There’s no denying that the latest Suzuki Jimny is a very capable, and affordable, off-roader. But there’s a cheaper, more utilitarian alternative for those who want to go off-roading on a budget, and it comes from Russia.

It’s the 2021 Lada Niva Legend, and for the most part, it’s grounded in the past. Introduced in 1977, the Niva hasn’t changed much, so you can think of it as the Russian equivalent to the Brits’ classic Land Rover Defender. And that’s precisely where its success lies. Why change something when it’s not broken?

Under the hood sits a 1.7-liter engine with Bosch fuel injection that will give you a grand total of 85 HP and 129 Nm of torque. Sure, with a top speed of 90 mph (144 km/h), the Niva won’t be setting anything alight, but it isn’t trying to either. Driving the Niva isn’t all that different from what you would have experienced ten years ago.

See: All-New Niva SUV From Lada Is Set To Debut In 2024

Jonny from The Late Brake Show takes us through his experience inside the car, pointing out a couple of quirks, such as the comically long gear stick. But the new interior of the Niva isn’t the horrendous dungeon you might expect. The model featured includes optional air conditioning and other mod-cons (for a car of this caliber at least), such as electric windows. Perhaps more importantly, it offers a simple do-it-yourself approach to maintenance — something that is demonstrated as our reviewer inadvertently gets stuck and opts to clean up the resulted waterlogging himself, a task that probably wouldn’t be doable in a modern, top-flight, electronics-laden SUV.

The Niva starts at just around £17,000 (equivalent to $23,500) for the base model. However, you can snatch one up for just £12,000 ($16,600) if you are willing to jump through the hoops of the IVA (Individual Vehicle Approval) yourself, needed as the Lada isn’t officially on sale in the UK.

The Niva comes in a variety of trims to choose from, starting from ‘Luxe’ that will give you air conditioning and electric windows to the Urban, which is basically the same, save for a few cosmetic upgrades. You also get the ‘Black Special’ edition, which will allow you to play around with the color combinations and adds a set of fog lights. There’s the ‘Camo’ spec that comes with factory-applied camo paint, and finally, the ‘Bronto,’ which for £4000 ($5540) more, will give you items like lifted suspension and wider, more aggressive wheel arches.