zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Culture
/
Production Starts On Vladimir Putin-Endorsed Car, Russia's Store-Brand Rolls-Royce
Production Starts On Vladimir Putin-Endorsed Car, Russia's Store-Brand Rolls-Royce-July 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:12:19

Image for article titled Production Starts On Vladimir Putin-Endorsed Car, Russia's Store-Brand Rolls-Royce

Remember when you were eagerly watching Vladimir Putin’s 2018 inauguration, sitting on your couch in a pile of furs and chugging borscht from a rusty thermos? Of course you do — we all do. Remember when you saw the limo Putin climbed into that at first you thought was a Rolls-Royce Phantom?

Remember how you swore one day you’d have one, but the only way was to become President of Russia, but you decided you didn’t want to be poisoned in a café so you gave up the dream? Well, good news: production has started on a civilian version of the car, so all you need is money, not a deathwish.

The car is known as the Aurus Senat, and that as of March 31, Russia has begun production of the high-end car, with between 200 and 300 planned to be built. The base-trim version (with probably plastic unpainted bumpers and steelies) will start at $245,000.

That’s a bargain when you consider that the car the Aurus looks most like a Great Value version of, the Rolls-Royce Phantom, starts at $463,350. Save yourself 200 very large and get the one that’s frankly, probably good enough.

The Senat is, surprisingly, a hybrid, powered by a 590 horsepower 4.4-liter V8, co-developed by NAMI (the Central Scientific Research Automobile and Automotive Engines Institute from the Soviet era that developed everything from hovercraft to military vehicles to Chaika limos) and Porsche engineering, along with a 62 horsepower electric motor.

Image for article titled Production Starts On Vladimir Putin-Endorsed Car, Russia's Store-Brand Rolls-Royce

Also, those headlights look so familiar, but I can’t quite place them. They’re almost like Chrysler 300 units, but not quite.

The American market is probably unlikely, but China and the Middle East are very likely, so if you want one, you’ll have to buy it there and register it in, I guess, if you want to drive it here.

What’s confusing is that it seems like has been available for sale before, but I think — and, I’ll be honest, it’s not entirely clear from the Reuters story or anywhere else — that the difference here is that the long-wheelbase, full-limo version (21.7 feet long!) will now be sold? That, or the announcement that happened in 2018 never actually came to fruition, which is possible, too.

I guess I’ll have to ask my local Aurus dealer what the deal is.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Culture
Toyota Is Moving A Prewar 700-Ton Press Machine Halfway Around The World
Toyota Is Moving A Prewar 700-Ton Press Machine Halfway Around The World
closed its São Bernardo Plant in November 2023, marking the end of its first overseas production facility. The closure caps off a period of continuous car production in São Paolo, , lasting over 60 years. The plant was home to a Komatsu 700-ton press that predates itself. And now...
Jul 7, 2025
Watch ABS Fail When MotorWeek Tests A 1997 Chevy S-10
Watch ABS Fail When MotorWeek Tests A 1997 Chevy S-10
MotorWeek’s is some of the on the internet. The long-running automotive news magazine has a treasure trove of tests after being on the air for over 40 years. Where else can you find detailed instrumented testing of long-forgotten cars like the or a ? MotorWeek’s recent Retro Review upload is...
Jul 7, 2025
2024 Kia EV9: What Do You Want To Know?
2024 Kia EV9: What Do You Want To Know?
At long last, we are about to get behind the wheel of for the first time. Sure, , and sure, , and sure , but hey — what can you do? Anyway, before we get behind the wheel of this three-row electric beast, we want to know what you...
Jul 7, 2025
I Entered My Lifted Miata In A Real Off-Road Race, Here's What Happened
I Entered My Lifted Miata In A Real Off-Road Race, Here's What Happened
I have two automotive loves: The first is the Miata, the second is off-road racing. For a while I raced air-cooled Volkswagens in the deserts of California and Nevada and I was lucky enough to co-drive in a class 11 stock bug in the Baja 1000 a few years...
Jul 7, 2025
Subaru Had It Right All Along
Subaru Had It Right All Along
When first came to the United States, it sold small funky cars that were decidedly un-American. As the company grew its own identity and became more established in the U.S., it became the first automaker to offer an all-wheel-drive passenger car in 1975. Subaru was also an early-adopter of...
Jul 7, 2025
I Can't Get Enough Of This YouTuber Who Builds Tiny, Fully Functional Scale-Model Cars
I Can't Get Enough Of This YouTuber Who Builds Tiny, Fully Functional Scale-Model Cars
I love tiny, of . I have a that is roughly half the size of a normal cat, and she’s perfect. I own a 2013 , which is like the miniature version of a normal-sized vehicle (at least here in Texas) — but beyond that, I also own a Hot...
Jul 7, 2025
Copyright 2023-2025 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved