The car is a victory in tuning. Tuning GAZ M20 Pobeda

What can you tell us about this GAZ model? The first post-war Soviet car with a frameless design and a high-torque engine. The cabin volume corresponds to the old C class, and in modern terms it is a business class.

Nowadays, such cars are used by lovers of antiques, and young people, of course, need a more modern foreign car. In the old days, I also had a GAZ M-20 Pobeda.

1. Problem with attaching the upper half-moon arms

I got it, modified several times, with an engine from a GAZ-21 and an instrument panel from a GAZ-24. The car had large front seats and 6.70-15 tires. The outside of the car was very well painted and the body even shone. When I pressed the gas pedal all the way, it accelerated to 130 km/h.

Many were surprised at how strong cars were made after the war, and some predicted that the euphoria would soon end and the car would take a permanent and eternal place in the garage. However, despite some disdain for my car, I drove it calmly. Of course, not without repairs: replacing leaves in the rear spring, replacing pads, and other minor faults.

Soon, unexpectedly, I came across a 4-speed gearbox from Latvia and without hesitation, I replaced it, receiving additional silence when driving around the city. And it’s much easier to drive a car with a fully synchronized gearbox than with a native 3-speed gearbox.

The first bell rang when the tires on the front began to eat. Having removed the wheel, I was surprised to find that one of the bolts on the upper half-moon arms had been torn off.

Experienced taxi drivers helped me, they advised me to weld this unfortunate crescent to the beam and drive without driving. My reasonable question is, how dangerous is this? Taxi drivers said that previously ten percent of cars were driven with such a malfunction. In a word, I welded the crescent and continued skating.

This story made me worry and wonder what to do next? Like any motorist, I was given a lot of advice, and a variety of them. But since I was quite successful, my thoughts turned somewhat in the other direction.

2. Preparation for conversion of GAZ M-20 “Pobeda”

First of all, I tried to buy a catalog of the GAZ-24 Volga car, but it was nowhere to be found, so I took the catalog for the GAZ-3102, after which I began to carefully study it. To my displeasure, almost everything on the GAZ-3102 was done differently than mine.

However, I did not give up. Knowing that my car would sooner or later be laid up, I had to prepare for this moment in advance.

In anticipation of the inevitable, I began to methodically collect spare parts from the catalog: where is the suspension arm, where is the axle housing, where is the spring, and where is the hydraulic brake booster.

As a result, I managed to assemble almost all the parts, except for the engine and gearbox, as well as small things, such as the subframe and rear spring brackets along with the shock absorber mounts. I also came across a decent body, from which I cut out all the missing elements. The waiting period began, but the problem with the suspension did not take long to appear. By that time, the car had covered 16 thousand km.

Before dismantling my GAZ M-20 Pobeda, I made an agreement with a friend and together we drove his Volga onto two planks of fifty in the garage. We raised it so that two large heads could be placed under the upper bumpers on the upper arms, and then lowered the Volga until the wheels touched the board so that the sills became parallel to the boards.

In this position, I began to measure the subframe and shock absorber brackets of the springs of the car to the level of the board. I did this so as not to weld the subframe crookedly and not to knock off the longitudinal inclination of the king pin on the suspension.

3. Installation of spare parts from GAZ-24 on the Pobeda body

I dismantled my car pretty quickly. Where it could not be unscrewed, I cut it off with electric welding and in the end, gutted the entire car. According to the thresholds, the car stood parallel to the same boards on which my friend and I parked his Volga.

The most stressful moment came when I completely cut out the subframe, because... from the outside it all looked as if the car was parked on an improvised foundation for eternal parking and would never budge. As they say: “The eyes fear, but the hands do.”

The next step was to slowly adjust the subframe and weld it to the original subframe using 3mm iron plates. Then, I made racks from the body onto a subframe, vaguely similar to the Volgov ones.

