It all started in 2009. Max Mosley, who was then President of the FIA, expressed a desire to increase the number of teams participating in Formula 1 to thirteen. No sooner said than done. A competition was announced among those wishing to take four free places. One of the winners of the competition was the British team Manor Grand Prix.
It is clear that for performances in F-1, very considerable resources are required, both technical and financial plan. But the Manor Grand Prix had an ace up its sleeve in the form of billionaire Richard Branson and his Virgin Group corporation, who became the general sponsor of the new stable. A deal between the team and the Virgin Group was announced in December 2009. As a result, the team changed its name to Virgin Racing and entered the 2010 season under that name, with drivers Timo Glock and Lucas Di Grassi.
The question arises: "What does Marussia have to do with this whole story?" The answer is simple. Russian supercar manufacturer Marussia Motors has become one of the sponsors of the Virgin Racing team. Thanks to this, during the 2010 season, the Marussia logo was emblazoned on the nose cone of Virgin Racing cars.
At the end of 2010, Richard Branson became disillusioned with the F-1 project. The team failed to show serious results. She was not even included in the number of "strong middle peasants" (although it was very strange for Branson to expect any serious indicators from the debutant team in the first year of performances). So the owner of Virgin Racing, with peace of mind, sold a controlling stake in the team Marussia Motors and since then more in F-1 did not appear. And this is where another story begins...
The 2011 season, the team consisting of pilots Timo Glock and Jerome D "Ambrosio, spent under the name Marussia Virgin Racing. Nikolai Fomenko ensured that the team received a Russian license and became the second Russian team in the history of Formula 1. There were many ambitions, the idea was not bad, but, as practice has shown, one desire and plans in order to achieve at least some success in F-1 is clearly not enough.
In mid-2011, the team lost its leader. After that, Marussia Virgin Racing actually found itself under the leadership of the co-owner of Marussia Motors, who held the position of head of the technical department in the "stable" - Nikolai Fomenko. Marussia Motors acquired new base in Branberry, and Pat Simmonds was invited to the post of technical director of the team. A cooperation agreement was also signed with McLaren and a name change is planned at the end of the season.
Since 2012, the Marussia F1 Team has started to compete in Formula 1. Pilots - Timo Glock and Charles Pic. As befits a newcomer who does not have a fabulous budget, in the first year of its existence, the Marussia F1 Team faced a lot of problems. technical nature. The team could not bring the new car to mind in any way, so its appearance at official tests was constantly postponed. To all other, new car failed one of the 18 mandatory FIA crash tests and never showed up for the pre-season test sessions.
In the end, the team actually had to perform in the 2012 season on last year's car, which could not have a positive effect on the results. And the new car, which the team hastily finalized already in the course of the season, constantly demonstrated low reliability.
During one of the test sessions, test pilot Maria De Vigliota was seriously injured. The car under her control suddenly accelerated and crashed into a parked team truck. De Villota suffered severe head and facial injuries and lost her right eye. She never fully recovered from this injury and passed away a little over a year later, in October 2013.
And the 2012 season ended for Marussia F1 Team with 11th place in the Constructors' Championship. For a F-1 debutant, the result is very good, but the constant difficulties experienced by the team during the season were very alarming to observers. In addition to this, Bernie Ecclestone refused financial payments to the 11th-placed team, which subsequently led to a delay in the signing of the "Consent Agreement".
In 2013, Pat Simmonds officially became the Technical Director of the Marussia F1 Team. This time the work on the car progressed more successfully, and it was presented on February 5th. In the spring of the same year, the banking group Lloyds Development Capital (LDC), which issued a loan of 38.4 million pounds to the team in 2011, sold its stake in Marussia Motors. At the time of LDC's withdrawal from the shareholders, the team's debt amounted to 81.2 million pounds.
But in spite of everything, the team continued their performances, still not showing at least some intelligible results. Pat Simmonds was able to withstand this "mess" only half of the season and moved to the Williams in July. A replacement, of course, was found for him, but this did not reduce the problems. Marussia finished the 2013 season in 10th place without scoring a single point. Below it was only Caterham.
