| mechanical with hydraulic clutch 3-speed. | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | GAS |
| Type | mechanical with hydraulic clutch |
| Number of steps | 3 |
| gear ratios | |
| 1 gear | 3,115 |
| 2 gear | 1,772 |
| 3rd gear | 1 |
| Reverse gear | 4.005 (since 1951 3.738) |
| Gear type | helical (since 1951 gears of 1st gear and s.h. spur gears) |
| Synchronizers | for second and third gear |
| control mechanism | steering wheel lever |
| Switching | manual |
Buick Super
ZIM(until 1957), GAZ-12- Soviet six-seat six-window long-wheelbase large sedan, mass-produced at the Gorky Automobile Plant (Molotov Plant) from 1959 to 1959 (some modifications - to 1960).
Comparison with foreign counterparts
The tight deadlines allotted to the GAZ team made it possible either to approximately copy the foreign model (which, in principle, was originally intended - in particular, the plant was strongly recommended the Buick of the 1948 model - that is, in fact, the minimally updated pre-war model of 1942), or to use existing developments and design a car that relies as much as possible on the units and technologies already mastered in production. Constructors and designers chose the second path, although the significant influence of American samples of the same class on the choice of stylistic decisions remained.
At the same time, echoing in appearance with a number of American models of the segment fine car(middle-upper class), ZIM was not a copy of any specific foreign car, neither in terms of design, nor, in particular, in the technical aspect - in the latter, the plant's designers even managed to some extent "say a new word" within the global automotive industry.
Technical features of the project
The main distinguishing feature of the car was its body: it was made bearing, that is, it did not have a structurally detachable frame. Only in the front part there was a short detachable subframe (subframe) attached to the body with bolts. Such a body structure in the general case gives some advantage in the mass of the structure. Although for those years the load-bearing body was not a unique phenomenon, it was then used extremely rarely on cars of this class, and on models with a wheelbase comparable to ZIM and with three rows of seats, it did not occur at all in those years (and very rarely met afterwards ). Thus, the Gorky designers were the first in the world to create a car of this class with a load-bearing body.
Several factors played a role in the choice of the load-bearing structure of the body for ZIM: Firstly, the lack of the required geometry in the production program of the plant of the frame with the experience and ready-made developments in the design of the load-bearing elements of the body of the M-20 Pobeda car, which were used. At the first design stage, the Pobeda, with a wheelbase extended by half a meter, was used as a GAZ-12 "mule" (carrier of units) due to insertion into the middle of the body.
Secondly, the desire to reduce the mass of the car, as it was planned to use the GAZ-11 six-cylinder engine. The maximum power reserves of this engine in shortage conditions quality gasoline, which was acutely felt after the Great Patriotic War, were quite modest - the engine was originally intended for installation on middle-class cars - GAZ-M-11-73 (modernized M-1, produced in 1938-48 with a break in 1942-45) and a six-cylinder “Victory” (went only to a small series, since 1956 under the designation M-20G), and to force its serial version to more than 90 hp. With. without loss of motor resources and with the use of grades of commercial gasoline available in those years in the USSR - it was difficult.
Thirdly, this design was progressive at that time and would show in the best light the level of the Soviet design school and industry, would allow to consolidate the experience gained in the design load-bearing body the previous model, "Victory" M-20.
At the same time, to a certain extent, the fact [ ] that in the future the plant refused to use a load-bearing body for cars of this class. There are also certain problems with the rigidity and durability of the M-12 body when long-term operation(on runs significantly exceeding the durability standards established for this car). Since ZIM was intended for use for representative purposes and as a taxi, the roof level was much higher than on ordinary passenger cars of those years - this made it possible to create a very spacious interior and ensure free boarding of passengers.
Second important feature the car had the highest (in general, up to 50%) degree of unification in terms of units with already mastered in mass production and promising models of the plant - the Pobeda passenger car, the GAZ-51 truck, which was designed in the same years GAZ-69 and others.
So, the engine was a modernized version of the GAZ-11 engine with a working volume of 3.5 liters. Power due to the aluminum cylinder head, increased compression ratio, lack of a speed limiter, a new intake piping and a two-chamber carburetor was raised to 90 hp. s., which at that time was excellent result(for comparison, in the USA from 3.9 liters Ford engine V8 models of 1949 produced 100 hp. With. - the same 25 liters. With. from 1 liter).
The ZIM gearbox with stalk control, simultaneously with its production, began to be installed on serial Pobeda, and later its modifications were used on a lot of Soviet cars.
The front suspension as a whole repeated the design of the Pobeda M-20 and was unified with it in a number of parts.
Running prototypes
Prototypes of the car are a vivid evidence of the creative searches of the design and design team of the plant. The first layout ("mule", carrier of units) for the M-12 was the "Victory", in the body of which a half-meter insert was added, which made it possible to bring wheelbase to the required length (3,200 mm) and carry out full-scale strength tests of the resulting body. This technique made it possible to significantly reduce the amount of complex calculations when designing the load-bearing structure of the ZIM body - and, consequently, to reduce the design time, as well as the work of technologists and production workers to introduce a new car into production, during which it became possible to use proven and well-mastered technological solutions. , already used in the production of serial Pobed bodies.
In 1949, several variants of running prototypes appeared. In design, the first of them differed significantly from future production cars: the sidewalls of the body were smooth, like on Pobeda. However, on such a long (5530 mm) body, such a stylistic decision looked unprofitable - the sidewall turned out to be too monotonous, the car significantly lost its dynamism and elegance of form. In addition, the rear seat, with the adopted layout, located entirely between the rear wheel arches, turned out to be cramped, it could not accommodate more than two passengers.
Therefore, it was decided, while retaining the pontoon shape of the body, by analogy with the latest American cars of 1948-49 model years, to divide the “pontoon” into two parts - the front one gradually tapered in the area from the front wheels to the end of the rear door opening, and on the back to accommodate the rear arches The wheels were made with wide stampings imitating separate rear fenders (the so-called “flaps”). In combination with several shiny ornaments (linings and moldings), this made it possible to visually “break” the long sidewall of the body, giving it beautiful proportions and a more dynamic appearance, as well as to bring out the rear wheel arches, which made it possible to accommodate three people in the back seat , making the car a seven-seater. True, the use of a sidewall with “flaps” deprived the car of a certain share of external individuality - such a design technique at that time belonged to a very common foreign models, but in those years it was not perceived as a disadvantage.
In addition, later prototypes featured a checkered grille stylistically similar to Cadillac's 1948 models, notably the Cadillac Fleetwood 60 special. More early prototypes had a striped grille in the style of "Cadillacs" of the outdated model of 1946-47.
The first show of the car took place during a festive demonstration on November 7, 1948 in Gorky. On May 10, 1949, prototypes were demonstrated in the Moscow Kremlin to the country's top leadership and received a generally positive assessment. And in the summer of next year, cars could be seen at the exhibition "Automotive Industry of the USSR" in Moscow.
Putting into production
In October 1950, the first industrial batch of GAZ-12 was assembled. In 1951, state tests were carried out three cars with full load. The mileage of each car was 21,072 km.
The car was produced from 1949 to 1959 in the version with sedan and sedan-taxi bodies, in the ambulance version with an ambulance body (essentially a hatchback) - until 1960.
A total of 21,527 cars were produced.
Overview of modifications
Vehicle name
Until 1957, the model was designated only as ZIM (the abbreviation of the name of the plant - “Plant named after Molotov”, was written in capital letters), the name GAZ-12 was purely internal. The car's nameplate read: Car ZIM (GAZ-12). But after the defeat of the “anti-party group” of Molotov, Malenkov, Kaganovich and Shepilov who joined them, the name of Molotov was excluded from the name of the plant. The car began to be named according to the factory designation: GAZ-12. Then the central apparatchiks, who wanted to demonstrate their support for the course of the party, preferred to replace the ZIM nameplates and emblems with new ones - GAZ. In the private sector and on the periphery of power, political changes in the design of the car were treated indifferently - largely due to this, many cars of early releases have survived to this day with the original ZIM emblems.
Serial
Experienced and non-serial
Railcars
It is authentically known about at least two copies converted into railcars for movement on narrow-gauge 750 mm gauge railways. One copy has been preserved in the Pereslavl Museum. The trolley was made for the head of the Balakhna peat enterprise in the 50s. Lifting and turning mechanism was not equipped. Additionally, two headlights were installed on the rear fenders for moving backwards. Ahead, a searchlight was installed on the roof, similar to those available on the ambulance. The exhibit was delivered from the Chernoramenskaya UZhD of Gorkovtorf, where there were several such trolleys.
Design overview
power unit
Due to the tight design deadlines, from the very beginning, the stake was placed on high unification (up to 50% of parts) with the rest of the GAZ vehicles - the Pobeda passenger car and the GAZ-51 truck.
