AutoCult Moskvich G2 (1959) (Russia)

About the Original:

The fast Russian

The name “Moskvich”, also known by the spelling “Moskwitsch” or “Moskvitch”, was quite well reputed in the economic structure of the then Eastern bloc countries.

As of 1945 the company got the governmental order to build a small car. In the mid of the 1950s the lucky circumstance came along to develop a racecar with authorization of the government. Wheels, breaks and the suspension were series components of the passenger car type 401. Engine was the then latest production drive unit, a 4-cylinder four-cycle engine, which was fitted into the passenger cars beginning from 1955. The tight, probably made out of aluminum, car body covered the engine and the axles and had a big air-inlet for the cooling of the engine at the front. The car was designated with the abbreviation “G1”. Only one copy was built back than. In the course of the consistent further development, the chassis got some slight modifications and a new 4-cylinder engine, originating from the production car type 402, was fitted. Due to radical tuning measures the performance of the 1.2-liter four-cycle engine was increased from initial 35 hp up to 74 hp. In contrast to the G1 the newly developed racecar also got an effective aerodynamics. Responsible for the new car body was Igor A. Gladilin. He skillfully modified the existing car body of the G1 with the result that from now on the aluminum skin also covered the wheels.

The car was known under the abbreviation “G2”, had a weight of only 660 kg and reached a top speed of 224 km/h.