ZIS-115

The ZIS-115 is a Soviet built armored version of the

ZIS-110 The ZIS-110 is a Soviet limousine from ZIL introduced in 1946. The 110 was developed from the reverse engineering of a 1942 Packard Super Eight during 1944. The first five prototypes were completed by August 1945. It was powered by a 6-litre, ...

limousine, designed and built especially for

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...

. 32 of the cars were manufactured between 1948-49. The heavily armored car's design was based on the American 1942

Packard Super Eight The Packard Super Eight was the larger of the two eight-cylinder luxury automobiles produced by the Packard Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan. It shared frames and some body types with the top model Packard Twelve. The 1933-1936 Packard S ...

. The car weighed over 4 tonnes, windows made of glass nearly thick (each of which weighed over ) were powered by a hydraulic system. Its 6.0-liter () straight-eight engine (an upgraded version of the ZIS-110 engine) generated 162

horsepower Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are t ...

with a top speed of . Stalin, extremely paranoid of assassination, always rode in the rear of the car, seated between two armed bodyguards. He never rode in the same armored ZIS two days in a row, and frequently changed the route driven from his home in

Kuntsevo Kúntsevo (russian: Ку́нцево) is a district in Western Administrative Okrug of the federal city of Moscow, Russia. Population: History In the 18th century, a palace and a park were built; they were often visited by the Empress Catheri ...

to the Kremlin. After Stalin's death in 1953, the armored ZIS limousines continued to be used for many years by successive Soviet leaders. Today, several of the cars still exist and are owned by private collectors and museums around the world. Cars of Russia 1940s cars 1950s cars

115 115 may refer to: * 115 (number), the number * AD 115, a year in the 2nd century AD * 115 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC * 115 (Hampshire Fortress) Corps Engineer Regiment, Royal Engineers, a unit in the UK Territorial Army * 115 (Leicestershire) ...