Lada Vesta: Is it worth buying a three-year-old sedan for 500 thousand rubles

Vesta engine

Robotic gearbox

Car Lada Vesta sedan

Salon Lada Vesta

For fans of domestic cars, the release of the new Vesta assembly line was a real event. Finally, a car has appeared in the AvtoVAZ lineup, looking at which you can get aesthetic pleasure. The body lines are smooth, the gaps between parts are minimal, and the sound of a slamming door is not annoying! And even when you get into the car, you don’t feel disappointed: the finishing materials are pleasant to the touch, there are a lot of modern devices for comfortable driving, convenient placement of the car controls and devices inside the car. The new product looks decent, but how will it behave on the road? You should figure out whether it’s worth buying a Lada Vesta.

Main settings

LadaVesta went on sale in November 2015. It is the largest full-size sedan in class B. Its overall dimensions are impressive: length/width/height are 4410/1764/1497 mm, respectively. Compared to its closest competitors Kia Rio, Hyundai Solaris, Skoda Rapid and Volkswagen Polo, the new VAZ is larger in size and internal space.

On a note!

Ground clearance of 178 mm is also an advantage over the “four” budget foreign cars, which have 160.

Specifications

Vesta engine
The main units for the car were the developments of VAZ designers and devices borrowed from Renault. The engine line is represented by domestic engines developed by VAZ designers: a basic 1.6-liter 106-horsepower engine and a top-end 122-horsepower 1.8 unit. In comparison with its competitors, the “base” loses to the “single-volume” Kia and Hyundai, which develops a power of 123 “horses”. Polo and Rapid are partially inferior to Vesta, having at their disposal a 1.6-liter engine in two configurations: 90 and 110 horsepower, but for additional money they can be equipped with a 1.4-liter forced engine of 125 horsepower.

Robotic gearbox

In the choice of transmissions, domestic cars clearly lag behind their rivals. Reviews of the Lada Vesta on the “robot” have repeatedly criticized the too thoughtful switching. The robotic gearbox was developed by AvtoVAZ specialists to make driving easier, but it clearly falls short of a classic automatic transmission. The five-speed manual from Renault behaves more cheerfully, but is inferior to the modern six-speed gearbox of its opponents.

In terms of dynamic characteristics, budget cars are quite similar. The time to accelerate to “hundreds” does not go beyond 10 seconds for everyone. But when overcoming small off-road conditions, the Lada can give a head start thanks to its significant ground clearance.

Another unpleasant moment is the absence of a version of the car with a top-end engine paired with a manual transmission. Any car enthusiast who decides to buy a manual Vesta can be content with only the basic engine. It is unclear what this equipment option is based on. According to official data from representatives of the concern, preparatory work is underway to configure the transmission with a manual transmission for its further interaction with the 1.8 engine.

On a note!

According to the latest data from AvtoVAZ representatives, a restyled version of the Lada Vesta car should be released at the end of 2021, and top-end Exclusive equipment will appear among the trim levels.

Prices and options

Car Lada Vesta sedan
In order to decide whether to take the Lada Vesta, you need to compare it in terms of prices and equipment with other budget foreign cars.

In terms of pricing, Vesta wins in many respects. But based on the opinion of experts, the new VAZ product is inferior to all competitive models in terms of build quality and materials. Considering these facts, Lada Vesta is not that cheap.

CarPrice opinion

During a study of the secondary market, CarPrice experts evaluated used cars based on three main points.

Lada Vesta body condition

: The AVTOVAZ model showed far from the best assessment of the condition of the body. More than half of the cars inspected had chips on the hood and front fenders, large scratches on body parts, which indirectly indicates that the paint was not of very high quality.

Technical condition of Lada Vesta

: Everything is good here - the condition of the units of this car is even better than that of models that are considered indestructible. Common deficiencies include clutch wear and abnormal operation of the heater, and another 25% of cars showed increased vibration when shifting gears. Cars of 2015 are also characterized by weak shock absorbers and sagging rubber muffler mounts. But overall, no serious problems were identified - the car is at the level of its classmates.

