1987 Yugo GV Review - The Eastern Europe Econobox!

My thoughts on the 1987 Yugo GV with the 1.1L inline 4 and 4 speed manual transmission!
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Sean's YUGO Videos: / smfeich
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#Yugo #YugoGV
Timecodes:
0:00 - Intro
0:45 - History Of Yugo
1:33 - Engine & Transmission
2:23 - Interior
5:33 - Exterior
6:22 - Final Thoughts
9:07 - Outro

[@teresapflaumer5717]

In my hometown in the 1980s, there was a guy who owned this exact same Yugo and it was almost always parked. And this was a town with 25 to 30 mph streets and tight, limited parking (perfect for the Yugo). Found out he had major issues with it and simply left it in the parking lot near his house. I have not seen any Yugo since 1990.

[@AiOinc1]

The company which manufactured Yugo is called Zastava (Zah-stah-vah) Automobili (Ah-toe-moe-bee-lee) which translates literally as "Flag cars" or "State cars." It was actually brought over by Malcom Bricklin, famous for other cars like the Bricklin SV-1 and more obviously, Subaru. He apparently saw the cars at an auto show in 1984 being imported by a company called Yugo USA, and immediately bought the rights for release. Yugo USA wanted to initially call the cars Jugos and sell them with the original 45HP pushrod 900cc 4 cylinder engine they received in Europe, but Malcom felt it would be too slow to keep up on American roads, and thus ordered the larger DMB1100 SOHC engine be used instead. In former Yugoslavia, this car was called the "Koral 55," and there were other versions such as the "Koral 45" "Koral Junior" and "Koral 65" to name a few. Zastava Automobili has NO relation to the Zastava which manufactures weapons. "Zastava," literally meaning "Flag," just indicates a government institution. Please do not push on the door locks while the door is open. They only lock while they are latched. This prevents you from locking the keys in the car by accident. Green means "Locked" because in theory your car and your possessions are safe. Climate controls are not actually unlabelled, the labels are immediately to the left of them. As the band gets wider the more heat you get! I'm going on my 4th year of ownership for my red 1988 Yugo GV and I couldn't love it more, even though it's been broken a few times it's always managed to make my smile, and that's about as special as it gets.

[@Trenton-om9qs]

My grandpa had 3 Yugos at one time. One that he drove and the other two were just basically parts cars. The one he actually drove he got for basically nothing because the engine was locked up because moisture had gotten into it. But he got it unstuck and it was actually a decent little car. It had its issues but nothing outrageous from what I remember.

[@calm360]

Although out of production for almost 15 years now, the Yugos are still very popular in Serbia because theyre very cheap, parts are really affortable and easy to service. Over here people either love them or hate them, but everyone respects them for what they are. The Yugo is not a bad car!

[@Helmuesi911]

The wind blew a Yugo of a bridge in the northern part of Michigan. I believe it was the Mackinac Bridge.

[@m2pmd70]

I laughed the entire test drive back in the '90s. Not only because it felt like I was shifting thru oatmeal, or that the solid L seats were attached with what appeared to be home door hinges. No, it was the broken passenger seat adjuster that was comedy gold. Every time I hit the gas, the wife would slide all the way back. Then when I hit the brake she'd slide all the way forward. 😆

[@Mladjasmilic]

Yugo (Jugo or Југо) is the name of southern warm wind. Word Jug in Slavic means South. In Yugoslavia Zastava 101 (later known as Yugo Scala, but based on Fiat 128) was the norm. It was VW Golf, 2 years before Golf exited. Yugo was based on Fiat 127 and 128. And it was huge upgrade over old Zastava 750 (Fiat 600). During time Yugo was sold in USA, Zastava started to make Florida, based on Fiat Tipo. Yugo was simply the cheapest. Now, not all Yugos were like this one in the video: In Yugoslavia cheapest was Yugo 45, 903 cc engine, shared with Fiat 127. That was only one with 4 speed. Next was Yugo 55, which had 1149cc from Fiat 128/Zastava 101. Next engine was 1.3, which came also fit with EFI. Some Yugo also had automatic gearbox and cabriolet as the option. Now, as it had big engine bay, tuners would 1.6 16v engine from Lancia Delta with 120hp, which in car as light as Yugo makes it a monster.

