Moskvitch 407 History

The Moskvitch 407 emerged in May 1958 when the factory fitted the outgoing 402-series body with a new 1,358 cc overhead-valve engine producing 45 hp and raising the top speed to 115 km/h. The OHV unit was a significant step forward from the side-valve architecture of its predecessors.

Where earlier Moskvitches had trickled into Eastern Bloc markets, the 407 became the first Soviet automotive export to be truly successful in the West. Up to half of all production was reserved for export — mainly to Norway, Finland, France, and other European markets — totalling roughly 120,903 out of 359,980 units built. In Western Europe it was sold as the 'Elite' (to avoid conflict with Peugeot's numeric naming conventions) and was assembled within the EEC by Scaldia in Seneffe, Belgium. The 407 proved the Soviet industry could compete commercially abroad.