Production years: 1946–1975 GAZ-51, GAZ-51А Text: Raul Aarma, edited by Silver Kuik The Gorky Automobile Plant built the GAZ-51 from 1946 to 1955 and the GAZ-51А from 1955 to 1975. A wooden cargo body with drop sides at the back and sides was mounted on the full frame. Between the frame rails ran the GAZ-51 six-cylinder inline side-valve engine. According to the factory, the truck had a top speed of 70 km/h, a reference fuel consumption of 20 l/100 km and a payload of 2500 kg. Early examples could be recognised by the inscription "Завод имени Молотова" (Molotov Plant) on the side panels at the front of the cab; later ones carried the Gorky Automobile Plant lettering. To start the truck, the ignition was switched on with the key and the starter pedal switch in the cab was pressed with the foot. The truck had unassisted drum brakes front and rear, and the steering used a worm-and-sector gear. In hot summer weather the windscreen halves could be opened slightly. The seats were in two parts – separate cushions for the driver and passenger. In Estonia the legendary truck was nicknamed Kass Artur (Arthur the Cat) and Kiisu (Kitty) – the manufacturer's abbreviation GAZ sounds like "kass" (cat) in Estonian. Besides the base model, the following GAZ-51/-51А variants were built: ГАЗ-51У – export trucks ГАЗ-51B – export trucks with a payload of 3.5 t ГАЗ-51Ю – trucks for the tropics ГАЗ-51Ж – trucks with gas cylinders ГАЗ-51P – trucks adapted for carrying passengers ГАЗ-51C – trucks with twin fuel tanks ГАЗ-51T – cargo taxis ГАЗ-51H – trucks with twin tanks and seats on the inside of the drop sides GAZ-51А technical data: Payload: 2500 kg Engine: Number of cylinders: 6 Displacement: 3485 cm3 Compression ratio: 6.2 Power: 70 hp at 2800 rpm Number of gears: 4 Tyres: 7.50–20 Dimensions: Length: 5525 mm Width: 2200 mm Height: 2130 mm Wheelbase: 3300 mm Weight: 2500 kg Top speed: 50 km/h Fuel (petrol) consumption: 26.5 l/100 km