In 2014, the team decided to switch engine suppliers, ditching Cosworth's services. More precisely, this decision was made back in 2013. In mid-2013, an agreement was signed between the Marussia F1 Team and Ferrari to supply engines in the 2014 season. The team managed to keep the composition of the pilots, almost completely retained the engineering and technical staff. It seemed that now the black bar is over.
But the 2014 season did not live up to expectations. However, this year Marussia F1 Team still managed to score the first points. Jules Bianchi managed to finish in 8th place at the Monaco Grand Prix. True, because of the fine he received later, he ended up in 9th place, but this also brought the team two points in the Constructors' Championship.
Pictured: Jules Bianchi
At the Japanese Grand Prix, Bianchi had an accident that led to serious consequences for the health of the pilot. As a result, the team lost one of its riders, and at the first Russian Grand Prix in history, to which Fomenko and Marussia have been going all these years, the team entered only one car - Max Chilton. Paying tribute to Bianchi, the mechanics prepared his car for the race, and throughout the weekend he stood in the pits in full combat readiness ... At the beginning of 2015, Jules Bianchi was still in serious condition, never regaining consciousness.
Meanwhile, the financial affairs of the Marussia F1 Team were going from bad to worse. In April 2014, Nikolai Fomenko officially left the team, although he had not shown up in the team's pits for a very long time. There were more and more debts, and it was not possible to find sponsors due to the lack of results. At the end of October, Marussia announced the introduction of external management, effectively declaring itself bankrupt. On November 7, 2014, it was announced that the team would be terminated and all employees would be laid off.
What led Marussia Motors to the crisis?
The assets of the Marussia F1 Team were put up for auction in order to somehow pay off debts to creditors. The debts turned out to be impressive - the team owes a total of 31.4 million pounds, the list of creditors includes more than 200 organizations, including Lloyds Development Capital, Ferrari, McLaren, Pirelli, the British tax office, pilots Max Chilton and Timo Glock .. .
The team's assets are estimated at only 6.3 million pounds, and according to experts, you can get for them no more than 2.2 million. Part of the amount of the debt can be repaid from the prize money due to her in the 2014 season - Marussia took ninth place in the Constructors' Championship, and this would have allowed her to receive 40 million. But in order to get the prize money, the team needs to start the 2015 season... And in order to get to the start, you need to raise a budget of at least 65 million pounds.
John Booth, the former head of the Marussia F1 Team, who more than 25 years ago created the Manor Grand Prix company, which provided the "backbone" of the Russian team, told the British The Yorkshire Post in early January 2015 that the management was trying to keep the team, which left a lot of talented specialists, and find investors for whom the prize money for the 2014 season will serve as a good incentive. However, there is less and less time left, and the hopes for the start of the season in the now “former” Marussia are gradually fading.
What happened in the time period between 2009, when Marusya arrived in Frankfurt, showed a new sports car, collected hundreds of orders and announced participation in Formula 1, and the end of 2014, when the company completely collapsed? Indeed, back in May 2010, the company introduced a prototype of the F2 crossover in Moscow, and for more than a year after that, only positive news came. It's simple: Fomenko's idea that the production and sale of supercars should be made the same everyday, inexpensive and profitable processes as the production and sale of smartphones has come across the realities of the automotive industry.
The stability of the supply of spare parts, the debugging of the technical process, the constant quality of the product, the release of a profitable series, logistics, the pace of implementation of developments in production, strict adherence to deadlines, the timely and competent purchase of equipment and tooling, the formation of the target group, pricing, force majeure - all these areas the Fomenko company to keep I could not. People not familiar with the first day automotive industry began to notice warning signs almost immediately. Several can be distinguished:
The company almost immediately changed the supplier of the power unit. Maybe this was not the beginning of the crisis, but it indirectly indicated the absence of a long-term strategy.
The intended place of production has changed several times. First it was called ZIL, then a new plant built from scratch in Moscow, then two plants in Germany and Belgium, then the facilities of the Finnish Valmet Automotive. The first option did not provide a cost-effective production volume (maximum 300 pieces per year), the rest did not move beyond keynote speeches.
