In the Market for a New Russian SUV? You May Be In Luck

Jason R. Sakurai
by Jason R. Sakurai

Russian SUV maker UAZ, and Bremach, Inc., an American automotive manufacturer in Southern California, are introducing the Bremach 2022 Taos 4X4 mid-sized SUV. It matters little that you’ve not heard of UAZ or Bremach, they are collaborating to bring the Russian SUV and other vehicles to the U.S.

According to Bremach, their brand has been in Europe and around the world for decades. Founded in Varese, Italy in 1956 by the Brenna brothers, they first produced under license from Aermacchi a three-wheeled motorcycle called the Macchi MB1. The name Bremach was a combination of Brenna and Macchi.

In 1983, Bremach began production of the Brenmach GR, a multi-purpose, all-wheel-drive car. Launching the BRIO 4X2, a 75 horsepower municipal service vehicle in 1993, Bremach later offered the all-wheel-drive Family Extreme.

Since 2006, the company has introduced a new range of cars, the Brick, Extreme, and Job, and in 2008, the T-Rex was their replacement. 2009 saw Bremach and Russia’s UAZ produce the Bremach-UAZ T-Rex, to meet the needs of governmental agencies, road construction crews, and emergency vehicle outfitters, especially in remote areas. Production rights to the T-Rex were sold to Tekne in 2015, as Bremach s.r.l. filed for bankruptcy, and in March of 2018, the bankruptcy was completed.

Bremach Inc., an American division, survived the bankruptcy and started development of a new SUV 4X4 for the U.S. market with UAZ. This month, Bremach announced the UAZ Patriot 4X4 and pickup would be imported as the Bremach Taos and the Brio in 2021, going on sale as 2022 models. The 2022 Bremach Taos 4×4 SUV at $26,405 MSRP, is said to provide owners with massive value, apparently through offering as standard features a seven-inch touchscreen, in-dash multimedia MP3/USB audio system with 4 speakers and navigation, a rear-view camera, LTE, Wi-Fi, SD, and Bluetooth, heated front and rear leather seats, steering wheel, windshield and side mirrors; and a refrigerated glove box.

Eighteen-inch Sahara alloy wheels, 6-speed automatic transmission, remote ignition, front and rear parking sensors, anti-lock braking systems, electronic brakeforce distribution, driver and passenger airbags, electronic stability program, electronic stability control, computerized technology-improving vehicle stability, LED daytime running lights, front fog lights, cornering brake control (CBC), and a hydraulic brake assist system round out the list of standard features on the Taos.

Bremach’s Brio 4X4 pickup will also come loaded with advanced features as standard equipment. At $27,882.00 MSRP, the Brio will have the same warranty as the Taos. Like the Taos, the Brio pickup is made possible by working with UAZ and other suppliers. Limited information about the Brio’s content was available at this time, and calls to Bremach were not returned by press time.

Realizing Bremach isn’t a household name, the company is offering a five-year, 60,000-mile bumper-to-bumper, and a 10-year, 120,000-mile powertrain warranty. Comparing their SUV to the security and utility of a Lexus LX, or the advanced gearing and 4×4 ability of a Land Rover, the company is aiming high for a manufacturer without dealers listed on their website. At present, Bremach is accepting pre-orders, which will be directed to the nearest dealer once they are established. To Bremach, their most important partners are dealers as a conduit to customers, it will be interesting to see if their network materializes.

[Images: Bremach]

Jason R. Sakurai
Jason R. Sakurai

With a father who owned a dealership, I literally grew up in the business. After college, I worked for GM, Nissan and Mazda, writing articles for automotive enthusiast magazines as a side gig. I discovered you could make a living selling ad space at Four Wheeler magazine, before I moved on to selling TV for the National Hot Rod Association. After that, I started Roadhouse, a marketing, advertising and PR firm dedicated to the automotive, outdoor/apparel, and entertainment industries. Through the years, I continued writing, shooting, and editing. It keep things interesting.

