GM Shelves Replacement for Russian Niva SUV

General Motors Co. says it has stopped development work on a next-generation version of the Chevrolet Niva small SUV, the company’s last Russian-built model.

GM introduced the vehicle in 2002. A replacement had been scheduled to debut in 2016. GM says it will continue to tweak and offer the current model, which is profitable.

The Niva has been produced by a joint venture between GM and Renault’s OAO AvtoVAZ unit in Togliatti. Last year, Russian sales of the aging SUV totaled 32,100 units, up 5%. But demand through the first eight months of 2018 slumped 6% to 18,900 units.

GM’s overall sales in Russia peaked in 2012 at 288,300 Cadillac, Chevy and Opel models. But sales plummeted to only 67,600 units by 2015, as economic sanctions against Russia dried up demand, according to the Moscow-based Assn. of European Businesses. GM canceled local production of all vehicles except the Niva in 2015.

AvtoVAZ originally developed the Niva for Lada, the Russian market’s top-selling brand, Automotive News Europe notes. It adds that Lada is developing a next-generation of its own SUV, which it markets outside Russia under the Niva name.

AvtoVAZ tells ANE it would be interested in buying back the Niva name for the domestic market if the price is right.