The Victory Parade on Red Square in Moscow recently ended.
More than 16.5 thousand soldiers took part in the 2015 Victory Parade. Including ten parade calculations of the CIS countries and friendly states - Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, India, Mongolia, Serbia and China.
194 units of military equipment, both historical and the newest and promising models - combat vehicles on the platforms "Armata", "Kurganets" and "Boomerang", armored vehicles "Tiger" and "Typhoon" on the basis of KamAZ and "Ural" vehicles, passed through Red Square. the newest armored vehicles of the Airborne Forces - BMD-4M airborne combat vehicles and Rakushka armored personnel carriers.
Operational-tactical, anti-aircraft and strategic missile systems "Iskander", S-400 "Triumph", "Yars", self-propelled artillery, including the newest "Coalition-SV" installations, passed through the paving stones.
More than 140 aircraft and helicopters took part in the air part of the Victory Parade. This is twice as much as in 2014. Among them are Tu-160 strategic bombers, the world's largest military transport helicopter Mi-26 and light Ansat-U helicopters.
But we will remember which cars were parades in different years.
By tradition, these were convertibles of the brand of the automobile plant. Likhachev, although in recent years, two convertibles were not quite Zilovskie. The ZIL-41041 AMG base and equipment were taken from an American pickup truck and built by a Nizhny Novgorod studio, which is located on the territory of the Gorky Automobile Plant. Nizhny Novgorod residents are especially proud of the folding roof (the folding mechanism is powered by an electric drive).
Converted bodies from used ZIL-41041 sedans were installed on the chassis of foreign GMC Sierra pickups ...
1. An example of modern convertibles. Photo from the Internet "Victory Parade 2014". In 2015, convertibles had different numbers. 0001MO77 and 0002MO77, respectively.
2. In the USSR, cars at parades did not appear immediately: for many years, army commanders drove into Red Square on well-trained horses. But in 1938, engineers of the Stalin automobile plant prepared a ZIS-102 phaeton based on the ZIS-101 limousine.
The first appearance at the parade was on May 1, 1941, then the ZIS-102 led a column of armored vehicles 
3. But the car of the commander-in-chief, the convertible became only in 1953, at the parade dedicated to the anniversary of the October Revolution. True, it was already an open version of the more modern ZIS-110 model. In general, the ZIS without a roof, based on the one hundred and tenth, was in two versions: from 1949 to 1954, phaetons were produced, and from 1955 - convertibles.
Around the same time, there was a tradition to paint military ceremonial convertibles and phaetons gray to match the color of the military overcoat. They remained gray for a long time at the parades on May 9. Convertibles have only been painted black since 2010. In 2014, Sergei Shoigu hosted a parade in a military uniform for the first time in a long time, but there are no plans to repaint the cars in a new color. 
4. In 1958, the ZIL-111 limousine was launched into production - with a V8 engine, which produced 200 horsepower. The car had a hydromechanical gearbox and power windows. Open versions were built on its basis: ZIL-111V and ZIL-111D. Then there was ZIL-114, ZIL-117 and, finally, ZIL-4104 with a bunch of modifications. Open versions were indexed ZIL-115V, ZIL-117V and ZIL-41044.
And three ZIL-41044 cars, which were used for parades before the appearance of the latest ZIL-41041 AMG, have participated in them since 1981. 
5.From 1960 to 1962, twelve convertibles were produced, and then the production of both limousines and ZIL-111 convertibles was phased out. Khrushchev was struck by John F. Kennedy's newest Lincoln Continental, against which the Soviet ZIL seemed like a poor relative. Therefore, the "eleventh" was hastily updated, creating the ZIL-111G. The open version of the car received the index 111D. 
