Our interview with Alexey Agureyev, an expert in industrial communications and former advisor to Bo Andersson at AVTOVAZ and UzAuto Motors, was cited by a number of professional websites and sparked quite a few controversial comments. Therefore, we decided to ask Alexey to continue our conversation.
Corr.: Alexey, many commenters were skeptical of your idea of taking a page from Uzbekistan's automotive industry.
A.A.: You know, this isn't the first time I've encountered this. For some reason, readers find it very difficult to accept the idea that over 30 years, Uzbekistan managed to find a working business model and build its own automotive industry from scratch, which is gradually but increasingly confidently gaining leading positions both in the Turkic world and in the post-Soviet space. Meanwhile, we continue to swing from side to side – from one business model to another.
I always make it clear that I don't idealize the Uzbek experience, that there is always room for criticism in any production, but one cannot deny that in recent years, Uzbek UzAuto Motors has repeatedly surpassed our AVTOVAZ in production volume. By the way, this happened again last year, when the Russian auto giant produced 324,558 cars, while 393,200 vehicles rolled off the assembly line of the Uzbek enterprise – 68,000 more.
I always highly appreciate the efforts of AVTOVAZ, which managed to restore production after 2022 under extremely difficult conditions. After all, now, in principle, the production volume of Lada and Uzbek Chevrolet is quite comparable. Moreover, as 2024 showed, AVTOVAZ can produce significantly more cars – 525,525 units. The difference with Uzbekistan is that UzAuto Motors' products not only don't sit idle at dealers but are typically sold out via pre-orders long before they even reach the assembly line. And it is this factor – high demand among buyers in their own country – that is becoming extremely important at the moment. In fact, politically important.
What allows Uzbek automakers to guarantee high demand? The answer is very simple: the state essentially controls car prices, keeping them at a level acceptable to the buyer. Well, as for what's happening with prices for domestically produced cars here, I think there's no need to comment.
Corr.: But isn't state price control a non-market mechanism?
A.A.: It's very much a market mechanism, given that the main car manufacturer – UzAuto Motors – is controlled by the state company UzAvtoSanoat, which gradually, over many years, bought out production from foreign partners. And thus, by regulating prices through its management company, the state not only essentially subsidizes the purchase of modern cars by various segments of the population but also effectively contributes to a positive perception of reality among the country's citizens and strengthens political stability in the state.
I'll repeat once again: yes, the automotive industry in Uzbekistan, like the auto industry in probably any country, has its own problems, yes, there are "gray dealers," essentially speculators, yes, there is a "waiting list," reminiscent of Soviet times. But at the same time, there is stable demand, stable production, and all of this works for internal stability in the country – because, in any scenario, you can buy a new car at an acceptable price within a year.
Now let's look at the fascinating world of Russian social media, various automotive channels and websites, and, of course, don't forget the comments from our users. The main impression from all this is simply a "ninth wave" of negative reviews, a storm of negative emotions, and a real barrage of "first-person stories" about how, when, where, and what broke on a purchased domestic car.
If I were another conspiracy theory supporter, I would probably decide that competitors are deliberately working against the domestic manufacturer. But I'm a PR person, so I perfectly understand that there's no conspiracy here; it's just that negativity always, let's say, sells better. That's why authors and commenters rarely share positive experiences and impressions, because you can't achieve wide reach with that kind of article.
Yes, the obvious bias of "social media journalism" is visible to the naked eye. But one cannot fail to notice how the indignation of car enthusiasts is growing over the disparity between the price and quality of domestically produced cars. Let me clarify: this applies not only to AVTOVAZ products but also to fly-by-night brands whose names are easy to get confused. Yet, for some reason, experts often praise them.
Corr.: Don't these brands deserve praise?
A.A.: I would put it differently: too much attention, and too often it is focused, especially on social media, on flashy external factors, on the shell, rather than on what really matters.
Just the other day, I read an article by one expert about how the struggle for leadership in passenger car production volume between UzAuto Motors and AVTOVAZ is intensifying. But what seems important to me is not how many these two companies produced, but a completely different fact:
According to official statistics for 2025, 673,000 passenger cars were produced in Russia, 48% of which are AVTOVAZ products. But in the same year, almost 1,317,000 new cars were sold in the Russian Federation.
