7 reasons why Kamaz is the coolest truck producer in the world
The toughest, meanest, Russian trucks are also the coolest - here's why...
The year is 1969, and some Soviet leaders are having a meeting. To quote them directly - and with 100% historical accuracy - one of them suggests they need to make some “bloody great and cool trucks”. Another of the leaders says “yep, great plan, let’s do it. It needs to be really, really big though.”
7 years later, the first Kamaz truck is rolling off the production line in the formerly modest town of Naberezhnye Chelny. The series of plants here covers 57 square kilometres - it took 100,000 people encompassing 70 different ethnicities to build the KAMAZ plant, and what do hundreds of thousands of people need? Housing, schools, hospitals and clinics, cultural centres, places for sports - recreational and leisure centres.
These were all built alongside the vast factory for the extra 30-40,000 people arriving each year at the site. Now, Naberezhnye Chelny is home to over 500,000 people, and Kamaz make the coolest trucks in the world.
The Russian Army loves them
Next stop, a strategically important peninsula near you.
Putting all political stuff to one side for a moment, the Russian Army is one of the finest fighting forces in the world - they are 110% сорвиголова, which I think means badass… anyway, the Russian Army reinforces Kamaz trucks and uses them to supply its vast army across what is the largest nation on Earth, and sometimes beyond that nation and into its neighbours territory for definitely good and peaceful reasons.
Kamaz owns the Dakar Rally
Wouldn't you just love to see these lads drive over the Mercedes F1 car?
If you’re entering one of the toughest races on Earth, you’ll probably want to be in with a chance of actually winning the thing. That means if you’re entering the Dakar Rally’s truck category, you’re going to need a Kamaz. Kamaz has won the event a remarkable 15 times. In 2015, Kamaz filled the podium, and in 2018 it took 1st and 3rd place, with Russia’s best friend Belarus taking 2nd place in a MAZ - an older brand of former Soviet truck. 2010 saw Kamaz trucks win all 14 stages of the event, a remarkable effort.
If you’re ever at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, there’s often a Kamaz Dakar truck doing demonstration runs. You don’t need me to tell you what it looks like, you’ll not miss it.
They’re the Ferrari of trucks
Well, if you compare the two badges for each brand, that is. Basically the same, right?
Kamaz is BIG
As you might of guessed from the 57 square km site at its base, Kamaz is really rather big. The HQ hosts a foundry, forge, engine plant, press and stamping plant, the automobile plant, a repair and tool making plant, and the master industrial park. Kamaz comprises 109 different organisations across Russia and the former Soviet Union, and sold around 38,000 trucks last year.
They have 60 different models on offer available in 1,500 different specifications, and are still expanding the range. Perhaps the best stat though is that since that very first truck rolled off the line in 1976, Kamaz has built 2,252,000 trucks.
Kamaz is very proud of the fact that it never, ever, photoshops its press images.
They can fly
No words needed here, really. Here’s a video instead.
Kamaz-Master 4326-2018
This is actually the 2010 Kamaz, but as Kamaz design hasn't changed since 1976, I don't need to put in much effort to finding a 2018 image, do I?
This year’s Dakar Rally winner produces some quite remarkable statistics. Firstly, the engine. It’s a 13-litre twin-turbo putting out around 1,000 horsepower. That means the 4326-2018 has a staggering power-to-weight ratio of… well, 100bhp per ton - that’s right, the truck goes out to rally weighing around 10,000kg.
The brakes use a drum-system with 8 huge brake pads per wheel, and they last around three stages.
Fuel shouldn’t be too much of a problem, as the 4326 has a 1,000-litre fuel tank, meaning if I took one to my local BP to fill it up with some ‘Ultimate’ diesel, I wouldn’t see much money back from £1,500. Hello? Is that the expenses department?
Putin’s mate owns about 23.5% of the company
One of Putin's friends. Migtt be Sergei, don't know for sure. This is a 100% genuine Kamaz press image though. God, I love Russia.
The Panama Papers didn’t half reveal some interesting facts. A mysterious Cypriot-registered company with undisclosed assets owns about 23.5% of Kamaz, and until those papers were released nobody really knew who owned such a large piece of the massive Kamaz company. As it turns out, it’s one of President Putin’s friends, a concert cellist called Sergei Roldugin. Hopefully, Russia doesn’t mind me telling you that.
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Comments (7)
Yes, it sounds awesome.
Yeeeaaaah, KAMAZ baby! High five!
They have put on a good show at Goodwood festival of speed for a few years now trying to get the dakkar truck up the hill
It's soooooo cool! I want one now. Also, KAMAZ press images are incredible.
It is such a cool truck it's built like the old European trucks made in the 80's when they were made properly
Since I like russia, Kamaz is the way to go if you need to go offroad, The experimental truck, Kamaz ARCTIC, Is the most dope truck EVER!!.
of course that 1000+ hp engine is a Cummins and the transmission is German but hey it still looks Russian.