6. ZIL-111V went to Red Square until 1967! The new convertibles replaced their predecessors at the parade dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution and served until the mid-seventies. Then the next generation of government cabriolets, ZIL-117V, took over the work shift. For the first time, designers - they were then called artists - having received absolute freedom, created a new car without looking back (or rather, almost without looking back) at foreign competitors, so that the exterior turned out to be distinctive, strict and less subject to the influence of changeable fashion than the bodies of its predecessors. Another uncharacteristic solution for ZIL cars is the short wheelbase (ZIL-117) and long wheelbase (ZIL-114) versions. The salon of the front ZIL-117V is three-seater. Instead of the right front seat, there is a platform for the commander of the parade, who, while the car is moving, holds the handle on the left and gives commands through microphones fixed on a massive stand 
7. Once again 117. 
8. For the 60th anniversary of the October Revolution, the engineers of the Likhachev Plant decided to prepare a "gift" - to update the classic features of government cars. The proportions changed slightly (the hood became longer, and the trunk - shorter), the design of the front and rear parts of the body, the plumage elements were corrected ... The car received the factory index ZIL-115 and the industry-wide one - ZIL-4104. In 1981, several shortened sedans (historians continue to argue how many cars were created) served as the basis for the construction of the next generation of ceremonial convertibles, which outwardly looked like representatives of the ZIL-115 family, but received a less powerful engine from its predecessor, ZIL-114. 
8.1. Rehearsal for the parade on Khodynka.
These convertibles have served as "the main ceremonial cars of the country" for more than a quarter of a century. In 2006, the Ministry of Defense decided to bring fundamentally new vehicles to Red Square - the GAZ Tiger off-road vehicles. In just six months, the Nizhny Novgorod engineers "tailored" several two-door convertibles. As for the mechanical stuffing, the "ceremonial" SUV differed from the usual only in the gearbox (instead of the "mechanics" they put "automatic") and the interior design. But the high army officials did not like the Tigers, and now the brutal black giants are serving ... in St. Petersburg. 
These are the cars that took parades at different times in our capital. It is a pity that the new convertibles are not gray, that they are hybrids from American pickup trucks, it is a pity for the plant ... I hope that someday completely new ZILs in gray that meet all the standards will start to take place in our country, because the parades without a ZIL convertible will be different. then wrong.
The sleek convertible sailed slowly at full speed and braked not abruptly, but only slightly more intensively than its status should. It was I who provoked an experienced driver into an active maneuver - out of pure curiosity. I got ready, grouped myself - and almost fell overboard! Standing in a convertible, it is very difficult to maintain balance: I resisted only because I grabbed the handrail sticking out in the center of the cabin.
How much depends on the driver's ability to drive smoothly! After all, the Minister of Defense goes around the troops in a combat position: the right hand is attached to the cap, and the left elegantly lies on the handrail.
Is it difficult to manage the front ZIL? I'm going to try now! The automatic transmission lever is in the “drive” position, I release my foot from the brake, and ZIL-41041 AMG slowly, like a long-distance train, starts to move. The power unit is perfectly adapted for measured movement in front of the Kremlin walls. The engine allows you to accelerate without sudden accelerations and jerks, switching from first gear to second is almost imperceptible.
Unaccustomed, the convertible seems too soft and roll. It is not surprising: the tire pressure, the characteristics of the rear leaf spring and front torsion bar suspension are selected in such a way as to ensure a smooth ride on the paving stones of Red Square. Moreover, with a completely certain load: a driver, a passenger and a full trunk of equipment that controls the work of three radio microphones.
Before turning, I slowed down a little, turned the steering wheel - and immediately felt a slight body roll.But for me he is barely noticeable, and if there was a passenger behind his back, he would probably grab the handrail so as not to fall. I ended my acquaintance with the convertible with the most comfortable deceleration, since the information content of the brake pedal is quite high. ZIL froze in place, not nodding. Or so it seemed to me?
