Lada is the flag carrying car of the old Soviet Union… Mother Russia’s finest automotive creations. With basic design based on, or stolen from, the Fiat 124 series these early classic Lada’s created in the 1980s were know for their unreliability… think Yugo and you’re on the right track.

They were boxy, powered by sewing machine motors (not literally), and devoid of personality. The Lada 2104 Estate (ritzy talk for a wagon) was manufactured from 1984 to 2012. Yep, in a world where the basic production cycle of a car is four years the Lada 2104 has been the same car for 28 years running… when it ran.

This Estate started life with a 1,294 cc or 79 cubic inch four banger rated at 66 horsepower. Are boxy, non-personality USSR wagons coming back in favor? No, but this car makes a good case. We are unsure why anyone would choose this as a build platform, but the constructors are to be applauded for their foresight.

This Lada features HKS Hipermax coilovers, a set of custom sway bars, and most likely a number of chassis mods that would be difficult to guess at. The entire running gear from the SR20DET, to the transmission, to the brakes, and rearend are S13 vintage Silvia. The SR runs an eager Garrett T2871R turbo and puts out around 400 horsepower. These cars were known for their lack of safety which we think means they are light because this wagon is faster than most 400 horsepower cars we’ve been around. Check out the video and watch Mother Russia’s best dispatch a Porsche 911 on a highway roll-on drag.