Not long ago AvtoVAZ presented a global update of its budget model range. During the optimization of the line with the conveyor, the Priora and Kalina models disappeared, and instead of all these budget proposals, only Grant remained. It received three new bodies, changed its design, and became more pleasant in terms of appearance. The car has definitely become better than before, given the total obsolescence of all the features of the previous generation. The new model has good signature style features that make Granta one of the important steps towards the personal style of the Russian corporation. Now this is a kind of mini Vesta that motorists with a very modest budget can buy. Of course, we are not talking about total cheapness, but Granta remains traditionally one of the most affordable cars on the Russian market overall. So the popularity of the machine is guaranteed, and this is proven by the first sales figures, which are breaking all possible records.
The updated Granta has already managed to drive on the roads of Russia. The euphoria of the new product has passed, when in every review experts forgave the car for all its faults, real reviews from car owners began to appear. Today we will look at how many pros and cons this car has, taking into account all its features. Let's say right away that the car has become completely different, it has acquired new features and received a lot of updates that a budget buyer could not hope for. In the review, we will tell you a little about the car itself, its prices, trim levels, characteristics, and then consider the main pros and cons and present several competitors. Of course, for Granta, the area of competition is of rather relative importance, since this is a Russian car with the lowest price tag, and in any case it will be bought as actively as possible.
Content
- Maxim, owner of LADA Granta 2022
- Alexey, owner of LADA Granta 2012
- Alexander, owner of LADA Granta 2022
- Alexander, owner of LADA Granta 2022
- Sergey, owner of LADA Granta 2022
- Vla199, owner of LADA Granta 2014
“Lada Granta” is the second most popular Russian car after the “Priora”. Since the beginning of 2022, it has been hit almost 165 thousand times through the avtocod.ru service.
What do owners like about the car, and what annoys them about it? What problems can you encounter during operation? We went through the forums and collected reviews about the Lada Grant. This is what grant makers write.
Review of VAZ Granta 1.6 (2016)
After selling Kalina, I walked for 1.5 years and decided that I still needed a new car. Initially I thought about buying a new Granta in the Comfort package. This turns out to be a minimum wage with air conditioning, plus an audio system, heated seats and mirrors, i.e. only the essentials. This one costs 470,000 rubles. Plus they add extras, CASCO, it will be 500+. Expensive, but there is no choice, all alternatives are much more expensive.
Of the alternatives, I wanted Vesta, but the price of 590 for the minimum wage with Conder seemed unaffordable. Ravona seemed like real options. I saw an advertisement for Ravon R4 (Cobalt) 2022 in the second configuration, 489,000 rubles. It was during the New Year holidays. I arrived at the dealership, the R4 is not only 2022, but in general there is no one in the showroom. The price tag for 2022 is 523,000. I left my phone number so they would call when the cars arrived.
I looked at the R3 (Nexia/Aveo), it’s an interesting car, but very small, smaller than the Kalina, I feel cramped in it. Dropped it.
They call from the Ravon car dealership in the middle of the week, they say the R4 has arrived. I waited until the weekend, I came to the showroom, the R4 was no longer there, they were all sold (((I was able to see the R4 live only in April. The price tag for it by this time was already close to 600,000. The car is already worth like Vesta, but at the same time it’s completely worthless: in terms of build quality, appearance, ergonomics + terribly uncomfortable seats. The saga with Ravon is over. There was also a Gentra, the price was slightly cheaper than Vesta, but the car did not suit the low ground clearance. Besides, there was no choice, the manager said that they would sell off the rest, There will be no more deliveries. And to be honest, anything above 500k was not within my budget.
A friend came to see me and said I want to take a Priora for 250k, let’s go to car dealerships and have a look... We drove through several car dealerships, for 250k there is nothing interesting at all! Moreover, it is useless to search on Avito; you come to a car dealership, and this car is not there or it does not correspond to the description. Viewing the cars on the sites showed that either the price tag is 200k and it’s rubbish, or closer to 350k. In the end, we didn't buy the car. But I noticed that for 350k there is a decent selection of Kalina/Grant/Datsuns in perfect condition! And the thought arose, shouldn’t I buy a 2-3 year old? The savings in money are serious, and if the car is honest, it will be problem-free. As a result, I looked at a pair of Grant 2016 and Datsun Mi-Do 2015 for 350-360k, drove them and chose the Grant 2016 with a mileage of 55,000 km, with a completed service book and a valid warranty for another year. The condition of the car is really like new. Price 360k.
The equipment is what Comfort wanted, but in 2016 it was slightly different, there are no heated mirrors, but there are fog lights.
Ambush with OSAG O.
Before buying the car, I changed my license, when I started doing the MTPL, the amount came up to 9k, I almost got upset. Fortunately, now when replacing rights, the old ones are handed over. I enter my old ID - the amount is 5k. Clearly, I lost my discount. You'll have to go to the insurance company to get it repaired. I went through the insurance companies, they are complete crap! Wild lines, everyone barking at each other. I found some insurance agents; they have a KBM restoration service. We took pictures of the old and new licenses, 1000 rubles, a day of waiting. And eOSAGO for the new rights already costs 5k.
