AMUR (russian: АМУР - ЗАО Автомобили и моторы Урала, , Joint-stock company "Ural Automobiles and Motors") was a Russian company, a former manufacturer of commercial vehicles, located in
Novouralsk
Novouralsk (russian: Новоура́льск, lit. ''new town in the Urals'') is a closed town in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, located on the eastern side of the Ural Mountains, about north of Yekaterinburg, the administrative center of the obla ...
, a
closed town
A closed city or closed town is a settlement where travel or residency restrictions are applied so that specific authorization is required to visit or remain overnight. Such places may be sensitive military establishments or secret research ins ...
in
Sverdlovsk Oblast,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
.
Prior to 2004, AMUR was called Уральский автомоторный завод (УАМЗ; in English "Ural Automotive Plant" - UamZ).
AMUR declared bankruptcy and ceased operations in 2012 with all assets to be sold off.
History
The Ural Automotor Factory was founded in 1967 as one of the subsidiaries of Zavod imeni Likhachova, more commonly known as
ZiL
OJSC AMO ZiL, known fully as the Public Joint-Stock Company – Likhachov Plant () and more commonly called ZiL (, was a major Russian automobile, truck, military vehicle, and heavy equipment manufacturer that was based in Moscow, Russia.
The la ...
subordinated to the USSR Ministry of Automotive Industry. In 1977, the factory started their own production of vehicles, first of which was a terrain truck
ZIL-157
The ZIL-157 is a general-purpose -ton 6×6 truck, produced at the Lichachev plant in the Soviet Union from 1958 to 1977, when production was transferred to the Amur plant, since the Lichachev plant wanted to focus more on modern trucks, such as ...
. In 1987, the factory expanded its commercial production of trucks to
ZIL-130
The ZIL-130 is a Soviet/ Russian truck produced by ZIL in Moscow, Russia. The first prototype was built in 1956. Production began in 1962, while mass production started in 1964. It was one of the most numerous cargo trucks in the USSR and R ...
and
ZIL-131
The ZIL-131 is a general purpose 3.5 tonne 6x6 army truck designed in the Soviet Union by ZIL. The basic model being a general cargo truck. Variants include a tractor-trailer truck, a dump truck, a fuel truck, and a 6x6 for towing a 4-wheeled pow ...
, and their common trailers. By 1992, the factory had mastered the production of special equipment vehicles based on its original trucks. In 1992, after the collapse of Soviet Union, the factory was privatized from the Ministry of Automotive Industry and reorganized into the Joint-Stock Company under the name of "Ural Automotor Plants" (RU-"UAMZ"). The management did not survive separation from the central economics of former Soviet Union, and in 2002, the factory declared bankruptcy. In 2003, the Bank of Northern Treasury (holding North Prom Cohen) bought the remaining assets from the bankruptcy, and, in 2004, pursued reorganization into CJSC "Ural Automobiles and Motors", abbreviated as "AMUR".
In May 2004, AMUR and India's
Tata Motors
Tata Motors Limited is an Indian multinational automotive manufacturing company, headquartered in Mumbai, India, which is part of the Tata Group. The company produces passenger cars, trucks, vans, coaches, buses.
Formerly known as Tata Eng ...
entered into a contract to build
TATA trucks at the factory. Together, they co-produced two models of
Tata 407
The Tata 407 is a light commercial vehicle manufactured by Tata Motors. Launched in 1986, in 2011 the 407 model sold more than 500,000 units. The 407 has a payload of 2.25 tonnes, an overall length of 4.7 metres, and a turning ci ...
and
Tata LPT 613 branded as Amur-4346. The partners planned on signing a 3-year contract, with the release of up to 5,000 trucks per year. But the project was never realized. In 2007, AMUR planned on establishing a joint production with China's Geely Automobile, to produce models of
Geely
Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., Ltd (ZGH), commonly known as Geely (吉利 "auspicious"), is a Chinese multinational automotive company headquartered in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. The company is privately held by Chinese billionaire entrepreneur ...