Considerations of fuel economy, compliance with the existing type of domestic passenger cars (“Pobeda” - four cylinders, ZIS - eight, - the car located between them, logically, should have been six-cylinder) and the presence in production of a good six-cylinder in-line engine GAZ-11 forced the designers to use a six-cylinder engine , although an eight-cylinder would be more consistent with the size and weight of the designed car.
The GAZ-12 engine was a development of the pre-war GAZ-11 and was generally structurally similar to the GAZ-51 truck engine, but had an increased compression ratio (6.7 - gasoline with an octane rating of 70-72), an aluminum cylinder head and a twin carburetor. In the GAZ-12 engine, the main drawback of the GAZ-51 engines was eliminated - the failure of the connecting rod bearings when high speed, by installing symmetrical connecting rods [ ] .
The Pobeda engine, in turn, was a four-cylinder version of the same GAZ-11 engine, but with a piston stroke reduced from 110 to 100 mm (the first step towards a more resourceful "square" section, subsequently achieved on the ZMZ-21A " Volga"). Thus, all GAZ cars of those years had engines almost completely unified in terms of spare parts, excellent in addition to attachments practically only the number of cylinders. Of course, this unification significantly simplified the operation, maintenance and repair of vehicles.
Modifications of the GAZ-12 engine were subsequently used on the PAZ-652 B bus, caterpillar all-terrain vehicle GAZ-47, and wheeled armored personnel carriers BTR-40 (GAZ-40 engine) and BTR-60P (-60PB), where a dual unit was used - two forced GAZ-40P engines).
power transmission
For ZIM, a new gearbox was developed, which for the first time in the history of the plant had synchronizers (in II and III gears) and shifting with a lever located on the steering column - this was the then American fashion (which was followed by many European manufacturers).
Since 1950, they began to put a new gearbox on Pobeda, in addition, later its variants were used on GAZ-21, GAZ-22, GAZ-69, RAF-977, ErAZ-762 and others. This provided the highest degree unification of parts and greatly facilitated the maintenance of cars, and the huge margin of safety incorporated in the design of this unit, originally designed for a six-cylinder engine with high torque, provided the gearbox with a huge resource when paired with four-cylinder engines.
original constructive solution, applied on the GAZ-12 and having no analogues in the domestic passenger car industry, was fluid coupling- a transmission unit located between the engine and the clutch, and which was a crankcase filled with special oil, in which two half-toroid-shaped rotors, not mechanically connected to each other, rotated, divided by blades into 48 compartments (a pump rotor that played the role of a flywheel) and 44 compartments (a turbine rotor, a lightweight flywheel and a conventional friction clutch were attached to it). There was a small gap between the inner ends of the rotors.
During operation, the engine turned the pump wheel, which created fluid movement in the crankcase, which caused rotation turbine wheel, while their mutual slippage was allowed. The energy losses that occurred in this case at a low rotational speed were practically imperceptible, because maximum speed lower valve ZIM engine was only 3600 rpm.
The fluid coupling was not an analogue of automatic transmission, which had already appeared in America at that time, and did not increase torque, like a torque converter; but it also gave the car a lot of operational advantages.
ZIM could start from any of the three available gears - the factory instructions recommended starting from second gear, and using the first one only in difficult road conditions and on slopes. The elasticity in straight-third gear was amazing. The car started off smoothly and without any jerks. ZIM could be braked to a complete stop without disengaging the gear, after which it was possible to start moving simply by releasing the brake and pressing the accelerator - the fluid coupling did not form a permanent rigid connection between the transmission and the engine, preventing the engine from stalling when stopped - the fluid coupling rotors began to slip relative to each other friend (the pump was rotated by the engine, and the turbine was stalled along with the transmission), thus playing the role of a second, automatic clutch.
Unlike the automatic transmission based on a torque converter that appeared on the Volga GAZ-21, the fluid coupling did not require any special maintenance and scarce lubricants, and its resource was practically unlimited.
In addition to the advantages, this transmission unit informed the car and some disadvantages. The main thing was that to keep the car in place when stopping on a slope, only the parking brake could be used - without this, even with the gear engaged, the ZIM started to roll easily. This made high demands on the technical condition of the manual brake mechanism, and in cold weather, applying the parking brake for a long time could lead to freezing brake pads to the drums. A more effective way to keep the car in place was to use prism stops - they were included with each car. In fairness, it should be noted that this shortcoming was also characteristic of many early automatic transmissions, which did not have the position "P" ("Park", "Parking"). Subsequently, the fluid coupling was used on the MAZ-525 mining dump truck.
For the first time in the industry, a hypoid rear axle with a one-piece crankcase was used on the GAZ-12, which, in combination with a two-link cardan shaft made it possible to greatly lower the level of the floor and practically remove the tunnel for the cardan shaft, as well as significantly reduce the noise level from work main couple bridge compared to the Pobeda bevel gear.
This solution also had disadvantages - the hypoid rear axle fails after several minutes of operation in ordinary gear oil, since it requires a special, rather rare then, hypoid one, due to the fact that the features of the operation of hypoid gears require very high extreme pressure characteristics of the oil; the number of lubrication points has increased due to the introduction of an additional joint of the cardan shaft, its balancing has become more complicated.
Chassis
The independent spring pivot front suspension was made according to the Victory suspension type (in turn, made according to the Opel Kapitän model of 1938) and did not fundamentally differ from it. The rear suspension differed from the "Victory" also only in details. Shock absorbers were still lever. The steering trapezoid has been redesigned while maintaining the overall layout.
Other
Among the novelties were also: 15-inch wheel rims, brakes with two leading pads, curved rear window (the front remained V-shaped), an oil cooler in the engine lubrication system, flange-type axle shafts, and so on.
The hood at ZIM could open on either side or be removed altogether.
Design
The design of the car deserves special mention. He was given special attention during development. Compared to the rustic “Victory”, with a minimum of chrome decor and generalized forms, ZIM pleasantly surprises with elegant lines, luxurious American-style styling, attention to detail (which determine the overall perception of the car), an abundance of chrome in both the exterior and interior .
The car was painted with the best available for GAS quality nitro enamels in 7 layers with manual polishing of each. The color scheme was not rich: cars were painted mainly in black, rarely - white and dark green. Taxis usually had grey colour, and "ambulances" - the color of "ivory". Cherry, green and gray cars were also offered for export, as well as two-tone combinations. For China, a batch of cars in the blue color that is popular there, traditionally symbolizing good luck and success, was made. Tires with white sidewalls were purchased in the USA and were installed only on show samples.
The car looked for 1950 quite within the framework of the then automotive fashion, outwardly echoing many American models middle-upper class, and surpassed American cars in novelty of design individual brands, as well as most of the products of European firms (which were mainly developed before the Second World War).
Subsequently, the appearance of the car began to quickly become obsolete, especially its elements such as a V-shaped windshield or rear lighting. In the 1955 model year, American design took a sharp leap forward, and bodies, designed around the same time as the ZIM and stylistically similar to it, were widely discontinued.
At the same time, the aggregate part could be considered obsolete by the middle of the first half of the 1950s, since the lower valve engine and mechanical box gears on machines of this class in those years were rapidly supplanted by overhead valve engines and automatic transmission(However, the Chrysler concern installed a similar lower-valve motor on its cars until the 1959 model year inclusive, and the real PowerFlight automatic transmission instead of the former analogue of the ZIM Fluid-o-matic on Chryslers first appeared only in 1954).
By the end of its release in 1959 (base sedan), ZIM had completely become obsolete both technically and externally. Ambulances on its base with an "embulance-hatchback" body were produced before 1960.
Body equipment
The interior of the ZIM car was equipped and finished with the best available production model GAZ-a care and quality. Fabric (dense drape like overcoat cloth) of muted shades - gray, beige, pale green, lilac; ivory plastic. All metal parts have been finished with a decorative coating that is quite realistic imitating lacquered wood panels.
The standard equipment was a three-band radio receiver with high sensitivity for that time (six-tube superheterodyne). However, it also had disadvantages - a large consumption of electricity. Using the receiver for 2-3 hours with the engine off led to a complete discharge of the battery (actually, characteristic flaw all tube car receivers). The driver's seat (sofa) was rigidly fixed in place and rested on the body crossbars, which further strengthened it - there was no real partition in the body, which does not allow calling it a limousine. There wasn't much room to drive. On the other hand, the passenger compartment was very spacious - comparable in size to a ZIS-110 top-class limousine - and contained seats for five people - three on the back sofa, two on folding seats - "strapontens" retracted into the back of the front seat. Taxis and ambulances, as a rule, had a simplified finish with metal panels painted in body color and leatherette upholstery; a taximeter was installed on most taxi cars.
