The LAZ-695 is a Soviet/Ukrainian 2 axle urban/suburban bus, which was produced in the Western Ukrainian city Lviv from 1965 to 2002. After the production stopped at the main factory in Lviv, the documentation was handed over to the DAZ automotive facility in the Ukrainian city Kamianske, where the production continued up to 2010. In over 50 years of manufacturing there were over 250,000 units of various modifications built. This made the model one of the most widely used buses in the Soviet Union and the LAZ factory the biggest bus manufacturer in Europe in the 1980s. The bus belongs to the model series 69x, which includes also the LAZ-697 "Tourist" and the LAZ-699.
History Considerations to build a new factory, specialized on production of spare parts for heavy duty trucks in the Ukrainian city Lviv, were made by the Soviet government after the Second World War. The construction was finalized in 1949. In addition to truck cranes, like AK-32, LAZ-690 (both mounted on ZIS-150), the factory dealt also with the production of car spare parts and truck trailers, like LAZ-712 for the truck PAZ-657 and LAZ-729 for the truck ZIS-150. At the beginning of the 1950s, the Soviet Union planned to create a new bus series that includes a lower class model, based on GAZ truck components, a middle-class model, based on ZIS trucks and an upper-class model, based on MAZ trucks. Thus, on March 17, 1955, the Ministry of Automotive, Tractor, and Agricultural Engineering of the USSR granted the task to develop several city bus prototypes with rear-engine design and space for 50 persons, of which 30 should be seat places. The intention was to replace the obsolete and virtually the only existing city bus model in the Soviet Union, ZIS-155. At that time the LAZ engineering team had sufficient construction experience from developing crane and trailer models in the previous years. The team also consisted of young and ambitious professionals focused on the idea of creating a completely new and progressive bus model. For that goal, the Soviet Union ordered cutting edge bus models from West German manufacturers, among which are the Mercedes-Benz O 321 and Magirus-Deutz O3500H/O6500.
Modifications
LAZ-695 (1956-1958) Before the serial production began, seven prototypes were built. Some of them were profoundly different from the previous prototypes, with the others including only some minor changes and modifications.
First prototype
The first prototype was produced just in time for the 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, on 12 February 1956, and got the name LAZ-695 "Lviv".
For the first time in the Soviet Union, the bus received a rear-longitudinal-engine with rear-wheel-drive layout (Predecessors from ZIS had a front-engine-layout). For this purpose, a 6-cylinder engine ZIL-158L was installed, which was afterwards also used in the city bus ZIL-158. Atypical for the Soviet bus industry, the new body features a self-supporting integral body design. An integral design consists of extruded profiles that are collected into a grid frame along with other supporting components, such as engine and axles.
Another cutting edge feature was the leaf spring suspension system. It had a stabilized stiffness and was independently from the load case. In front of every window leaf were installed little transparent plexiglass air reflectors. It was a specific feature of all prototypes, but was removed from the serial models due to bigger window leafs.
The main windows used a highly durable type of glass called stalinite, which was invented in Donbas glass factories in 1934. The rear entrance door consisted of 4 foldable segments and opened pneumatically inwards and the front two-segment door opened manually outwards.
The wheel rims have chrome-plated hubcaps. This feature was retained in all prototypes and serial models and have become a distinctive attribute of the 695/697 and 699 series, respectively. The first prototype was still very rudimentary after it rolled out of the factory. As such, it was greatly modified during the subsequent experiments. One of the main weaknesses was the inner space design, which is too narrow for a vehicle advertised as a bus for urban use. Likewise, the doors were too small and offered not enough place for increased passenger flow. Another major problem was the engine cooling system. Due to the rear-engine layout, the radiator takes insufficient cooling air volume. The lateral air intakes did not help solve the problem.
Second prototype
The second prototype was built in June 1956, in Moscow. The passenger's comfort was increased and paired soft seats, based on spongy rubber and sheathed with semi-synthetic textile, were installed. The rear door was removed completely and the front one was replaced by a one-segment door, which had to be opened manually.
These constructive solutions led to even bigger inner space problems, but now, the bus was no longer advertised as a city bus. Instead, it was classified as a suburban bus. Such a bus type operated between cities and nearby suburban and rural areas and had rarely to stop during the trip.
On the plate, the nickname “Lviv” was now written in the Ukrainian language. The front and rear wheel arches had a different design and the lateral moldings were moved slightly lower. The indicator form at the front were moved under the main lights. Although the number of air intakes were increased and the engine hood now have air slots, the problem with engine cooling persisted.
Third prototype
The third prototype from October 1956 was based on the first one and was once again classified as an urban bus. There were only a few minor design changes. The bus was tested on the 55th bus route in Moscow. The fifth prototype of the LAZ-695 was created in January 1957 based on the insights made during the test drives.
