Irbit Motor Works: History, Products

Irbit Motorcycle Plant is the only enterprise in the world for large-scale production of heavy wheeled motorcycles. The brand "Ural" has become synonymous with high patency, mobility and decent quality. 99% of products are exported. Surprisingly, the Ural model has become cultic in the US, Australia, Canada along with Harley-Davidson, Brough and Indian.

Spy History

By the end of the 1930s, Soviet military leaders came to the conclusion that the army lacked an easy mobile vehicle for reconnaissance, communications, delivery of ammunition, the rapid transfer of advanced units of motorized infantry, and the support of tanks. Cars of those years did not have the necessary characteristics, were stuck in the mud, were too noticeable on the battlefield. The use of horses was already considered an anachronism.

Motorcycles with sidecar, which appeared in the troops of Germany, were the ideal solution. However, it was not easy to acquire them. After all, the goal was not just to purchase a batch of three-wheeled "cross-country vehicles", but to establish own production. A special operation was developed for the purchase of five BMW R71 cars in Sweden and their secret delivery to the USSR. In the future, the reworked model of the "iron horse" under the name M-72 began to produce the Irbit motor-car factory. By the way, the BMW R71 also became a prototype for the American army motorcycles Indian and Harley-Davidson.

On the roads of war

As for most enterprises, World War II served as the root cause of the formation of a motorcycle enterprise in Irbit under the protection of the Ural Mountains. In 1941, the workshops of the Moscow Motozavod were sent here. I had to hide where I had to. The main capacities were deployed in the former brewery, part of the equipment was in the distance, on the territory of the caravan plant.

The first batch of M-72, the newly-formed Irbit motor-car factory was launched on February 25, 1942 - a few months after the evacuation. All the war years the factory workers worked in poorly adapted, constrained conditions. However, this did not prevent to produce 9799 units of equipment. Motorcycles were actively used in the army and after the Great Patriotic War.

Peaceful time

Only after the war the factory workers sighed freely. In 1947, plans were approved for a significant expansion of the production base. In the postwar five-year period, the Irbit motor-car factory was actually rebuilt. In the new shops everything was thought out specifically for the production of wheeled motorcycles. The staff has considerably expanded.

Although the army did not need so many more motorcycles, the equipment was gladly acquired by organizations, agriculture, police, ordinary citizens. Up to 1950, 30,000 "peaceful" specimens came off the assembly line. In 1955, updated models of various color schemes left for the country's roads. It was the M-72 with a reinforced frame and wheels, an improved engine design.

Creative Experiments

Designers IMZ together with NAMI were looking for other directions of development. The eyes turned towards the automotive industry. In particular, an unusual model for the design of a minibus with the body of the carriage layout "Belka" was developed. The speed of the machine on the basis of the M-72 reached 80 km / h.

The experimental line includes a four-wheel drive passenger-car for the countryside - a competitor of UAZ. In the off-road vehicle, under the cute name "Ogonyok", knots and engines were used, which were produced by the Irbit motor-car factory, spare parts from the "Moskvich 410" and other manufacturers. The speed of 70 km / h was acceptable for the villagers.

In parallel, under the patronage of the military, no less exotic equipment was designed-the floating off-roader of Project 032. Designed for evacuation, delivery of ammunition and reconnaissance, it had a structural feature. The steering was shifted to the left side, and the driver could drive the all-terrain vehicle, crawling along the ground. However, in the series of design experiments did not go.

Irbit Motor Works: Ural

Most of the country's residents wheelchair motorcycles are known as "Ural". It is more euphonious than the faceless "M", and emphasizes the geographic affiliation of the enterprise. The name was first used in 1961. "Ural M-62" was equipped with a top-valve engine of 650 cm ³ with a capacity of 28 liters. With., Which allowed to accelerate to 95 km / h. During the five-year period more than 140,000 motorcycles with a "mountain" character were found by the owners.

The brand "Ural" became a symbol of the best motorcycle with a stroller. Also produced were two-wheeled specialized modifications for the escort and patrol service. Under the USSR, the enterprise remained a powerful center of mechanical engineering, producing over 100,000 units of equipment annually.

Falls and take-offs

It is difficult to say whether the Irbit motor-car plant stood the test of time. In market conditions, such an impressive amount of motor technology was unclaimed. Most of the workshops closed, of the 9,000 working people left to work a few hundred. At the same time, the enterprise switched to high-quality manual assembly. Rama and a number of nodes are made on the IMZ, the components are supplied by foreign partners.

The team managed to bring the quality of the Urals to an unattainable height. Motorcycles have won the respect of the selective American public. Possessing equipment under the Ural brand in the United States is considered prestigious.

Products of the Irbit Motorcycle Plant

The shape of the Urals has changed little. It is vintage design and strong brutal design that delight the buyers of motorcycles of the legendary brand. But the quality of components has changed fundamentally. Once a simple technique has got a gloss due to the abundance of chrome-plated metal, better paint quality, attention to detail.

Today IMZ offers wheelchair models under the brand name Ural:

• "Retro";
• "Retro M70";
• "City";
• Patrol;
• Gear-Up.

Differences for the most part relate to design and small technical features. The price of the models is high and exceeds 600,000 rubles. However, the loyal fans of the legendary brand cost the technology does not stop. Irbit Motor Works annually makes about 1000 motorcycles under the order.