The high ceiling and large width made the interior of the ZIM very roomy, spacious and comfortable. Particularly comfortable was the rear seat, designed for a comfortable, free fit of three passengers. rear doors opened in the direction of travel, which, in combination with high doorways and a rear sofa, almost completely moved back out of the doorways, made the entry and exit of passengers very convenient.
However, it soon became clear that the style of the car was hopelessly outdated, external modernization would not be able to significantly modernize it, and it was considered irrational to spend resources on modernization, when only a few years remained before the release of the new model.
ZIM, filed to the aircraft ladder. 1957, Leipzig, East Germany.
The elegant car was used not only by high-ranking bureaucracy, but also by the establishment - prominent workers in culture, science and art. In addition, ZIM is the only model of this class that has become a consumer product, that is, it has gone on open sale. This was not the case with the subsequent "Seagull", nor with the ZISs. True, the price of 40 thousand rubles - two and a half times more expensive than the "Victory" - made the car less accessible to the consumer. To satisfy the interest of a simple Soviet person in a difficult technique, modifications of the ZIM "taxi" and " ambulance”, and the latter is completely free. Another modification - with an open body "cabriolet" - was built in 1951 as an experiment, only in two copies. The reconstruction of such a body is also mastered today by the Molotov-Garage workshop.
Work in taxi companies
The first ZIM taxis appeared in Moscow in the summer of 1952 to serve an international economic conference. They were painted light gray with a white checkered stripe. In 1956, 300 ZIM cars arrived at the 1st Moscow taxi depot. In 1958, there were 328 of them. They were operated in Moscow until 1960. ZIM-taxi, as a rule, were black with a belt of white checkers. In the late 1950s, on the doors of ZIMs converted into taxis from personal cars, two stripes of checkers were divided on the doors in a circle with the letter T in the center. The TA-49 counter was placed on the floor. Since the fare on the ZIM was significantly higher than on the usual Pobeda, they were mostly driven in a clubbing; Subsequently, ZIMs were mainly transferred to a minibus that worked on fixed routes, however, insufficient capacity - only 6 people, of which two were sitting on uncomfortable folding strapontens - led to them being enough quick change on minibuses RAF-977, more compact, roomy and economical (since 1959). ZIM taxis were also used in other cities. For example, they appeared in Minsk on October 23, 1954.
Sale for personal use
The ZIM car was the most democratic of all Soviet large class cars: unlike the "Seagulls" that followed it, it was used quite massively in a taxi and ambulance service, and was sold to the public.
The price of a car before the reform of 1961 was 40,000 rubles, a fortune at the then average salary, despite the fact that the prestigious Pobeda cost 16,000 rubles. (later 25,000 rubles), and "Moskvich-400" - 9,000 rubles. (later 11,000 rubles). So there were simply no queues for ZIMs at that time, and their main buyers were the Soviet scientific and creative elite from among those who were not directly entitled to a personal car. However, these "private" vehicles were often driven by personal drivers, serviced and stored in government garages. It is worth noting that, according to archival data published by A. Lekae, the cost of manufacturing each ZIM was around 80,000 rubles, that is, it approximately doubled the retail price assigned to the car.
Moreover, at the suggestion of I.V. Stalin, the Order of Lenin, awarded for 25 years of impeccable service, officers and full foremen (chief ship foremen) were entitled to severance pay. However, the Ministry of Finance of the USSR could not finally determine the amount of this allowance, and then it was decided, along with the Order of Lenin, to award a ZIM car in government equipment. It is curious that N. S. Khrushchev, having come to power, immediately canceled this entire award system for long service.
Already in the early seventies, after the mass write-off of ZIMs from government agencies and taxis, they were bought by private traders as ordinary cars. The price of the GAZ-12 did not exceed the cost of the Zhiguli. The owners often used these vehicles to transport heavy loads such as potatoes. It was at this time that most of the surviving ZIMs lost their historical equipment, acquired alien transmission units, engines from trucks, and so on, which makes the complete ZIM in its original, factory configuration a very rare car and a rather desirable find for a collector.
Pera Valle).
Sport
Directly on the basis of ZIM units was not built sports cars, but using the upgraded GAZ-51 engine by designer I. Ya. Pomogaybo on Kharkov plant transport engineering were built racing cars series "Dzerzhinets" and "Vanguard". On these cars in 1952-1955. Pomogaybo set three All-Union speed records. The highest speed achieved was 257.566 km/h at a distance of 10 km.
in the game and souvenir industry , this model can be purchased at an affordable price - from March 17, 2009, in a large but limited edition. Since May 2010, within the framework of the Nash Avtoprom project, ZIM models have been produced in two colors - black and ivory. A 1:12 scale copy has also been released in a limited edition in China, perfectly imitating the exterior, interior and technical part cars. Also on August 20, within the framework of the new magazine series Car, the medical beige GAZ-12B was in service. True, for all this they ask for the corresponding money. Yat Ming presented a 1:24 scale model of ZIM. These models had some inconsistency with real cars - GAZ was written on the hood instead of ZIM, although ZIM became GAZ later.
Literature
- A.A. Lipgart and others. Car ZIM (care instructions). - M.: ed. car factory them. V.M. Molotov, 1951.
- Rudakov L.F. ZIM car. - M.: Publishing House of the Ministry of Public Utilities of the RSFSR, 1952. - 276 p.
- Automobile. Descriptive course. - M. : MashGIZ, 1952. - 276 p.
- Anokhin V.I. Soviet cars. - M. : MashGIZ, 1955. - 728 p.
- Brief car guide. - M. : NIIAT, 1958. - S. 65. - 448 p.
- GAZ cars. General data .. - M .: Gorky book publishing house, 1961. - S. 36. - 68 p.
- Anokhin V.I. Soviet cars. - M. : MashGIZ, 1961. - 760 p.
- Anokhin V.I. Soviet cars. - M. : Mashinostroenie, 1964. - 780 p.
- Kanunnikov S. Domestic passenger cars (1896-2000). - M.: Behind the wheel, 2009. - S. 504. - ISBN 978-5-9698-0191-2.
- ZIM-12 // Auto legends of the USSR: magazine. - 2009. - No. 3. - S. 16.
Notes
In today's Moscow, he is uncomfortable. And not only because there is little useless fuss and rude crush around. He, unlike the capital, has not lost his face, not overgrown with tasteless decorations. The best time to travel by ZIM is early Saturday morning. Then you can linger where little has changed in six decades, and calmly remember how everything was.
This is the first Gaz car with a deer on the emblem and the last one in whose name the surname Molotov was encrypted. The abbreviation ZIM, in contrast to the understandable, albeit not very pleasant, “leader of all peoples” name “Victory”, sounded like a nickname. By the way, the name Molotov is also a party pseudonym. Accurately, when ZIM was being prepared for production, Molotov was removed from the post of Minister of Foreign Affairs, and his wife was generally sent to a camp. But Molotov still remained on the presidium of the Central Committee, and the plant and the new car did not lose the letter M. Such are the lessons of linguistics.
The model, which in the Soviet automobile hierarchy took a place between the Pobeda and the ZIS-110, began to be designed in 1948 under the leadership of the chief designer A. Lipgart. The whole thing took less than two and a half years. At the core big sedan serial units and assemblies of Pobeda were lying, and the engine (in-line "six") was not an exact, but still a copy of the Dodge-D5 engine and had been produced in Gorky since 1940. For passenger car seven-seat car it was boosted to quite decent for those times 90 hp.
The main problem was the body. According to the canons of that time, a car with a base of 3200 mm was supposed to be a frame one. It was said that Lipgart was strongly advised in the ministry to simply copy the Buick. But creation frame structure would lengthen the design and development process. Yes, and 90 hp. for so heavy vehicle was clearly not enough. Lipgart and the leading designer of the GAZ-12 Yushmanov took the risk of leaving the supporting structure - and in the end they won. The car weighing only 1840 kg had decent dynamics.
On November 7, 1948, the third prototype left for a festive demonstration in Gorky. And three months later, on February 15, 1949, ZIM was shown to the country's leadership. Serial production began in 1950. Lipgart received the fifth Stalin Prize for the GAZ-12 and was immediately sent into soft exile in the Urals - the chief designer of a truck plant in Miass. The engineer was reminded of the failure with the early version of Pobeda, which, like almost everything at that time, was created in a mad rush. Times were not vegetarian at all.
TO THE MINISTRY - AND HOME
ZIM is an almost perfect training vehicle. You can drop the clutch, rarely change gears, and generally use the first one only on steep climbs and in especially difficult conditions. Fluid clutch in the transmission ensures smooth start and movement. A device, simpler than a torque converter, eliminated the rigid connection between the engine and the clutch, so the car did not stall when the pedal was hard. True, full-fledged automatic machines were already in fashion in the USA, but the cheapest modifications with manual boxes also often supplied with hydraulic couplings. Well, for the USSR, such a design was a breakthrough at all.So not even very experienced driver(True, they didn’t imprison such people in ZIMs) did not disturb the leader thinking about the fate of the country and the people with jerks. Of course, first of all, the cars went to officials, but the GAZ-12 was also sold to private traders - for a fabulous 40,000 rubles at that time. A school teacher received about 900 rubles, a young researcher who had just graduated from the institute - about 1,100.
