At the last St. Petersburg Economic Forum, guests were accompanied by the Tank 500 Urban, that is, self-charging HEV versions of the popular model. Previously, the Federal Security Service had not noticed “full-fledged” hybrids, although the power plant on Aurus is not devoid of electrification, and a number of foreign cars have 48-volt starter-generators for environmental reasons.
FSO purchases are classified, so it is impossible to determine whether the gasoline-electric Tank 500 was leased or put on the balance sheet of the special service. However, a year ago, it was with the St. Petersburg Economic Forum that the expansion of conventional Tank 500s into departmental garages began. Six-cylinder SUVs were purchased in batches; the same cannot be said about four-cylinder hybrids.
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In St. Petersburg, about ten Tank 500 HEVs were used to escort protected persons. The differences between these versions are a spare wheel on the fifth door, a different radiator grille and a three-row interior. The technology has also changed: the 3.0-liter V6 (299 horsepower, 500 Nm) was replaced by a 2.0-liter in-line engine (245 horsepower, 380 Nm) combined with an electric motor and a 1.75-kilowatt-hour battery. Peak output is 299 forces and 616 Nm.
The argument in favor of the hybrid option is the price. A Tank 500 HEV costs 6.3-6.5 million rubles depending on the year of manufacture, and a conventional SUV comparable in equipment will be 600 thousand rubles more expensive. By the way, “plug-in” hybrids are also appearing in the FSO fleet; the Voyah Free luxury minivan with a power plant of this type has been spotted.
Affordable crossovers that would be useful in Russia
