Scoop: Russia’s Next Niva SUV Made By Chevrolet

GM may be experiencing turbulent times in Russia, pulling out Opel, and minimizing the presence of Chevrolet, but one project that seems to remain unfazed by the current situation is the next Chevy Niva.

To shove the elephant out of the room, you’re probably wondering about the name and what’s the relationship with Lada’s classic Niva. Well, the first generation of the Chevrolet Niva was actually based on the rugged Russian SUV that is offered in most markets nowadays as the Lada 4×4.

GM ended up keeping the name but not the Lada underpinnings for its replacement that you see in these scoop photos taken in Southern Europe where the car is currently undergoing development tests.

It’s the more down to earth production version of last year’s thinly disguised Niva Concept displayed at the Moscow International Auto Show. If you remove the extreme outdoor adventure kit from the study, you’ll have a pretty good idea of what the new Chevy will look like.

The compact SUV will measure a little over 4.3 meters in length with power expected to come from a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine delivering around 135hp.

Chevy’s new SUV will likely be offered in markets outside of Russia as well, but at this point, we don’t know more details about GM’s plans. The new Niva will go on sale in Russia next year.

Photo Credits: CarPix for CarScoops