Nevertheless, ZIMs were bought for personal use - prominent scientists, figures of literature and art in positions and titles, who, however, were not entitled to a personal car from the state. In one of the interviews, the famous playwright and screenwriter, one of the main authors of the Moscow Sovremennik Viktor Rozov commemorated his ZIM. Most often, personal GAZ-12s were driven by hired drivers. The roles of the executive sedan in the Soviet cinema of the 1950s are characteristic. In the film "Different Fates" a professor and a famous composer are driven in ZIM, in "An Ordinary Man" a famous singer owns a car, and a hired driver drives it. In this picture, an elegant lady also sits behind the wheel - a herald of easy democratization of the second half of the 1950s.
Despite the fact that the driver's sofa does not move, almost any driver will comfortably sit on it, having adapted. Perhaps only very high will be crowded. But behind - a small-sized apartment! Huge and soft, like a grandmother's featherbed, a sofa plus a pair of folding strap-on seats. If you remove them, the distance between the sofas is simply huge. One of the owners of ZIM said that he carried a baby carriage in the cabin, without disassembling it.
But this came much later. And at first, serious men in gray hats or astrakhan “pies” got into the GAZ-12. They had something to think about, sitting on a spacious sofa. There are no fewer enemies all around, and besides, the international situation is traditionally difficult. In August 1949, the USSR tested its first atomic bomb. In response, US President Truman in January 1950 ordered the creation of hydrogen. The leadership of the USSR seriously planned how to protect at least the capital from a nuclear bombardment. It seemed to many that the beginning of a world war was a matter of months. And the one that is unleashed in Korea is its prologue.
The course of the long wheelbase ZIM is extremely soft, lulling. Even if you miss an obstacle, you won’t particularly disturb the passenger. But brakes without booster require prudence and attention. The only thing that the designers were able to please in this system was a couple of workers brake cylinders front. By the way, for the first time on a Soviet car. But by modern standards, the slowdown of ZIM is sluggish, the car behaves like a groundhog, not wanting to come out of hibernation. Acceleration is also far from modern, but such is the price for a fluid coupling smoothing jerks. It is not easy at first to adjust to the turning radius of a car with a length of more than 5.5 m and, moreover, with a base of more than three meters. It is necessary to try so that from the first time, quietly rumbling with the lower valve "six", competently and accurately submit ZIM to the impressive entrance between the majestic columns. It is near such entrances that the car looks most harmonious. The country, which emerged from a devastating war only five years ago, was proud of new factories, scientific institutes, skyscrapers - and such a car.
“AND YOU RIDE IN THE WINTERS!”
They produced GAZ-12 in modest quantities - barely more than two thousand a year. But even ordinary mortals, not invested with either power or titles, could join the beautiful in the ZIM-taxi. The price of the trip, however, was one and a half times higher than in Pobeda, but as many as six passengers were seated in a large car. And if you find a good-natured driver and make room, then more.
Especially a lot of ZIMs appeared in taxis after 1956 (here, by the way, the car of this particular year), when Nikita Sergeevich, who was far from the last of our leaders to start a fight against privileges, took away ZIMs from officials.
Luxurious Soviet sedans, created in the era of “anti-people conspiracies” and preparations for war, lived on the assembly line to the 20th Congress, the World Festival of Youth and Students held in Moscow, the birth of films and performances unprecedented in courage, and even to the famous American exhibition in Sokolniki. Of course, in 1959, when Soviet people were able to see the achievements of the overseas automobile industry live, ZIM looked like a grandfather in an unfashionable suit smelling of mothballs against the backdrop of overseas "cruisers" with their aerospace design and powerful engines. But the Soviet industry has already produced the ZIL-111, and the Chaika GAZ-13 is about to appear ...
But the seemingly outdated ZIM was waiting for a new, unusual life. Not yet an oldtimer, it remained prestigious. Despite the fact that with the beginning of the Zhiguli era, it became increasingly difficult to drive a GAZ-12, cars on secondary market were by no means cheap and were still looked upon with respect. And on their owners - with different feelings. Characteristic is the role of the GAZ-12 in the popular TV series of the 1970s "Experts are investigating." The leader of a gang of robbers scolds the youngest and impudent accomplice for ostentatious luxury: “And you drive around in ZIM! Can't you ride a Zhiguli like everyone else? Over the past four decades, ZIMs have become even more prestigious and more expensive. It is not easy to join the dense Moscow stream even on a day off. True, many drivers patiently skip. Then they overtake, but they look at the leisurely black sedan with respect, as if they were a retired, but still brave general or an elderly honored artist ...
ENGINE NOMENCLATURE
GAZ-12 ZIM has been produced since 1950. A 3.5-liter in-line 6-cylinder engine developed 90 hp, a three-speed gearbox. The speed reached 120 km / h. In addition to standard sedans and taxis, three prototypes of the GAZ-12A convertible were made, and the ambulance GAZ-12B was mass-produced. In Estonia, the Tartu Automobile Repair Plant made a pickup hearse based on ZIM. Production was curtailed in 1959, sanitary versions were assembled until 1960. A total of 21,527 copies were made.The editors are grateful for the provided carVyacheslav Ruzaev.
On October 1, 1931, the country's main automobile plant was named after Stalin (Plant named after Stalin - ZiS), and the second most important enterprise was offered the name of the Minister of Foreign Affairs - Molotov. Gorky car factory named after Molotov" - this is how the enterprise was called in official documents from the mid-30s, and to the name of all its car models the letter "M" was added - "Molotovets". But for a new executive class passenger car, they came up with a special sonorous abbreviation ZiM (“Molotov Plant”), in full analogy with ZiS. They tried to apply this abbreviation to all noticeable parts of the car, from wheel hubcaps to the core of the steering wheel. As a result, the new name quickly became popular among the people - everyone knew what ZiM was!
History of creation
In May 1948, the Molotov Gorky Automobile Plant received a government assignment to develop a 6-seater passenger car, which, in terms of comfort, economy and dynamics, was to take an intermediate position between the government ZiS-110 and the massive Pobeda GAZ M-20.
All work, including the release of the "zero" series, was given 29 months - a period unprecedented for the Soviet automobile industry. To meet it, it was necessary either to completely copy a similar foreign car (the American Buick was strongly recommended to the plant), or to create your own, making the most of the units available at the plant in its design, primarily the engine. And to the credit of the gas designers, headed by Andrey Alexandrovich Lipgart, despite the powerful pressure from the leaders of the Ministry of the Automotive Industry, the second option was chosen, which, of course, was a very bold step. As a result, the creators of ZiM managed to unify about 50% of the engine, transmission and chassis parts with the then-produced GAZ-51 and GAZ-20 Pobeda.
As power unit for the new large sedan, they chose an in-line 6-cylinder lower valve engine with a displacement of 3.5 liters, developed back in the mid-1930s. After the war, he stood on the GAZ-51 and GAZ-63 trucks.
But the presence of a motor is not everything, because for the car it was necessary to design a body with a spectacular design and characteristic shapes. The importance attached at the plant to this stage of work is evidenced by the fact that the chief designer of the plant, Andrey Aleksandrovich Lipgart, then transferred his workplace directly to the group of graphic designers! There, next to the full-scale plasticine and wooden landing mock-ups, he daily controlled the process of creating appearance future GAZ-12.
The use of a relatively low-power 6-cylinder engine made it difficult to use a heavy frame body structure. In addition, there was no frame of the required geometry in the production program of the plant. Then the designers of GAZ took a step that had no analogues in world practice - they used a load-bearing body structure (without a frame) on a 6-seater car with a wheelbase of 3.2 m. This made it possible to reduce the curb weight of the machine, in comparison with frame counterparts, by at least 220 kg. The body became the most important structural element in the creation of the new GAZ-12, because if it had not been possible to solve all the problems that arose during its design, one could forget about putting a new car on the conveyor in a timely manner.
Platform based on Pobeda for testing the chassis and 6-cylinder engine for the ZiM GAZ-12. In 1948, for testing the power unit and running gear, for the first time in the history of the plant, a “platform” was created, which was Pobeda extended by half a meter due to insertion into the middle of the body. This made it possible to bring the wheelbase to the required length (3,200 mm) and conduct full-scale strength tests of the resulting body. This technique made it possible to significantly reduce the amount of complex calculations when designing the load-bearing structure of the ZiM body - and, consequently, to reduce the design time, as well as the work of technologists and manufacturers to introduce a new car, for the manufacture of which it became possible to use proven and well-mastered technologies that are already used in production of bodies of serial Victories.