LIFE ON PAVERS
The driver of the front ZIL of the Minister of Defense, number 0001 MO 77, is driving for the fifth parade. He knows two other cars well. The one with number 0002 is for the commander of the ground forces. There are no external differences, but due to the peculiarities of the route on Red Square, the settings are slightly different. It has a smaller turning radius and the automatic gearbox shifts into second gear at a lower speed. The third car is a spare (during the parade it is on duty at the gates of the Spasskaya Tower), with averaged settings. By the way, he has never been needed: the first two are reliable and did not require replacement. At rehearsals and at the parade, convertibles are overtaken on their own. The cloth top and side windows are kept up to keep the interior clean. Driving around Red Square is a special job. No unnecessary braking - only at the points provided by the scenario! For example, you need to leave the gate of the Spasskaya Tower and then turn left without slowing down and at the same time being comfortable for the passenger. The speed of bypassing parade "boxes" with troops is about 17 km / h. When the cabriolets of the Minister of Defense and the parade commander follow side by side, it is required to keep a distance of one and a half meters. From the side it seems that they are traveling evenly. In fact - somewhere a little faster, somewhere a little slower: you have to take into account the relief of the paving stones (it lies in waves). Sometimes you need to work with two pedals - both gas and brake, in order to avoid unnecessary switching of the "automatic" from the first gear to the second and back.When watching the TV broadcast of the Victory Parade, please note that the headlights on convertibles do not light up, and brake lights do not work when braking. There is a toggle switch in the armrest with which the driver turns off all external lighting devices, windshield wipers, and an air conditioner. This is in order to exclude interference with radio microphones.
As it turned out, the most difficult thing in the driver's work at the parade is not the jewelry control of the car, but the need to maintain the schedule with an accuracy of several seconds. There should be no delays: the planes and helicopters finishing the parade have already taken off from the airfields. Their pilots are not asked to fly anywhere for a few minutes to make up for a schedule failure. Clock? Of course, they are on the ZIL dashboard - but without the second hand. The driver does not have the opportunity to often look at his watch, he has to navigate by the music - the marches of the combined orchestra of the Moscow military garrison. Plus the acquired sixth sense is a kind of internal timer.
FIGHT AGAINST HYPODYNAMIA
A car that is used only a few days a year has a special storage and maintenance regime. All three ZILs are in an air-conditioned garage, where a certain temperature and humidity are maintained. Each battery is disconnected from the on-board network for fire safety reasons. Covers are put on the wiper blades so that their rubber bands age more slowly and do not deform. Outwardly, ZILs are always brand new. And what about a sedentary lifestyle? Slow driving and smooth braking are not the most useful mode of operation. Sometimes you have to take it with a breeze to burn carbon deposits in the engine! And load the brakes, suspension, gearbox? After the dress rehearsal of the parade, which takes place on May 7, the cabriolets, accompanied by traffic police cars, set off on a run along one of the Moscow region highways. Only regular drivers are driving, but the passengers are the specialists of the manufacturer. Under their supervision, ZILs perform a special driving cycle, including braking and driving at maximum speed. Then the convertibles are washed, dried and their technical condition checked. The final touch is body polishing. By the way, the driver of the ceremonial ZIL is not at all an army white-handed person who only sits behind the wheel. After each drive, he washes the convertible himself. The features of the body and the quality of painting require an individual approach, therefore automatic brushes and conscripts are not allowed to work. Kärcher, sponges, car care products and neat handwork. And here's what else is interesting. Before rehearsals and parades, drivers often walk the entire route through Red Square. Of course, these paving stones are cleaned with special care, but an extra check will not hurt. No matter how strong and puncture-resistant the tires are, their contact with piercing-cutting objects must be excluded. During the TV broadcast of the Victory Parade, a voice-over tells viewers who is leading a column of tanks or a squad of fighters. It seems to me that it would be fair to name the cabriolet driver under the number 0001. And since this has not yet been done, I will name him. The Minister of Defense's car is driven by Major Georgy Aleksandrovich Gorshunov. It is him that we will see at the wheel of "Bort 0001", which on May 9 will open the parade on Red Square, dedicated to the 70th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War.Our reference
Three black convertibles ZIL-41041 AMG were assembled in 2009 to replace the gray parade phaetons with the index 41044. The manufacturer is Atlant-Delta, a member of the GAZ Group. The cars are based on five-seat four-door sedans ZIL ‑ 41041 with a base of 3300 mm. Apart from the truncated two-door body, the main differences are the interior and chassis with GM components. Vortec 6.0 engine, Hydra-Matic 6L90E six-speed gearbox, Yokohama Mirada tires 245/70 R16. The donor's exterior styling is retained, although many exterior panels have been replaced. Two-door convertibles are equipped with communications equipment, a folding fabric roof and an adjustable handrail for standing up. Used once a year - at the Victory Parade.
