Lada Niva: Replacement for 50-year-old off-road icon breaks cover

The Lada Niva is to Russia what the Mini is to Britain, the Citroen 2CV is to France, and the Ford Mustang is to the US, and now the original compact off-roader looks like it’s being renewed for the first time since its release almost five decades ago.

Auto Express has unearthed these six patent images revealing a rugged new SUV that looks a bit like the old Niva but more like the new Dacia/Renault Duster.

Published on Russia’s patent registration website, the images show a boxy SUV bearing the ‘NIVA’ name on its black grille, suggesting a second-generation Lada Niva is finally in the works.

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Although long-wheelbase five-door and extra-long-wheelbase pickup derivatives were added in the 1990s, the original Niva three-door remains in production almost 50 years after its initial release.

As of 2020, an estimated 650,000 Lada Nivas had been sold globally, and the model has become both a cult-classic off-roader and a symbol of Russian automotive pragmatism.

Now these images indicate Lada is developing a successor for its most iconic model, although it won’t be the first new Niva to emerge since the 1970s.

When Lada took over production of the 2003 Chevrolet Niva it was rebranded as the “new” Lada Niva, and it was further rebranded as the Lada Niva Travel in December 2020 after Lada bought out General Motors’ stake in the company, while the old model was renamed the Lada Niva Legend in January 2021.

It remains to be seen whether the new Niva will replace or run alongside the old model, but apart from bearing the Niva name on its grille, the vehicle in these images also features rear door handles hidden in the C-pillar per the original Niva.

Development of a new Niva reportedly began when Lada was still part of the Renault Group, which had planned to employ components from the conceptually similar Dacia Duster (sold in Australia as a Renault), and perhaps that’s why elements such as the headlights, lower grille and wing mirrors resemble those of the latest Duster.

In line with Lada’s low-cost utilitarian roots, the new Niva will be offered only with combustion power – as you can see from the exhaust outlet in the images here – and it’s understood it will continue with the 1.8-litre four-cylinder petrol engine from Lada’s parent company AvtoVAZ, rather than adopt a Renault engine.

The reincarnated Lada Niva should not be confused with the new Lada Azimut small SUV, which was revealed in June 2025 as the first new Lada in a decade.

Based on the platform developed by Renault for its Vesta sedan launched over a decade ago in 2015, the Azimut is Lada’s first new model since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine and Renault’s sale of the automaker back to Russian hands for a single ruble.

MORE: Lada Azimut: Russian brand’s first new model in a decade unveiled