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“Carpet” Is the World’s Softest and Most Popular Car: A Lada Wrapped in Persian Rugs

With everything going on in the world today, it’s no wonder nostalgia is hitting high notes. Retro influences are everywhere and you don’t even have to look that hard to see them. Still, this Lada is in a league of its own.
Carpet-covered Zhiguli VAZ 27011 is softest, most popular Lada in the world and a work of art, according to the owner 8 photos
Photo: Instagram / Georgy Makarov
Carpet-covered Zhiguli VAZ 27011 is softest, most popular Lada in the world and a work of art, according to the ownerCarpet-covered Zhiguli VAZ 27011 is softest, most popular Lada in the world and a work of art, according to the ownerCarpet-covered Zhiguli VAZ 27011 is softest, most popular Lada in the world and a work of art, according to the ownerCarpet-covered Zhiguli VAZ 27011 is softest, most popular Lada in the world and a work of art, according to the ownerCarpet-covered Zhiguli VAZ 27011 is softest, most popular Lada in the world and a work of art, according to the ownerCarpet-covered Zhiguli VAZ 27011 is softest, most popular Lada in the world and a work of art, according to the ownerCarpet-covered Zhiguli VAZ 27011 is softest, most popular Lada in the world and a work of art, according to the owner
Lada is the most Soviet-era car ever, and it too is making a major comeback. Officially known in Russia as Zhiguli, it was exported internationally under the Lada name, and while ugly, cheap, and considerably underpowered, it could still take a beating and run. In recent years, it’s been the not-so-secret ingredient in countless Frankenstein-style projects from the mad geniuses from Garage 54, and this helped with its international comeback.

Locally, Lada is living the dream – again. Especially this one, affectionately known as “Carpet” or “Kovrolina,” a Zhiguli VAZ 27011 that’s been wrapped in Persian-style rugs, in an attempt to give it a new lease of life. That is not a joke: the owner actually spent two full months searching for the right kind of carpets in the shops of Moscow, and then another month and a half to stick them onto the body of the Lada.

The result is something that the owner calls a work of art, arguably knowing only too well that art is relative and subjective. That owner is Georgy Makarov, a student at the Moscow Automobile and Highway State Technical University and, according to OddityCentral, the son of one of Russia’s most prominent vintage car experts.

Makarov has been showing “Kovrolina” off on his social media, where he describes it as the softest, most popular and most Soviet car to currently roam the streets of Russia. In his most recent post, he promises a new and awesome photoshoot in St. Petersburg. Hopefully, it will include a look at the interior, because it would be a shame to have missed the chance to match it to the unique exterior.

“‘Carpet’ is my vision made real. It is made up of three concepts: the Soviet Union, the Zhiguli brand and carpets,” Makarov is quoted as saying. “For me, these are inseparable things, so I connected them in one car. Now it is an art object, a historical monument, and just a means of transportation.”

It’s that last capacity that will probably spell the end of “Kovrolina” as an art object. In the video below, Makarov is mercilessly driving it through muddy puddles and spraying it with some kind of fizzy beverage. Nothing spells art like the smell of a musty rug.

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About the author: Elena Gorgan
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Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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