Deadlines were constantly pushed back. The start of production was first scheduled for 2010, then moved to 2011, to 2012 ... Not built new plant, already "existing" models were not launched, new ones were not introduced.
The trouble is that Fomenko surrounded himself with people unable to say "no" to him, hence- many incompetent employees. This ruined the company. We purchased Chinese equipment at the prices of German, which is better, and then it turned out that the acquisitions were not functioning. We bought spare parts in England and Italy for big money, but these parts were not needed.
From an interview with Dmitry, ex-employee of Marussia Motors, Starhit.ru in April 2014
For some time now, Fomenko's company was insured by status from a quick "exposure" - it is not at all obvious to society how much a manufacturer of expensive supercars should sell in order to stay afloat. For a long time"In the first approximation" outwardly everything looked rosy. Nikolai Fomenko continued to give interviews, represent the car abroad, in May 2012 he presented the "first stock car Marussia B1 to TV presenter Ivan Urgant and periodically pleased the public with news.
From time to time, the media got information about the presentation in the UK, the organization of production in Finland, 500 collected orders for the Marusya, the updated B2 sports car launched for testing ...
In the meantime, somewhere in the depths of the company, designers and designers really worked on the F2 and F1 SUVs, on the Cortege sedan, on the futuristic E1 electric car ... None of these plans came true - Marussia F2 flashed at one or two exhibitions, B1 remained a foam full-size mock-up, the E1 project only got to 3D models at all. As for the Cortege, both the organization of the design competition and the published "spy" pictures of the sedan are now perceived as nothing more than a PR stuffing of information. And in general, in the history of "Marusya" there was much more PR than real progress. Much to our regret.
Most of the new undertakings of the Marussia Motors engineering staff have never been seen by "mere mortals" and probably never will be seen again. The company ceased to exist before its formula team disappeared - if the “stable” of the Marussia F1 Team was kept from collapse for some time by the inertia of the racing season, then Marussia Motors suffered an almost instantaneous collapse, although it is clear that the problems accumulated gradually. In early April 2014, the first reports appeared in the press about the suspension of all projects and the dissolution of the state. But by 2014, Fomenko planned to produce 10,000 cars a year ...
We kept the defense for about eight months after it became clear that everything was already dying and, most likely, there would be nothing more. There were a lot of misunderstandings, a lot of problems that we sincerely tried to deal with, but in the end, unfortunately, from a financial point of view, we could not. But people really believed in this project.
Kristina Dubinina, former COO of Marussia Motors. In 2014 she headed
Yes, people believed in the project. And after the bankruptcy of the company, the vast majority of employees maintain a good attitude towards Fomenko, no matter what. Because he was originally with them - he was an enthusiast to the marrow of his bones. And stayed until the end. The townsfolk often laughed at Fomenko, but also wished for the realization of his audacious dream. In Russia, she was called "Marusya", foreigners seemed to gravitate toward "Marash", which the PR service tried to quickly associate with "My Russia", and Fomenko himself half-jokingly said that the pronunciation "Marusha" is characteristic of a Western person, supposedly it is closer to funny Russian words like "babushka"...
Marusya did not live to see her grandmother, her fate is typical for many small supercar brands: English Arash AF-10, Danish Zenvo ST1, German MC1, American Revenge GTM-R... Caparo, Tramontana, Lotec Sirius, Saleen, Spyker - perhaps a couple of dozen names will be typed in history. Yes, and in Russia before "Marusya" there were already sad examples: A:level with the revival of "Russo-Balt" and AvtoVAZ with the "civilian" version of Lada Revolution.
But, fortunately, the story of "Marusya" has a more cheerful ending than the film, the title of which is placed in the title of this text. Nikolai Fomenko, who experienced a serious moral shock after the collapse of Marussia Motors, already in April 2014 found the strength to give a big anniversary concert with his old group "Secret" in Moscow's Crocus City Hall, now he plays in performances, is busy in television projects, is filming in the cinema ... He, as before, is tireless, although he bears the honorary title of "three times grandfather." And he still realizes his passion for cars.