Condition of the Lada Vesta interior

: Best grades among classmates. The signature disease of the model can only be attributed to the rapid abrasion of the steering wheel.

According to the results

: Lada Vesta is a solid average. The average price of a three-year-old Vesta is comparable to the price of Nissan Almera and Renault Logan II, but Vesta is significantly cheaper than Volkswagen Polo, Kia Rio or Hyundai Solaris. Lada Vesta is the first Russian car that is not inferior to models from leading automakers in its segment. At the same time, solving any problems will be cheaper - after all, this is a domestic car.

Link to article

Cons and pros

Salon of Lada Vesta
Certain advantages of the Lada Vesta car include:

• spacious interior;
• interesting design;
• generous standard equipment;
• refined handling;
• high ground clearance;
• spacious trunk;
• affordable price.

Vesta also has disadvantages, and it’s worth paying special attention to them:

• poor sound insulation of the cabin;
• slow robotic gearbox;
• lack of locking of the gas tank flap;
• low quality interior finishing materials.

Vesta and elastic bands from Solaris

Starting to study the systematic breakdowns that owners of the model experienced from time to time, it almost immediately became clear that a miracle had not happened - Vesta has plenty of weak points. First of all, I would like to talk about rubber products that wear out, tear, scratch and disturb the silence so actively that I had to devote an entire section to this topic.

Briefly about the quality of tires for a completely new car

It is recommended to replace standard windshield wiper blades with something more kosher immediately after purchasing a new car, otherwise in rainy weather you will have to look at the road through arched stripes. Little things, of course, especially when you consider that normal rubber bands can be bought for 150 rubles apiece, but, as you may have guessed, this is just the beginning. Vesta owners are also concerned about the side window seals, which, as they lower and raise, become covered with a scattering of “eternal” scratches, and in order to prevent this from happening so intensely, the friction points have to be often cleaned of dust and dirt and, for reliability, lubricated with everyone’s favorite “magpie” ( WD-40). We have already seen something similar in a used Kia Ceed JD.

And, of course, sounds. Even though this is far from the only source of noise for the Lada Vesta, it is still the stabilizer bushings that begin to creak earlier than anything else, since this happens in the very first stages of the semi-domestic beauty’s life. It is useless to lubricate and replace with the original. The best thing you can do is to break allegiance to AvtoVAZ and install the rubber bands of the main competitors, with whom Vesta so bloodthirsty “fought” on advertising posters - the brothers Hyundai Solaris and Kia Rio. Someone is adding parts from the Kia Soul and this also works in the battle for silence.

Sometimes you have to change bushings every 30,000 km, or finally fit rubber bands from a competitor called Solaris

Sometimes you have to replace the rear silent blocks of the front control arms with something imported, the rubber of which is accustomed not to crack and tear, but to immediately peel off from the holder. Moreover, the instability of quality has led to the fact that for some people this happens after only 50 thousand kilometers, while others drive a solid 100 thousand without replacement.

Tubes from the vacuum brake booster and systems for changing the length of the intake manifold also end up in landfills near garages. In the first case, a “hissing” from under the hood will help you understand what happened; in the second case, floating speed and poor starting.

This hose has already given in, disrupting the operation of the engine.