[@jlr194]

That's the best car ever made , YUGO!

[@NONAME-ze1kx]

That what she said

[@doritosnachococoodoodedoo2079]

Your right bro

[@AYouTubeChannelwithNoName]

Anywhere Yugo, I’ll be right there...

[@LukesVintageRC]

One of absolute favorite cars for no apparent reason. Thanks for sharing

[@drmnishikawa]

The Yugo was really precious and valuable hence the red for unlock and green for lock makes sense.

[@boki86zr1]

Nice, am from Serbia I have Yugo(1986.) made for USA market (it's much better then for our market), Yugo was my first car and after 35 years it's time for rebuild it, I hope I will be finish in 3 year, yes I have new car(Golf mk7) but I don't like new cars, bond between me and Yugo Is so strong I know Yugo is not best car ever made, but Yugo has a soul!

[@DetroitYugo]

I'm still not convinced that the gearbox isn't hooked up to a random number generator. Finding reverse is like stirring a cold pot of chili.

[@dalenvigil]

"The shifter feels very vague....."

[@Nele_BiH]

@@dalenvigil changing one part that costs like bag of chips makes huge difrence

[@martinaozvald9792]

Cute plates💪

[@AiOinc1]

Strange, getting into reverse isn't that bad on mine. It's at a weird angle but it's not hard to find. Have you checked your shift linkage and bushings? If the lock nuts aren't tight it will be super loose.

[@davidhorvatic5570]

Da,mjenjač ide u ćirilično ž( ж ). Po tome je poznat i poseban,zapravo poseban po mnogočemu 😀

[@malleryalacarte]

I loved driving my 1988 yugo.... something people never talk about is how solid the bodies actually were.... it gave an actual THUMP when you closed the doors

[@pavlovgoran]

Omg, that license plate- it's now part of history! Town Sarajevo (Bosnia)... And with communist red star 👍

[@adamantking6452]

Yes a Yugo review!! Glad you got to review it!!👍👍

[@ravick6940]

3:19 The sliders actually labelled to the left: -Top one is the amount of hot air drawn from the engine -Middle one is the amount cold air from the outside -Bottom is whether you want it to blow from the top or bottom vents In Europe pictograms were more popular than writing stuff as words, that way you don't have to make separate dash elements that say Heater, Heizung, Nagrzewnica, Riscaldatore, Chauffage, etc. for cars exported to other countries :D

[@greglapsevich6206]

The door lock red means not safe. Since the car was made by an arms manufacturer it goes along with a gun safety, A gun safety red means not safe. Red means dead.

[@cafn8ed74]

Funny thing about the Yugo... I noticed back in the '90s that any time you saw a Yugo parked in a driveway, there were usually 1 or 2 more parked elsewhere on the property in some state of disassembly.

[@AiOinc1]

Yep as soon as parts got hard to come by it became cheaper and more convenient to just get ruined parts cars.

[@dave11686]

Very cool that you found one of these! My favorite 80s hatchback’s are the Ford Festiva in the Subaru Justy though. My sister had the former

[@frankandersen3195]

I read somewhere, that Yugo GV chassis was based on a shortened Fiat 128, only the engine was Fiat 127 in the the smallest model. I had a Zastava 101 - the big brother to the Yugo, and I loved it: Unbreakable engine (Up to 8000 revs per minute, but remember to change oil and check timing belt), simple and cheap to repair, driving in an absolute straight line on the highway (No hands on the wheel😊), but a little heavy on the stearing. And as mentioned, very precise stearing, but the rest felt like supended in rubber. Only worse gearbox to change gears on, that I've, was a Land Rover Defender. Later I had a Lada Samara, and I wold prefer the Zastava at any time. Except that the the fuel tank was pretty much integrated in the rear bumper (The Yugo was better at that point at least).So I really wonder if it is justyfied, that the Yugo 45 allways makes it into these worst cars lists, or if it simply is because it was the only one making it to the USA, where the demands were much higher back then than in Europe. The last east car in the family was a Skoda Felicia, and that was just so much better. We had it for 18 years 😄 In Denmark east cars were popular due to a tax on new cars of, which was, if I remember correctly, 180 percent.

