| BAV-A/ZIL-485A | |
|---|---|
 A ZIS-485 at the Lubuskie Muzeum Wojskowe (Lubuskie Military Museum), Drzonów, Poland | |
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Automotive Factory No. 2 Zavod imeni Likhacheva (Likachev Motor Factory) |
| Also called |
|
| Production | 1952–1962 |
| Assembly | Moscow, Soviet Union |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | 6x6 amphibious transport |
| Body style | waterproofed hull |
| Layout | Front engine, six-wheel-drive |
| Platform | |
| Related | ZIS-151, ZIL-157, BTR-152 |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine | 5.6L ZIS-123 I6[1][2] |
| Transmission |
|
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | 4,225 mm (166.3 in)[2] |
| Length | 8.6 m (28 ft)(before modernization)[3] 9.54 m (31.3 ft)(after modernization)[4] |
| Width | 2.07 m (6.8 ft)(beam, before modernization)[5] 2.8 m (9.2 ft)(after modernization) |
| Height | 2.64 m to 2.66 m (8.7 ft) (with top-mounted) |
| Curb weight | 7,150 kg (15,760 lb) |
The ZIS-485, army designation BAV (Russian, БАВ, большой автомобиль водоплавающий - bolshoi avtomobil vodoplavayushchiy, big floating vehicle), is a Soviet amphibious transport, a copy of the WWII American DUKW.
During World War II, the Soviets received 586 DUKW-353 amphibious trucks under the Lend-Lease Act.[6] The design was regarded as successful, so it was decided to build a similar domestic vehicle. Due to lack of own experience, the DUKW was copied, although with improvements enhancing its capability.[citation needed] The prototype was built in 1949 in ZIS subsidiary DAZ in Dnepropetrovsk, but a production started at ZIS factory, as ZIS-485.[6] Introduced in 1952,[7] it was intended to complement the GAZ-46 4x4 amphibious reconnaissance vehicle, but using the ZIS-151 6x6 truck (also used in the BTR-152)[8] as its basis.[7] Similar in size to the DUKW, which it resembles, the BAV has a rear tail gate making loading and unloading easier, rather than all cargo being loaded over the side by crane. Also a platform was enlarged by 1/3, to 10.44 m².[6]
Initially based on ZIS-151 truck, after the introduction of the improved ZIL-157 the vehicle was modernized using its components now bearing the designation ZIL-485A (army designation was BAV-A). Its production started in 1958, but it ceased in ZIL factory in 1959, after manufacturing 2005 ZIS/ZIL-485.[9] It was planned to move the production to BAZ works in Bryansk, but only 24 vehicles were completed there by 1962.[9]
The cargo body is open, but a canvas cover is available.
Propulsion in water is by means of propeller.
BAVs were used in service by Warsaw Pact Armies and in the Middle East up to the 1980s.[10]
In use by the Soviet Union and its allies and client states the BAV was gradually replaced by the much larger tracked PTS amphibious vehicles.