Finishing the topic of the total unsuitability of the rubber used in the Lada Vesta, one cannot ignore the exhaust gas removal system, that is, the muffler, which after the first year of operation “slides” down a couple of centimeters, bringing to motorists nostalgic feelings for the times when the pipe was hung on an air filter . At the same time, the old element ideally replaced the sagging rubber bands forever, but Vesta, alas, does not have round filters and you will either have to reliably “collective farm” in another way, or just patriotically install the original every year. In this case, special attention should be paid to the condition of the intermediate corrugation, which has become one of the leaders in replacement during early car runs:

Torn corrugation

Quality of the trip on the Lada Vesta - real operating experience

But it’s worth noting right away that on paper everything looks much more beautiful than you can imagine in life. After the description above, you might think that this car has really become the best offer on the market. But during operation, the driver notices the VAZ breed, and this is inevitable. An immediate transition in build quality is impossible, although growth and development are really noticeable. During operation, two sensations arise:

• the car drives well and holds the road well, but the robot is constantly annoying, so it is better to give preference to a more affordable and reliable manual transmission;
• There are a lot of electronics and sensors in the car, this makes it possible to automatically control a number of functions, but from time to time this electronics simply goes crazy and works on its own;
• the assembly also makes itself felt, sometimes the door or hood sensors are triggered when closed, then the driver faces real discomfort in moving;
• The plastics in the cabin were chosen well, they are also well assembled, but there are also shortcomings in the combination of materials, some minor factory defects are visible that should not exist;
• The rear suspension wobbles a little at high speeds; driving above 120 km/h becomes a little uncomfortable, although this is an individual factor that depends on the driver.

If you really want, you can find just a lot of problems and unpleasant moments for the car. But it is also worth remembering that you are using the car for daily use, and not for transporting distinguished diplomatic guests. For its price range and for its tasks, Vesta is excellent. But the car still has shortcomings, and the buyer will have to come to terms with this. Although, even during the first year of its existence, the concern changed a lot in the model.

Renault Logan, platform B0 and other near-Romanian Dacias

All these near-Romanian vehicles of varying degrees of localization are worth considering as one group. They have too many similarities.

The Renault Logan sedan is forever stuck in the minds of our compatriots as a competitor to grants. But the current generation, with a price of 830 thousand rubles in the top, competes with the Polo rather than with the Grant, and the Logan is far from the West. And this car cannot escape its reputation as a potato hauler for grandfathers.

For the same reasons, we did not consider the insanely stretched Logan under the Nissan Almera nameplate. Everything is the same there, only more authentic.

Renault Sandero and its restyling in the form of Lada Xray are not suitable for our purposes due to the small interior and lack of trunk.

Renault Duster or Nissan Terrano could hardly fit into our wish list. But such a purchase would cost us more than a Kia Seed - 1,200 thousand rubles. And this is for the all-wheel drive universal Logan, where the interior volume remains the same, just the wheels are placed wider. I won’t write about the lack of many electronic goodies. Everything is obvious here. Duster is for the village. They won't appreciate such bells and whistles there.

There is also the Renault Kaptur, but essentially it is a sleek Duster, at a price well above our budget. But the car is interesting. We thought about it several times, but looked at the price and discarded this option.

The Lada Largus did not suit us either, although it is a station wagon. Largus was most likely intended as a vehicle for commercial transportation, which is why automatic transmissions are not installed on them. Well, there are no whistles there either. There was no point in comparing Largus with something not from the world of commercial vehicles.

It seems that this is where the Logan clones ended. But we still didn’t want to buy the news.

What to choose: Lada Vesta SW or Lada Vesta SW Cross?

The most obvious difference between the cross and a regular Vesta is the plastic lining along the entire lower part of the body. They look good, especially on the rear bumper. But there is one ambiguous detail in the rear bumper of the cross - a false split exhaust. It looks beautiful, but it's a lie.

That's what we're talking about

True, all automakers are now dabbling in this, so AvtoVAZ is simply in trend.

The most discussed difference of the cross is the increased ground clearance. But the difference there is achieved mainly due to different wheels and a slight reconfiguration of the suspension. A regular West has wheels with a size of 195/55/16, while a cross bike has 205/50/17. It turns out that the diameter of the wheels increases by 1.6 cm, due to which an increase in ground clearance by a centimeter is achieved. But due to the increase in diameter, the height of the wheel profile decreases, which will certainly affect the softness of the ride in the pits and the frequency of the wheel hitting the rim.