[@petethelion4614]

Love the videos man, Keep it up

[@claudespeed277]

I like the fact that the video started in a an abandoned kmart parking lot lol

[@Oscarutabaga]

I'm pretty sure the locks are locked with green down bc red being up means locked

[@miljasarajka3597]

That is the best car ever! It seems to have original registration plate! Sarajevo - SA :) It was my childhood car and it ran perfectly. Yugo is cute actually!

[@FPH-yi8yl]

I have one! A 1991 GV Plus with the 1.3 EFI and a 5 speed.

[@AiOinc1]

Nice! I have a red 1988 GV with dealer installed AC.

[@Jubikejtvojdeda]

man, yugo is an icon

[@FilK79]

Yes, Zastava is a major Serbian arms manufacturer. They produced cars since 1950s. The last model was Yugo Florida. And Yugo is SERBIAN.

[@thebestisyettocome4114]

I had new 1986 Red GV and 1987 Blue GV with a/c. I kid you not. Both for my two teens. They drove in high school and both took them to college. No issues with the YUGO's.

[@stephenchildofthelivinggod1006]

Simple but yet practical, id drive it:-)

[@user-rj6io9wi8h]

Amazing Video! Keep it up!!

[@mattgoguen3710]

The colored triangles next to the climate control levers denote what they are red for hot air blue for cool left is less of each right is more hnce the shape are up for use of upper vents aka defrost down for lower vents aka heater

[@TheJetJONES]

Zack, finding parts for Yugo isn't very hard - there are many stores in Serbia which have spare parts for Yugo ;)

[@zeekhedgehog]

I kept wanting to ask if that was a former Kmart you were filming at. :) One of the coolest car reviews I have ever watched. :)

[@semirb]

Love the old ex Yu Sarajevo license plate 😍

[@getoffmyyarn8219]

Cool review zastava is a good maker of pistols and the best AK made recently

[@user-xy7lf1tx1d]

The problem here was that people were attracted by the low-price of this and other econoboxes such as the Pinto, the Vega, the Renault cars and others. The prices started low, between the initial purchase price and the good fuel economy, but those savings quickly were cancelled out by the constant repair bills and short lifespan of the car. The notable exception was the Volkswage Beetle. Like the name implied, it was truly the people's car, designed for less affluent, working class people. I owned a VW bug convertible back in the 70s and not only was it good on gas, it was extremely reliable. Every little detail was designed in it to save you money. There was no air filter element to replace. Inside the air filter chamber was a little engine oil. The oil caught the incoming dust from the air, and when it looked dirty, you replaced it. There was no oil filter to replace. There was an oil screen that you cleaned. There was no windshield washer fluid pump. It ran off the air pressure from your spare tire. How's that for ingenuity and simplicity? The engine was air-cooled, so no need to buy antifreeze and radiator flush. The car was definitely not a mechanic's best friend!

[@brentneves3602]

Simple, practical and functional, something that we have forgotten about in modern times. Now it emissions, electronics, complexity, and expensive. Are we actually moving ahead?

[@AiOinc1]

These actually have a really overcomplicated emissions system, it's all vacuum based. Something to the tune of 40 feet of vacuum hose under the hood with kickers, switches, and diaphragms which actually do the emissions equipment without a computer. Having worked on it myself, I wouldn't call it better. The 91 and 92 GVPlus with Bosch Motronic EFI is considerably better in every conceivable way.

Cool video 👌😁

[@anzebeton1869]

''Zastava'' means ''flag'' and production stopped because NATO bombed the factory

[@bluruckuscrx8124]

Nope zastava continued producing it even after the factory was bombed in 1999 it ended production in 2008

[@nightvvisher7713]

Yeah, fiat now holds that factory and for some short time they produced fiat punto with zastava logo on it...

[@punmije]

what is the music in outro? Cheers from Serbia, I used to spend a huge amount of time in Yugo.

[@DanielAtkinsFirewood]

Zach. Thanks for the great laugh. I knew you would find a Yugo at some point.. What a goofy looking car it is. Not saying that in a bad way..👍 FYI I was 7 years old when this one was produced.

