Russian EV prototype looks ridiculous, targets 2025 production

A new electric vehicle prototype has stepped onto the scene, and it’s shocking. Shockingly ugly. Created by Moscow Polytechnic University, it’s called the Amber and resembles a parrotfish that’s had its face clubbed by a frying pan.

The university did not release specs on the Amber’s range, power or even what kind of charger it uses. According to World Today News, production is scheduled to start in 2025 at an Avtotor plant in Kaliningrad. That site once built cars for BMW, Ford, and Hyundai before those companies pulled out of Russia following the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

With many high-profile western companies refusing to do business in Russia, as well as foreign government-imposed sanctions, the Amber’s developers have stated this will be a wholly Russian effort. However, as Ukraine Today says, supposedly Russian technology is often made in China.

But let’s get back to the styling for a minute. The Amber’s comically absurd exterior is likely a result of using off-the-shelf parts. As outlets such The Autopian have pointed out, its glass and mirrors have likely been purloined from an existing vehicle. The bug-eyed headlights look like something from AliExpress. 

The unnecessarily tall height hides what is likely a not-very-well-integrated battery pack under the cabin floor. What is less explicable are the two portholes on the right side. Perhaps the Amber will have dual charging ports, but their haphazard placement indicates more off-the-shelf components strewn together.

The Amber’s ugliness set off a wave of ridicule across the internet, including a dose of derision from Ukrainian social media users. Comparisons to the Fiat Multipla were probably inevitable. Russian cars built during the Soviet era — Lada, UAZ, VAZ — often sported a homely but utilitarian appearance. In the case of the Amber, it appears that at least some semblance of an attempt was made at design, but that almost makes the resulting misshapenness worse.

To be fair, Avtotor says, as World Today News reports, that the production model will look different from the prototype. Let’s hope so. Five Ambers will be submitted for certification in 2024.