CK and the Chinese company
Great Wall Motors
Great Wall Motor Co., Ltd. (GWM) is a Chinese privately owned automobile manufacturer headquartered in Baoding, Hebei. Founded in 1984, it is currently the eighth largest automobile manufacturer in China, with 1.281 million sales in 2021.
The co ...
for the production of SUVs
ZXAuto
Hebei Zhongxing Automobile Co Ltd, branded as ZX Auto, is a Chinese producer of SUVs and pick-up trucks. Co-owned by Tianye Automobile Group Co Ltd and Taiwan Unite Leading Co, it was established in 1999 and exports to the Middle East, Southeas ...
Landmark; production trials began in May 2007.
In early 2008, production of passenger cars was suspended, with plans on resuming production in August 2008. AMUR planned to release 3,500 SUV models per year, but the project was discontinued.
On July 16, 2010, AMUR and French manufacturer
Renault Trucks
Renault Trucks is a French commercial truck manufacturer with corporate headquarters at Saint-Priest near Lyon. Originally part of Renault, it has been a subsidiary of the Volvo Group since 2001.
From its beginnings in 1978 to 2002, the comp ...
entered into a joint venture for the production of light-duty trucks
Midlum, under which the production would be placed at AMUR facilities. In the joint venture, AMUR was investing facilities and operating capital, and Renault Trucks was investing its manufacturing know-how and technology.
In July 2011, the joint venture was suspended due to AMUR's financial distress and bankruptcy. Commencing from 2012, AMUR's management is looking for new investors to recover the company.
New developments
The 6 at the exhibition "Industrial Design defense products: expressive severity and reliable functionality," the company "
Intrall" (
:ru:Колун) presented the prototype armored vehicles "Колун" (Cleaver) and "Торос" (Toros) to be manufactured in the UAMZ facility.
[http://www.cardesign.ru/events/newcars/2014/05/07/6021/ Russian]
Production
* 1977–1994 -
ZIL-157
The ZIL-157 is a general-purpose -ton 6×6 truck, produced at the Lichachev plant in the Soviet Union from 1958 to 1977, when production was transferred to the Amur plant, since the Lichachev plant wanted to focus more on modern trucks, such as ...
* 1987 to 2012 -
ZIL-130
The ZIL-130 is a Soviet/ Russian truck produced by ZIL in Moscow, Russia. The first prototype was built in 1956. Production began in 1962, while mass production started in 1964. It was one of the most numerous cargo trucks in the USSR and R ...
(from 2002 known as the AMUR-531350) Amour's 531350 utilizes the cab of the 531340
* 1987 to 2012 -
ZIL-131
The ZIL-131 is a general purpose 3.5 tonne 6x6 army truck designed in the Soviet Union by ZIL. The basic model being a general cargo truck. Variants include a tractor-trailer truck, a dump truck, a fuel truck, and a 6x6 for towing a 4-wheeled pow ...
(from 2002 known as the AMUR-531340)
* 2004–2008 - AMUR-4346
* 2007–2008 - AMUR-531210
* 2007–2008 -
Geely Otaka
The Geely CK is a 4-door, 5-seater subcompact sedan produced by the Chinese manufacturer Geely from May 2005 to January 2016. The CK's Chinese name, ''Ziyoujian'', stands for "Freedom Ship" or "Free Cruiser". It was sold as the Geely Otaka on the ...
* 2006–2008 -
Zxauto Landmark
The Zhongxing Landmark () is a mid-size SUV designed and developed by Hebei Zhongxing Automobile.
Overview
Zhongxing is currently selling Zhongxing Landmark in China, and also internationally in Asia, Africa, Iran ( Bahman Motor) and Egypt. Th ...
References
External links
History of ZIL at avtomash.ru AMUR Official site History of ZIL at ukcar.com English website for Russian Military TrucksZil Vehicles Information
{{Russian Automotive Makers
Defence companies of the Soviet Union
Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of Russia
Truck manufacturers of the Soviet Union
Truck manufacturers of Russia
Companies based in Sverdlovsk Oblast