Not everything is simple when it comes to registering for eOSAGO. You fill out a bunch of fields, then the site gives you an error and it’s all over again... Another site stubbornly sets the amount at 9k. The third said that my passport was not found in the database, attach scans of my passport, but there are no fields where to attach them... And only on the 4th attempt on the Alfa-Insurance website I received the coveted MTPL for 5k.
OSAGO is a complete scam and artificially created hemorrhoids. Fucking cancel it!
Registration of the car.
Registration in the traffic police MREO through State Services. Everything is booked up for the next 8 days, I signed up for the 9th day (10 days to register, otherwise they will slap a fine). Before the appointed hour, you need to check the numbers, and this is in the order of the general queue. According to advice from a local website, the ass is going on there in the morning, and by lunchtime everything resolves. So I made an appointment for 3 p.m., arrived at 2 p.m., and managed to do everything without rushing.
The ambush turned out to be that if you bought a trade-in car, you will be forced to change the license plates. When the owner trades in a car and then goes and deregisters it without handing over the license plates, the license plates are put on the wanted list. Therefore, at State Services you must immediately pay for the replacement of numbers (2000 rubles) with a 30% discount. Otherwise, you will be sent to Sberbank to pay 2200 rubles, which is what happened to me.
Comparison of Grants with Kalina 1 will be in a separate review.
Maxim, owner of LADA Granta 2019
– I purchased the car in June 2019 from an official dealer. The car is quite satisfactory. There were no problems during operation: the automatic transmission works perfectly, the engine is confident and stable, the handling is good, the suspension is moderately harsh. The interior is comfortable and roomy, but the sound insulation is poor. The visibility when parking in reverse is not very good - I had to install a rear view camera.
At the first maintenance with a mileage of 14,500 km, no defects were identified. At 36 thousand km we changed the engine oil, oil and cabin filters. There are no complaints about the chassis, internal combustion engine and automatic transmission, everything works as usual.
On the inside of the trunk door, where the door lock is welded and the rubber seals are attached, hints of rust appeared; it had to be treated with anti-rust.
Also read: Which is better: “Granta” or “Kalina 2”
The main advantages of the new product from Lada
The Granta model is very important for the concern. The company strives to remain a leader in a challenging market. Therefore, the corporation presented many interesting advantages for its new car. The transport can please you with its technical characteristics: the engines are very durable, the gearboxes are high-quality, the suspension is energy-intensive and impenetrable. By the way, the classic Jatco unit is used as an automatic machine.
Among the advantages it is worth noting the following features:
- the new Granta is much quieter than the old one, now it will add more comfort, since in the car you will not constantly hear noise from under the wheels or the roar of the engine, sound insulation is at a good level;
- the design has become more modern, many lines have received interesting sporty outlines, the design of the main body elements has turned out beautiful, stylish and memorable;
- the interior looks good, the ergonomics are clearly better than in the old version of the car, the approach to creating interior space is much more interesting than in the concern’s older models;
- modernity has become one of the important advantages of the car, since in this price class we usually get outdated and low-quality cars with a bunch of problems already when leaving the showroom;
- practicality - the car has retained good ground clearance, practical engines and gearboxes, good suspension, reliable peripheral equipment that does not break down very often.
LED interior lighting contributes to the creation of modernity and efficiency. You should also pay attention to the dashboard. Now the screen here does not shine with terrible green numbers, but has a modern layout in black and white. The instruments are easy to read, every button and every implemented function works perfectly. It’s also good that at the purchase stage you can purchase many options that will make the car better and more comfortable.
Alexander, owner of LADA Granta 2018
– A really good car for every day. The main thing that pleases me about my car is the absence of problems. Reading reviews about problems with the Lada Granta, I was glad that this did not happen to me.
I used the car every day. The engine was broken in correctly - as a result, it does not consume oil in the interval from maintenance to maintenance. The interior is nicer compared to the old Granta or Priora. The driver's seat is very comfortable, the trunk is large.
Among the disadvantages of the Lada Granta, I can note that the interior creaks, the quality varies from batch to batch. Handling is average, no subframe. Safety is low, although there are airbags, but the metal is thin.
Also read: Battle of the weakest: Datsun on-DO vs LADA Granta
Installed motors
The base for the first generation Lada Granta was a 1.6 liter engine with 8 valves, developing 82 horsepower. Paired with this power unit was a 5-speed manual transmission. For an additional fee, you could get an improved eight-valve engine with a volume of 1.6 liters, which developed 87 horsepower and was equipped with a manual or 4-speed automatic transmission. The top versions of the Lada Granta now have a modern sixteen-valve engine, developing 98 and 106 horsepower, depending on its modification. However, this engine was available exclusively with a manual transmission.
Alexander, owner of LADA Granta 2019
– I purchased the car at the LADA showroom. I've already driven 23 thousand km. I went to the sea, outside the city, and on excursions to other cities. In principle, I'm happy with the car. For little money, a good option for a new car.