I fitted the assembled GAZ-24 steering column, along with the steering wheel. Then, I made boxes and welded them into the front spring mounts, and also made rear spring mounts and welded them into place. Next, I figured out the cross member for the shock absorbers.

The rear axle of the GAZ-24, along with springs, shock absorbers and 7.15 by 14 wheels, stood up like original.

The brake and clutch pedals were also supplied from the 24th Volga. It was time to install the GAZ-21 engine, but then I ran into a little trouble: the engine sump lay on the transverse steering linkage.

I removed the pan and put the engine in place without it. However, I failed again, because... the old-style oil pump with a float still rested against the rod. I had to look for the oil pump from the UMZ-451 engine, because its oil intake is screwed directly to the pump body and therefore there is a gap of about 40 mm to the tie rod.

I cut a step in the pan, welded it and put it in place along with the pump. I bolted the engine onto the original mounts to the beam, after which I installed the gearbox and clutch slave cylinder.

The rear part of the gearbox was attached to the Volgov pillow and bracket. The bracket, in turn, was fixed to the body through a bolted connection. The cardan shaft was made from Volgovsky, cutting out an extra 100 mm.

On Pobeda, the handbrake drive was on the left side of the driver - he threw it away, as well as the front seats. In place of the tunnel, on top, I screwed the handbrake handle from Moskvich and, through the rod and lever, connected it to the handbrake cables coming from the rear axle, not forgetting to first make fastenings for the cables on the body. In place of the front seats, I installed 2 seats from Moskvich on homemade brackets.

The original gas tank had many welds, so I threw it away and welded the opening in the trunk tightly. I took a gas tank from a GAZ-51 and cut off 100 mm from it so that it would fit between the springs.

I made ribbon brackets for it and moved the neck to the old place. For the fuel intake and sensor, I cut a hole in the bottom of the body and closed it with a hatch.

On the front of the car, it was necessary to almost re-make the engine mudguards so that they could install a 75th battery and a hydraulic brake booster. The radiator (fitted), air filter, exhaust pipes (cut out an extra 100 mm from the pipe in front of the muffler) and muffler, I also installed from the 24th Volga.

Thus, except for the Pobeda body, there was nothing original left in the car and the problem with spare parts was solved. Only two spare parts did not fit from Volga without alteration - the muffler pipe and the driveshaft. I'm not talking about the engine, because... he was not originally native.

4. Impressions from the remodel

After the modification, my friends were the first to drive the car and they were surprised to note that the old Pobeda drove like a Volga. Frankly, even they, who had been traveling on the Volga for many years, did not expect such an effect.

2 days later, my wife and 2 children and I went on vacation 2,000 km away. It should be noted that the car easily went 120 km/h and the 80-liter tank of 76-octane gasoline was enough at a speed of 90 km/h for 740 km. On the way back, the children were left with the second mother and one day they easily walked 1,200 km, i.e. It became possible to travel more or less by car, despite its advanced age.

Returning home, my wife and I, after a day's rest, set off to the other side of Russia, another couple of thousand km. I remember the smile and gesture of the KamAZ driver descending from the Ural ridge. His whole appearance seemed to say, where are you going?

On the road, many tried to overtake the old lady Pobeda. At first, I was uneasy about the indiscriminate overtaking, but then I calmed down, because... began to distinguish between those who are really in a hurry and those who overtake for courage. The first, sometimes you won’t see anymore, but the second, you could easily overtake after 10-20 kilometers.

In a word, the car turned out to be fun and if you put your mind to it, you could squeeze out 140 km/h on it, but the constant speed between cities was around 80-120 km/h. In addition, at that time, traffic cops rarely had headlights.

Later, I read the book “Three Comrades” by Erich Maria Remarque, after which I laughed a lot, because riding my rarity was somewhat reminiscent of a Sunday walk of heroes.

Once, on a trip through the Urals, I caught up with a brand new GAZ-24-10, and so we drove on with it. I was traveling with my family and there was not enough power to overtake her. After a while I looked, and in the back seat of the Volga there were 2 women sitting and smiling, and then they started laughing.