He still believes that the history of Marussia Motors is not over. In July 2014, after Marusya ceased to exist for the general public, he gave an interview on the radio station Mayak.
I'm doing what I was doing - working on the Marussia brand ... I think that new model B3 we will call Turbo Piter * when we make [for this car] a new engine ... We created cars, certified them, now there is the most difficult process- build a production line. But we will do it this year, I hope. And I don't want to talk about it anymore. Let me explain: recently all over the world, causal relationships have been violated, so it is not an event that is being discussed, but conjecture. There is no point in discussing conjecture. When we open the plant, of course, we will invite journalists. And we will not discuss everything else.
From the interview Nikolai Fomenko radio "Mayak", July 2014
Kolya and Vanya (son of Nikolai Fomenko,- note .. Firstly, they go to the bathhouse, and they have a whole bathing ritual there. Secondly, they go to some car factory, dig into the engines. Purely male activities!
From an interview with Maria Golubkina, actress, ex-wife of Nikolai Fomenko, Starhit.ru, January 2015
First car company in Russia, which launched mass production premium sports cars, was founded relatively recently - in 2007 - and a year later presented its first Marussia model to the world public in two modifications at once ( and ). The founders of the brand, actor (as well as race car driver) Nikolai Fomenko and businessman Efim Ostrovsky, tried to embody amazing power, impressive dynamics and unusual design in Marus. As you know, Marusya Motors is the first Russian automaker that managed to become official partner Formula 1.
Find out where to buy Marussia (Marussia):
Moscow, Novosibirsk
History
The history of Marussia Motors began in 2007 thanks to the initiative of the famous Russian actor, showman and racing driver Nikolai Fomenko. His many years of experience in sports performances and victories in such championships as the FIA Grand Touring and Le Mans Endurance Series, participation in the legendary racing stadiums "24 Hours of Le Mans", "24 Hours of Daytona" and "12 Hours of Sebring" was embodied in domestic supercars Marussia.
Already a year after the opening of the company, the first racing car immediately in two body trim levels (B1 and B2). With its appearance, Marussia caused a resonance in the society of motorists, because a very short period of time passed from the announcement to the release, during which Marusa Motors managed to acquire a staff the best mechanics and engineers, set up modern equipment and produce the first car. Most engineering, technological and design solutions are the own achievements of the company's design bureau employees.
“Our car is not only a car, but also a symbol. A symbol of the possibility of a Russian breakthrough and Russian leadership,” says Efim Ostrovsky, investor and co-owner of MaRussia Motors on the official website of the brand. Over the years of its existence, "Marusya" has really become a worthy rival to the best foreign analogues.
April 2010 was marked by the premiere of the Marussia F2 crossover with a completely different ideology, which diversified the Marussia lineup of two cars. In the autumn of the same year, the company opened its first Moscow car dealership on Tverskaya Street.
In the next few years, the company's management is planning a global expansion of the Marousi lineup by adding a sedan and an electric car.
Model range MaRussia
Our catalog contains the Marusya lineup, which includes, however, only two models. Before you is a unique sports car, the dream of all motorsport lovers Marussia B1 and the futuristic GT-class coupe Marussia B2.
The perfect design of supercars is fully consistent with the power of these machines, the elegant hood of which hides the impressive Marussia-Cosworth engine. Petrol V-shaped "six" with a working volume of 2.8 liters produces up to 420 Horse power. Six-speed "automatic" and rear drive allow you to reach a maximum speed of 250 km per hour and overcome the first hundred in 3.8 seconds.
MaRussia cost
The cost of powerful version models can reach up to five million rubles. The least expensive option - Marussia with a 300-horsepower unit and less impressive dynamics - will cost the buyer four million. For this money they offer very rich equipment: three rear view cameras at once, three LCD screens, Internet connection, navigation, HDD for 320 gigabytes, and all this is already in the database. The interior of the Marussia car is a typical supercar with all the unthinkable bells and whistles. Here is the projection system on Windshield, and a rear video camera with continuous video recording to a hard drive (which can help in an accident), and airbags with ABS.
Marusya, designed according to the classical racing circuit, turned out to be quite light, despite the six-cylinder engine. Dynamic characteristics MaRussia make it capable of seriously competing with the British roadster Lotus Elise.
Owners were found only by a few salable cars, and the rest, after the bankruptcy of Marusya, existed mainly in the form of components and understaffed chassis with a body. The Novosibirsk company VIP-Service, which is engaged in car tuning, bought the 6 remaining Marussia cars in different condition and is going to restore them, NGS.Novosti reports. How much these cars cost Novosibirsk residents is not reported.
"We brought two cars at full speed, these are models B1 and B2. Another B1 convertible needs to be improved, the prototype of the B3 model is only in the frame, without units. And the F2 jeep is on the move, but needs serious repairs. All these cars during they just stood in the garage for two years, they were produced approximately in 2013-2014. They need to be put in order - after a bad attitude, cars require attention. All interiors will be created anew, we plan to repaint the bodies, "explained the head of VIP-Service Alexander Serdtseov to the publication. .
Redeemed copies of "Marusya" do not have the right to travel on the roads common use, because they are only prototypes or blanks for supercars. The Novosibirsk tuning studio is going to completely restore these copies and receive a certificate of conformity from US vehicle. The resuscitation of each supercar, according to the entrepreneur, will take about 6-7 months.
The most interesting thing is that the company intends to buy the rights to use trademark and the Marussia brand to start producing cars under this brand in Siberia. The head of VIP-Service said that a certain foreign investor is already ready to invest in this project for the organization joint production"Marus" in Novosibirsk and Italy.
Name
Most sources and the official website broadcast the name as "Marusya", while Fomenko personally emphasized that "Marusha" sounds correct ( mɑˈruːʃɑ ).
The lineup
Relationship to Formula 1The Marussia brand appeared in Formula 1 in December 2009. Since the beginning of the 2010 season, Marussia Motors has become the official sponsor of the Virgin Racing team. At the end of that same season in November 2010, at a press conference ahead of the 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the purchase of a majority stake in Virgin Racing by Marusei Motors was announced. The new team was given the mixed name Marussia Virgin Racing. In early 2011, it became known about the appointment of Nikolai Fomenko as the head of the engineering division of Marussia Virgin Racing. The team spent the 2011 season under the name Marussia Virgin Racing and did not score a single point. |
All 2019 Models: Vehicle Lineup Marusya, prices, photos, wallpapers, specifications, modifications and configurations, Marussia owner reviews, history of the Marusya brand, review of Marussia models, video test drives, archive of Marussia models. Also here you will find discounts and hot offers from official dealers Marussia.
History of the brand Marussia / Marusya
Marussia Motors is the first company in Russia engaged in the production of premium sports cars. The founder of Marussia Motors is the famous presenter, musician and showman Nikolai Fomenko. The history of Marussia cars begins in 2007, when Fomenko announced the creation of Marussia Motors LLC, in the same year the production of the first sports car was launched. A year later, the company shows a prototype of the same name "Marussia", which later went into series in two versions - and. Nikolai Fomenko brought the first "live" performances of his Marussia cars to the Frankfurt Auto Show in 2010 - then pre-production samples of the B1 and B2 models were presented to the masses. Main Feature sports car "Marusya" the company considers the production of cars with interchangeable bodies. In May 2010 in Moscow at the Svyaz-Expocomm-2010 site, motorists were shown conceptual model- Marussia F2, seven-seater SUV.
Nikolai Fomenko believed that "Marusya" must first conquer foreign market, and then take up Russian segment. Marussia cars were ordered in Germany, England, France. The company, which was only heard about in 2007, has received orders for more than 700 vehicles. Several times Marussia B1 and B2 were shown at Silverstone (England) with the assistance of the Virgin Racing racing team. The official test drive of Marusya took place in France at the Paul Ricard sports track before the races in Monaco. Marussia Motors planned to open its showrooms in Monaco, London, and later in Berlin and Stuttgart.