When developing the bodywork, the focus was on ensuring its strength and torsional rigidity. The designers managed to solve this problem, which is evidenced by the fact that during the test runs, a high tightness of the body was noted, which made it possible, in particular, to overcome fords up to 550 mm deep without water entering the passenger compartment. With a 1500-kilometer run on rural roads, which took place in summer at air temperatures up to +37, dust did not penetrate into the cabin either.
Machine testing
Road tests ZiM passed in various areas Soviet Union, in different climatic, road conditions and often under specially created difficult working conditions. Cars were tested in summer and winter, on good highways and in the city, on difficult-to-pass dirty and beaten-out roads, in the mountains of the Caucasus and Crimea, when overcoming a river (up to 1 km long) ford and on dusty country roads. Runs were made: in the summer - high-speed on the route Gorky - Moscow - Minsk and back; autumn - on highways and dirt roads on the route Gorky - Ulyanovsk - Gorky; in winter - by snowy roads, at low temperatures along the route Gorky - Moscow - Kharkov and back, and, finally, the final big one - in the summer of 1950 along the route Gorky - Moscow - Minsk - Simferopol - Kerch - Batumi - Tbilisi - Kislovodsk - Rostov - Moscow - Gorky. The runs showed high performance and comfort of the ZiM car.
On November 7, 1949, a prototype GAZ-12 took part in a festive demonstration in Gorky.
On February 15, 1950, according to the established tradition of presenting new cars in the Kremlin, ZiM was shown to I.V. Stalin. He liked the car immediately, and he easily gave the go-ahead for its production. Soon, GAZ specialists, headed by the chief designer of the plant A.A. Lipgart and the leading designer N.A. Yushmanov, were awarded the USSR State Prize in 1950 for the creation of ZiM. The first industrial batch of ZiM-12 was assembled right on time - October 13, 1950.
To test the performance in 1951, state tests of three ZiM vehicles were carried out. The tests were carried out at full load (six people and 50 kg of cargo in the trunk). The total mileage of each car during the tests was 21,072 km, of which 11,028 km were covered along the route: Moscow - Leningrad - Tallinn - Riga - Minsk - Moscow - Kiev - Lvov - Chisinau - Simferopol - Novorossiysk - Kutaisi - Tbilisi - Rostov-na - Don - Kharkov - Moscow with an average technical speed 48.2 km/h; the average daily car mileage was 298.1 km.
Design
It is worth noting that the design of the new car turned out to be very harmonious and memorable (apparently, Andrey Lipgart did not in vain transfer his workplace to artist-designers).
Luxurious ZIM pleasantly surprises with elegant lines and an abundance of chrome in the exterior and interior - in the style of the best American cars of the late 1940s. great attention was given to the smallest details of the appearance, which determined the overall perception of the car. With all its appearance, the car evokes genuine respect for itself, while clearly indicating the status of its passengers.
To accommodate three passengers on the rear sofa, the designers pushed the niches of the rear wheels, increasing their track to 1560 mm (the front track was 100 mm less). This decision required the expansion of the tail section of the body, which was done due to the protruding wings of the rear wheels. From a design point of view, this made it possible to break the monotony of the long sidewall, making it more interesting and dynamic.
The doors of the GAZ-12 swung open in different sides. The GAZ-12 doors were hinged in such a way that the front ones opened towards the front of the car, and the rear ones, on the contrary, towards the back (like gate leaves). This can be seen from the location door handles. Swivel vents were only on the front door. The rear windshield had a curved shape. ZiM was the first Soviet car where curved glass was used.
The hood had the ability to open in any direction. It is also worth remembering the GAZ-12 hood: a one-piece stamped hood could open to either side - left or right, and when both locks were opened, the hood could generally be removed from the car.
It was on the GAZ-12 that the emblem with a deer first appeared. An interesting design element was fixed on the hood - a red crest, which had decorative lighting. And finally, it was on the hood of the Zim for the first time that the now known emblem with the image of a deer, the symbol of Nizhny Novgorod, first appeared.
Body painting at the factory was carried out with the highest quality nitro enamels in 7 layers with manual polishing of each. Cars were painted mainly in black, less often in white and dark green. Taxis were usually gray, and ambulances were ivory. Cherry, green and gray cars were offered for export, as well as two-tone combinations. For China, a batch of cars was made in the blue color that is popular there, traditionally symbolizing good luck and success.
Crest on the hood (with decorative lighting). The car looked quite modern for 1950, fully in line with the then automotive fashion, outwardly echoing many American models of the middle and upper classes. At the same time, ZiM was superior in novelty to the design of American cars of individual brands, as well as most of the products of European companies (which were mainly developed before the Second World War).
Motor, transmission and chassis GAZ-12
The GAZ-12 engine was, in general, structurally similar to the GAZ-11, developed in 1937 (licensed American Dodge D5), which was used in the early 1940s on GAZ-11-73 passenger cars, on staff SUVs GAZ-61 and light tanks. If we recall the American cars equipped with these 6-cylinder engines, then the most famous are heavy Dodge WC series SUVs and WC62 3-axle trucks, supplied in the 1940s under Lend-Lease to the USSR. After the war, since 1946, the engine has been widely used on mass-produced Soviet trucks GAZ-51 and GAZ-63 (power was 70 hp). It should be noted that the modifications of this unit were installed in 1950 on serial BTR-40s, and in 1952 on prototypes of promising GAZ-62 off-road trucks, which never went into production.
For the GAZ-12, the engine was subjected to significant refinement. So, the power of the 6-cylinder 3.5-liter engine was increased from 70 to 90 hp. - by expanding the intake ports, using a dual carburetor and increasing the compression ratio to 6.7: 1. This compression ratio ensured stable operation of the engine on standard gasoline with an octane rating of 70. It was B-70 aviation gasoline.
As a result of structural improvements in the engine, the new 2-ton car received good efficiency (about 18 liters per 100 kilometers - a good result for the 1950s) and good dynamics (maximum speed - 125 km / h, acceleration time to hundreds - 37 seconds) . It should be noted that the GAZ-12 engine was low-speed ( maximum power 90 forces were achieved at 3600 rpm, and a moment of 215 N * m at 2100), which provided it with high elasticity and noiselessness.
For ZIM, a new gearbox was developed, for the first time in the history of the plant, it had synchronizers (in II and III gears). Gear shifting took place with a lever located on the steering column - like many American analogues of that time.
The original design solution, which has no analogues in the domestic passenger car industry, was the use of a fluid coupling on the GAZ M-12. It was located between the engine and the clutch, and was a crankcase filled with special oil, in which two rotors, not mechanically connected to each other, rotated. The rotors had the shape of half a toroid and were divided by blades into 48 compartments (a pump rotor, which played the role of a flywheel) and 44 compartments (a turbine rotor, a lightweight flywheel and a conventional friction clutch were attached to it). There was a small gap between the inner ends of the rotors. During operation, the engine turned the pump wheel, which created fluid movement in the crankcase, which set the turbine wheel in rotation, while their mutual slippage was allowed.
ZiM could start moving from any of the available three gears - the factory instructions recommended starting off immediately from the second. The hydraulic clutch provided a smooth start in second gear without the danger of turning off the engine when insufficient pressure on the gas pedal and allowed movement without gear shifting in the speed range of 0 - 80 km / h. The first gear was used only when starting on steep slopes or when driving in difficult road conditions, and the third was used on the highway.
Apart from clear benefits, this transmission unit also had some disadvantages: for example, to keep the car in place when stopping on a slope, only the parking brake could be used - without this, even with the gear engaged, the ZiM easily started to roll. This made high demands on the technical condition of the handbrake mechanism, and in cold weather, applying the parking brake for a long time could lead to freezing of the brake pads to the drums. A more effective way to keep the car in place was to use prism stops - they were included with each car. In fairness, it should be noted that this drawback was also characteristic of many early automatic transmissions that did not have the “P” position (“Park”, “Parking”).
Since 1950, a new gearbox (without a fluid coupling) was also installed on the GAZ M-20 Pobeda, in addition, later its modifications were used on GAZ-21, GAZ-22, GAZ-69, RAF-977, ErAZ-762 cars and others. This ensured the highest degree of unification of parts and greatly facilitated vehicle maintenance. A solid margin of safety, incorporated in the design of this unit, originally designed for a 6-cylinder engine with high torque, provided the gearbox with a huge resource when paired with 4-cylinder engines of the cars listed above.
The open-type cardan transmission consisted of two shafts with an intermediate support, which made it possible to reduce their diameter and lower the front swing point of the cardan to the limit. In combination with a hypoid final drive, this design made it possible to lower the axis of rotation of the propeller shaft by 42 millimeters. This made it possible to place cardan shaft under the cabin floor without a protruding tunnel.