I thought that he probably had some kind of problem and needed my help, so I stopped. The Volga driver ran up to me and immediately asked to show me the engine, which somewhat surprised me.

It turns out that he recently bought a new car and was driving with his wife and her friend, and they, seeing that the old Pobeda was not far behind them, began to make fun of him, in the spirit that you took such a car that you can’t tear yourself away from such a rarity. I had to show the engine so that he would calm down and move on.

About 3 years ago, one of my friends bought a Toyota Camry. I accordingly wholeheartedly praised the car. I like spacious cars, not cramped Zhigulis.

He, delighted, began to tell me that when he went on vacation to the south, he drove 1,200 km a day on it. To which I, without thinking, said that I also drove 1,200 km a day on Pobeda. So he and I did not understand each other, but I came to my senses and did not aggravate the situation.

I drove a total of 150,000 km on my converted GAZ M-20 Pobeda before it was sold. The farthest points to which I had to travel from the Urals were Zhdanov and the Altai Territory.

The car also had one very good plus: it could be driven to the department of internal affairs in any city and abandoned for 2-3 days without worrying about anything, because... Few people were interested in such a machine and nothing was lost from it.

5. Conclusions

For some time I subscribed to the magazine "Automotive Industry of the USA" and it often mentioned that automakers in America, having a large assortment of cars produced, in order to reduce the number of different spare parts, began to make cars on one platform (underbody, axles, gearbox, engine, suspension), mounting bodies of different car brands on it.

If we transfer this fact to my experience, then I just needed to cut out the bottom from the body of the 24th Volga, cut it across the middle in a place convenient for me and throw away the extra 100 mm (the difference in the bases of the Volga and Pobeda).

Then, I had to cut out the bottom of my Pobeda and carefully lower its body onto the cut out bottom of the Volga. Of course, everything would have to be carefully measured, but it is not that difficult.

This approach would allow me to reduce work by exactly a month, or maybe more. After all, it is much easier to weld the body around the perimeter and strengthen the front part of the engine shield than to customize each unit individually.

I made the second mistake when remaking it, because... I had no experience in operating an outboard bearing. Having driven Volga cars with and without suspension, now I clearly understand that the noise level in the cabin of a car with an suspended bearing in the driveline is much less.

Nowadays, there are quite a few people who make replicas of old cars, and perhaps my experience will be useful to someone.

Began immediately after the end of the Great Patriotic War, in 1946. In 12 years, a little less than a quarter of a million legendary cars rolled off the assembly line, and this was a whole era in the Soviet automotive industry.

Pobeda GAZ 20 car tuning option

The Pobeda was equipped with a modified GAZ 11 engine, only the number of cylinders on the power unit was reduced from 6 to 4. The cylinder diameter of the engine was also increased from 82 to 88 mm. The engine developed a power of 50 hp. With. and had a lower valve arrangement.

The power transmission was a 3-speed manual transmission, the gearbox control was located on the steering column. The rear axle was specially designed for, the front suspension of the pivot type was borrowed from the German Opel Capitan.

The Pobeda's electrical equipment already had a 12-volt power supply, although many cars of that time used a capricious 6-volt wiring diagram.

Design and tuning in retro style of the GAZ - 20 car

For current GAZ 20 car owners, the 12-volt system is a big plus; when restoring equipment, it is easier to select electrical components from other brands of cars. The body of the popular passenger car is all-metal, with reinforcement and hinged panels.

The thickness of the steel is from 1 mm, and in places of reinforcement and on the side members it reaches 2 mm.

Thanks to its durable body, some examples of the Pobeda have survived to this day.

Restoration and tuning

Not many “Victories” have survived to this day, but sometimes such cars are still found on the roads. It is rare that the power units of the GAZ 20 remain original - after all, the engine has a power of 50 hp. With. and a 3-speed gearbox do not meet modern requirements for cars. Accordingly, in this case the rear axle has to be changed.

