Samand Russia

The Iranian car manufacturer Iran Khodro voiced plans to promote his products in the Russian market two years the largest Iranian car manufacturer Iran Khodro may start the assembly of Samand Samand sedans in Russia. According to the “newspaper” company representative of Khalim Bilalov, a working group has already been created at the factory, which will study the possibility of opening production in our country. At what facilities is supposed to be released "Iranian" - new or existing, is not yet clear. It is only known that the Iranians conducted negotiations with the Kaliningrad "Autotor", but the parties did not reach agreements. The type of future enterprise is not defined. “It can be either a screwdriver from machine tools and a full -fledged production,” Bilalov noted.

Samand is built on the basis of the Peugeot 405 (model of the late 80s), but externally differs from the ancestor. The Iranians subjected the outstanding sedan to restyling - both external and internal, and revised the configuration. On the radiator cladding, the emblem of Iran Khodro flaunts in the form of the head of the horse, which should distance the car from the elderly "Frenchman".

In 2006, the exclusive distributor of Avtodrug will bring about 3,000 samand to Russia - to study demand. The car is already passing certification. In an interview with the newspaper, the factory representative emphasized that Samand fully complies with all European standards (certification for sale in Turkey has been passed), but the car has yet to be adapted to the characteristics of the Russian climate. Within two to three months, Samand will be experienced at the Dmitrovsky training ground, after which they will form a list of necessary improvements. Then (approximately in March 2006), sales will start, as a result of which a decision will be made to open production.

Samand, Iranians will bring the Peugeot Pars sedan to our market. True, there is no question of local assembly yet. "Our company has the right to collect abroad only those models that are considered the Iranian national product," Bilalov explained. Pars is nothing more than a licensed version of Peugeot 405.

The Iranian manufacturer is convinced that this time the conflict with the Russian branch will not follow this time. Samand is not a car of the French brand, and Pars has no analogues in Russia. “We have concluded a parity agreement with Peugeot regarding sales of the 206th model,” Bilalov said. “Now no one is taking any action. Consultations are underway, and as soon as the decision is made, we are announced. The conflict is equally disadvantageous to both parties.” Recall: in September of this year, Iran KHODRO dealers began to sell in Russia the Iranian analogue of Peugeot 206 at reduced prices, which provoked a lawsuit by Peugeot.

In Russia, Samand will face primarily with foreign cars of the Russian assembly - Ford Focus (from 11,700 dollars) and Kia Spectra (from $ 11,500). At the same time, the price of the basic Samand will be approximately $ 13,000. This amount will be proposed to be laid out for air conditioning, steering wheel, electric windows and CD players. LX (a thousand more expensive) will also include ABS, electric drive and velor upholstery of seats, "music" with support for MP3, cast discs and more expensive optics. A strong trump card that compensates for a somewhat outdated body design can be a 1.8 liter motor (100 hp).

Probably, it will be followed by a more affordable 1.6-liter (75 hp), respectively, reducing the initial price of the car. Samand should lead to further cheaper costs, so that the Iranians do not doubt the prospects of their project.

By the way, Iran Khodro is considering the issue of assembly Samand not only in our country. The Russian representative of the company "Gazeta" reported that similar negotiations are underway with China and Belarus.

10/24/2005 / Pavel Sedelnikov, the material was published in the newspaper No. 202 of 10.25.2005.