy EV, but also takes the occasional 200 mile one-way trip. 30 miles a week doesn't burn a lot of fuel, so the math doesn't work. ICE for now, and the 'new' (used) ICE gets worse fuel economy than the vehicle it will replace (oh no!). [It will also go on some longer trips and should be a good long-distance cruiser.] Several years from now there will (should) be many (used) EVs which will crush the short-commute-plus-medium-road-trip role (at the right acquisition cost). Spouse can be done with gasoline, I can be done with head gaskets, and why would I possibly consider hybrid or PHEV at that point.
  • FreedMike The test of a good design is whether it still looks good years down the line. And Sacco's stuff - particularly the W124 - still looks clean, elegant, and stylish, like a well tailored business suit.
  • Jeff Corey thank you for another great article and a great tribute to Bruno Sacco.
  • 1995 SC They cost more while not doing anything ICE can't already do
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