Lada Vesta

Lada Vesta at a glance: class, design and where it is built

The Vesta is a compact (C-class) four-door sedan with front-wheel drive, positioned above the cheaper Lada Granta and replacing the Lada Priora. It was first shown in August 2014, and series production is usually dated to 25 September 2015, with sales beginning that November.

Its styling is credited to Steve Mattin, who had earlier worked at Mercedes-Benz and Volvo. The underpinnings are usually described as AvtoVAZ's B/C platform, and Lada's crossover of the same period was the Lada XRay. Assembly takes place at the IzhAvto plant; for the wider company background, see our AvtoVAZ history.

The car also has a racing record: Lada Sport is listed as running Vesta touring cars in the World Touring Car Championship in 2015 and 2016.

Vesta variants compared

Between 2015 and 2018 the Vesta grew from one sedan into five road-going variants.

The Lada Vesta SW Cross has its own page with equipment and dimensions.

The Sport is quoted with 107 kW (145 PS) and a claimed 0–100 km/h (0–62 mph) time of 9.6 seconds; more on it in our feature on the sports Lada Vesta.

Some sources also list a version that runs on compressed natural gas as well as petrol, but its launch date could not be confirmed. A facelift, often called Vesta NG, is reported to have been presented on 22 February 2022, with production from March 2023.

Engines and gearboxes

Every Vesta uses a four-cylinder petrol engine; EU-spec cars had only the 1.6.

The 1.6 displaces 1,596 cc and uses a timing belt; it is usually listed as the VAZ-21129, and the 1.8 as the VAZ-21179. The ADAC catalogue shows the output falling to 75 kW (102 PS) when the engine was re-certified to Euro 6d-TEMP from December 2018.

Two gearboxes were offered in Germany: a 5-speed manual and a 5-speed automated manual (AMT), priced at €760 extra. Auto Zeitung reported that the AMT used ZF components and software. It is not a conventional automatic: actuators shift a manual gearbox, which explains the slow changes German testers noted.

With the manual gearbox, the EU-spec 1.6 reaches 0–100 km/h (0–62 mph) in 11.8 seconds and 180 km/h (112 mph). The AMT version takes 13.3 seconds and tops out at 178 km/h (111 mph).

Dimensions, space and boot

The series-built Vesta sedan is 4,410 mm long with a 2,635 mm wheelbase, slightly larger than the pre-production figures still quoted on some sites.

Key specifications: Lada Vesta 1.6 (EU-spec, 02/2017–12/2018)

The 480-litre boot is large for the car's length, although the Fiat Tipo and Skoda Rapid offered more. Auto Zeitung quoted up to 840 L (29.7 cu ft) with the rear seats folded. ADAC lists a turning circle of 11.0 m (36.1 ft), a maximum ground clearance of 178 mm (7.0 in) for the 2019 Luxus and a braked towing capacity of 900 kg (1,984 lb).

Kerb weights vary by source: ADAC lists 1,250 kg for the 2017 car and 1,270 kg (2,800 lb) for the later Luxus, while Auto Zeitung weighed its test car at 1,202 kg (2,650 lb).

The Vesta in Europe: Germany and Austria, 2017–2019

The Vesta was officially launched in Germany on 21 February 2017 at a ceremony in Hamburg, priced from €12,490. The Luxus trim cost €1,000 more, and the AMT added €760. In Austria the starting price is usually quoted as €12,990.

German-market cars had air conditioning, heated front seats, Bluetooth hands-free, a radio with AUX and USB, ESP and tyre pressure monitoring as standard; Auto Zeitung's 2018 test car added rain and light sensors and cruise control. The SW estate followed in Germany from 5 June 2018.

The European chapter was short. On 16 April 2019 Auto Bild reported that AvtoVAZ would stop exporting Lada cars to Western Europe at the end of 2019, because the Vesta and Lada 4x4 engines would not meet stricter EU emission rules, despite their Euro 6 approval. Orders for 2019 stood at about 2,500 vehicles, around 800 of them Vestas. According to the same report, Lada sold 2,545 new cars of all models in Germany in 2018. German registration totals for the Vesta are usually put at 1,971 for 2017–2020.

What the German road tests said

German magazines found the Vesta well equipped for its price but held back by chassis and drivetrain.

Auto Bild tested it at launch on 21 February 2017 and summed it up as "the price is hot, the equipment is right". It praised the low price, the well-stocked base car, the practical space and simple controls. Against it were hard plastics, few driver aids, a noisy engine at high revs, indirect steering and a suspension that passes bumps through.

Auto Zeitung tested the 1.6 AMT on 8 June 2018. Its testers liked the kit and space but criticised the slow, jerky AMT, a coarse engine, vague steering, an early grip limit, a harsh low-speed ride and a slow touchscreen. They called it a plain car that still needed work on steering, chassis and drivetrain. Test consumption was 7.4 L/100 km (38.2 mpg UK).

ADAC shows an overall Autotest score of 3.4 for a Vesta 1.6 16V Luxus. On the German school-grade scale, lower is better, so 3.4 is a middling result.

Safety, warranty and ownership

The EU-spec Vesta had ABS with brake assist, ESP, driver and passenger airbags (the passenger airbag can be switched off), rear parking sensors and tyre pressure monitoring as standard. None of the German sources mentions autonomous emergency braking.

No Euro NCAP result for the Vesta has been found, so there is no independent European crash rating to quote.

ADAC lists a 3-year vehicle warranty, 2 years on paint, 6 years against rust perforation and 3 years of mobility cover for German cars; check the paperwork of any used car for what still applies. We found no independent reliability statistics for the Vesta. A full service record is the best guide to an individual car.

Vesta against its rivals

At launch, the Vesta was priced below the Fiat Tipo and Skoda Rapid and slightly above a Dacia.

In February 2017 Auto Bild set the Vesta's €12,490 against the Fiat Tipo, which started at €14,250 with 70 kW (95 PS) and a 520-litre boot, and the Skoda Rapid, which started at €15,690 with 66 kW (90 PS) and 550 litres. Austrian site automobile.at added the Dacia Logan MCV estate at €11,290 with 66 kW (90 PS). The Vesta undercut the Tipo and Rapid by around €1,800 and €3,200 but trailed both on boot space.

Within Lada's own range it sits above the Granta; see all Lada models in our catalogue, or compare it with other sedans.