Obviously, the suspension and on-board computer have been reconfigured for larger wheel diameters, but structurally these are the same cars. True, when it came to the purchase, it didn’t matter to me which version to take. And that's why.

Advice from sofa wiseguys

It is often advised that you should have bought another car. They say: “sell before it’s too late,” and other “practical” advice. How to answer the question, is it worth buying a Lada Vesta?

Korean cars

They also recommend buying a Solaris or Kia.

But every winter I pull these Koreans out on a rope when, due to their ground clearance and technical data, they sit on their bellies or bury themselves in the snow. I don't need this.

Chinese auto industry

They also say that for this money you can get a “Chinese”. It will be better equipped, more powerful and higher class. Of course they cost less. But, as they were made before from poor, non-galvanized iron, they still remain that way. There are two such “Chinese” cars in the yard, the same age as my Lada Vesta, with less mileage. They have not seen road chemicals, are not beaten, and are not painted. Their optics have already become cloudy, the paint is coming off, it is peeling. There is rust in these places, especially on the trunk lid.

This does not happen on chips, but on smooth, clean places, door corners, fenders. Everything begins to corrode. The rubber seals come out. The Lada Vesta also has chips, but there is no rust, since the body, except for the roof, is galvanized. Maybe Chinese cars are otherwise superior in comfort and reliability. But I’d rather change stabilizers and struts every year than watch my car rust in 3 years. In addition, the price of the car is also rapidly decreasing.

Used cars

There are many such advisers who offer to buy a used car. You yourself know all the pros and cons of such a proposal. Here, everyone sees the picture of buying an old car in their own way. A good complete car cannot be cheap. You can order a right-hand drive car without mileage in Russia.

A normal option, if it is not a Kay Car with a 50 hp engine. s., but it will also cost a decent amount. I would consider this option, but the state imposes an extortionate duty, which sometimes reaches the cost of the car itself. Such a purchase will be expensive.

How to eliminate noise from a gearbox with an AMT robot on a Lada Vesta.

Chinese

Cars from the Middle Kingdom is a very interesting topic. Even with the reduction of Chinese representation in the market, there is something to see there. Especially in the category of about a million.

I was periodically prompted to think about the Chinese by the Lifan car dealership, located on the way to work. The cars there are interesting. And their prices are also extremely interesting.

The Chinese understand Russians well and offer in this category mainly large crossovers, which we love very much. I also looked at their proposals and read more than one ton of logbooks and reviews.

Interesting options include Lifan Myway, Cherry Tiggo 5, Geely Emgrand 7 and even Geely Atlas. All options have a lot of interesting features and options, but it’s confusing that they’re all Chinese. This means that there will definitely be some misunderstandings with the service. After all, apparently, the Chinese are not very interested in our market and they can leave it at any time due to low sales. And who will then service the car under warranty?

In addition, there are doubts about the ability of the Chinese to maintain the same quality level for large quantities of goods. Everyone knows how Uncle Liao likes to save money. In these conditions, giving a million for a new Chinese is a dubious lottery.

Initial selection conditions

Compared to the grant, expectations from the future machine have changed somewhat:

• Only a new car.
• Cost up to one million rubles. Less is better.
• Body type – station wagon. Not required, but recommended.
• Automatic transmission. Automatic, robot, CVT – it doesn’t matter. Priority was given to the classic six-speed automatic transmission.
• Air conditioner. Preferably with climate control, so you don’t have to turn the knobs.
• Spacious back row for girls.
• Heatings. Be sure to heat all the seats, the windshield and rear window, the side mirrors, and preferably also the steering wheel.
• Airbags. The bigger, the better.
• Non-staining interior. Leather, leatherette or some kind of non-staining fabric - it doesn’t matter. If only it was easy to wash and slowly get dirty.

If you enter all these parameters into any car selection service, you will not find anything. Therefore, some wishes in the selection process were simplified or faded into the background.

So let's get started.