“Moscow speaks and shows. Listen and watch Red Square! Victory Parade! ”- the annual ceremonial passage of the parade calculations on Red Square has become an integral symbol of May 9. But the symbol of the parade itself, perhaps, can be called ... cars. The rulers and military leaders changed, but the luxurious phaetons of the commander and receiver remained invariable participants in each parade.
“Comrades! Be vigilant, tirelessly master military affairs, strengthen the economic and military might of our beautiful Motherland with tenfold energy in all sectors of socialist construction! ”- the last pre-war parade, at which the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR Semyon Timoshenko spoke, passed nervously. Everyone understood perfectly well that war could not be avoided, although it was possible to postpone the ruthless meat grinder - the main thing was to show how "the defensive power of the Soviet state was significantly strengthened." Soldiers and officers rumbled with their boots, motorcycles and military equipment rumbled with motors, military planes flew by ... Diplomats of foreign states watched all this.
The column of armored vehicles was headed by an unusual car - as the magazine "Behind the wheel" wrote, "an elegant, well-finished phaeton, with a beautiful streamlined body shape." This car is an open ZIS-102, a modification of the ZIS-101 limousine devoid of a rigid metal roof. A great future was predicted for an elegant, swift phaeton - then the commander and the host of the parade rode around the paving stones of Red Square on thoroughbred trotters, but the appearance of a beautiful parade car could change the established order: why should not the military leaders change to cars? However, Joseph Stalin categorically snapped: "Let's not change the good tradition of the Soviet army."
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The trotters were replaced by cars only after the death of "Iron Joseph", in 1953. During the May parade, "dedicated to the International Workers' Solidarity," a 4-door phaeton ZIS-110B, an open version of the six-window ZIS-110 limousine, drove onto the paving stones of the country's main square. At the end of the war, Stalin personally commissioned this limousine to create, and therefore the family of cars for the top of the Soviet government turned out to be similar to Packard cars (Danila Mikhailov told about the history of the American brand in detail). The leader loved this brand very much, and the designers, knowing the preferences of Joseph Vissarionovich, painted the first representative car of the USSR in the image and likeness of the luxurious Super Eight 180 model of 1942. At the same time looking at another car from America - Buick Limited, which turned out to be wider and more spacious than the Packard.
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The ZIS-110 was based on an impressive spar frame, reinforced with a powerful crosspiece, so the empty ZIS-110 weighed a lot - more than 2.5 tons! Therefore, the engine from its predecessor, the ZIS-101, turned out to be rather weak for a massive car, and the designers had to create a new power unit - an inline 6.0-liter "eight", which produced a modest 140 hp by today's standards. For this engine, oilmen even had to start producing a new grade of gasoline, A-74. In total, “1st Automobile Plant named after I.V. Stalin "(the plant named after Likhachev, it will only become on June 26, 1956) 2089 open" zis "were produced, many of which worked ... as taxis.
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In the sixties, the good old ZIS-110 were retired, and their place was taken by the new generation convertibles - ZIL-111V. When creating this car again, it was not without the stylistic influence of the "Americans" ... But if the "ten" was a copy of specific models, then the design of the "eleventh" is a kind of collective image of a "typical American car" of the late fifties. Under the hood of the new family, a V-shaped "eight" appeared (a relative of this engine is the engine of the ZIL-130 truck), but the most important innovation applied to the ZIL-111, of course, was the two-stage automatic transmission.
From 1960 to 1962, twelve (!) Open cars were produced, and then the production of both limousines and ZIL-111 convertibles was phased out. And all because Nikita Khrushchev personally "asked" to update the appearance of executive cars. According to legend, the then first secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU did not like that the car for the top government was similar to the GAZ-13 "Chaika" that appeared a year later, which was relied on by the middle management. Khrushchev was also struck by John F. Kennedy's newest Lincoln Continental, against which the Soviet ZIL seemed like a poor relative. In general, the "eleventh" was hastily updated, creating the ZIL-111G. The open version of the car received the index 111D.