Body tuning

Despite the fact that the body of the GAZ 20 is quite strong, it still needs repairs.

Restored Volga GAZ 20 body

During restoration, the car is completely disassembled, one might say, down to the last screw. Those places that have rusted on the body are welded, and if necessary, the sills and side members are changed. Then comes the cleaning and priming of the body frame. Of course, the technologies used now are completely different, not the same as they were half a century ago. That's why cars are painted in completely different colors these days. Modern equipment and materials allow:

Paint “Victory” metallic;
Apply a matte finish;
Cover the car with a special film;
Make a stylish airbrush;
Use chameleon color.

Before assembling the car, sound insulation is installed on the body. Splen and Vibroplast are used as soundproofing materials. With high-quality noise insulation, traveling in a car becomes much more comfortable.

Tuning the interior of the Volga Pobeda

Often a convertible is made from a production GAZ 20 car. During a major overhaul, the roof and pillars are cut off from the body, the A-pillars are retained, but a small fragment of the roof remains at the front. This is done so that the windshield can be installed. All doors also have their frames cut off, but the front doors retain the front frames. Instead of a steel roof, a removable tarpaulin roof is made to protect passengers from the rain.

There are craftsmen who managed to make a pickup truck out of Pobeda:

The roof was cut off from the back to the middle of the cabin;
The front part of the cabin was designed in the form of a cabin;
Only the front doors were left, the rear part of the body on the sides was welded and made one piece.

The result is a car with a spacious luggage compartment.
But I don’t want to transport cargo on it - it’s a pity to spoil the beauty, because the car looks very impressive.

External tuning

The Pobeda GAZ 20 is practically not used as a “workhorse”; more often they try to make the car look beautiful. Indeed, even a non-tuned version of a retro car attracts the attention of others. The following are subject to tuning:

The optics are also changed during restoration, but they try to keep the shape of the headlights and lanterns in their original form. Of course, xenon or LED lights are installed; with the original light, the Pobeda headlights would be dim.

Interior tuning

What can be done to give a spectacular look to the interior of an old car? Of course, the first thing to do is change the seats. The upholstery of old sofas is more suitable for restoration, when the owners try to preserve the originality of all elements. But tuning allows you to do anything with the car - here everything depends on human imagination. The anatomical front sports seats, say, from Recaro, will look stylish in the cabin.

Interior version of the Volga GAZ 20

And if the car body is painted in light colors, then a white or beige leather interior will look quite impressive.

Engine and power train

The car clearly lacks the original “Pobedovsky” engine - no one wants to trail behind and drive at a snail’s pace, the speeds now are not what they were before. It is possible with minimal modifications to a car or UAZ, but these internal combustion engines are already obsolete.

The GAZ M20 car, which also has a second name “Pobeda”, was once quite popular. This car began to be produced in honor of the victory over the fascist invaders from 1946 to 1958. This model became truly innovative, as it was the first to have a monocoque body. This car has a fairly large and spacious interior, as well as an unusual and attractive exterior. Over the years, this model is seen less and less on the roads; most of them are in poor technical condition. This car is ideal for tuning, which we will discuss in detail below.

What problems may arise during tuning?

When tuning the GAZ M20 Pobeda, you may encounter quite a lot of problems:

The model has been out of production for several decades, the installed power units are already outdated, and the parts are not produced. Therefore, serious problems may arise when searching for parts.
The technical condition of almost all cars that have survived to this day is very poor. That is why it takes quite a long time to restore GAZ.
Dismantling is complicated due to the large amount of corrosion. Even unscrewing one bolt can take quite a long time. Of course, it will be possible to cut off the fasteners, but this is not always feasible.

The car in question can be purchased at a relatively low cost. Therefore, when carrying out tuning, you can try to implement a variety of ideas.

