Vesta already had a small-scale gas version: we tested a pre-production model in 2016, and such sedans were sold from 2017 to 2019, until the end of the state subsidy program EcoGas. Now AVTOVAZ has returned to the project: at the Comtrans 2024 exhibition, which is currently underway, an experimental Lada Vesta CNG is being shown, both in the SW Cross version and the maximum Techno configuration.
As before, the car was prepared by the Togliatti company ATS (Alternative Fuel Systems), with which AVTOVAZ has been cooperating for a long time. If previously methane Vestas had a 1.6 engine and a manual gearbox, then the new station wagon is equipped with a 1.8 engine (122 hp) and a variator. But the equipment for such a conversion is still Italian! Despite all the logistical difficulties. A representative of the ATS company explained that attempts to install more affordable gas equipment from China have not yet been successful.
Moreover, even the gas cylinders on the exhibition Vesta have the Made in Italy stamp, although Chinese-made tanks are promised for serial cars. Two steel cylinders with a total capacity of 90 liters are located under the trunk floor in place of the spare wheel. Such a Lada can travel up to 250 km on gas traction. But the standard 55-liter gas tank is also preserved. The engine power switch is located on the left side of the dashboard.
According to the plan, small-scale production of Vesta CNG will begin in the first quarter of 2025, and different versions will be converted to methane: apparently, the main demand will be for sedans in simple trim levels. The markup for the CNG version will be approximately 60 thousand rubles, and if a new state program for subsidizing gas-powered cars is adopted, the prices may even be equal. After Vesta, AVTOVAZ plans to convert Largus, produced in Izhevsk, to methane.