True, the "pre-reform" ZIL-111V went to Red Square before 1967! The new convertibles replaced their predecessors at the parade dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution and served until the mid-seventies. Then the next generation of government cabriolets, ZIL-117V, took over the work shift. For the first time, designers - they were then called artists - having received absolute freedom, created a new car without looking back (or rather, almost without looking back) at foreign competitors, so that the exterior turned out to be distinctive, strict and less subject to the influence of changeable fashion than the bodies of its predecessors. Another uncharacteristic solution for ZIL cars is the short wheelbase (ZIL-117) and long wheelbase (ZIL-114) versions.
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For the 60th anniversary of the October Revolution, the engineers of the Likhachev Plant decided to prepare a "gift" - to update the classic features of government cars. The proportions changed slightly (the hood became longer, and the trunk became shorter), the design of the front and rear parts of the body, the plumage elements were corrected ... The car received the factory index ZIL-115 and the industry-wide one - ZIL-4104. In 1981, several shortened sedans (historians continue to argue how many cars were created) served as the basis for the construction of the next generation of ceremonial convertibles, which outwardly looked like representatives of the ZIL-115 family, but received a less powerful engine from its predecessor, ZIL-114.
These convertibles have served as "the main ceremonial cars of the country" for more than a quarter of a century. In 2006, the Ministry of Defense decided to bring fundamentally new vehicles to Red Square - the GAZ Tiger off-road vehicles. In just six months, the Nizhny Novgorod engineers "tailored" several two-door convertibles. As for the mechanical stuffing, the "parade" SUV differed from the usual one only in the gearbox (instead of the "mechanics" they put an "automatic") and interior design. But the high army officials didn't like the Tigers, and now brutal black giants are serving ... in St. Petersburg.
But for the main, Moscow, Victory Parade, instead of the ancient ZIL-115V, it was necessary to build a hybrid, albeit reminiscent of the classic ceremonial "zilas", but not such. On the chassis of American pick-up trucks GMC Sierra (you can read about this "monster" in the material GMC Sierra 1500 - a real American dream alive) they put up converted bodies from used (!) ZIL-41041 sedans. This project was handled by specialists from the Nizhny Novgorod company Atlant-Delta (it belongs to Oleg Deripaska and is famous for the implementation of unusual ideas: for example, the creation of luxurious yacht interiors), since the capital's ZIL lost the tender. By the way, that is why the citizens of Nizhny Novgorod had to use used bodies - the new Zilovites simply refused to sell.
Interestingly, classic ceremonial convertibles, regardless of generation, have always been the same gray - like a shade of a general's winter overcoat - color. But the Nizhny Novgorod-American "hybrids" broke the Soviet tradition - their bodies were painted black! The change in color can be easily explained: until recently, the parade was hosted by a civilian minister. In a black suit. And now, when the Ministry of Defense is again headed by an army general ... No, they are not planning to repaint the cars, although the noble gray color scheme suits the strict features of the "main convertibles of the country" much more than the funeral black. Maybe only the next generation of ceremonial convertibles (within the framework of the Cortege project, not only a limousine for the president will be created, but also a new generation of open cars) will acquire the usual colors. But this will not happen until 2015.
Alexey Kovanov
In the USSR, cars at parades did not appear immediately: for many years the commanders drove into Red Square exclusively on horseback. But in 1938, the engineers of the Stalin automobile plant (that was the name of the ZIL at that time) prepared a ZIS-102 phaeton for "ceremonial" needs, and on May 1, 1941, he led a column of armored vehicles.
ZIS-110B
However, the commanders-in-chief "moved" to cars much later. Only in 1953 the then minister of Defense of the USSR Marshal of the Soviet Union Nikolai Bulganin for the first time left to receive the November parade dedicated to the anniversary of the October Revolution, not on horseback, but on a new ZIS-110B phaeton.
Under its hood was a 140 hp engine. And the main "chips" of the car were leather upholstery and a manual mechanism for folding the awning. In the center of the cabin there was a special handle (also trimmed with leather) so that the parade commander could stand while moving at full height, while maintaining balance.
