Glory Days: Russia's "Grande Garage" builds Escalade-based GAZ retro rod
Click on the image above to view the GAZ-51 retro truck in high-resolution
Remember the good old days? Well if they were spent under a communist dictatorship, perhaps they were not all that "good." And yet, there are some who still find ways to look back fondly. We're not sure that two vehicles is enough to qualify as a trend, but this is the second Western-built SUV rebodied to look like a "classic" Volga we've seen this year.
While the last one was a Porsche Cayenne with a 60's-era GAZ-21 body shell, this latest example is built on a chassis borrowed from a Cadillac Escalade EXT, redesigned to look like an old GAZ-51 pick-up truck. Authenticity is guaranteed by the big chrome rims on this retro-rod, currently under construction by Grande-Garage for an unnamed Russian plutocrat who apparently wants to remember what it was like before getting rich off no-contest government contracts. Get your papers in order and examine the images in the gallery below.
Gallery: GAZ-bodied Cadillac Escalade
[Source: Cardesign.ru via Carscoop]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
xpolarx 5:02PM (2/04/2009)
You know, I'd probably like this if it didn't suck so much.
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Craig 6:42PM (2/04/2009)
It sucks less than an Escalade though. So they have improved it.
Pokey 5:03PM (2/04/2009)
Lose the Escalade wheels, and it wouldn't look half bad.
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moyoi 5:23PM (2/04/2009)
It's not bad at all. Different wheels definitely.
turbo-quattro 5:16PM (2/04/2009)
at first glance I thought this thing would be bad as hell. but once i looked at all the pictures it just wasnt what I was expecting, something...maybe the proportions, are wrong.
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Chhyeeaa 11:00PM (2/04/2009)
it doesn't have sideview mirrors, and it makes it look odd. but rest assured, with them it would look bad!
Torrent 5:19PM (2/04/2009)
That is awesome.
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Jay 5:25PM (2/04/2009)
I love everything about it, except the wipers, they make it look kind of depressed...
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Parkerman 5:37PM (2/04/2009)
I was going to say the same.
Brian 10:28PM (2/04/2009)
Actually, if they put the wiper motors on the outside edges, it'd look like it were scowling. Which would be pretty sweet. :)
Slade 5:33PM (2/04/2009)
sorry, I'm saying it...had to.
In Soviet Russia, truck haul you.
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Mobius_1 8:51AM (2/05/2009)
Uhh that's the same thing everywhere in the world isn't it? It's not like you haul trucks in the USA?!?
tigra 5:57PM (2/04/2009)
GAZ-51 was not a pickup. It was a 2.5-ton lorry.
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Trent 6:09PM (2/04/2009)
i actually like the wheels... retromod-ish.
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Carlos 6:11PM (2/04/2009)
Very cool, I wouldn't mind one for a work truck.
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Franz 6:20PM (2/04/2009)
Different wheels & wipers and I'd definitely drive one.
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mr.ed 7:49PM (2/04/2009)
Sorry, I must have dozed off.
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ambientFLIER 7:31PM (2/04/2009)
The proportions are a little off. I think the bed is too long. Also, the wheels suck. They are flat and cheap looking. Finally, the wipers should be on the bottom. However, it's still a nice truck, and it's nice to see russian vehicles being made into something cool.
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AMcA 7:33PM (2/04/2009)
These guys are geniuses. This thing's stunning, almost as good as that gorgeous Volga coupe they did on a BMW 6-series chassis.
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.quartzcity.net/wp-content/uploads/blogpicts/volga_coupe.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.quartzcity.net/2004/04/30/russian-retro-supercar/&h=250&w=390&sz=21&tbnid=2GBrr7Z-Nj4yjM::&tbnh=79&tbnw=123&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dvolga%2Bcoupe%2Bimage&usg=__oI-hbJRmV2dL4T_mA20vyVOBCnQ=&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=2&ct=image&cd=1
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Farmboy 7:44PM (2/04/2009)
In Soviet Russia....sorry I had to say it.
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