A standardized automobile model numbering system has been used in the USSR and Russia. Using the modern version of the system it is possible to determine a vehicle's type and engine capacity. The modern version of the numbering system was introduced in the mid-1970s. A similar system is used in the People's Republic of China.
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The old numbering system was used from 1945 until the new system replaced it later (one model numbered by old system, LAZ-695N bus, is still produced [1]).
According to the old system, the vehicle model consisted of the manufacturer's name and up to three digits. Each manufacturer received a range of numbers it used to pick model numbers. The ranges were assigned as follows:
| Range | Factory | Sample Models |
|---|---|---|
| 1 - 99 | GAZ | GAZ-14 |
| 100 - 199 | ZIL | ZIL-130 |
| 200 - 299 | YaAZ, KrAZ | KrAZ-258 |
| 300 - 399 | UralAZ | UralAZ-375 |
| 400 - 450 | MZMA (AZLK) | MZMA-412 |
| 450 - 499 | UAZ | UAZ-452, UAZ-469 |
| 500 - 599 | MAZ, BelAZ | MAZ-500, BelAZ-640m |
| 600 - 649 | KAZ | |
| 650 - 699 | buses - PAZ, LiAZ, LAZ | |
| 700 - 999 | ZAZ, RAF, trailers |
The modern numbering system, documented as отраслевая нормаль ОН 025270-66, was first introduced in 1966 (but did not become effective immediately, so many vehicles that entered production before mid-1970s still used the old numbering system; the first vehicle to use it was the all-new VAZ-2101, other plants switched to the new system substantially later: Moskvitch - in 1976, Moskvitch 2140; GAZ - in 1982, GAZ-3102; and so on) and is still used in Russia, although not strictly adhered to by the manufacturers.
According to this system the full model designation is a combination of the manufacturer's name (e.g. VAZ) and at least 4-digit number (e.g. 2108):
in which:
For passenger cars the engine displacament and dry weight are used to determine the class, also sub-classes (Groups) are defined:
| First digit | Class | Group | Displacement, cc | Dry weight, kg | Examples (including models indexed according to the old numbering system) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Extra small | I | less than 849 | less than 649 | ZAZ-965, VAZ-1111 Oka |
| II | 850…1099 | 650…799 | Moskvitch 400, ZAZ-1102 Tavriya | ||
| 2 | Small | I | 1 100… 1299 | 800…899 | Moskvitch 402, VAZ-2101 Zhiguli |
| II | 1 300…1 499 | 900…1 049 | Moskvitch 408, VAZ-2103 Zhiguli | ||
| III | 1 500…1 799 | 1 050…1 149 | Moskvitch 412, VAZ-2106 Zhiguli | ||
| 3 | Middle | I | 1 800…2 499 | 1 150…1 299 | GAZ-M20 Pobeda |
| II | 2 500…3 499 | 1 300…1 499 | GAZ-21 Volga, GAZ-3102 Volga | ||
| 4 | Large | I | 3 500…4 999 | 1 500…1 899 | GAZ-12 ZIM |
| II | 5 000 and more | 1 900 and more | Chayka | ||
| 5 | Upper | — | (non-regulated) | (non-regulated) | ZIL-111, ZIL-4104 |
For trucks, full weight is used:
| First digit | Weight |
|---|---|
| 1 | up to 1200 kg |
| 2 | 1200 kg - 2000 kg |
| 3 | 2000 kg - 8000 kg |
| 4 | 8000 kg - 14000 kg |
| 5 | 14000 kg - 20000 kg |
| 6 | 20000 kg - 40000 kg |
| 7 | more than 40000 kg |
For buses length is used:
| First digit | Length |
|---|---|
| 2 | Up to 5 m |
| 3 | 6 - 7.5 m |
| 4 | 8 - 9.5 m |
| 5 | 10.5 – 12 m |
| 6 | more than 16 m |
| Second digit | Type of vehicle |
|---|---|
| 1 | passenger car |
| 2 | bus |
| 3 | truck |
| 4 | semi-trailer truck |
| 5 | dump truck |
| 6 | tank truck |
| 7 | van |
| 8 | reserved |
| 9 | special vehicle |
The fifth digit is optional, and is used to specify different versions or modifications of the same model.
The sixth digit was sometimes used to specify export variants.
Also several digits separated by dash were sometimes used to specify option packages.
The system had multiple drawbacks. For example, there were vehicles that could not be correctly indexed because their engine capacity and dry weight fell into different categories. This problem often appeared when extra low- or large-displacement modifications were created. Usually these were indexed according to the index of the base model. For example 5.5-liter V8-powered Volga GAZ-31011 was indexed so because its base model was 2,99-liter GAZ-3101; instead it should have been indexed with "4" first digit according to its engine displacement. Moskvitch-214145 Svyatogor (based on Moskvitch 2141) was powered by 2.0-liter Renault F3R engine, so it fell into "Middle" class according to its engine desplacement (more than 1800 cc), but into "Small" class according to its dry weight.
However, for most purposes the system worked just fine for its time, mostly because new models were specifically created to fit into its classes and sub-classes, and extra low- or high-power modifications were quite rare.
This system usually was not used for export markets, where different indexes (usually directly based on engine displacement, like "Moskvitch 1500" for the car that was known domestically as Moskvitch 2140), or names (like "Moskvitch Aleko" for Moskvitch 2141) were in use. Howewer, all exported models anyway had indexes based on the Soviet numbering system, which were used for documentation purposes.
By the late-Soviet period, model names were also used domestically along with standardized indexes, like - Lada Sputnik for VAZ-2108, VAZ-2109 and their modifications.
VAZ-21063: A vehicle produced by VAZ, with an engine capacity between 1200 cc and 1800 cc (2), which is a passenger vehicle (1), sixth model of the plant (06), this model's third modification (3).
GAZ-31029-51: A midde-class ("3") passenger ("1") vehicle produced by GAZ, with engine displacement between 1800 cc and 3500 cc, second model ("02"), ninth modification, with option package #51 factory installed.
Future of the standard is unclear. Some manufacturers keep following it and other do not. For instance, AutoVAZ didn't adhere to the standard with its newer Lada Kalina models by dropping required first digit "2" and numbering them as 1117, 1118 and 1119 despite having a 1.6 L engine.