CLUB OF CAR FANS
/ OWNER'S EYES
FERDINAND - SAVIOR AND TURNER
THIS BUS EASY AND SIMULTANEOUSLY COMPLICATED THE LIFE OF THE FAMILY Kindergarten
TEXT / VICTOR ZELENUKOV
A gift that we could not even dream of, which turned our life upside down, made it richer and a little easier - the ZIL-325010 bus “Bull-calf” with its own name “Ferdinand”. The present was given to us by the editors of the magazine “Behind the Wheel”, whose employees became our friends. By the way, thanks to the mediation of the editorial office, the Avesto-M company replaced the heater for us, the Mosavtosteklo factory changed the substandard glasses, Power International sent the battery, and all this is completely free (ZR, No. 4, 8, 12 for 2000).
It's time to tell how Ferdinand lived. Mileage for the year amounted to more than 25 thousand kilometers. The appetite is quite moderate: in the country, with a not very economical driving mode, it fit into 15.5 liters of diesel per hundred, in the city - about eighteen. Oil consumed what is prescribed according to the instructions, no semisynthetics or synthetics. The engine oil has been changed four times already, and it was not necessary to add it between replacements. On this, perhaps, the positive qualities of the bus end, and although we love him very much, only curses will go on. Sometimes you regret that the lexicon of the magazine is limited by decency.
After a month of operation, there was no trace of black paint on the bumpers and rims, after two - rust appeared in many places of the body, moreover, not subject to oncoming blows of small stones. Now no one will say that the bus is a little over a year old, it looks so old. The roof had to be bolted - it began to come off. The magazine has repeatedly written about the low quality of Moscow tires "Magistral" (ZR, 2000, No. 9, p. 139; 2001, No. 4, p. 178). On our bus, such tires lasted from eight to ten thousand kilometers - and this is mileage ?! On the sidewalls bumps were blown up, and one tire was generally out of order, having exploded! In the first week of operation, the outer bearing of the right front hub is jammed. The reason is a bursting bearing cage. In this case, the lubrication was normal, the bearing was adjusted correctly. I checked it myself, because as it happened in our country in Russia, you need to stretch a new car and adjust everything again. Therefore, a bursting bearing was delivered at the factory.
The starter anchor shaft was clearly not subjected to heat treatment. As a result, at the next start of the engine, this shaft bent, the overrunning clutch of the starter disintegrated. It all happened in a winter, cold evening on a deserted road. Our whole family is on the bus. There is no way to start from a tug. I had to push an almost five-ton colossus. Twelve children plus a wife - this, of course, is power: they dispersed and started! Fortunately, the starter was changed under warranty for a week.
Most of all the troubles were brought by the electric parking brake drive. In the most inappropriate places, it suddenly worked, that is, the current in the electromagnet of the air valve disappeared. I had to climb under the bus and brake the handbrake. The winding of the electromagnet is made non-separable, as it is filled with plastic. But to disassemble non-separable and repair is not subject to repair - this is our national hobby. Tapping lightly on the body of the electromagnet, I determined the approximate place of contact loss, then melted the plastic with an electric soldering iron and fixed the malfunction. But the contact was lost elsewhere, and the moment came when I could not find the fault. Apparently, according to its characteristics, the electromagnet is not intended for prolonged exposure to voltage. I had to arbitrarily change the system and put the usual KAMAZ parking brake valve.
Once the radiator dripped. Its upper tank is inserted into a kind of bath, and then sealed. So, this bath did not have a piece of a board 12 centimeters long. I cut a suitable patch from brass and soldered it. The radiator has a very rigid mount, therefore, remembering the “experienced tips”, I left three out of four mounting points. While the radiator is no longer flowing.
The first trip to Moscow, when I was driving for about ten hours, showed that I couldn’t sit in the driver’s seat for more than two or three hours in a row. If ZIL cannot make normal chairs, then why not buy them at least from the Gazelle? After a trip, I bought myself under the Recaro ad for three hundred rubles. Over time, maybe I’ll find one for the salon.
"Torpedo" is made of black rough plastic, to match his instrument panel. The slightest dust is immediately visible on a black background, and there is no way to wipe it well. I glued all this with a self-adhesive film "under the tree." A completely different view - and it became much easier to clean.