But the Lada Granta actually has a lot of disadvantages - the noise of the Zhiguli gearbox in first and second gear, cheap plastic, poor sound insulation, the robotic firmware for “retirement” driving.
Against this background, there are many positive things: winter kit, air conditioning and cruise control. Maintenance from an official dealer is one and a half to two times cheaper than foreign analogues of the same class. In general, mixed feelings about ownership, but more pleasant ones.
Also read: My first car: comparison of Granta, Logan and Nexia
Exterior
The new product received a modern design, it stood out from its predecessors, which was appreciated by the buyers of this car. Unlike previous models, the shape of the headlights and front grille was completely changed, so at first glance it was difficult to determine that this was a Lada and not a “Korean” or a “Japanese” one. Improved aerodynamics had a positive effect on both cabin noise levels and fuel consumption was slightly reduced.
Sergey, owner of LADA Granta 2019
– The car is very reliable and easy to maintain, made for Russian roads and for a long time. I also previously had a LADA Granta, but in a simpler configuration. For 200 thousand km it did not require any repairs, I just changed the consumables.
In my opinion, this is the most affordable car on the market. The car may be inferior to competitors in comfort and controllability, but its reliability, low cost and ease of maintenance are at the highest level.
Also read: New LADA Granta and... 5 alternatives to the Russian bestseller
Disadvantages not eliminated by restyling Grants FL
As for the front end, despite the appearance of a rubber hood seal and the “moving” of the injectors from the hood to the windshield frill, as well as the elevation of the hood cover in front of the glass, it is by no means impossible for dirt to get into the engine compartment and onto the middle and upper parts of the windshield.
Moving the rear license plate from the buffer to the trunk lid of the sedan did not prevent the sign from getting stuck by both snow and dirt. For which now, with the introduction of video recording of violations on highways, violations are assigned not virtual, but real, which costs quite hefty fines on the roads by the traffic police inspector.
With an increase in the gear ratio of the main gear pairs, both the manual transmission and the Granta FL automatic transmission, namely from 3.71 to 3.94, this resulted in negative consequences in the form of:
- increased fuel consumption;
- transition to a more expensive original gear lubricant;
- increasing vibration load during acceleration.
As for the acceleration characteristics of the restyled model (improved by 0.6 seconds to hundreds), even the presence of a 106-horsepower petrol engine in the maximum Granta FL assembly, again, did not at all solve the problem of insufficient acceleration dynamics during the overtaking procedure on high-speed highways.
At the same time, even the rejection of 13-inch wheels in favor of 15-size shoes, as well as a reduction by a third in the gear shift time of the AMT due to the limited throttle response of the engine, did not actually increase the acceleration dynamics.
The refusal to use hydraulic telescopic struts in systems of both front and rear suspension of the chassis to the body in favor of gas shock absorbers did not adequately improve the ride comfort of Grants FL off-road.
In general, no matter how the systematization of the shortcomings of the FL Grant is carried out, in the end, they all come down to assembly problems traditional for Russians.
Body
Like any other car, a used Grant should be assessed first and foremost by the condition of the body. At the time of writing, Grants were offered only in sedan and liftback bodies (from now on, hatchbacks and station wagons will be added to them, in the past - Kalina). In my opinion, the liftback is more practical, looks more modern, and with it you will almost certainly not run into a former cab driver from a taxi company.
If you want your car to serve you faithfully for a long time, try to choose a copy with an undamaged body. The check includes inspection of the gaps between body elements, the presence of non-factory welds, and the absence of different colors in the paint. Earlier, my colleague Stanislav Panin told in detail how to avoid running into a repainted body. The task is made easier by the fact that few people strive to restore inexpensive domestically produced cars to zero, so that traces of repair are absolutely not visible. So there are only two options. Either the car is truly “unbeaten and unpainted”, or the traces of body repairs will be relatively clearly visible.
Interior and electrical
People can and love to tune these elements of a car. Some people change most of the lamps to LED or xenon ones, some cover and make the steering wheel heated. There are cooler music lovers, and some people put eco-leather covers on all their seats.
Here it is necessary to ensure that all this tuning does not hide the car’s defects - the covers do not mask worn out and burnt-out seats, thumping music does not hide alarm signals from the engine and chassis. And it is also important that you do not get into trouble with the traffic police for tinting or, say, xenon on a newly purchased car.
Poor operation of the heating installation is also possible. Check it especially carefully if you buy a car in winter. You may not even be able to get home in an unfamiliar car if the stove does not provide visibility.
Chassis
Many elements of the car's chassis can be inspected even without the help of a service center or a lift. All pendants are so simple that small flaws should not become an obstacle to purchase: they can be repaired quickly and inexpensively. You just need to make sure that, for example, a strongly and unevenly balding tire was not the result of a serious accident with deformation of the mounting points of the suspension parts.
I would advise choosing a car modification with ABS. Of course, you can do without it in modern heavy traffic, but extending the compulsory motor vehicle insurance policy is painfully expensive, and you can easily drive into the rear of the car in front and not meet the limit of a regular “motor vehicle” license.
