Zastava Skala

The Skala 55 first emerged on 15 October 1971 as the Zastava 101 (internationally, the Zastava 1100 or 311/ 313/ 511/ 513). Derived from Italy's Fiat 128, which Zastava also produced (Zastava 128), the 101 added a practical fifth door.

Arriving a full three years before Fiat's own 128 3P and Volkswagen's Golf, the 101 was among the first hatchbacks with engine and gearbox located astride each other.

Front-wheel-drive in an era when most manufacturers were still years away from making the switch, the 101 offered excellent space utilization. Independent rear suspension coped well with challenging Eastern European roads, while engines designed by the legendary Aurelio Lampredi worked best at heady rpms.

In 1973, the Zastava 101 won its class in the 17th international Tour d'Europe rally. The following year, Yugoslav driver J. Paliković was reportedly piloting his 101 faster than his Porsche competition over several stages.

In February 1975, Zastava organized an expedition from its hometown of Kragujevac to Kilimanjaro. Five brand-new, standard Zastava 101 cars and 11 crew members travelled African deserts and savanna, finishing their 45-day expedition on the top of Kilimanjaro. Zastava consequently markets the car as Vozilo uspeha (roughly translated, vehicle of success).

In Poland, the FSO factory produced the Zastava 101 through 1976.

In 1979, 88,918 Zastava 101 models left Kragujevac lines. Two years later, the car had been crowned Yugoslavia's Car of the Decade.

The early 1980s saw the 101 become quite popular in the United Kingdom, where the cars were aimed squarely at the budget end of the market. Advertised under the slogan Go New! Go Yugo!, the 311/ 313/ 511/ 513 is the cheapest new car available to British buyers. In 1984, the range's entry-level model costs less than £2,400, roughly half the price of the equivalent Ford Escort. In order to avoid rust caused by road gritting, hard PVC coating was used throughout the underside, sills and valances.

In 1991, the millionth 101 (Yugo Skala) was produced.

Visitors to Zastava's or Yugo stand at the 2008 Belgrade Car Show in Belgrade, from 13 to 19 March, might be forgiven a double-take or two. Tucked behind the Zastava Koral and Zastava 10, and the new Florida TDC diesel, was the Skala 55.

Few might remember when this popular entry-level workhorse last saw the bright lights of an exhibition stand.

Several improvements had been made to the event's most affordable car, courtesy Zastava R&D.[5]

Under the hood, a new aluminum radiator had been installed. Underneath, wheel bearings and CV joints were now shared with the Zastava 10.

Behind the wheel was a new instrument cluster, complete with tachometer, glowing in blue and red nuances behind its curvaceous housing. New, softer seats made for an elevated driving position.

The 2008 Yugo Skala 55 also shares a horn; adjustable side mirrors, and rear-view mirror with the Zastava 10. Door locks come from Zastava's In (Zastava Koral and Zastava Florida) range. Owners now need but a single key to unlock the doors and liftback, and to operate the ignition.

Optionally, the 101 Yugo Skala 55 can be equipped to run on natural gas, with a factory-installed Lovato 40-liter tank and feed.

Zastava in 2008 still sells the Skala 55. It is Serbia's most-affordable automobile. "We've sold more than 1.5 million... we're still building... you're still buying," says Kragujevac-based Zastava Automobili.

The last 1,045,258th Zastava 101 rolled off the assembly line at November 20, 2008, what is summarily the 1,273,532nd Zastava Skala car (the 1,045,258th Zastava 101 and the 228,274th Zastava 128 car models).

In the beginning, two versions of the Zastava 101 were available: Standard and De Luxe. Standard models offered seats trimmed in imitation black leather, with a black, spherical gear shifter. De Luxe trim brought forth red seats and carpet, chrome trim across the interior door panels and exterior sides of the car, and imitation wood ahead of the front passenger. Zastava's logo was embedded within a transparent shifter knob.

The following years saw the radiator grille painted black (rather than grey). In 1976, the 101L replaced the De Luxe model, featuring new bumpers with rubber trim, flat-folding seat backs, chrome-trimmed radiator grille, reverse light, electric windshield-washer pump, coolant-temperature gauge, cigarette lighter and servo brakes.