As power units it was planned to install engines on Marus Renault-Nissan Alliance. Additionally, Marussia could be equipped with English engines Cosworth company. As a transmission on Marusya cars, they planned to use a 6-band automatic or mechanics with the same number of speeds. sports suspension can automatically increase ground clearance 7.5 cm to ride on ordinary road. But the plans of Marussia Motors were not destined to come true. Both models B1 and B2 never went into mass production. Huge multimillion-dollar loans, defaulted debt obligations and back wages for its employees forced Marussia Motors to file for bankruptcy in 2014. Financial problems have been cited as the official reason for the company's liquidation.
The Marussia supercar was developed in Russia by a domestic company (Marussia Motors). This company was formed in 2007 and literally in half a year already announced that supercars would be produced in Russia, which undoubtedly shocked and bewildered most of the motorists in our country.
In such a short period of time in the newly minted Russian company Marussia Motors was born the concept of the production of a new one, its design, production and invention of the main elements, the creation of advertising moves and other solutions. Agree, in the global automotive industry in such a short period of time, few have achieved such resounding and grandiose successes.
The first presentation of the new car took place in Moscow on December 16, 2008. A well-known showman and racer, and part-time now the president of the company, Nikolai Fomenko, who represented at the presentation new supercar, assured everyone that Marussia would be sold and enjoyed success not only in Russia, but also abroad.
Nikolay Fomenko also emphasized that domestic car able to catch up even so well-known manufacturer like a Lamborghini. Main Feature Marousi in front of foreign companies, according to Nikolai Fomenko, is that it will be less expensive. If European companies, as a rule, use spars integrated into the body to create a roof, then in domestic development everything will be much simpler - the roof body will be made of carbon fiber, in manufacturing process which does not need to resort to the services of expensive metalworking shops and rolling lines.
Marussia B1 has a modern, sporty and aggressive design. It should be noted that in addition to attractive appearance in the B1 model, everything matches the supercar and under the hood. The most powerful engine, capable of developing up to 420 horsepower with a torque of 4000 Nm. The six-cylinder engine on the B1 version is equipped with a turbocharger.
Independent front and rear suspension, six-speed automatic transmission gears, ventilated discs, light car weight (a little over 1000 kg), acceleration to 100 kilometers per hour in 3.8 seconds - all this emphasizes that in Russia they really know how to do modern cars, which are in no way inferior, and in many respects overtaking European and world models of cars. Marussia B1 price is about 100 thousand euros.
Marussia B2- the second, more expensive modification of the Russian supercar. The cost of the car is 117 thousand euros. The engine of the novelty was developed jointly with the British company Cosworth, the gearbox is robotic and is manufactured by Ricardo. A special pride of the B2 model is its multimedia system, produced and invented in Russia.
She was made the best minds our country for 2.5 years. As Nikolai Fomenko said: "This system reads and reproduces everything that is possible." In fact, it is. Supercar multimedia system Marussia B2 includes Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, Glonass, 4G, Skype, radio and TV. Among other things, this multimedia system allows you to connect up to 12 different cameras (in basic configuration goes 5 pieces).
In addition, the device in question has 320 GB of memory and runs on a 4-core processor. Another feature of B2 is steering. In standard mode at speeds over 35 km/h steering wheel begins to "fill up" with heaviness. At sport mode adjustments and steering wheel settings can be selected directly in the car.
Suspension car Marusya also special. It was invented in Russia, but production has been established in Germany. This suspension allows the supercar to significantly increase its ground clearance by 7.5 centimeters, so that the car can effortlessly overcome, for example, speed bumps.
Most recently, on September 10, 2010, in Moscow on the street. Tverskaya opened the first Russian showroom. Now supercars are manufactured in the heart of our country's capital.
Today, according to Nikolai Fomenko, Marussia car has already begun to be sold abroad. Now 19 lucky people have received a Russian supercar. According to the words of the president of the company, currently (Marusya Motoros) has about 700 purchase orders from countries such as Germany, France and England.
Domestic buyers will begin to purchase "Marusya" only after the fashion in Europe for the Russian supercar becomes ubiquitous. One way or another, it is already pleasing that a really serious production of cars is starting in Russia, which in terms of quality and parameters is not inferior to the best world manufacturers.
You can find out even more details about Russian Marussia supercars on the official website of Marussia Auto.
