A Russian motorist was shocked to discover his £5,000 car had been frozen solid in a block of ice after leaving it parked on the side of the street during a heavy snow storm. Vlad Pokrovski, 32, left his Lada Priora parked in a small ditch beside a block of flats in the city of Saratov, south-west Russia. The small ditch filled with water overnight and by the time Pokroviski had returned to the car in the morning, the water had frozen solid above the level of the wheels. Vlad Pokrovski parked his £5,000 Lada, pictured, in a drainage ditch overnight outside a block of flats . When Pokrovski returned to his car the following morning he discovered it was frozen in a block of ice . The water flooded into the car, almost covering the seats, pictured, before it froze into a solid lump . Pokrovski asked several of his friends and neighbours to help him try to free the car, but after an hour of trying to chip away at the solid block of ice, they were forced to give up after temperatures plummeted to minus 30 Celsius. Pokrovski said: "We tried pouring hot water over it but that just froze and made it worse. 'We then tried hacking the ice away with spades and knives, but it is so hard some of them broke.' He then called a local car garage to see if they could help, and was told it would be a waste of time. Garage owner Andrey Teliatev, 45, said: 'I'm not even sure its worth trying to get free. 'The engine will be dead from being flooded and I don't think it can be repaired. 'In fact, repairing it would cost about the same as getting a new one.' Pokrovski added: 'I can't believe this. 'If I hadn't parked in that ditch this would never have happened, but who would have thought it? 'I guess the snow must have melted and then when the temperatures fell froze.' Pokrovski's mechanic warned that after such an ordeal it would be cheaper to buy a new car . Pokrovski said he tried pouring boiling water over the ice but it froze instantly making the situation worse .
Vlad Pokrovski parked his car overnight in a drainage ditch in Russia . When he returned the following morning the car had been frozen in ice . Water poured into the £5,000 Lada Priora which later froze solid . Mechanics told Pokrovski that it might be cheaper to buy a new car . He was warned that even when it defrosts the engine is probably ruined .