OREANDA-NEWS The head of Sberbank, German Gref, got behind the wheel of a new Lada Aura car on the margins of the SPIEF, but could not start it, while he felt comfortable inside the car.

The President of AvtoVAZ Maxim Sokolov presented the novelty to the head of the Ministry of Finance Anton Siluanov. At the last SPIEF, the minister admitted that officials could be transplanted to Lada: there will be a decent product — the state will ensure demand.

Gref examined the car together with Siluanov. The head of Sberbank sat down in the back seat and approved the legroom in the car: "My legs are not the longest, but also not the shortest — it's quite comfortable."

After that, Gref got behind the wheel, but could not start the car after several attempts. An awkward situation was saved by Siluanov. "Can I see what's in there?" — the minister opened the hood, examined the "stuffing", got behind the wheel and started the car with half a turn.

"She feels me," Siluanov said, took off his jacket and drove away. The head of AvtoVAZ was sitting in the back. "That's what a real finance minister means," Sokolov commented.

Maxim Sokolov, the president of the company, presented the Lada Aura car to Siluanov on the sidelines of the SPIEF, the minister carefully examined the novelty and even got behind the wheel himself and drove the car around. Then Gref decided to try the novelty, but the car did not start. Siluanov got behind the wheel again to check what the problem was, and his car started up.

"After stopping, the car was left with the gear on. The protection worked, it did not start until the gearbox was moved to the neutral position," the company explained to RIA Novosti.

The Lara Aura model is based on Lada Vesta. The premium-class novelty is distinguished by a 25-centimeter enlarged cabin for rear-row passengers, its interior is made in Russian-made genuine leather. The car is equipped with a 1.8 liter engine with a capacity of 122 horsepower and an automatic transmission. The cost of the model is above 2 million rubles.

The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) takes place on June 14-17. RIA Novosti is an information partner and photo-hosting agency of the forum.