"Victory" at the parade
The military did not pass by the GAZ M-20 "Pobeda" either - the car was quickly adapted for traveling and staff needs.
And in 1948, when the plant mastered the production of convertible M-20B with a soft folding roof, the choice of a car for participation in the parades was decided. In special workshops, these "Victory" were "pumped" for the army's needs: they put handles on the frame of the "lobovukha" or on the backs of the front seats so that the officer who had the honor to receive the parade could hold onto them.
The first two ceremonial "Victory" appeared in 1949. The convertibles were assembled at the Moscow Region Experimental Plant No. 38. They lacked side window frames, a roof folding mechanism, but had handrails on the backs of the seats. To avoid problems with the rigidity of the body, the rear left door was simply welded. True, these cars did not succeed in becoming permanent participants in the celebrations. They were used for their intended purpose only once - at the parade in Petrozavodsk.
ZIL-111 V and GAZ-24 "Volga"
Limousine ZIL-111 appeared in 1958, and a few years later saw the light of its parade modification, which received the letter "B" in the index. The convertibles were equipped with hydraulic window lifters, handrails, microphones, and folding tarpaulins.
A total of three such vehicles were assembled. They participated in parades until 1962.
Participated in the creation of ceremonial cars and the Gorky Automobile Plant. There was assembled an experimental batch of "ceremonial" GAZ-24 for the countries of the Warsaw Pact, the Middle East and, of course, Cuba.
But the Soviet military, especially from distant garrisons, had to convert standard "twenty-fourths" into convertibles on their own.
GAZ-13B "Chaika" and "front" GAZ-3102
For parades in the provinces in the early 1960s, about a dozen GAZ-13B convertibles were assembled. Their main feature was the hydraulic soft top control system. By the way, several of these convertibles were transferred to the GDR in 1979.
In the early 1980s, the role of the first violin in the military environment went to the powerful (the number of "horses" ranged from 90 to 150) and comfortable GAZ-3102. But in Soviet times, these cars were not used as a basis for ceremonial convertibles. Their time came a little later, right after the collapse of the USSR. Moreover, production was established in remote military units.
GAZ-14−05 "Chaika" and ZIL-41044
In the period from 1981 to 1988, the Gorky Automobile Plant produced one and a half dozen GAZ-14−05 convertibles, created on the basis of the "fourteenth" GAZ with an engine of 220 "horses".
These cars received at their disposal two front seats, a pair of flagpoles, three antennas, handrails, a microphone stand and an awning that had to be lifted by hand.
These cars still occasionally participate in military parades in remote parts.
In 1981, ZIL-41044 convertibles appeared, painted in light gray. Unlike the base car, the base was shortened (up to 3,300 millimeters), and a motor that produced 275 horsepower was placed under the hood.
There was no front passenger seat. But there was heating not only of the rear seat, but also of the floor. A handrail and a microphone were placed in the center of the car, and the radio was hidden in the trunk. In addition, the car was equipped with a special communications complex "Tutor".
It was the ZIL-41044 convertibles that took part in the last Victory Parade of the Soviet era - in 1990. Then they were remembered and "invited" to the celebrations in 2008 and 2009.
ZIL-41044 at the Victory Parade, 2008 (Photo: Vitaly Belousov / TASS)
What now?
In modern Russia there is also a place for cars for parades. This, for example, is ZIL-410441. In 2009, the competition for the creation of "special" cars was unexpectedly won by the Moscow Automobile Plant, which by that time was already on its way.
As a result, a year later, 3 cars were born, equipped with V8 engines with a capacity of 280 "horses" and "automatic machines" Allison. But the matter did not go further, since the cars were rejected at the state acceptance.
But the representatives of the Atlant-Delta design company were more fortunate. The Nizhny Novgorod craftsmen took the American GMC Sierra 1500 (manufactured in 2007) as a basis, and on their basis they created their own product - SP45. The interior was redesigned, the body was shortened, the new roof control mechanism was “screwed on” - and voila. It is curious that the Zilovskaya ZIL-41041 AMG got the certification for this brainchild.
