Russia’s economy is doomed

[3NUMBAS]

The problem for Lada is that, despite protectionist measures from the Russian government, russians not only won't buy Ladas but they actually have a huge amount of contempt for their domestic products.

Russian comedians make jokes about Ladas in the same way Jasper Carrott used to make jokes about Skodas and even the new models have a reputation for being dreadful, especially the Kalina which failed an NCAP crash test in spectacular fashion.

Ladas are now cheaper in Russia than foreign competitors, due largely to the recently imposed import tarifs. The russians I know would still rather buy a 5 year old VW than a new Lada for the same money. Actually they would rather have a 20 year old VW than a new Lada.