Aurus Motors (Russian: Аурус Моторс) is a Russian luxury automobile company founded in 2018, originally strictly as a Russian motorcade vehicle brand until 2021 when the company's first civilian model, the Aurus Senat, began production in May. The automaker claims to have sold 115 cars in 2023.[3] Facelifts are planned for 2026 and 2030.[4] President Putin had a facelifted Aurus in 2024.[5]
Native name | Аурус Моторс |
|---|---|
| Company type | Private |
| Industry | Automotive |
| Founded | 2018 |
| Headquarters | Moscow, Russia |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Andrey Pankov (CEO)[1] |
| Products | Automobiles |
| Owner | NAMI (63.5%) Tawazun Holding (36%) HEAT MOTORS RUS LLC (0.5%)[2] |
| Website | aurusmotors |
Name
According to the company, Aurus is a portmanteau of aura or aurum (Latin for 'gold') and Rus.[6]
History
In 2013, NAMI began development on a new Russian presidential state car to replace the then-current Mercedes-Benz S 600 Pullman Guard.[7]
In 2018, the new Russian presidential state car and motorcade vehicles were introduced under the Aurus Kortezh (Russian for cortege or motorcade) line of vehicles. This includes the Senat sedan and limousine, Arsenal van, and Komendant SUV. The three vehicles are named after Kremlin towers.[8]
On 19 February 2019, the Russia Ministry of Industry and Trade announced that Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates-based company Tawazun Holding will invest in a 36% stake of Aurus Motors for US$124 million within the next three years and will distribute Aurus cars in the Middle East.[9]
At the 2019 Geneva International Motor Show in March, Aurus exhibited the Senat and Senat Limousine, previewing future sale of the models.[10]
At the 2019 24 Hours of Le Mans from 15 to 16 June, G-Drive Racing partnered with Aurus and raced an Oreca 07 rebadged as the Aurus 01. The team finished 11th place in the race with 364 laps.[11]
In May 2021, Sollers JSC began civilian-use production of the Senat motorcade car at the Yelabuga, Tatarstan Ford Sollers plant, where the Russian-spec Ford Transit is produced.[12][13] The base model started at ~18 million rubles (US$243k), while the launch edition model was priced at ~22 million rubles (US$297k).[14]
Models
Kortezh series
The Aurus Kortezh line is developed by NAMI and manufactured by Sollers.
Civilian models
- Senat (2021–present), a full-size luxury sedan[12][15]
- Senat Limousine (2021–present), an armored limousine based on the Senat sedan[16]
Motorcade vehicles
- Arsenal - a luxury passenger van[17] (Аурус Арсенал)
- Senat - a full-size luxury sedan (Аурус Сенат)
- Senat Convertible - a luxury convertible[18] (Аурус Сенат Кабриолет)
- Senat Limousine - an armored limousine based on the Senat sedan and the official Russian president state car[19] (Аурус Сенат Лимузин)
- Komendant (released in November 2022), a luxury full-size SUV[20][21] (Комендант)
Upcoming models
- Merlon (to be released in 2023), an electric motorcycle prototype[22] (Мерлон)
Motorsport vehicles
- 01, a rebadged version of the Oreca 07 Le Mans Prototype racing car, released in 2019 and eligible for the 24 Hours of Le Mans[11]
References
- ^ "Бывший гендиректор Renault в России возглавил Aurus". ria.ru (in Russian). 28 December 2022.
- ^ "Russia starts series production of Aurus luxury cars". TASS. 31 May 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ https://www.autonews.ru/news/65a8f02f9a7947789d469fda
- ^ https://t.me/tass_agency/246921
- ^ http://web.archive.org/web/20240507113231/https://t.me/rbc_news/94302
- ^ "Brand". Aurus Motors. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ "Новый отечественный автомобиль представлен в ходе инаугурации Президента Российской Федерации" (in Russian). NAMI. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ "Для "Кортежа" разработали "очень красивый" мотоцикл". Motor. 18 May 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ "Abu Dhabi's Tawazun to get a stake in Russian luxury car project". Reuters. 18 February 2019. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ Ramey, Jay (11 March 2019). "The Aurus experiment: Russia's Rolls-Royce makes Geneva debut". Autoweek. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ a b "G-Drive Racing Confirm Aurus 01 Gibson Effort In 2019 ELMS & Le Mans 24 Hours". Daily Sports Car. 2 April 2019. Archived from the original on 8 September 2019. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ a b "Russia begins production of high-end sedan promoted by Putin". Reuters. 31 May 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ "'Tatarstan will make another step forward': Putin launches Aurus plant in Yelabuga". Realnoe Vremya. 2 June 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ "Mass production of Aurus will start in May". Russian Automotive Market Research. 21 April 2021. Archived from the original on 18 July 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ "Aurus Senat". Aurus Motors. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ "Aurus Limousine". Aurus Motors. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ Udachin, Sergey (23 October 2018). "Aurus Arsenal Is Vladimir Putin's New Luxury Minivan". Motor1. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ "2nd Aurus Senat Cabriolet rolls off the factory lines". FormaCar. 17 March 2020. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ Pascal, Brian (31 August 2018). "The Russian automaker that created Putin's armored limo made a luxury version that rips off Mercedes and Rolls-Royce — take a look at the Frankenstein car". Business Insider. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ Ezhov, Andrey (28 November 2018). "Aurus Komendant: названа дата начала производства". Kolesa (in Russian). Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ Vijayenthiran, Viknesh (2 April 2020). "2021 Aurus Komendant spy shots". Motor Authority. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ "КРОМЕ ПРЕМИАЛЬНЫХ ВНЕДОРОЖНИКОВ ПОД МАРКОЙ AURUS ВЫПУСТЯТ МОТОЦИКЛ: ЕГО МОТОР И ВНЕШНОСТЬ УЖЕ РАСКРЫТЫ". NaAvtoTrasse (in Russian). 16 June 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.