On ZiM, unlike other representatives of the Soviet automobile industry of those years, wheels with a 15-inch rim were used. On the pre-war "emkas" and KIM-10, post-war Moskvich-400, Pobeda and ZiS-110, as you know, 16-inch wheels were used. This led to the complication of the braking mechanism. To improve the efficiency of the brakes, a design with two leading shoes was used. Each block of the front wheels was equipped with an independent working cylinder. GAZ-12 became the first Soviet car with brakes having two leading pads.
When it comes to wheels - two words about their suspension: in front it was independent, on wishbones with coil springs, in the rear - on longitudinal semi-elliptical leaf springs, which were shot-blasted to increase durability. The front suspension was equipped with an anti-roll bar. Shock absorbers were installed hydraulic, double action.
The GAZ-12 steering mechanism had a fairly simple and reliable design - a globoidal worm with a double-ridged roller. The steering wheel did not have a servo drive, but it was quite easy to drive the car - the gear ratio increased to 18.2 in the steering mechanism and the large diameter of the "steering wheel" helped. By the way, with a length of just over five and a half meters (5.53), ZiM had a turning radius of only 6.85 meters.
Salon and comfort
Since, according to the terms of reference, the main passenger of ZiM is an average official who outgrew the personal GAZ M-20 Pobeda, but did not reach the ZiS-110, the greatest attention was paid to its convenience.
The GAZ-12 cabin housed three rows of seats. The middle ones could be folded down and put away in the back of the front seat. The body housed three rows of seats. Medium (the so-called "straponten") - could be folded and put into the back of the front seat, while for the legs of three passengers sitting in the back, a lot of space was freed up (the distance between the backs of the front and rear sofas was about 1.5 m). The front seat was not adjustable, so for full driver there wasn't enough space.
The high ceiling and large width made the cabin very roomy, spacious and comfortable. Particularly comfortable was the rear seat, designed for a comfortable, free fit of three passengers. The rear doors opened against the movement, which, in combination with high doorways and a rear sofa, almost completely moved back out of the doorways, made the entry and exit of passengers very convenient.
Salon for those years had a good finish without much luxury. For this, fairly simple materials were used: wood-like painted and chrome-plated metal; fabric (dense drape like overcoat cloth) of muted shades - gray, beige, pale green, lilac; ivory plastic. All metal parts have been finished with a decorative coating that is quite realistic imitating lacquered wood panels. The abundance of chrome elements and shiny light plastic "ivory" gave the interior car of this class, the atmosphere of luxury, and the finish "under the tree", thick carpets on the floor and upholstery fabrics - home comfort, however, there are more options with finishes high class definitely not enough.
The car was equipped with a tri-band radio, a weekly winding clock, an electric cigarette lighter, and ashtrays. In addition, there were lights on the dashboard that signaled a tightened handbrake and about the increased (more than 90 degrees) temperature in the cooling system.
The interior of the GAZ-12 had luxurious, by the standards of those years, elements: heating and ventilation of the rear of the cabin (in addition to the front) with a separate fan, which was controlled from the rear sofa; wide armrests for rear passengers; four ashtrays; soft handrails in the back of the rear sofa and on the sides; additional lighting; a separate cigarette lighter in the passenger compartment and so on.
Epilogue
An elegant handsome man - ZiM was used not only by high-ranking bureaucracy, but also by the establishment - prominent workers in culture, science and art. In addition, the GAZ-12 is the only model of this class that has become a consumer product, that is, it has gone on open sale. Neither with the subsequent "Seagull", nor with the "ZIS" was this. True, the price of 40 thousand rubles - two and a half times more expensive than the "Victory" - made the car absolutely inaccessible to the mass consumer. Modifications of the ZiM could partly satisfy the interest of a simple Soviet person in difficult technology: a taxi and an ambulance (GAZ-12B), and the latter was completely free. The modification of the ambulance GAZ-12B had a glass partition behind the front seat, two folding chairs located one behind the other, and a stretcher that was pulled out and pushed into the car through the trunk lid. The car was equipped with a headlight with a red cross sign placed above the windshield, a turning headlight on the left front fender and a box for medicines.
Immediately after the start of production, the GAZ-12 caused a stir among officials. The first secretaries of the regional committees had the ZiS-110s assigned to them, and by the time new car reacted with restraint. But the deputies of the “firsts” passionately desired to transfer from the modest “emoks” and “Pobeds” to much more representative ZiMs. The struggle for possession of the gas flagship acquired such forms and such scope that the magazine Krokodil (supervised by the Central Committee of the CPSU) was forced to publish the caustic feuilleton Stop! Red light! ”, which ridiculed the nomenklatura workers who went to all sorts of tricks in order to obtain a personal Zim.
Modifications of ZiM - taxi and ambulance. In 1959, Khrushchev began to fight privileges. This struggle was expressed in the fact that many workers were deprived of personal cars, and these cars themselves were transferred to taxi companies. The large capacity of ZiM prompted the idea to use it as a minibus. However, in the very first days of work, drivers, leaving the route, began to turn left at markets, train stations, hotels and restaurants. At the end of the shift, they honestly handed over the due proceeds, and put the rest in their pockets. When the regulatory authorities got wind of this, the drivers were imprisoned, and the cars were converted into ordinary taxis, providing them with taximeters.
In the summer of 1957, GAZ lost in its name the name of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Molotov, who fell into disgrace. The "top model" of the plant received the official name GAZ-12; in 1959 it gave way to the Chaika GAZ-13, and in 1960 the production of the sanitary GAZ-12B ceased.
In just ten years of existence, 21,527 ZiM GAZ-12 vehicles were manufactured on the assembly line (even during the period of established production, a maximum of 6 vehicles per day were produced). ZiM became the same symbol of that time as the film "Kuban Cossacks" or "Stalin's houses". To date, the ZiM GAZ-12 has become a true legend in the automotive industry and is a desirable acquisition for many collectors of retro cars. The price of restored samples with original equipment can reach up to $50,000 - $60,000.
Specifications ZIM GAZ-12
| Modification | GAZ M-12 (1950) |
| Years of production | 1950 — 1960 |
| body type | 4-door sedan |
| Number of places | 7 |
| engine's type | petrol |
| Supply system | carburetor |
| Number of cylinders | 6 (inline) |
| Working volume, l | 3.485 |
| Max. power, hp (rpm) | 90 (3600) |
| Torque, N*m (rpm) | 215 (2100) |
| Compression ratio | 6,7 |
| Drive unit | rear |
| Transmission | 3-st. fur. (with fluid coupling) |
| type of drive | rear |
| Front suspension | independent spring |
| Rear suspension | dependent spring |
| Length, mm | 5 530 |
| Width, mm | 1 900 |
| Height, mm | 1 660 |
| Wheel base, mm | 3 200 |
| Front track, mm | 1 460 |
| Rear track, mm | 1 500 |
| Clearance, mm | 200 |
| Front overhang angle, deg. | 24 |
| Rear overhang angle, deg. | 18 |
| Turning radius, m | 6,8 |
| Curb weight, kg | 1 940 |
| Gross weight, kg | 2 390 |
| Max. speed, km/h | 125 |
| Acceleration to 100 km/h, sec | 37,0 |
| Fuel consumption, l/100 km | 15-20 |
| Brand of gasoline | 70 |
He received a government assignment to develop a comfortable 6-seater car for state and party officials. All work, including the release of the "zero" series, was given only 29 months. In order to meet such a deadline, it was necessary either to completely copy a similar foreign car, or create your own, using the units already available at the plant, primarily the engine, to the maximum. As a foreign analogue, it was proposed american car Buick Super, however, it was abandoned. As a result, the creators of ZIM managed to borrow about 50% of parts, such as the engine, transmission, and chassis from cars of their own production - GAZ-M20 and GAZ-51.
Design and construction
The car body had to be designed with a memorable appearance and characteristic shapes. It was decided to abandon the frame structure, since a car of this design would weigh too much and would not have sufficient dynamic performance. As a result, the car received a load-bearing, frameless body, which at that time was not typical for cars of this class. The body of the GAZ-12 ZIM car was famous for its tightness, evidence of this is that during the test runs the car could overcome fords over half a meter deep, and water did not get into the cabin. During a test run in the countryside at an air temperature of +37, dust did not penetrate into the cabin either.
GAZ-12 "ZIM" was distinguished by an interesting design of the hood - a one-piece stamped hood could open in any direction, and if necessary, it could be easily removed at all. The car had three rows of seats. It is curious that the middle row folded and retracted, forming additional space for passengers sitting on the back sofa.
As a power unit, it was decided to supply an upgraded version of the 6-cylinder GAZ-11 engine with a working volume of 3.5 liters. This upgraded engine produced 90 horsepower, achieved through an aluminum cylinder head, increased compression ratio, no rev limiter, new intake piping and a two-barrel carburetor.
