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1500 HP GAZ 13 Chaika Dragster Is a Thing to Behold

Americans build dragsters based on all sorts of crazy machines, even school buses or trucks, which they sometimes fit with jet engines. So why shouldn't the Russians do the same? Just because most of their early models are copycats doesn't mean that we shouldn't pay any attention to them.
1500 HP GAZ 13 Chaika Dragster 15 photos
Photo: RDRC Facebook Page
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Let's check out this awesome custom dragster that's based very loosely around the GAZ 13 Chaika. Very few of the body panels belong to the late 50's limousine, but they resemble them, just like a funny car or NASCAR racer.

Details are strictly limited, but we've managed to find a couple of photos where the hood is removed, revealing a custom suspension and the low-slung 1,500 horsepower V8 engine. The firewall suggests the dragster actually started life as a Chaika and its chopped roof is supported by a roll cage.

Even though the dragster is running under the Russian Drag Racing Championship (RDRC), it's owned by an Estonian team. The RDRC has been organizing events across Europe all summer, and we're being treated to the fastest pass at 7.7 seconds.

The original GAZ Chaika was produced between 1959 and 1981. It was made using tooling bought from Packard after they went under and this particular early model is an almost exact copy of the 1955 Packard Patrician. Power came from a 5.5-liter V8 engine that sent 190 hp to the rear via a push-button 3-speed automatic transmission designed after the Chrysler TorqueFlite unit.

While regular citizens were allowed to rent these cars for weddings, they were generally reserved for powerful people. GAZ Chaikas were used by the Soviet government, usually the First Party Secretaries in states like Germany, Korea, Bulgaria, Hungary and even Mongolia. It was said that Nikita Khrushchev preferred it to his ZIL and gave one example to Castro.

Once a sinister symbol of power and oppression, now a speed machine, the GAZ 13 has done it all.

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About the author: Mihnea Radu
Mihnea Radu profile photo

Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida.
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