In the day when the Communist Party ruled Russia, many of their cars were obvious copies of American models.   The ZIL, which was the car for top party officials, was usually copied from Packards.  There have been persistent rumors that the body dies for the large Packard series built before World War II were actually sold to Russia, though no proof exists.
   
Now the Russians are copying another American car, but this time it’s at least legal.
   
The new Gaz Siber is actually the old Chrysler Sebring.  It was unveiled at the Moscow Auto Show on Wednesday.  Gaz has obviously moved rapidly, because it was in April that it bought the rights to produce the car from DaimlerChrysler.  Gaz has modified the suspension to better handle Russian road conditions.  It has also made some cosmetic changes which it believes will better suit its market. 
   
The car is offered with three different engines, a 2.0 liter and 2.4 liter four and a 2.7 liter V-6.  Base price will be about $18,000.