Especially for the GAZ-12 ZIM car, an original three-speed gearbox was developed, which for the first time in the history of the Gorky Automobile Plant received synchronizers in 2nd and 3rd gears, and the gearshift lever was located on the steering column. The car could start from any of the three gears, however, the factory recommended starting from the second gear, and using the first one in difficult road conditions and on slopes.
The interior trim for those times was considered high-quality and rich, there was a three-band radio, a clock, an electric cigarette lighter and an ashtray. There were lights on the dashboard that signaled an increased temperature of the water in the cooling system (over 90 degrees) and a raised hand brake. The floor in the cabin was flat, without a protruding driveshaft cover
Modifications
Modification for a taxi service with artificial leather trim. The front seats were separate, instead of a radio, a taximeter was present on the dashboard. GAZ-12A were used mainly as fixed-route taxis, including on intercity lines. The cost of a trip on a ZIM was one and a half times higher than a trip in a Pobeda car, which at that time was the main taxi car, because of this, relatively few GAZ-12A cars were produced. This modification produced from 1955 to 1959.
Sanitary version of ZIM, which was mass-produced from 1951 to 1960. The cars were painted in light beige, in addition, they outwardly differed from the usual sedan in the external hinges of the trunk lid, which opened on high angle and allowed to roll a stretcher into the passenger compartment.
GAZ-12 "phaeton"
Non-serial car with a 4-door chaise-type body. In 1949, two experimental samples were made, but they were not brought to mass production due to difficulties in ensuring the required rigidity of an open monocoque body.
GAZ-12 Hearse
Not a factory alteration of ZIM, there was a single copy in Riga.
There were also racing modifications, such as Avangard-1, Avangard-3, Avangard-8 and KVN-3500 built by enthusiasts using GAZ-12 units and assemblies. The engine power of some cars reached 150 horsepower, and the maximum speed was 271 km / h.
Photos
GAZ-12 Zim- Soviet six-seven-seater passenger car of a large class with a "six-window long-wheelbase sedan" body, mass-produced at the Gorky Automobile Plant (Molotov Plant) from 1950 to 1959 (some modifications - until 1960). ZiM is the first representative model of the Gorky Automobile Plant. In just ten years of existence, 21,527 cars of the ZiM and GAZ-12 models were manufactured on the assembly line.
In May 1948, the Molotov Gorky Automobile Plant received a government assignment to develop a six-seater passenger car, which, in terms of comfort, economy and dynamics, was to take an intermediate position between the prestigious ZiS-110 and the mass Pobeda.
All work, including the release of the "zero" series, was given 29 months - a period unprecedented for our automotive industry. To meet it, it was necessary either to completely copy a similar foreign car (the American Buick was strongly offered to the plant), or to create your own, making the most of the units available at the plant in its design, primarily the engine. And to the credit of the gas designers, headed by Andrey Alexandrovich Lipgart, despite the powerful pressure from the leaders of the Ministry of the Automotive Industry, the second option was chosen. As a result, the creators of ZiM managed to borrow about 50% of engine, transmission and chassis parts from the then-produced GAZ-51 and GAZ-20 Pobeda
Considerations of fuel economy, compliance with the existing type of domestic passenger cars (“Victory” - four cylinders, “ZiS” - eight, - the car located between them, logically, should have been six-cylinder) and the presence in production of a good six-cylinder in-line engine GAZ-11 (licensed copy Dodge D5) forced the designers to use a six-cylinder engine, although an eight-cylinder would be more consistent with the size and weight of the designed car.
On October 1, 1931, the country's main automobile plant was named after Stalin (Plant named after Stalin, ZIS), and the second most important enterprise was offered the name of the Minister of Foreign Affairs Molotov. "Gorky Automobile Plant named after Molotov" - this is how the enterprise was called in official papers from the mid-30s, and the letter "M" - "Molotovets" was added to the name of all its passenger models. But for a new executive class car, they came up with a special sonorous abbreviation ZIM (“Molotov Plant”), in full analogy with the ZIS. They tried to apply this abbreviation to all noticeable parts of the car, from wheel hubcaps to the core of the steering wheel. As a result, the new name quickly became popular among the people - everyone knew what ZIM was!
For the car, it was necessary to design a body with a memorable appearance and characteristic shapes. The fact that Andrey Alexandrovich Lipgart, the chief designer of the plant, then transferred his workplace directly to the group of graphic designers, speaks of the importance attached to this stage of work at the plant! There, next to full-scale plasticine and wooden landing models, he daily controlled the process of creating the appearance of the GAZ-12
Road tests ZiM passed in various regions of the Soviet Union, in different climatic, road conditions and often under specially created difficult working conditions. Cars were tested in summer and winter, on good highways and in the city, on difficult-to-pass dirty and beaten-out roads, in the mountains of the Caucasus and Crimea, when overcoming a river (up to 1 km long) ford and on dusty country roads. Runs were made in summer, high-speed along the route Gorky - Moscow - Minsk and back, in autumn along highways and dirt roads on the route Gorky - Ulyanovsk - Gorky, in winter along snowy roads, at low temperatures along the route Gorky - Moscow - Kharkov and back, finally, the final, big in the summer of 1950 along the route Gorky - Moscow - Minsk - Simferopol - Kerch - Batumi - Tbilisi - Kislovodsk - Rostov - Moscow - Gorky. Runs showed high operational qualities and comfort of the ZIM car
On November 7, 1949, a prototype GAZ-12 took part in a festive demonstration in Gorky
On February 15, 1950, according to the established tradition of presenting new cars in the Kremlin, ZIM was shown to I.V. Stalin. He liked the car immediately, and he easily gave the go-ahead for its production. Soon, GAZ specialists, headed by the chief designer of the plant A. A. Lipgart and the leading designer N. A. Yushmanov, were awarded the 1950 USSR State Prize for the creation of ZIM. The first industrial batch of ZIM-12 was assembled right on time - October 13, 1950
To test the performance in 1951, state tests of three ZIM vehicles were carried out. The tests were carried out at full load (six people and 50 kg of cargo in the trunk). The total mileage of each car during the tests amounted to 21,072 km, of which 11,028 km were covered along the route: Moscow-Leningrad-Tallinn-Riga-Minsk-Moscow-Kiev-Lviv-Chisinau-Simferopol-Novorossiysk - Kutaisi-Tbilisi-Rostov-pa- Don-Kharkov-Moscow with an average technical speed of 48.2 km/h; the average daily car mileage was 298.1 km.
Even before the end of the production of the machine, in 1957, Molotov, along with Malenkov, Kaganovich and Shipilov, fell into disgrace, and leapfrog began throughout the country with the renaming of factories, mines and steamships. The campaign of renaming and ZIM did not bypass - since 1957 the car received the usual factory designation GAZ-12, all the inscriptions on the car were quickly redone from ZIM to GAZ
From time to time, attempts were made to restyle the appearance of the GAZ-12, but these samples did not go into series.
GAZ-12 design
The engine was generally structurally similar to the GAZ-11, which was used on the GAZ-51, but was slightly modified to increase power. The engine power was increased - by expanding the intake channels, using a dual carburetor and increasing the compression ratio to 6.7: 1, which ensured stable operation of the engine on standard gasoline with an octane rating of 70. As a result of design improvements in the engine, the car was provided with good economy (fuel consumption did not exceeded 18-19 liters per 100 kilometers, which for that time was a very good indicator for a car with a curb weight of 1940 kg) and fairly high dynamics (maximum speed - 125 km / h, acceleration time to hundreds - 37 seconds). A relatively low number of revolutions corresponding to the maximum power - 3600 min-1 - led to almost silent operation of the engine
For ZiM, a new gearbox was developed, which for the first time in the history of the plant had synchronizers (in II and III gears) and shifting with a lever located on the steering column - this was the then American fashion
The original design solution used on the GAZ-M-12 and which has no analogues in the domestic passenger car industry was a fluid coupling - a transmission unit located between the engine and the clutch, and which was a crankcase filled with special oil, in which the unrelated mechanically two rotors in the shape of a half toroid, divided by blades into 48 compartments (pump rotor, which played the role of a flywheel) and 44 compartments (turbine rotor, a lightweight flywheel and a conventional friction clutch were attached to it). There was a small gap between the inner ends of the rotors. During operation, the engine turned the pump wheel, which created fluid movement in the crankcase, which set the turbine wheel in rotation, while their mutual slipping was allowed.