[@AiOinc1]

At least it was styled by Pinin!

[@marks6663]

the Yugo, along with Skoda, was introduced about the same time as Hyundai came out. Around 1984. Hyundai's first car was the Pony. I had a 1984 Pony. And it was every bit as crude as the Yugo. And in the beginning it was guessing game as to who would succeed. We know the answer now but I think it was only because Hyundai had the deep pockets to put a dealership network in. Yugo of course did not. Without a dealership network people were not going to chance it. The rest is history.

[@matthrivnak6572]

You go,, I go, we all go in the Yugo!

[@samiq4499]

I wonder how carbureted 1.1L can spin an AC compressor, believe me it's hard, even for carbureted 1.6 L engine.

[@DetroitYugo]

While idling, it uh.....really doesn’t like to. Once it’s up to speed, AC is fine.

[@bolt4694]

I sold these things new in the day. The Hyundai came out about the same time. Believe it or not, they were even worse than the Yugo. Yugos were so bad that banks wouldn't finance them more than two years because they wouldn't last the time of the loan. If you got hit by a truck, it would take dental records to identify the body.

[@vijayakrishnannair]

Nice 👍

[@sextcdj]

come to me in Serbia, there are sooooo much yugos. Yugo Florida was for the us. The tables SA is from the city Sabac, Serbia. I see Yugos, Zastava, Fića every year when i go to visit my country.

[@frankie.j]

Kakav Šabac bre, ovo je SA za Sarajevo. Vidiš petokraku na tablicama, ovo su iz doba SFRJ.

[@user-xy7lf1tx1d]

I heard that the Yugo, was a favorite among criminals in bad neighborhoods. It was frequently involved in push-by shootings.

[@robertdiehl9003]

Omg. Awesome car. Only seen a few of these in my life...

[@asadhussain1974]

😍WOW! I ❤ yugo. What a beautiful car it is so so simple and very basic. I would love to have that car. I don't know why people hate them just because they're cheap! Every coin has its two sides if you don't like them just don't but for someone this is the car just to go from a to b and it also have the ability to protect you from harsh weather. And you don't have to wait for overly crowded buses,vans and other local transport's if you have this cheap little car just start and drive go where you wanna go I'm sure It'll take you to your destination with ease. So thumb's up for the people who love these cheap little Yugo's 😊👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@syn3h]

Now you need to come to Indiana and film your second yugo!

[@ShootingCars]

Email me! [e-mail]

[@AladdinSaneNYC]

I wish I had bought a Yugo way back when they were sold here in the US! Automatic, and hard to find AC, definitely! I wonder if a pre-owned Yugo, in reasonable good running shape, is still to be found? A Yugo that hasn't been abused. Hmmm...🤔👍♐

[@markhealey9409]

I don't think automatic gearboxes were offered on Yugos in England,an a/c deffo wasn't.

[@mysticchrome4000]

The Yugo was the world's first disposable car. One tank full then you throw it away.

[@bojankundovic359]

Nice Car ❤

[@sparetirethomas6844]

A yugo is like a beer can powered by a hamster wheel with the interior decor of a PS2 and the clutch as wheel of fortune. What will we get next? Let’s find out in 2nd if it will be 4th 5th or a 2nd neutral. I know because I own a 88 GVL.

[@xxxlegend983]

Personally This is my dream car

[@markhealey9409]

A friend of mine here in England had two new Yugo 45s,what this model was called here back in the 80s,she had a white 1984 one,then bought a new blue one like the one you drove,in 1986. Also had a friend who bought one of the older style ones new in 1986 that they were still making in the 80s,and it was even cheaper! I can't remember the model name it was given,but it was a notchback hatchback,albeit not a large notch,if you know what i mean?? The older style ones in England,were actually imported still wearing their Zastava badge on the grill,even though sold as Yugos! They were made in Serbia,yes,part of Yugoslavia during communist rule,but before that the communist countries on the west side & northern part of The Balkan Peninsula were originally called the same as they are today,before the Soviets invaded! I am surprised you didn't see any old Yugos in Slovakia,when you were there! I saw several old Trabants,Volgas,Yugos & plenty of Ladas when i visited Bulgaria & România.

