Moskvitch 400-420

The Moskvitch 400-420 is a car that was introduced in 1947 by the Soviet manufacturer Moskvitch.

Background

In 1940 and 1941 500 units of the KIM-10-50, the first Soviet compact car, were produced. It was inspired by the similar-sized four-door Ford Prefect and, despite its low price, equipped with such features as a mechanical clock and indicators of the level of oil and the temperature of water in the radiator.[1] However, national priorities changed with the German invasion in summer 1941, and production of the car was halted and not resumed after the war.

At war's end, the Soviet Union deemed the plans and tooling for the 1939 Opel Kadett K38 to be part of the war reparations package,[2] since the tooling in the Rüsselsheim factory was largely intact; residents dismantled the Kadett production tooling and loaded fifty-six freight cars[3]