All models used a 1,116 cc engine, with an 8.8:1 compression ratio and various carburetors (Weber 32 icev 10, Holley Europea 32 ICEV 10, IPM 32 MGV 1 or Solex C 32 DISA 20). In 1976, all engines - beginning with #0076986 - used a new camshaft, 20-millimeters wide to the outgoing camshaft's 14-millimeter width.

No further significant changes were made until 1979, when the Zastava 101B replaced the Standard model. Both the 101B and 101L now shared the same, upmarket seats, with integrated headrests. Zastava 101 L 1300 was the first model with an engine of 1290 cc and 73 hp (54 kW), with an original Italian gearbox (Fiat 128 Coupe). Produced in small number of exemplars.

Also in 1979, Zastava launched the 101S (Super) and SC (Super Confort). They had new bumpers, square headlamps, a new radiator grille with chrome surround, black side mirror, black wipers, small black wheel caps, standard rear defroster and two new warning lamps (hand-brake on, brake-pad warning). Interior colors were added, as was a new, 1,290 cc engine, featuring 9.1:1 compression and an IPM 32 MGV 25/250 carburetor. The SC model used a two-barrel Weber 30/32 DMTR 90/250 carburetor and 4-2-1 exhaust, boosting power to 64 hp (48 kW).

Compression on the 1,116 cc engine was raised to 9.2:1. The motor now used an IPM 32 MGV 10 carburetor.

Later in the year came the Special, with complete instrumentation including oil-pressure gauge and tachometer, and the most powerful engine ever installed in this car: a 73 horsepower (54 kW) version of the 1,290 cc motor, with Weber 32/32 DMTR 90/250 carburetor and 4-2-1 exhaust.

A 3-door Mediteran model used either the base, 1,116 cc engine (55 horsepower) or the Special's 73 horsepower (54 kW) motor. It had round headlamps, like the earliest 101s.

All 1979 Zastava 101s had a new steering wheel, with either Zastava or the company logo (101S/ 101SC) inscribed on the center horn button.

In 1983, Zastava launched the 101 GT/GTL 55/65. New, wider chrome bumpers boasted integrated parking and indicator lights. A new radiator mask debuted, along with new side skirts and a new wheel design. The interior was redesigned, with a new dashboard, steering wheel, gear shifter and hand brake. The suspension was softer, and the car now sat lower, for better stability. The GTL model featured revisions to the brakes.

The standard, 1,116 cc motor produced 55 horsepower (41 kW) with a one-barrel IPM 32 MGV 12 carburetor, while the 1,301 cc engine made 65 horsepower (48 kW) with a two-barrel Weber 30/32 DMTR 90/250. A new cable connected the accelerator and carburetor.

In 1987, Zastava applied the YUGO name to the cars, in honor of their success in the United States. The pair was now called the YUGO 1.1 and 1.3 GX. A Y insignia was used instead of a Z. More interior colors debuted. All models used 4-2-1 exhaust systems.

In 1988, the name was changed to YUGO Skala 55 and YUGO Skala 65. The butterfly-type front side windows were removed, while new plastic bumpers - much larger than those of old - debuted. The interiors were redesigned again, finished in grey or Sahara yellow. A Bosch ignition system was installed. The Skala 65 used a new two-barrel Weber 7Y2M-RA carburetor with an electronic choke atop its 1,301 cc engine, mated to a 5-speed gearbox.

These two models were produced until 1994, when their suspensions and gear-boxes were modified and their names were changed to Skala 55C and Skala 65C.

For the 2008 model year, several revisions debuted (described above). The Zastava Skala 55 (101) remains something of a legend in Serbia: a solid, inexpensive car which can still be seen in all its generations, across ex-Yugoslavian territory and Eastern Europe.

• 
  2008 Zastava Skala
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  Zastava 101 Luxe
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  1976 Zastava 101 (from Kragujevac, sold as Zastava 1100 in Czechoslovakia)
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  Zastava Yugo 311 (side view)
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  Zastava Yugo 311 (under bonnet)
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  Zastava 1100p (built by FSO under license)
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  Zastava 1100p
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  Zastava 128 Skala 55
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  Zastava 101 Confort, 1982
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  Serbian Police Zastava Yugo Skala 55C patrol car.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Zastava Skala.

• UK Owners Club
• Zastava Skala 55 model presentation (in English)
• Yugo Fan Club On-Line
• zastava.cz (a good source of old 101 brochures)
• Zastava 101 - restoration (good page about restoration of Z101)