This car was used not only ex-defense minister Anatoly Serdyukov... During the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the Victory russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu also rode a ZIL AMG.
Atlant-Delta has another interesting "front" development - all-wheel drive vehicles GAZ SP46 "Tiger". Three such vehicles were built on the basis of the GAZ-2330 "Tiger" in 2008. An American diesel engine with a capacity of 205 hp was put under the hood, and the Allison automatic transmission was the company.
These ceremonial off-road vehicles led the military celebrations on the St. Petersburg Palace Square.
“Moscow speaks and shows. Listen and watch Red Square! Victory Parade! ”- the annual ceremonial passage of the parade calculations on Red Square has become an integral symbol of May 9. But the symbol of the parade itself, perhaps, can be called ... cars. The rulers and military leaders changed, but the luxurious phaetons of the commander and receiver remained invariable participants in each parade.
“Comrades! Be vigilant, tirelessly master military affairs, strengthen the economic and military might of our beautiful Motherland with tenfold energy in all sectors of socialist construction! ”- the last pre-war parade, at which the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR Semyon Timoshenko spoke, passed nervously. Everyone understood perfectly well that war could not be avoided, although it was possible to postpone the ruthless meat grinder - the main thing was to show how "the defensive power of the Soviet state was significantly strengthened." Soldiers and officers rumbled with their boots, motorcycles and military equipment rumbled with motors, military aircraft flew by ... Diplomats of foreign states watched all this.
The column of armored vehicles was headed by an unusual vehicle - as the magazine "Za Rulem" wrote, "an elegant, well-finished phaeton, with a beautiful streamlined body shape." This car is an open ZIS-102, a modification of the ZIS-101 limousine devoid of a rigid metal roof. A great future was predicted for an elegant, swift phaeton - then the commander and the host of the parade rode around the paving stones of Red Square on thoroughbred trotters, but the appearance of a beautiful parade car could change the established order: why should not the military leaders change to cars? However, Joseph Stalin categorically snapped: "Let's not change the good tradition of the Soviet army."
The trotters were replaced by cars only after the death of "Iron Joseph", in 1953. During the May parade, "dedicated to the International Workers' Solidarity," a 4-door phaeton ZIS-110B, an open version of the six-window ZIS-110 limousine, drove onto the paving stones of the country's main square. At the end of the war, Stalin personally commissioned this limousine to create, and therefore the family of cars for the top of the Soviet government turned out to be similar to Packard cars (Danila Mikhailov spoke in detail about the history of the American brand). The leader loved this brand very much, and the designers, knowing the preferences of Joseph Vissarionovich, painted the first representative car of the USSR in the image and likeness of the luxurious Super Eight 180 model of 1942. At the same time, looking at another car from America - Buick Limited, which turned out to be wider and more spacious than the Packard.
The ZIS-110 was based on an impressive spar frame, reinforced with a powerful crosspiece, so the empty ZIS-110 weighed a lot - more than 2.5 tons! Therefore, the engine from its predecessor, the ZIS-101, turned out to be rather weak for a massive car, and the designers had to create a new power unit - an inline 6.0-liter "eight", which produced a modest 140 hp by today's standards. For this engine, oilmen even had to start producing a new grade of gasoline, A-74. In total, “1st Automobile Plant named after I.V. Stalin "(the plant named after Likhachev, it will only become on June 26, 1956) 2089 open" zis "were produced, many of which worked ... as taxis.
In the sixties, the good old ZIS-110 were retired, and their place was taken by the new generation convertibles - ZIL-111V. When creating this car, it was again not without the stylistic influence of the "Americans" ... But if the "ten" was a copy of specific models, then the design of the "eleventh" is a kind of collective image of a "typical American car" of the late fifties. Under the hood of the new family, a V-shaped "eight" appeared (a relative of this engine is the engine of the ZIL-130 truck), but the most important innovation applied to the ZIL-111, of course, was the two-stage automatic transmission.
