Soviet snowmobile Tupolev A-3 in perfect condition put up for sale (15 photos)

It’s not every day that you see Soviet equipment on sale abroad. Even ordinary Volgas and Zhigulis are exotic in Europe or the USA. What about the Soviet snowmobiles, which were produced in only 800 units? The restoration was carried out in Germany and Romania, and the asking price is $210,000.





We are talking about the Tupolev A-3 snowmobile. Almost no original examples have survived to this day, so we were surprised when we saw perfectly restored snowmobiles for sale in the USA. Even more curious is the fact that the restoration was carried out in Germany, where the snowmobiles arrived back in Soviet times.

German specialists manually restored all body parts, and engine repairs were carried out in Bacau, Romania. This particular example is more powerful than the serial snowmobile: it received a 9-cylinder Vedeneev M14P radial aircraft engine with air cooling and supercharging with a displacement of 10.16 liters.

It is capable of producing 360 horsepower and is equipped with two counter-rotating propellers.



In 2006, the snowmobile won the Corinthian Prize at the Keels and Wheels Concours d'Elegance in Houston. According to some rumors, there are several more copies of the A-3 in the United States.

Mounted on a matching trailer equipped with twin compressed air tanks to run the engine, the 1970 Tupolev A-3 snowmobile is currently sold through Hyman Ltd. The asking price is $209,500.

The Tupolev A-3 all-metal amphibious snowmobile with an aluminum body was developed in the 1960s, during the Cold War era, when the Soviet Union needed new transportation solutions that would help cope with the difficult winter conditions in the Soviet hinterland, where roads were either poor or poor. , or were completely absent.





The A-3, also known as Nadezhda, was produced from 1964 to 1983. Its design combines elements of different types of vehicles: from an airplane and a snowmobile to an ekranoplan and a hovercraft.

The Tupolev Design Bureau, known for its achievements in the field of aviation, was responsible for the development. Snowmobiles were intended to transport passengers, mail and light cargo to remote and often isolated areas of the former USSR. The A-3 could overcome snow, water and frozen bodies of water.

Some samples were used for military purposes, for example, to evacuate crashed pilots, and even to search for astronauts.



In addition to the aluminum body, which helps reduce weight, the A-3 also has a double-coated bottom to protect against damage and a layer of low-friction polyethylene underneath that allows the body to glide over any flat surface, including water, snow and marshy terrain.

The cabin was designed for four passengers (not counting the driver/pilot), which can be accessed through lift-up doors.

The snowmobile was powered by a 100 hp five-cylinder radial engine, later models were upgraded to a 260 hp nine-cylinder radial engine taken from a light aircraft.

The thrust was enough to reach speeds of up to 120 km/h. Moreover, at speeds above 80 km/h, the body created a lifting force that allowed the snowmobile to hover above the surface like an ekranoplan.