ZAZ-966 Zaporozhets — Auto Legends of the USSR

The ZAZ-966 succeeded the legendary “humpback” Zaporozhets, offering buyers greater comfort and a more powerful engine. It became more expensive but remained an affordable car for the public. Yuri Viktorovich Danilov was responsible for its design. Engineers began developing the exterior and interior of the 966 model as early as 1960.

The ZAZ-966 was nicknamed “big-eared” because of the air intakes at the rear of the body, which were needed to cool the engine. The ZAZ-966 and the ZAZ-966V, with its less powerful engine, were produced from 1966 to 1972. This car no longer cost the equivalent of 1,000 bottles of vodka, a popular comparison previously applied to all earlier models made at the Kommunar plant.