Start with what the Moskvitch 2140 is: a 4-door sedan (car) / sedan / 5-door station wagon / 3-door van with 1.5 L UZAM-412 I4, built from 1976 to 1988, as the oil crises and the first emissions rules rewired the industry. What it meant takes a little longer.
How it came about
The Moskvitch 2140 series (Russian: Москвич-2140) is a small family car produced by Soviet automotive maker AZLK from January 1976 to July 1988. It started first as Moskvitch 2138 and Moskvitch 2140 on a modified 412 platform.
Pre-production models were shown during 1975. The Moskvitch 2140 SL/Moskvitch 1500 SL was an upmarket export variant, first publicly showcased in November 1980 for the 50th anniversary of AZLK, its production started in summer 1981; compared to the regular M-2140, it had large plastic bumpers with integrated side markers/turn signals, larger taillight units, plastic moldings on the door sides, and completely revised interior with new dashboard, steering wheel, and seats. The Moskvitch-2140 line was facelifted throughout the second half of 1981 into the beginning of 1982, with the M-2140 SL already having all these features since its debut: the red shield logo with Kremlin towers silhouettes was changed to an "АЗЛК"/"AZLK" wordmark in gray metallic font; the chrome trim around the grille, windows and rocker panels was removed; the black panel at the rear section between the headlights was now body-colored; the chrome hubcaps were discontinued and the cars were now delivered with plain steel wheels; the front doors now had single-piece windows without the quarter glass; the "Moskvich 1500/1360" fender badges and the "1500"/"1360" rear panel badge were removed; and the Latin "Moskvich" badge on the trunk lid was replaced with Cyrillic "Москвич" (pre-1982 Moskvitches, except for the M-21406, always had Latin badges, domestic-market cars included), though
The hardware
The engine is 1.5 L UZAM-412 I4. On the scales it comes to 1080 kg. The wheelbase is 2400 mm. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
Family and rivals
In the Moskvitch line-up the Moskvitch 2140 has a clear place: it replaced the Moskvitch 408 / Moskvitch 412; it handed the line to the Moskvitch Aleko; the factory was Moscow. The cars a buyer would have weighed it against include the Ford Fiesta, the Lotus Esprit, the BMW 3 Series. Its Moskvitch stablemates include the AZLK-2139 and the AZLK-2144.
Owning one today
There is no federal ownership record for the Moskvitch 2140 — it predates the complaint database or was never sold in the United States — so MotorJury publishes no running-cost figure for it. For a car of this age the price is set by the collector market and the condition of the individual example, not by a formula.