Russia mocked after unveiling sanction-busting Lada Granta ‘Where’s the cassette player?’

Russia has been mocked after it unveiled its new Lada Granta Classic, which comes with “substantially refreshed parts” and was envisioned with “as much localisation as possible”. This in turn means that there are no airbags, no GPS, no 21st-century emission restrictions, and no seat belt pretensioners.

The car, which was unveiled by Russian state TV, is only made from parts produced by Russia and its allies.

It is also meant to be “sanction-proof”.

The vehicle has been described as a flashback to the USSR but received mixed reviews in Russia and around the world.

Russian car journalists reported that the car will only meet European pollution standards from 1996.

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The Lada is produced by state-owned car company Avtovaz.

The car manufacturer will resume production of the vehicle after a three-month pause due to sanctions.

The renewed production is reportedly an attempt to liven up the Russian car sector which has been hit hard by Western sanctions.

The Telegraph reported that many of the parts used in Russia’s car industry had been imported and the sanctions meant that costs have soared, quality has dropped and the sprinkling of luxuries cut.

The Lada will cost around £9,500 and will be the cheapest car on the Russian market.

Maksim Sokolov, the new state-appointed head of Avtovaz, said: “Today, after a long stop, Avtovaz resumed car production.

“We have to further produce the most popular and affordable cars of the Russian market, which do not depend on the imported components’ shortage.”