The development of the entire model range of the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant is currently under a big question. And UAZ Hunter 2022 is no exception to this. Moreover, the likelihood of a new version of this SUV is lower than other models. Although it is Hunter who should be the first car that UAZ will send for modernization.
Recently, the Russian media have not published news regarding the SUV. The only mention of Hunter concerns the recent sharp increase in prices for the entire UAZ model range. The SUV at the end of May rose in price by 353-388 thousand rubles, depending on the version. Now the car factory is asking for at least 1,395,000 rubles for the new Hunter, while the top version costs 1,685,000 rubles. The decision to raise prices for the UAZ lineup looks all the more unexpected, given that the company announced back in March its intention not to revise price lists in the near future. Apparently, the work to find new suppliers of components did not bring proper results, or the parts found turned out to be too expensive, which is why the company had to sharply increase prices.
However, a number of sources indirectly indicate that Hunter may still change in the near future. Along with it, the entire model range of UAZ will undergo modernization. Yes, the company Photos recently announced its plans to return to the Russian market. And she is going to localize the production of cars. So far, the exact place where the cars of the Chinese brand will be assembled has not been chosen. One option is the site. GAZ, with which Foton is currently partnering to supply cabs for commercial vehicles. But the Gorky Automobile Plant is currently loaded enough. Moreover, the company specializes in the production of completely different cars, and not those that Foton plans to supply.
Most likely, the Chinese company will choose UAZ to localize the assembly of its own models. The Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant, unlike GAZ, specializes in frame SUVs, which Foton previously supplied to Russia. In addition, UAZ’s capacities are currently underutilized. That is, cooperation will be beneficial for both companies. New UAZ models may come out of this collaboration, including Hunter, who has needed at least some kind of modernization for decades.
It should be emphasized once once more that neither the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant nor Foton have made any (even indirect) statements that they plan to establish cooperation. In addition, if such an option is implemented, it will take a very long time to wait for Hunter’s update. It will take time for the companies to first agree among themselves, then to modernize production facilities for Foton models, and then for UAZ products.
It is also unlikely that the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant will release a new modification of the Hunter. The company did not even make indirect statements regarding this. Although UAZ has often produced limited editions of almost all of its models in recent years. But today the company, apparently, does not have enough free money even to create a new modification. All this may indicate that Hunter will eventually disappear from the Russian market. Moreover, SUV sales have been steadily falling in recent months: now the sales volume is in the hundreds of units. Provided that the situation develops along the same path, this figure will soon drop to dozens of pieces.