[@Rugerfiend]

Bought new Yugo 1989 head on with a bobtail truck. Left leg crushed left arm ripped off at my shoulder. Very nearly died... But damm I was proud of driving that little beast. The color of the car in this vid is Pacific Blue. Loved the color and bought it. I still have Pacific blue paint chips under the skin on my chest. Lol life is good. 🤣

[@danielboguse4249]

The car was imported by Malcolm bricklan for his own investment not because the US government wanted oil. Zastava did not export these cars but were imported by Bricklan for his own profits. I see a Yugo every day because it's parked outside in my driveway and I drive it everyday.

[@antesosic1600]

Yugos are becoming rarer and rarer in Croatia. Kinda want to buy one ngl. They are dirt cheap

[@AcuraCSXTypeSK20]

We got a yugo, whens the daewoo review coming?

[@ShootingCars]

As soon as I can find one!

[@seand2711]

@@ShootingCars I'm still driving my 2000 Daewoo Leganza. ☺️

[@AkiroStation]

YUGO "Let's get serious" 9:33

[@MREnzoHerbie]

The problem of Yugo was the owners, some people did not even made the maintenance like change oil, and then the cars started to broke down. I know, some of they had problems with some things at the car's interior, but it does not have mechanical problems at all, if it have good maintenance.

[@filipmac5577]

Long Live Josip Broz Tito and the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia! Basic necessities over unnecessary luxury!

[@caliopist]

Jugo is named after a type of wind. It says so on Wikipedia in Serbian about Jugo the car. So maybe it's true.

[@nikoladin661]

No

[@giovannibattista1529]

Un misto di pezzi di auto

[@JustDoRight]

I had one. Lmbo!

[@getoffmyyarn8219]

Looking at a YUGO 87 on a local sight ,

[@AladdinSaneNYC]

EFI too, please! 👍♐

[@TheNemo65]

In 1988 I was too poor to buy a Yugo so I bought a 3 cylinder Suburu Justy.

[@frog382]

I live in the ex Yugoslavia and we owned couple of yugos. Red doesnt mean unlock, its the idea that if you want to lock it, you press the red button to lock it and its locked. It becomes green yes, but it becomes the button you want to press to unlock it, so you press green to unlock. It confused me as a child, but thats the way they thought was logical. Its not xD

[@hsu9997]

They make weapons...and yugo...Hahahaha.(1:29) His sound is incredibly hilarious.

[@InterstateRaziTV]

THIS is a YuuY

[@BoredOuttaMySkullBoi]

Some company like Ford or Chrysler needs to buy the rights to the Yugo name and design and revive it. Same design, same concept, like really basic, except with like a tubrocharged 4-cylinder and sell it brand new for like $11,000

[@The_Opinion_of_Matt]

I don't believe I've ever seen a Yugo in person. I think I've only seen 3 or 4 KZbin videos on them. It's not like I gone looking for videos though.

[@seand2711]

My friend had that exact Yugo in 1987. I remember driving it and honked the horn and the button popped clean off the steering wheel. It was such a cheap POS even when brand new. You could get a much better Hyundai for a couple thousand more back in the day.

[@aaronwilliams6989]

They both SUCKED, but the Yugo was far worse.

[@bluruckuscrx8124]

@@aaronwilliams6989 the Yugo is an excellent car for Eastern Europe

[@aaronwilliams6989]

@@bluruckuscrx8124 Perhaps, especially when those people don't have to drive so much.

[@thegreenpickel]

Your switch bank is fully populated most cars today have a bunch of blanks.

[@90sbuickguy84]

It kind of reminds me of a 1986 Volkswagen golf

[@M1H1yt]

THATS WHAT I HAVE THATS MY NUGGET

[@TheJetJONES]

0:15 although it's a 1987 Yugo GV (base model) it has A/C 😳

[@___Steinn___]

But the A/C wasn't a factory option. I'm more shocked by the fact that it's got rear seat headrests.

[@markhealey9409]

Me too regarding rear headrests! Although common on Western European cars by the 80s,my friends' 3 80s Yugos did not have them.

[@ponysoftonline4533]

It's my 1986 Hyundai Excel but even more spartan...

