Old Russian Army Truck - ZIL 157

The Revival of a Beast

Old Russian Army Truck - ZIL 157

 

Off road enthusiasts have most of their attention directed towards vehicles that possess four wheels and can be parked, with a tad more hassle though, in the city. However, today we’re going to talk about something a lot more special. The ZIL trucks were produced in Russia, from the 1920s and are still coming off the assembly line today.

Recently, a ZIL truck has been restored to its former glory in the Cultural European Capital of 2007, the city of Sibiu in the heart of the Transylvanian Plains. This particular vehicle, an Ex-Military spec truck, was purchased by enthusiasts, taken apart and rebuilt into the mechanical jewel it is today. We managed to catch up with them and get this exclusive interview about a difficult yet very rewarding restoration experience.

The team that worked on the vehicle is comprised of:

Radu Horotan – Architect
Simion Negrea – Electrician
Mihai Tuca – Architect

RT: How did you get the idea for restoring the truck?

MT: We’ve been planning to get a 6x6 truck for a good long while now. It’s got more to do with hobby rather than commercial reasons. At one point, we saw a friend’s advert on an off road forum, sporting the sale of two identical ZIL 157 trucks, army surplus. The timing was excellent: we had the money, we had the opportunity and we seized the moment. We didn’t quite know anything regarding the condition of the two vehicles or their respective age – it was the first impression that mattered since we made a test run and we were convinced. We thought it would be a pity for them to be melted, like many others, and we decided that it wouldn’t be impossible to do the necessary adjustments for them to work. Especially since they hadn’t been started for a good long while by that time.

A closer inspection revealed that they were older than we initially thought, both in terms of manufacture date as well as model and we established that an in depth restoration was appropriate. One thing led to another and slowly but surely we took apart all of the truck. At first, we thought that a lot of the processes needed would be done at the scene of the crime but we decided that it would be wiser to take them apart and clean them off the actual truck. And thus, a simple cleaning process transformed into a laborious restoration project.

RT: Why did you pick a ZIL? Why not something else, perhaps an off road car?

MT: As I said earlier, we had the chance to save these vehicles from the foundry – sadly, they were destined for recycling. Perhaps if it was a smaller vehicle, a Defender or a Willys, I’d have done the same, but I always liked big rigs. Since we do have off road cars, this size a vehicle appealed to us. I don’t think it was a bad choice either, it could have been a DAC (e.n.: similar sort of hi-cap truck, produced in the Soviet Era) but it wouldn’t have motivated us as much. Not compared to a truck that scouted the Siberian wastelands most of it’s running life, anyway.

RT: What sort of mechanical knowledge do you possess?

MT: Our mechanical knowledge comes from a good few years of working on our own off road cars. We also took advantage of friends with deeper mechanical knowledge than ourselves when the manual wasn’t quite clear or we weren’t that convinced that what we did was ok.

RT: How long did the project take, from first thought to first drive?

MT: There were a few first drives. The first one came with the engine transplant, followed by a period of hibernation. The following came after mounting the cabin and setting up the whole electrical grid. We began the project in September 2009 and we decided that it was finished in November 2010. There was no record kept of the hours of labor since we tended to it when we had the time.

RT: Please tell me a few words about the particularities of this vehicle. Do you know the history of the model or of this particular vehicle? What does the name stand for?

MT: The name comes from Zavod Imeni Lihacev, which means Lihacev Factory or rather “Factory named after Lihacev”. It was previously known as Zavod Imeni Stalina (Z.I.S.) but they changed to the first one in 1956. ZIL 157 is a stage in the evolution of previous models, beginning with the 1920s. To be more precise, it’s the evolution of ZIL 150 and 151, which were designed and mass produced after the second World War. 157s were produced from 1958 all the way up to 1979. It appears it was the standard of Russian truck drivers all the way up to 1979, when it was replaced by the Ural 375.

RT: What are the truck specs?

MT: We managed to extract some data from the instruction manual, edited by the Ministry of the Armed Forces of the Socialist Republic of Romania in 1962:

Weight (empty): 5800 kg.
Weight (cargo): 10450 kg.
Dimensions: 6.9 m/2.3 m/2.9m
Ground Clearance: 310 mm
Front/Rear Max Angles: 55˚/43˚
Engine: 6 cylinders in line/petrol/104 bhp/torque 34 kgm@1100rpm/5550 cmc
Tires: Custom, 10 ply with variable pressure
Maximum horizontal speed (4500 load): 65 km/h
Mileage with 4500 kg load: 42L/100km
Fuel Tank: 150+65L

RT: How did the restoration go? What problems did you encounter? Where did the whole thing take place: chop shop/garage/backyard?

MT: Because we couldn’t find a garage to rent and because we didn’t anticipate this amount of effort, we decided to undergo all of the operations in a friend’s backyard, close to the city. This became a rather big issue, since we were at the mercy of the weather.

One of the first issues we had was engine related. One of the piston’s connecting rod was faulty, which determined us to switch engines between the two trucks. This was the best option around, rather than chasing down parts in Moldavia or Russia. We didn’t really have other issues. Knowing that we had a large amount of spares from the second donor truck, we worked in a relaxed manner. We got quite emotional after we reassembled the whole electric system and dashboard. We tried to fire it up and it worked. It was the same with the engine transplant. As for everything else? Patience and attention to details…

 

RT: I couldn’t help but notice an impressive winch. What can you tell me about it?

MT: The winch is in absolute working condition but we haven’t gotten around to test it yet. I still have to get a cable from a friend and mount it. It’s a mechanical winch, powered directly from the reduction gear. I am not sure of it’s actual power. The guidelines placed it somewhere between 5 and 6 tons (11.000 to 13.300 lbs)

RT: What are your plans for the future? Would you want to sell the truck or show it at retro fairs and such? Do you have a new project in mind?

MT: We still haven’t done great plans about the future of the truck. We had some worries concerning the registration but it turns out that there’s no problems whatsoever. From the moment it’s road legal, we’ll begin the process of registering it into the Retromobil Club Romania, where we’ve already gotten in contact with people. We’ll then see what are the specific activities for such a truck, within the club. We’re not thinking of selling it. There is also a chance to organize tourist activities, using the truck as special transport.

RT: If you had the chance to start your project all over, would you do it? What would you do differently?

MT: Firstly, we’d look for an adequate space, something closed. It’s not that we didn’t enjoy the fresh air while working, but the project depending on the weather is not a good thing. Then we’d probably think about being more organized about the taking apart, sorting and depositing the parts.