NAMI recounted the project of an electric "Bukhanka," which began to be developed in the USSR back in the late 1950s — long before the current boom in electric vehicles. The car was created for civil aviation. NAMI engineers, together with UAZ designers, converted a regular UAZ-450, replacing the gasoline engine with an electric one.
The serial UAZ-450 was taken as a basis. The battery was placed in the front of the body, which allowed for an even weight distribution between the two axles when fully loaded. At the same time, the number of seats in the cabin was increased from two to three.
The range was only 45 kilometers. For a regular car, this was not much even by the standards of that time, but the electric car was intended for use at airfields, where long distances did not need to be covered.
Two body variants were planned for the car. One was intended for transporting aircraft crews, the other for delivering cargo to aircraft.
In 1959, UAZ produced three such electric vehicles. They were delivered to Sheremetyevo Airport, which opened in the summer of the same year.
The experiments did not end there. Later, a separate electric vehicle design department, as well as a laboratory and a research bureau, appeared at UAZ.
However, this was about experimental transport. Mass production of the electric UAZ-450 did not follow.