Fourth prototype
In the meantime, a further modification of the second, suburban prototype was created. It only differed externally though, technically, it remained the same.
The number of seats were decreased from 34 to 32. As in the first suburban prototype, the front door consisted of one part. When the door opened, a step extended, to make it easier for passengers to get in and out. The back door was completely removed.
The glazed area of the roof was increased. The front region consisted of three panes of tinted glass. This led to improved brightness within the bus but was a functional disadvantage. The middle pane took the attachment point of the indicator board.
The overheating engine remained the biggest problem. In an attempt to address the issue, the middle pane of the rear window was removed. Instead, there was an air intake that led the air from the roof to the engine.
Fifth prototype
The fifth prototype is considered to be the direct precursor of the first serial LAZ-695. The only detail that reveals the bus as a prototype is the absence of the tinting of the roof panes. In summer 1957 a little serial production began when about 100 buses were ordered for a festival of the youth and students in Moscow. The bus' nickname “Festival” was derived from this event. The main part was produced in the second half of the year 1957. For the whole year, 303 units were produced. The serial production continued until May 1958 and according to some data, about 1000 buses were built. After this, the bus front design was changed and many functionless and decorative details were removed, including the "Lviv" lettering and the false radiator grille. One example of the LAZ-695 “Festival” remained until today and was restored in the Moscow city transport museum.
Sixth prototype
Parallel to the serial production of the LAZ-695 “Festival”, in summer 1957, the engineers from LAZ also created another prototype with suburban modifications. The sixth prototype had a different front roof window with two panes instead of three and a single panorama window (the older prototypes had a double front window). In the inner space, mesh shelves over the seats were installed, so the passengers had an option to store their luggage. Curtains on the windows helped to keep the heat influx low. On the front, a big “L” letter appeared instead of the lettering “Lviv”. The letter “L” on the front became an important and distinctive symbol of all subsequent LAZ bus models.
Seventh prototype
The last prototype, a further development of the sixth one, was created in December 1957. It was more of a tourist bus than a suburban version, offering a high level of comfort. After 1957 the suburban and tourist versions were separated from the 695 line and received an independent model designation 697.
LAZ-695B (1958-1964) LAZ-695B is the second serial modification and was produced from May 1958 until 1964. There were a lot of interesting special sub modifications.
LAZ-695B prototype
Due to haste in the development of the first version and ill-considered borrowing of ideas from western counterparts, the LAZ-695 had a lot of flaws. In 1958 a consumer conference take place. The participants were a citizen (typical passengers) and operators of the LAZ-695. The main critical point was the weak construction of the body. The engineers are alread aware of it, but had to find the golden mean between elegance and stability. The glazed roof disappeared entirely at the development stage of the LAZ-695M modification.
The second critical point was the impractical inner space. The width of entry and exit doors was too narrow and in the vicinity of the door a passenger accumulation platform was missing. As such, it was difficult to characterize the vehicle as a city bus. Moreover, there appeared new competitors from ZiL and PAZ, which offered better bus models for urban purposes.
Also, for suburban areas, a more suitable competitor existed, the ZiS-127. These led to the creation of the LAZ-695B prototype with entirely different roof construction. The panes were removed. The front of the bus got a bigger window, an indicator board was installed, and the doors got wider. Also, an experimental pneumatic suspension on all wheels was installed. Although a huge work has been done and the tests gave good results, the LAZ-695B prototype was built only in one exemplar.
Serial LAZ-695B
Instead of putting the LAZ-695B prototype into production, a new modification for serial purposes was created in 1958, which included elements of the first LAZ-695 models as well as of the improved LAZ-695B prototype. The transparent plexiglass air reflectors on the window leafs disappeared because they broke quickly.
The model featured the modernized ZIS-120 engine, 120-hp ZIL-120FB.
LAZ-695B weight-optimized version
In 1959 a weight-optimized version of the serial LAZ-695B model was produced. In the course of the modernization, many interior parts including the seats, exterior sheathing parts, and engine components, were replaced by analogues made of fiberglass or nylon. As a result, the weight of the bus was reduced by 400 kg. Compared to the total weight of a serial LAZ-695B (6330 kg), 400 kg is, from the Soviet view, insignificant. Furthermore, the lighter parts led to a weaker construction.
LAZ-695B ambulance
After the invasion by Nazi Germany during World War II, the Soviet Union saw a high demand in ambulance vehicles and retrofitted their buses for these purposes. After the war, the problem changed and the country lacks in a vehicle for transporting people. Military ambulance vehicles were converted back into buses. This recognition led to the post-war intention to create vehicles, especially trucks and buses that, in case of war, could be quickly and simply converted into military vehicles.
In 1959, the leadership of the LAZ factory decided to develop an ambulance modification of the LAZ-695, which would meet the previously mentioned requirements. The retrofitting process was passed to the ZiL factory in Moscow.