UAZ 390945 "Farmer" is the result of the extraordinary combination of a minibus and a truck. If you look closely, you can see that the body and chassis of the car were borrowed from the cargo UAZ 3303 model, and the cabin (more precisely, half of it) was borrowed from the legendary Loaf. According to the manufacturer, the new modification differs from a simple cargo UAZ in that it has increased cross-country ability and comfort. With the first, of course, it is impossible to argue, the use of all-wheel drive has borne fruit. But comfort ... This is not the case.
Design
To understand the features of the new UAZ, we will start with the design.
Honestly, in appearance there is nothing to talk about. The cabin is old, the loading platform and the sides are not new either. If you plunge into history and compare the first UAZ, from which engineers took half of the body and put on the frame, nothing really changed. By today's standards, this is a development of the 60s. Then about any chrome edging or aerodynamic dodger and visors even out of the question. In addition, the "Tadpole" is a military vehicle, so few people thought about its design, and even more so in those years. In general, UAZ has not yet managed with the transition from a “war” to a “citizen”. And wait until it becomes modern, it makes no sense.
Salon
And now about the most important thing - the salon. Here, according to the manufacturer, there is everything for the comfort of an ordinary farmer. What the engineers had in mind when they called the modification “Farmer” (after all, this is a word of American origin), if there weren’t any of them in Russia, is not clear. UAZ 390945 may have been improved at the development stage, but we, apart from the old “super-ascetic” dashboard of the Soviet era, a couple of “nightstands” resembling a chair and a new table between them, did not notice anything.
The lack of electronics and comfort inside, perhaps, makes the car easier to use, but still not to that extent.
What's under the hood?
On a new UAZ truck, a gasoline engine - ZMZ 409. With its 2700 cubic centimeters of volume, it produces 112 horsepower. By the way, until recently, the "Farmer" used a carburetor engine. Now, an UAZ injector with the environmental standard Euro-2. The motor is frisky, high-torque, but the 5th gear on the road is clearly not enough (4MKPP is installed on the Farmer). Already at 60 kilometers in the cabin, everything begins to rattle, make noise and vibrate. Soundproofing here, to put it mildly, is not the best.
is it so bad?
Of course not. In justification of the ancient design and uncomfortable interior, we can say that, perhaps because of this, the UAZ still has such a simple and reliable design. UAZ 390945 can be repaired simply in the field, you can buy a spare part almost for nothing and install it in 5 minutes with a minimum of tools. And if there are no tools, you can always use improvised materials. And this is not fiction, but real facts. Try to do this with the Sprinter, and he won’t even go a kilometer after such a repair, break down and stand on the sidelines, and then wait for the huge bill in the technical center. Our UAZ steadfastly endures any obstacles, it will pass through any swamp, and if it breaks, it will reach the house for the next 5, or even 50 kilometers.
Therefore, despite the low comfort and outdated design, in terms of technical equipment UAZ 390945 at a height, for which our car owners love it. And we appreciate him because he is really reliable, easy to operate and cheap to maintain, although, of course, there are many criticisms regarding comfort and design.