The Moskvitch 407 was once one of Norway's most popular cars. Today, the cars live on as memories among older people and as part of Norwegian automotive history.
Got a boost in a regulated market
After the war, car sales were regulated to limit the foreign exchange deficit. Purchase permits were only given to taxi drivers, doctors, postmen and others who performed socially useful tasks. Norway and the Soviet Union established a reciprocal trade agreement where Norway primarily supplied herring and stockfish in exchange for grain, metals and eventually also cars. This allowed cars from the Eastern Bloc to be imported without affecting the foreign exchange balance. This opened up opportunities for ordinary people to also be allowed to buy a new car – as long as it came from an Eastern Bloc country.
The Moskvitch cars did not become popular because they were best, but because they were among the best that people could get in the 1950s. It was a proper and solid car with 4 doors and – from 1958 – equipped with a modern 4-stroke OHV engine.
In good company
In the 1950s and 60s, people went on road trips – Sunday trips with camping chairs, thermoses, food baskets, swimwear and fishing rods. During the holidays, people went camping with tents on the roof. We often went with other families in our own cars, looking for a nice rest stop or campsite along the way. I remember that the Moskvitchen often went on trips with an olive-colored 1953 Volkswagen 1200 with a split rear window. It also drove with a black 1938 Plymouth (also with a split rear window) or a white 1955 Opel Olympia Rekord. In this company, the Moskvitchen appeared to be a completely all-right car.
Model history
The Moskvitch Pilot 407 was in production between 1958 and 1963. With a new, more powerful engine, it was considered a major improvement over previous models. However, the first cars had the same front and 3-speed gearbox as its predecessor, the Moskvitch 402. That was the kind of car we had. Later, the cars were equipped with a new 4-speed gearbox and eventually a more modern grille. The 407 model could also be delivered as a station wagon (423N).
The engines were 1360 cc with a 4-speed gearbox (from model year 1960). 45 hp could give a top speed of 115 km/h given that you had a long straight stretch in front of you. Inside there was plenty of room for 4 people and a fairly spacious luggage compartment. A couple of niceties with the cars were a roller blind in front of the radiator that could be operated from the driver's seat in cold conditions. If you needed to vent cigarette smoke, you could open a fresh air intake in the form of a hatch. To get to the petrol filler cap, you had to fold down the registration number at the back.
Red on the nose
As a 7-year-old, my memory is limited, but I recall that the Moskvitch seemed quite “bouncy” in the back seat. I guess the suspension was quite stiff to cope with bad roads. The interior noise level was not particularly loud. To my ears it sounded like a kind of howling – sometimes like a gurgling mountain stream. I also remember that the car had a special “hood ornament” made of a piece of red-colored plexiglass that shone red when sunlight fell on it.
When car sales were exempted
The Moskvitch did not disappear from the top of sales after car sales were liberalized in 1960. In both 1960 and 1961, it was in the top ten list of car models sold. According to an advertisement from 1960, the Moskvitch cost 13.500 kroner. In comparison, the cheapest Volkswagen cost over 14.000 kroner without any extras. The reason that the Moskvitch remained popular was probably because they still offered a lot of car for the money, even in competition with Western models.
A terrifying experience
Our Moskvitch was used a lot. Primarily to and from my father's work, but also on long vacations. I don't remember any problems with it. But one afternoon the car came home hanging on the back of a rescue truck from Falken. What had happened sent chills down my spine. When my father was maneuvering the car out of a parking lot, the steering column had completely come off. The day before, the whole family had been on a Sunday trip to Kongsberg, and what could have happened on the downhill bends if the steering column had come off then?
I've never heard of anyone breaking a steering column just by turning the steering wheel. Admittedly, my dad was strong as a bear, but we figured there could be another reason. Maybe a manufacturing defect or quality issue?
How do you fix a broken steering column? My dad got a 1961 Moskvitch that was damaged in a collision and he moved the steering mechanism to his own car. I'm guessing he moved some other parts too, but not the gearbox. In that case, he could have replaced his 3-speed gearbox with a newer 4-speed one.
After the steering incident, my father started looking for a new car. I don't know if he had lost confidence in Moskvitch. He didn't mention anything about it. According to him, he wanted a car with 4 gears.
But there was no new Moskvitch.
See