[@jm100368]

ok well that sticker by the gas tank has a website on it , which obviously wouldnt have been a thing in 1987

[@overthehilldill3626]

Anywhere Yugo, aisle go.

[@bridgetsawamura56]

YuuY

[@ericwilliams2574]

YuuY for SuS!

[@bridgetsawamura56]

@@ericwilliams2574 Ｙｅｓ！

[@predragv.365]

Front plate Sarajevo. 👍👍👍

[@samiq4499]

Looks like old VW Golf

[@strangerfings7926]

The US government had nothing to do with bringing over the YUGO. It was imported by a private company headed by Malcolm Bricklin. The same man who brought Subaru to America.

[@boinknook]

I owned a white 1986 yugo. I used to put 40 miles a day on that thing. 1.1 liter and Had a 2 barrel weber (Ferrari?!😳) carburetor. Quality could have been better but I can top this. I now own a 2018 chevy equinox 2.0T and one of the valve seals went. 11,000 mi and need a rebuild already. I had 40,000 mi before I traded that yugo in. Not funny.

[@MrSedatePiano]

Same company that made my m70 🤣

[@misaradovic985]

Some facts - Zavodi Crvena Zastava (Institutes Red Flag) was the name of the factory. It is located in Kragujevac, 120 km from main city - Belgrade. Why Institutes (plural)? Because the car factory was only one small part. They made cars, trucks, amunition, guns, all kind of machines...to be precise - Institute Red Flag - Cars (Zastava automobili), Institute Red Flag - machines (Zastava Masine), Institute Red Flag - guns (Crvena Zastava oruzije) and so on...Big factory, big potencial but very bad politics. It has been sold to Fiat. The name Yugo does NOT come from the name of the country Yugoslavija. It comes from winds that blow in the Balkan area and being called Yugo (Yugovina). That is Southern Winds (South Winds) when we translate the name literarly. Great little car.

[@Slovenskwolk]

This is a cousin of FIAT 147.

[@mr.michealsmith6346]

if you wont get them from Macedonia. They are everywhere and sell for like 400euro. Tempted to import one to Australia

[@GG-hu9dn]

Pragmatism!

[@TheDumbassSoldier]

Yugo is best car in world not worst people are just stupid it is the best cheapest , easiest and as first car to own hell my aunt has it still and it was fun too :D but i already got my first car a month ago its 1989 Lada Samara 2108 (VAZ-2108 or 1300) ;)

[@mr.giraffe7076]

I own an 87 yugo with the 1.1 fiat in it. It's 2023 and it runs great. Don't believe the lies.

[@RacerC45]

Aren't you even aware of this car's negative reputation?

[@entonii9270]

No one is excited to drive a Yugo except you, Zack.

[@DanielAtkinsFirewood]

Hahaha.. But if you like odd cars the Yugo fits..

[@jlr194]

Me too, you don't have a yugo

[@adarbs6384]

Actually I'd give anything to have my old Yugo back now, I had a 45A (the 1100cc base model in Europe) 1986. It was a great car, never broke down once, ok so you never really know which gear you're gonna get when you change, but that's all part of the fun. Just simple, plain honest and cheap motoring 😁

[@carlosnavarro921]

Yugo meant Yugo nowhere fast lol

[@srdjanblanusa4251]

It isn't rare in Serbia

[@johnheffelfinger2154]

What do you call a 4 door Yugo? A We-Go!

[@faustinoasprilja]

You got it everything wrong. I mean everything! Yugoslavia is not Eastern Europe. Secondly,it is a former FIAT car,they did not like it,disbanned it and sold the rights to Yugoslavia and it continued to produce in Yugoslavia. So it is pure Italian car.Italia also is not Eastern Europe! So,by any means,it is not Eastern Europian car. It was produced in SERBIA,not Bosnia and Croatia. Factory was called RED FLAG and they changed that name in ninties,after break up of Yugoslavia. Red Flag was a big complex of several companies,conglomerat,so it is not that Armory Factory produced cars. Similar like Hyundai or Mitsubishi. Don't go anymore either to a car history or a world history or geography,because you don't know a thing about those three. Stick to the things you know.