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  • Mcs Mcs on Dec 31, 2020

    Forget this little gopnitsa toy. If I'm getting a Soviet truck, I want a Kamaz: youtube.com/watch?v=xrYRjV1ijvA youtube.com/watch?v=MkRI6JgMaMM

  • Carserviceboston Carserviceboston on Feb 22, 2022

    Blue Nile Livery SUV vehicle is a guarantee of road stability, excellent design and plenty of comfort readily available for the whole family. Some SUV models can carry up to seven passengers and usually have unlimited kilometers.

  • El scotto No rag-top, no rag-top(s) = not a prestigious car brand. Think it through. All of the high-end Germans and Lexus have rag-tops. Corvette is really its own brand.World-leading engines. AMG, M, S and well Lexus is third-world tough. GM makes one of the best V-8s in the world in Bowling Green. But nooooo, noooo, we're GM only Corvettes get Corvette engines. Balderdash! I say. Put Corvette engines in the top-tier Cadillacs. I know GM could make a world-class 3.5 liter V-6 but they don't or won't. In the interior everything that gets touched, including your butt, has to feel good. No exceptions.Some think that those who pay above MSRP and brag about it are idiots. Go the opposite direction, and offer an extended 10-year 100,000-mile factory warranty. At a reasonable price. That's Acura's current business model.
  • Carrera 2014 Toyota Corolla with 192,000 miles bought new. Oil changes every 5,000 miles, 1 coolant flush, and a bunch of air filters and in cabin air filters, and wipers. On my 4th set of tires.Original brake pads ( manual transmission), original spark plugs. Nothing else...it's a Toyota. Did most of oil changes either free at Toyota or myself. Also 3 batteries.2022 Acura TLX A-Spec AWD 13,000 miles now but bought new.Two oil changes...2006 Hyundai Elantra gifted from a colleague with 318,000 when I got it, and 335,000 now. It needed some TLC. A set of cheap Chinese tires ($275), AC compressor, evaporator, expansion valve package ( $290) , two TYC headlights $120, one battery ( $95), two oil changes, air filters, Denso alternator ( $185), coolant, and labor for AC job ( $200).
  • Mike-NB2 This is a mostly uninformed vote, but I'll go with the Mazda 3 too.I haven't driven a new Civic, so I can't say anything about it, but two weeks ago I had a 2023 Corolla as a rental. While I can understand why so many people buy these, I was surprised at how bad the CVT is. Many rentals I've driven have a CVT and while I know it has one and can tell, they aren't usually too bad. I'd never own a car with a CVT, but I can live with one as a rental. But the Corolla's CVT was terrible. It was like it screamed "CVT!" the whole time. On the highway with cruise control on, I could feel it adjusting to track the set speed. Passing on the highway (two-lane) was risky. The engine isn't under-powered, but the CVT makes it seem that way.A minor complaint is about the steering. It's waaaay over-assisted. At low speeds, it's like a 70s LTD with one-finger effort. Maybe that's deliberate though, given the Corolla's demographic.
  • Mike-NB2 2019 Ranger - 30,000 miles / 50,000 km. Nothing but oil changes. Original tires are being replaced a week from Wednesday. (Not all that mileage is on the original A/S tires. I put dedicated winter rims/tires on it every winter.)2024 - Golf R - 1700 miles / 2800 km. Not really broken in yet. Nothing but gas in the tank.
  • SaulTigh I've got a 2014 F150 with 87K on the clock and have spent exactly $4,180.77 in maintenance and repairs in that time. That's pretty hard to beat.Hard to say on my 2019 Mercedes, because I prepaid for three years of service (B,A,B) and am getting the last of those at the end of the month. Did just drop $1,700 on new Michelins for it at Tire Rack. Tires for the F150 late last year were under $700, so I'd say the Benz is roughly 2 to 3 times as pricy for anything over the Ford.I have the F150 serviced at a large independent shop, the Benz at the dealership.
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