ZIL-111D is also known as a participant in a sad story. In January 1969, Moscow met the cosmonauts Volynov, Eliseev, Khrunov and Shatalov, who were taken to the Kremlin reception from the Vnukovo airport. Near the Borovitsky gate, the motorcade came under fire: junior lieutenant Viktor Ilyin was preparing an attempt on Brezhnev, but did not know that there were only cosmonauts inside the cars, and Leonid Ilyich drove to the Kremlin in a different car and a different route
From 1960 to 1962, twelve (!) Open cars were produced, and then the production of both limousines and ZIL-111 convertibles was phased out. And all because Nikita Khrushchev personally "asked" to update the appearance of executive cars. According to legend, the then first secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU did not like that the car for the top government was similar to the GAZ-13 "Chaika" that appeared a year later, which was relied on by the middle management. Khrushchev was also struck by John F. Kennedy's newest Lincoln Continental, against which the Soviet ZIL seemed like a poor relative. In general, the "eleventh" was hastily updated, creating the ZIL-111G. The open version of the car received the index 111D.
True, the "pre-reform" ZIL-111V went to Red Square before 1967! The new convertibles replaced their predecessors at the parade dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution, and served until the mid-seventies. Then the next generation of government cabriolets, ZIL-117V, took over the work shift. For the first time, designers - they were then called artists - having received absolute freedom, created a new car without looking back (or rather, almost without looking back) at foreign competitors, so that the exterior turned out to be original, strict and less subject to the influence of changeable fashion than the bodies of its predecessors. Another uncharacteristic solution for ZIL cars is the short wheelbase (ZIL-117) and long wheelbase (ZIL-114) versions.
For the 60th anniversary of the October Revolution, the engineers of the Likhachev Plant decided to prepare a "gift" - to update the classic features of government cars. The proportions changed slightly (the hood became longer, and the trunk - shorter), the design of the front and rear parts of the body, the plumage elements were corrected ... The car received the factory index ZIL-115 and the industry-wide one - ZIL-4104. In 1981, several shortened sedans (historians continue to argue how many cars were created) served as the basis for the construction of the next generation of ceremonial convertibles, which outwardly looked like representatives of the ZIL-115 family, but received a less powerful engine from its predecessor, ZIL-114.
These convertibles have served as "the main ceremonial cars of the country" for more than a quarter of a century. In 2006, the Ministry of Defense decided to bring fundamentally new vehicles to Red Square - the GAZ Tiger off-road vehicles. In just six months, the Nizhny Novgorod engineers "tailored" several two-door convertibles. As for the mechanical stuffing, the "ceremonial" SUV differed from the usual only in the gearbox (instead of the "mechanics" they put "automatic") and the interior design. But the high army officials did not like the Tigers, and now the brutal black giants are serving ... in St. Petersburg.
But for the main, Moscow, Victory Parade, instead of the ancient ZIL-115V, it was necessary to build a hybrid, albeit reminiscent of the classic ceremonial "zilas", but which is not. On the chassis of American pick-up trucks GMC Sierra (you can read about this "monster" in the material GMC Sierra 1500 - a real American dream alive) they put up converted bodies from used (!) ZIL-41041 sedans. This project was handled by specialists from the Nizhny Novgorod company "Atlant-Delta" (it belongs to Oleg Deripaska and is famous for the implementation of unusual ideas: for example, the creation of luxurious yacht interiors), since the capital's ZIL lost the tender. By the way, that is why the citizens of Nizhny Novgorod had to use used bodies - the new Zilovites simply refused to sell.
Interestingly, classic ceremonial convertibles, regardless of generation, have always been the same gray - like a shade of a general's winter overcoat - color. But the Nizhny Novgorod-American "hybrids" broke the Soviet tradition - their bodies were painted black! The change in color can be easily explained: until recently, the parade was hosted by a civilian minister. In a black suit. And now, when the Ministry of Defense is again headed by an army general ... No, they are not planning to repaint the cars, although the noble gray color scheme suits the strict features of the "main convertibles of the country" much more than the funeral black. Maybe only the next generation of ceremonial convertibles (within the framework of the Cortege project, not only a limousine for the president will be created, but also a new generation of open cars) will acquire the usual colors. But this will not happen until 2015.
Alexey Kovanov