In other words, at present, purely Russian automotive manufacturing accounts for less than half of the production market within the Russian Federation and less than a quarter of sales volume in its own market. In my opinion, with such input data, the last thing experts should worry about is competition with UzAuto Motors, which isn't even present on the Russian market.
I have always advocated and continue to advocate for multilateral cooperation with foreign partners, but today it seems quite imprudent to put all eggs in one basket. As they say, friendship is friendship, but tobacco – in the sense of the auto industry – is separate.
Corr.: But still, what can be said about the brands that have come to us?
A.A.: That's the problem: when talking about them, you can only rely on personal impressions and general reasoning.
Let me share a memory: when we first met Bo Andersson, he mentioned achieving a sharp 50% improvement in Lada quality. As a former journalist and a typical Doubting Thomas, I ironically asked what such a nice round number was based on. And Andersson immediately showed data on the increased percentage of body geometry, improved first-time pass rates for vehicle acceptance, a decrease in the number of complaints from dealers after vehicle delivery, a reduction in warranty claims over three months, over six months, and several other similar indicators. It was on this data, as well as a number of other indicators, that Andersson focused during morning production meetings.
A small digression: all heads of key departments met daily at 6:30 AM with the company president in a room next to the assembly line, where the meeting was held. There, plans for the day and near-term prospects were clarified, and work issues were resolved. A lot of time was saved because production staff didn't have to schedule appointments with management; instead, the company president started each day by solving their problems.
– But why is the first meeting at half past six in the morning? – I once asked the president. – That's early!
– The worker starts his day at 07:00. When he comes to his place by the assembly line, he should see his manager and understand that we are all one team, that we've been awake for a long time, that we've thought through his workday and prepared the work front!
At these meetings, Bo Andersson always, without exception, checked quality indicators. And he never had anything against journalists visiting the enterprise photographing and filming all the diagrams, graphs, and reports on quality indicators. Although, it would seem, these are internal documents.
But it was clear, visual, evident, and in the end, it was precisely this open approach that helped overcome the ironically negative attitude towards the Lada brand that prevailed at the time. After all, remember: probably no KVN, no Comedy Club went by without some joker taking a dig at the domestic brand.
Corr.: But what do we really know about the brands that have come to us, about their strengths and weaknesses?
A.A.: You know, in the 1990s, I worked as a correspondent for ITAR-TASS in the USA and first became acquainted with the magazine Consumer Reports. I won't go into a detailed story now, I'll just say that the magazine helps make objective decisions about purchasing goods and services – a kind of "Buyer's Notebook." Among other things, Consumer Reports annually publishes car reviews, taking into account all the pros and cons.
So, although four years have passed since 2022, I still haven't been able to find generalized information about the pros and cons of the "friendly" brands that have appeared here. Yes, there are tons of reviews, there are many review sites, but let's be honest: they don't give the potential buyer an objective picture, and their objectivity raises many questions.
Well, if you use open sources and look at what car enthusiasts complain about, the picture is far from rosy:
And much more.
Do Russian drivers encounter these and other problems with Chinese cars? Absolutely, yes! But is this list of problems objective? Probably not, because it's completely unclear how often these problems occur and how difficult they are to fix. There is no clear statistics, no analysis of how these problems affect the consumer qualities of the cars.
In general, perhaps consumer protection organizations should engage in this kind of analysis. If, of course, they can convince the mass consumer of the real objectivity of the research. Especially if they can also answer the question of how and why current car prices are justified!
Corr.: And one last question. AVTOVAZ promises the Russian buyer the Lada Azimut in the very near future. What would you like to wish in this regard?
A.A.: First of all – good luck! And, of course, try to avoid the mistakes made during the launch of Lada Iskra sales. I think it's no secret to anyone that the start of the Iskra was significantly marred when, after sales began, customers couldn't find the widely advertised new model in showrooms for a long time. It turns out the promotional steam went into the whistle. I would very much like this oversight to be taken into account when Azimut sales start.
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