Project development stage

High-quality tuning can be carried out only with preliminary preparation of the project. It provides:

Creation of sketches that will display the design of the exterior and interior.
Studying the design of a car to identify its weak points and eliminate them.

As for the design features of the car, they can be determined from various technical documentation and drawings. Problems may arise when creating sketches, since for this you need to be able to use 3D modeling programs or be good at drawing. Today on the Internet you can find various services that allow you to create a car tuning design in just a few clicks.

Restoring a classic car

When tuning VAZs, many strive to make them into modern racing cars. However, in the case of the GAZ M20, it makes sense to simply restore its interior body with some modification of the technical stuffing. The following are subject to modernization:

1.Motor installed. If you plan to use the car as an exhibition item at various auto shows, then you can recreate the original engine. However, its technical characteristics are very outdated, and driving a rather large car will not be convenient. Therefore, for practical use, more advanced motors and related systems are being installed. The work of completely replacing the engine requires serious reworking of the engine compartment, electrical, exhaust, cooling, and fuel systems. This method of car modification is very popular in the United States, where workshops install modern high-power engines in classic cars.

2.The original suspension is simply not suitable for use in our time: it cannot cope with potholes and the heavy weight of the car. If you plan to use GAZ for travel, then you need to install a modern suspension. In this case, the choice is simply huge, since the entire structure will have to be redone.

3. The transmission must be replaced together with the installed motor, since these two components work together. Therefore, when choosing a motor, it is taken into account that a new gearbox will have to be selected and installed for it.

Almost all technical equipment will have to be replaced. As previously noted, it is possible to restore the original nodes. Due to the lack of required spare parts on sale, you will have to make them yourself. But with the installation of modern units there are not much fewer problems.

Changing the exterior of a classic car

Many fans of tuning old cars with their own hands choose Pobeda due to its rather unusual body shape. Today, automakers do not produce cars with such a body, which makes GAZ unique and inimitable on the roads. Classics can be restored or changed according to modern trends. Another common tuning method is the use of one car as a basis for creating a popular model. An example is the use of “Victory” when creating a Bentley.

When considering the work on changing the body, we note the following points:

When working with cars whose production was discontinued several decades ago, you need to be prepared for such surprises as rust, bad geometry, and many other problems. At the same time, there are no replacement spare parts on sale; everything will have to be created with your own hands.
If you plan to install large diameter wheels, which is very fashionable today, then you will have to trim the wheel arches and make room for wide tires.
The body of the car in question is quite durable, and the installed engine and transmission did not allow it to gain high speed. Therefore, versions whose body has skewed geometry due to a collision are practically never found. But everything will have to be checked at this point.

Important! With full tuning, you will have to disassemble the car almost to the very foundation. Only then will it be possible to identify all serious problems with the body.

Experts' opinion

Dmitriy. When looking for a car to hone your car tuning skills, I recommend paying attention to the GAZ 21. Every year there are fewer and fewer of these cars, and it’s quite difficult to find one for modernization. The history of the formation of the domestic automobile industry is connected with it; in addition, the car was dedicated to the most significant event in the last century. Large body, simplicity of design - you can change the GAZ 21 almost beyond recognition.

Irina. This car was inherited. It stood in the yard for a long time, they didn’t even know what to do with it - it was a shame to sell it for scrap, it was impossible to drive it. My husband suggested doing some tuning and said let him do as he wants. Then I decided to get involved in work and started looking for various interesting jobs on the Internet. As a result, a second very unusual car appeared in the garage.

Artem. I didn’t have money for a foreign car when I first got my license, and I didn’t want to spend much. I got the GAZ 21 for practically nothing. I decided to make something worthwhile out of it; due to the lack of free time, it took about 2 years to complete the improvements. Now I don’t want to change it. Many components were taken from VAZ and GAZ, they were also given for nothing, although they had to be restored with their own hands. The work is painstaking, it didn’t work out right away, but they simply can’t enjoy the result.

