MAZ-500 is a Soviet truck manufactured at the Minsk Automobile Plant in the Byelorussian SSR. The first prototype MAZ-500 ran as early as 1955 and they were shown to the public in 1958. Delays in engine development pushed full production back to 1965, although limited production started in 1963. The MAZ-500 is a cab over truck instead of the MAZ-200's conventional layout. This was done to increase payload and reduce weight as well as reduce fuel consumption. The engine itself was quite modern, a direct injection 11,150 cc (680 cu in) diesel V6 built by the Yaroslavl Motor Plant with 180 PS (132 kW) at 2100 rpm. The truck's design was also innovative, with a tilting cabin, which was still rare in the West as well. It also had a number of features designed to make the truck operable under the arduous conditions found in Siberia.
The MAZ-500/500A was in production from 1963 (with full production commencing in 1965) until 1977 with modernizations taking place in 1970 and 1977. The tractor-trailer versions MAZ-514, -515, and -516 continued to be built as late as 1981, with the same upgrades as the succeeding MAZ-5335. The MAZ-5335 was a facelifted model which appeared in 1977. This version continued to be built until 1990.
