Origins The roots of Zastava lay in the 1851 founding in
Kragujevac of the
Vojno-Tehnicki Zavod (Military Technical Institute). The institute developed a cannon foundry division in 1853, becoming a military vocational school in March 1854. During the 1880s, Zastava also began with the production of
firearms. At the end of the 19th century the cannon foundry changed its name to the Military Engineering Works. The firm rapidly expanded its production program and the complexity and quality of its products. That original company is now known as
Zastava Arms. In 1904, within the company, a section dedicated to automobiles was inaugurated. Beside repair services, certain car parts were also manufactured. In 1939, it begins assembling
Chevrolet military trucks. Production came to a halt in 1941 with the
Axis invasion of Yugoslavia and, by then, 400 trucks had come out of the factory which consisted of a working force of 12,000 men. Three months later, Kragujevac began assembling the
Fiat 1400,
1100 B and
AR-55 Campagnola. Fiat 1400 was Zastava's first assembled automobile, but
Fića Zastava's licence built version of
Fiat 600 is its iconic historical brand. 923,487 of Zastava 750 were produced over a span of 30 years, The company entered the new decade with a replacement for the 1400: Fiat's 1100, shown in Geneva as the successor to the 1100 B. With the advent of the 1961
Fiat 1300 and 1500 came Zastava's 1300/1500 series, produced as both sedans and wagons. With all-around disc brakes, rear-wheel drive and up to 72 horsepower, the "tristać" was Yugoslavia's favorite upmarket car. Today, many across the former Yugoslavia recall the 1300 as Zastava's best automobile ever: the
Jugoslovenski Mercedes as they call it. 201,160 copies of the 1300 and 1500 were produced from 1961 to 20 December 1979. In 1983, export sales accounted for over a sixth of Zastava's production. Later in the 1980s, Yugo was exported to USA and at the same time it went through several modifications, most importantly the adoption of a five-speed gearbox. In the same decade, Zastava changed its branding name to Yugo and derivative models were renamed: original Zastava Yugo to
Zastava Koral and Zastava 101/128 to
Zastava Skala or Yugo Skala. The original numerical classification would remain unchanged for some export markets, as for the United Kingdom. These were Zastava's best years in number of cars assembled; around 230,000 cars a year towards the end of decade. Zastava cars were to be sold in 70 countries at the time, with 27,000 exported to Western markets. The factory also started to make trucks, under a
Iveco licence.
1990s In 1988 a new model was released called the
Zastava Florida (known as Yugo Sana or Yugo Sana Miami, in some countries). Its exterior was designed by
Giorgetto Giugiaro, with a body shape similar to a
Fiat Tipo (1988) or
Citroën ZX (1991). In the early 1990s, Zastava was affected greatly by the
breakup of Yugoslavia. The factory production became unstable because of a problem with supplies. Exports were impossible during those years, because of trade sanctions imposed on Yugoslavia. As a result, its cars disappeared from most foreign markets after 1992. Production stopped in 1993, even though there was a waiting list for Yugo cars. Between 1992 and 1995, it was under UN sanctions, and then between 1998 and 2000, it was under EU and US sanctions. As a result, many Zastava
subsidiaries abroad were forced to cease trading, such as Zastava (GB) Ltd. in the United Kingdom and Yugo Cars in the United States. In 1999, during the
Kosovo War,
NATO bombed the factory in
Kragujevac, Serbia because
Zastava Arms was a major military supplier to the Serb government. Some of the car manufacturing buildings were damaged and numerous workers were injured.
2000s After the war, there were trade talks with Hungarian firms to assemble Yugos in Hungary, but no agreement was reached because of the Yugoslavian partner's hesitation. However,
Zastava Trucks were assembled in Hungary, near Pécs, with Iveco engines. Yugos were facelifted and new versions are introduced in the
Belgrade International Motor Show in 2002. The new Zastava Koral IN had a 1.1l 55HP engine with
Bosch electronic injection, the transmission designed by
Porsche, slightly new internal and external design, improved safety, and many extra details which were missing from former models. Koral In also have Peugeot 1.1L, 60HP engine. The new generation of Yugo was granted a
FIA certificate, so it was in compliance with European standards. In October 2000,
Vojislav Koštunica became the new president of Yugoslavia (also a Yugo Koral owner) and soon after, the sanctions against the country were lifted the exports resumed. The production had fallen to a mere 9 per cent of its pre-1990 230,000-vehicle annual capacity, with exports at around 4,000 vehicles. The new Yugoslav government embarked on a $50 million reorganization effort in cooperation with the
World Bank, which resulted in mass layoffs, aiming to privatize the company. A new prototype for the Yugo Florida, known as the Florida 2.0, was made, equipped with the same engine as in the
Fiat Bravo 2.0.
Cancelled project: Zastava Motor Works In 2002, the American entrepreneur
Malcolm Bricklin, who had previously imported Yugo into the United States, signed a deal with Zastava to reintroduce the company's products into America. Bricklin's intention was to sell the cars for less than $10,000 under the brand name ZMW (as in Zastava Motor Works). Even though a website proclaiming the brand's arrival was produced by Bricklin's company, by 2006 his intentions had switched to importing products from Chinese car maker
Chery instead. Also there were produced some unknown models from the beginning of the 1990s and after 2000 as the respond of new market demands. Such models were: Yugo GV Turbo (90's), Yugo Electra (90's), Zastava Koral In (euro-concept), Zastava Globus Koral In (electromobile), Zastava Florida Caravan, Zastava Florida Sedan.
2005–2008 Zastava automobiles have been sold and exported in
Serbia,
Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Montenegro,
Croatia,
North Macedonia,
Greece,
Bulgaria,
Lebanon,
Libya,
Syria,
Ecuador,
Tunisia,
Poland, and
Egypt (where Zastava cars were produced under the marque of the state owned
Nasr car company). CEO of Zastava cars Zoran Radojević has declared that the company has received offers from African countries for technology transfer. It is believed that Congo was interested in starting production of the
Zastava Florida and Egypt of the
Zastava 128. In October 2005, an agreement with Fiat was reached for production of the
Fiat Punto by Zastava for Eastern European markets, which would be commercialed as the
Zastava 10. The Koral IN L, with a fuel injected 1.1 L
Peugeot engine, met the
European Union safety standards in a test supervised by the German
Technischer Überwachungsverein (Technical Monitoring Association). This was seem as a chance to pave the way for export to EU countries. The
Zastava 10, based on the Italian
Fiat Punto Mark 2b, was the last Zastava's most modern car before this factory was taken by
Fiat. Optional features included dual front airbags and air conditioning, as well as power windows. Although the Zastava 10 was Zastava's newest and best model at that time, it faced fierce competition in its home market against cars like the
Volkswagen Polo. However, it had some advantages over many of its rivals, including price. As of December 2007, Zastava 10 price started at €7,550 in the Serbian market. In March 2007, the Zastava 10's share of the Serbian car market was 11% and the company started exporting cars to former Yugoslav republics in the first half of 2007, and with plans to add to Bulgaria and Albania as well. Production of all Zastava cars (Yugo, Skala 101 and Florida) ceased by November 20, 2008. After that day, the only car in production was to be Zastava 10 which has had its front part slightly modified and its name was changed to Punto Classic. In addition to the Punto Classic (ex-Zastava 10), Zastava was negotiating with Fiat for the production rights to another model not yet in production, a C-segment sedan, codenamed Project D200, to be manufactured for Fiat by Zastava and/or
Tofaş of Turkey. It was considered to compete with the
Dacia Logan. Zastava signed an agreement with
General Motors to produce the
Opel Astra G, but despite the start of industrial tests in Kragujevac, the project was eventually aborted.
2008 shutdown and bankruptcy Fiat Group Automobiles (FGA) has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Serbian government for the acquisition of Zastava's Kragujevac plant on 7 May 2008. The memorandum of understanding foresees a new company being set up in which the Italian group would have a 67% of stake and the Serbian government acquiring 33% of stake in the new company. A new company was named
Fiat Automobili Srbija. The new company would make a total investment in the region of 700 million euros, with the government contributing 200 million euros to this. The Zastava plant would produce two new Fiat models, rejecting previous reports the plant could produce the 500 compact city car. The last Zastava branded car rolled out of the factory on 21 November 2008. In May 2017, Group Zastava Vehicles, consisted of Zastava Automobiles, Zastava Trucks, Zastava INPRO and Zastava Special Automobiles, filed for bankruptcy before the Economic Court in Kragujevac. Group Zastava Vehicles and its subsidiaries entered a bankruptcy procedure in 2018, with the Group itself auctioned and sold in March 2024. ==Former models list==