Tuning GAZ M20 Pobeda

Tuning "Victory" is a modification of the famous Soviet car GAZ-M-20. There are few copies of this model left in the CIS. That is why many tuning studios are happy to buy Pobeda to modernize this legendary car of the USSR era.

Tuning of the body and interior

Tuning "Victory" begins with altering the body. Typically, cars arrive at the studio in terrible condition, covered with corrosion. This is where miracles begin. So, let's look at the stages of body restoration and tuning:

First, all elements that are damaged by corrosion are removed, and the car is disassembled down to the base of the body.
The next stage is the development of the design of such a car as the GAZ Pobeda. A tuning version of the body is designed and a computer model is compiled.
Now the craftsmen can get to work. The roof is cut off and lowered. The hood becomes flatter. The body of the Pobeda is being transformed.
The next stage is anti-corrosion treatment and priming.
Putty is used in places where it was not possible to completely remove deformations or where transitions between parts need to be smoothed out.
Now the body and body parts are painted.
The body assembly is carried out carefully so as not to damage the painted elements.
Airbrush application.
Final assembly of all components and assemblies.

The body is ready, and we can begin to finalize the remaining elements of the Pobeda.

Tuning the interior of the "Victory" should begin by removing all the parts and throwing them away irrevocably. In order to bring the car to life and make it comfortable, you will have to seriously work. So, let's look at all the stages of interior modification:

Manufacturing of plastic linings for pillars and installing them on cars.
Covering with noise and vibration insulation, as well as installing carpet.
Manufacturing of the instrument panel, installation and connection of all sensors.
Installation of seats.
Luggage compartment reupholstery.
Installation of curtains that separate the interior and trunk.
Manufacturing and installation of door cards with electric windows.

Of course, by tuning the Pobeda, you can install whatever the owner wants.

Refinement of the chassis

Tuning the "Victory" in the chassis and part of the suspension is a rather complicated process. Absolutely everything changes, from bushings to shock absorbers. To begin with, all parts are dismantled from the car, and then analogues from other brands are selected. So, part of the suspension is installed from the GAZ-31105.

So, what can be installed (and from which cars) when tuning the Pobeda?

Low ATI shock absorbers.
Front and rear suspension springs manufactured by AWD.
ATI stabilizers.
Levers from Brembo.
WDS braking system.
Stratos.
JP ball joints.
The steering is installed from GAZ-31105. Accordingly, the thrusts are also set to “Volgov” ones.

The second option for tuning the suspension is a complete installation from an American Plymouth. Of course, this is an expensive option, but it is fully justified.

Engine tuning

Usually, when tuning the Pobeda engine, the old power unit is thrown away. Instead, they install the M30 from BMW or the Volga ZMZ-402. Thus, “Victory” becomes more dynamic and powerful. With such a modification, it is worth considering that the gearbox will also have to be changed to a 5-speed one, which comes with an internal combustion engine. In this case, the driveshaft will have to be replaced with a shortened one.

DIY modernization

Tuning "Victory" (with your own hands) should start with the engine. The main power unit is the first to be upgraded. In 95% of cases it is simply replaced with an analogue from Volga or BMW. Next, motorists begin to modernize the body and interior, and the last thing is the suspension.

If you want to improve “Victory” with your own hands, keep in mind that you need to have some experience and knowledge to do everything right.

Pobeda gas - M - 20, although it was produced more than seventy years ago, is still popular among many car enthusiasts. Tuning experts find these cars and tune them. After which Gas - M - 20 “Victory” gets a second life. Tuning craftsmen try not to change the appearance of the body, adhering to the original features of the body. But with the use of modern technologies, tuning the Pobeda M-20 uses beautiful body colors, cool alloy wheels, bright xenon headlights and other new items. After which the Pobeda gas - M - 20 becomes similar to a modern super car, you can see this by looking at the photos and videos from the article.

Video Tuning Victory

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