ZiM could start from any of the three available gears - the factory instructions recommended starting from second gear, and using the first one only in difficult road conditions and on slopes. The elasticity in straight-third gear was amazing. The car started off smoothly and without any jerks. "ZiM" could be braked to a complete stop without turning off the gear, after which it was possible to start moving simply by releasing the brake and pressing the accelerator - the fluid coupling did not form a permanent rigid connection between the transmission and the engine, preventing the engine from stalling when stopped - the fluid coupling rotors began to slip relative to each other (the pump was rotated by the engine, and the turbine was stalled along with the transmission), thus playing the role of a second, automatic clutch
The use of a relatively low-power six-cylinder engine made it difficult to use a frame structure. In addition, there was no frame of the required geometry in the production program of the plant. Then, the GAZ designers took a step that had no analogues in world practice - they used a load-bearing body structure on a six-seater car with a wheelbase of 3.2 m. This made it possible to reduce the curb weight of the car, in comparison with the frame "classmates", by at least 220 kg. The body has become the most important structural element in the creation of a new GAZ, because if it were not possible to solve all the problems that arose during its design, one could forget about putting a new car on the conveyor within the deadline
To test the power unit and chassis, for the first time in the history of the plant, a "platform" was created, which was half a meter long, due to the insertion into the middle of the body, "Victory". This made it possible to bring the wheelbase to the required length (3,200 mm) and conduct full-scale strength tests of the resulting body. This technique made it possible to significantly reduce the amount of complex calculations when designing the load-bearing structure of the ZiM body - and, consequently, to reduce the design time, as well as the work of technologists and production workers on the introduction of a new car, for the manufacture of which it became possible to use proven and well-mastered technologies, already used in the production of bodies of serial "Pobeda"
"Victory" with an elongated fifty-centimeter insert body
"Victory" with an elongated fifty-centimeter insert body. Installation of the "fifth wheel", designed to record the dynamic characteristics of the prototype
When developing the bodywork, the focus was on ensuring its strength and torsional rigidity. The designers managed to solve this problem, which is evidenced by the fact that during the test runs, a high tightness of the body was noted, which made it possible, in particular, to overcome fords up to 550 mm deep without water entering the passenger compartment. With a 1500-kilometer run on rural roads, which took place in the summer at air temperatures up to +37, dust did not penetrate into the cabin either.
In accordance with the task, the car was supposed to have 6 seats, but the designers found the opportunity to place it on back seat three passengers. For this, the niches of the rear wheels were moved apart, increasing their track to 1560 mm (the front track was 100 mm less). This decision required the expansion of the tail section of the body, which was done due to the protruding wings of the rear wheels. In terms of design, this made it possible to break the monotony of the long sidewall, making it more dynamic.
The body housed three rows of seats. The middle ones (the so-called strapontens) could be folded and put away in the back of the front seat. At the same time, unprecedented space was freed up for the legs of passengers sitting in the back (the distance between the backs of the front and rear sofas exceeded 1.5 m). The front seat was not adjustable, so there was not enough space for a driver of a solid build
The salon was richly decorated for that time, supplied with a three-band radio, a clock with a weekly plant, an electric cigarette lighter, and ashtrays. In addition, there were lights on the dashboard that signaled a tightened hand brake and an increased (more than 90) water temperature in the cooling system.
Experimental "ZIM", second version, 1949.
Another feature of ZIM is the flat floor of the cabin, without a protruding driveshaft cover. And the unique design of the hood has become the hallmark of this car. Only at ZIM, a one-piece stamped hood could open to either side - left or right, and when both locks were opened, the hood could generally be removed from the car. Also new in the design are wheels with 15-inch rims. On the pre-war "emka" and KIM-10, post-war "Moskvich-400", "Pobeda" and ZIS-110, as you know, 16-inch wheels were used. This led to the complication of the braking mechanism. To improve the efficiency of the brakes, a design with two leading shoes was used. Each block of the front wheels was equipped with an independent working cylinder. GAZ-12 became the first Soviet car with brakes having two leading pads.
Overall dimensions of GAZ-M-12 "ZIM"
Specifications
| Specifications | |
| Manufacturer: | Gorky Automobile Plant, Gorky |
| Release time: | 1950-1959 |
| Number of seats (including driver's seat) | 6 |
| Dry weight of the car (without load, water, oil, gasoline, driver, passengers, spare wheel and tools), kg | 1800 |
Vehicle weight distribution along axles, %
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| Dimensions: length width curb height without load |
5530 mm 1900 mm 1660 mm |
| Base | 3200 mm |
| Front wheel track | 1450 mm |
| Rear wheel track | 1500 mm |
| Curb weight | 1940 kg |
| Gross weight | 2390 kg |
| The smallest turning radius along the wheel track, m | 6,8 |
| Minimum ground clearance | 200 mm |
Entry angles
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| Max speed | 120 km/h |
| Fuel consumption in summer on a flat highway with a full load at a speed of 50-60 km / h | 15.5 l/100km |
Engine |
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| Engine | GAZ-12, carburetor, four-stroke, six-cylinder, lower valve |
| Engine capacity | 3.48 l |
| Compression ratio | 6.7 |
| Max Power | 90 HP at 3600 rpm |
| Cylinder diameter, mm | 82 |
| Piston stroke, mm | 110 |
| Maximum torque, kgm | 21,5 |
| Applied fuel | motor gasoline with an actane number of 70 |
| Gearbox type | mechanical with hydraulic clutch |
| Number of gears | 3 |
| 1st gear ratio | 3,115 |
| 2nd gear ratio | 1,772 |
| 3rd gear ratio | 1 |
| reverse gear ratio | 4.005 (since the end of 1951 - 3.738) |
| Clutch | single-disk, dry, equipped with a hydraulic clutch |
| main gear | single, hypoid |
| Steering gear | globoid worm and double-ridged roller |
wheels |
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| Wheel rim designation | 6-Lx15 |
| Tire size | 7.00x15 |
| pressure in the tires of the front wheels (kgf / sq.cm) | 2,25 |
| rear tire pressure (kgf/sq.cm) | 2,25 |
Modifications
- - (1955–59) p. From the usual GAZ-12, the taxi differed in front separate seats, artificial leather trim, the presence of a green light and a special dashboard with a built-in taximeter instead of a radio. Due to the high cost - one and a half times higher than the "Victory" - relatively few were released. The fare in ZiM was one and a half times higher than in Pobeda, which was then the main taxi car.
- GAZ-12B Serial car GAZ-12B ZIM (1951-1960). Sanitary version of the GAZ-12 sedan. Cars were painted in ivory color. Special equipment included a stretcher that moved through the rear hatch. In addition, the cars were equipped with an upper lamp with a red cross and a searchlight on the driver's side. The front two seats were separated from the rest of the cabin by a glass partition.
- In 1951, three prototypes of the GAZ-12A were manufactured with a four-door chaise-type body. The car did not go into the series - the strengthening of the body, associated with the "removal" of the roof, caused an excessive weighting of the car for a 95-horsepower engine, and its dynamic performance turned out to be unsatisfactory
- based on the GAZ-12 - this is not a factory development, but an exclusively local design, existed in Riga.
- Option, which was the combined parts of the GAZ-13 and ZIM cars, which was popularly called "oslobyk". The reasons for its appearance were that the party-Soviet nomenklatura had a strict "table of ranks". And if the ZIM was assigned to the official, then it was imprudent to drive the Chaika. But I wanted to!!! The savvy military found a way out. At one of the military plants, by order of the generals, a batch of "Seagulls" with body iron from "ZIM" was manufactured. The car combined the comfort and dynamics of a representative car and the external democratism of a car of middle managers. The exact number of such vehicles is unknown.
- Racing cars based on GAZ-12. The Gorky Automobile Plant for the 1951 USSR championship in car racing put up a GAZ-12 with an increased compression ratio (from 6.7 to 7.2 units) and power (from 90 hp at 3600 rpm to 100 hp. at 3300 rpm). The engine had one serial twin K-21 carburetor, and an additional overdrive with remote electrical activation was introduced into the transmission. The maximum speed of the car was 142 km / h. A well-faired Avangard record racing car was created by a group of enthusiasts at the Kharkov Malyshev Transport Engineering Plant. The car had a rear power unit, a clutch, a gearbox, steering parts and a brake system from the GAZ-12. The working volume of the engines was reduced due to the use of sleeves and pistons O75 mm from 3485 to 2992 cm 3. At first, the engine had a cylinder head with top intake valves, and in the latest version (Vanguard-3), the top steel and exhaust valves. With a compression ratio of 8.1 and a rotary-type supercharger, the power was 150 hp. at 400 rpm. In 1952, racer I. Pomogaybo on Avangard-1 reached a speed of 230.7 km/h, and then on Avangard-3 brought it to 271 km/h. A group of athletes led by V. N. Kosenkov in the Leningrad taxi depot No. 1 in 1960 built several sports cars based on components and a forced (up to 100-105 hp) GAZ-12 engine. The maximum speed of these machines, called KVN-3500, reached 170 km / h.
