Zastava, Serbian for flag according to Google Translator, was a Yugoslavian, now Serbian manufacturer that was born out of a Army Technical Institute founded in 1851 that in turn became a firearms manufacturer in the 1880’s. From 1939 to 1941 the vehicle arm of Vojno-Tehnicki Zavod assembled 400, Chevrolet according to some sources and Ford according to others, trucks before the ’39/’45 war closed operations down. In 1953 the renamed Zavodi Crvena Zastava, Red Flag Institutes 96% of the employees voted to resume vehicle manufacture and 162 Willy’s Jeeps were built. If you know have information pertaining to the first Zastava trucks being Ford or Chevrolet please chime in below.
In 1954 Zavodi Crvena Zastava entered an agreement to assemble FIAT’s under license which led to the production of FIAT 128’s called Zastava 128’s in 1971. In 1972 a hatchback version of the 128 was introduced and it is a 1986 version of the hatch back known as the Type 101 that is featured today.
The front end is indistinguishable from the revamped 1976 FIAT 128, voted 1970 European Car of the Year, minor differences to the bumper and manufacturers badges not withstanding.
Power for todays featured car comes from a 1116 cc / 68 cui with an aluminium cylinder head and overhead cam, originally designed by the legendary Aurelio Lampredi, which produces 55 hp.
The Zastava 101, known colloquially in Serbia as the “Stojadin”, was sold under a variety of names in different markets, these include Yugo 311/313/511/513 and Skala 55 in its most recent 2008 incarnation when production ceased after 1,045,258 of the hatchbacks had been built. Production of the hatch backs was also licensed by the Polish FSO company and sold as the Zastava 1100p.
Like just about every other passenger vehicle built under the communist regieme in the 1970’s and 1980’s some Zastava 101’s were used for competition with a class win on the 1973 Tour d’Europe probably counting as it’s most significant achievement.
Thanks for joining me on this “Stojadin” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres”, I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !
