The \"Gazelle\" and \"Sobol\" family of vehicles have received an upgraded 6-speed manual gearbox. The modernization was carried out by the \"Nizhny Novgorod Motors\" plant, which is part of the GAZ Group.
The updated transmissions are installed on \"Sobol NN\", \"Gazelle NN\", medium-duty \"Valdai 8\" trucks, and Citymax 8 buses.
The work was carried out from April to December 2025 and was aimed at increasing the gearbox's lifespan and reducing shifting efforts. The design uses a more durable primary shaft bearing, modified geometry pushers, and a master support with improved selectivity of the gear selection mechanism.
Additionally, the control mechanism cover has been modernized — redesigning the geometry of the parts has made shifting smoother and more precise.
The update to the 6-speed manual transmission is part of a large-scale modernization program of the Gorky Automobile Plant's model range in 2025. Previously, GAZ had already introduced a reinforced 5-speed gearbox for the \"Gazelle Business\" and \"Gazelle Next\" with gasoline and bifuel Evotech engines.
This transmission is designed for a torque of up to 330 N•m, compared to 250 N•m for the previous version, and was previously used only on diesel modifications.