New R75 owner - things to do first?

[AlexF75]

First of all, saying hi to everyone.
I've been into Rover 75s for many years, since the father of the best friend of mine was always having one of these, in the early 2000s as a daily, since then he's had many as hobby cars.

Recently I bought his last Rover 75. Fully optioned 2,5 V6 auto saloon from 2000. Excellent condition, like new inside and out, always stored in a garage, 150k kilometres on the clock which is absolutely real. I'm in love with it already, using it as a weekend / holiday car.

However I have a few questions about what I should do first on these as preventative maintenance. In the past I've had old BMWs, they have their own problems, so I know it's very important to prevent what you can.

Here's what I already know:
- Plenum drains tend to get clogged - already checked, so far none of them are, I am keeping mine in a garage, too, but still want to prevent it happening. Didn't yet do the spyhole mod, plan to do it this or next weekend, but I also want to get the leaves blocker piece that Jules made in the past. Can't find it anywhere now though, and I live in Hungary so shipping is also possibly problematic - any other solutions, or any way to get one from Jules still?
- VIS motors are prone to failure, fortunately I have a working replacement

Any other stuff I should care about?

Thanks in advance, sorry for asking questions that are probably already answered, reason is I really don't want to miss anything.

[TourerSteve]

First of all, saying hi to everyone.
I've been into Rover 75s for many years, since the father of the best friend of mine was always having one of these, in the early 2000s as a daily, since then he's had many as hobby cars.

Recently I bought his last Rover 75. Fully optioned 2,5 V6 auto saloon from 2000. Excellent condition, like new inside and out, always stored in a garage, 150k kilometres on the clock which is absolutely real. I'm in love with it already, using it as a weekend / holiday car.

However I have a few questions about what I should do first on these as preventative maintenance. In the past I've had old BMWs, they have their own problems, so I know it's very important to prevent what you can.

Here's what I already know:
- Plenum drains tend to get clogged - already checked, so far none of them are, I am keeping mine in a garage, too, but still want to prevent it happening. Didn't yet do the spyhole mod, plan to do it this or next weekend, but I also want to get the leaves blocker piece that Jules made in the past. Can't find it anywhere now though, and I live in Hungary so shipping is also possibly problematic - any other solutions, or any way to get one from Jules still?
- VIS motors are prone to failure, fortunately I have a working replacement

Any other stuff I should care about?

Thanks in advance, sorry for asking questions that are probably already answered, reason is I really don't want to miss anything.


Hi Alex
Have you got a service history for when the timing service was last carried out , If not I would recommend carrying one out if not done within the last six years

[dave lincs]

Hi Alex
Have you got a service history for when the timing service was last carried out , If not I would recommend carrying one out if not done within the last six years

Hi Alex
As Steve says the timing belt should be changed every 6 years or 90000 miles

Dave

[AlexF75]

Thanks for the tip guys!

Forgot to mention that, I knew about the service period, and I also wanted to ask about that.
It was changed 5 years ago, which was also only 10k kilometres ago (it received Gates parts).
Guess I should swap it next year even though the mileage is low, right?

[dave lincs]

Thanks for the tip guys!

Forgot to mention that, I knew about the service period, and I also wanted to ask about that.
It was changed 5 years ago, which was also only 10k kilometres ago.
Guess I should swap it next year even though the mileage is low, right?

Yes i would change it then you know it is fine for another 6 years and at least you know it has been done

[CLINTE]

First of all, saying hi to everyone.
I've been into Rover 75s for many years, since the father of the best friend of mine was always having one of these, in the early 2000s as a daily, since then he's had many as hobby cars.

Recently I bought his last Rover 75. Fully optioned 2,5 V6 auto saloon from 2000. Excellent condition, like new inside and out, always stored in a garage, 150k kilometres on the clock which is absolutely real. I'm in love with it already, using it as a weekend / holiday car.

However I have a few questions about what I should do first on these as preventative maintenance. In the past I've had old BMWs, they have their own problems, so I know it's very important to prevent what you can.

Here's what I already know:
- Plenum drains tend to get clogged - already checked, so far none of them are, I am keeping mine in a garage, too, but still want to prevent it happening. Didn't yet do the spyhole mod, plan to do it this or next weekend, but I also want to get the leaves blocker piece that Jules made in the past. Can't find it anywhere now though, and I live in Hungary so shipping is also possibly problematic - any other solutions, or any way to get one from Jules still?
- VIS motors are prone to failure, fortunately I have a working replacement

Any other stuff I should care about?

Thanks in advance, sorry for asking questions that are probably already answered, reason is I really don't want to miss anything.


Hi Alex,

Without the service background it is difficult to say - so if it needs service then do that .

In particular I would check out the automatic transmission fluid - it should be changed every 5 years / 60k miles .

Aircon may need a regas.

As others have said do the cambelts ( at 6 years ) plus the water pump, tensioner & pulley

Clinte

[richw]

To keep the leaves out, I used some black foam designed for filtering fish tasks. Easy to cut to shape with scissors and cheap to buy.

Do you have a sunroof? Check the drains. In fact check, everywhere for leaks!

If you can use TOAF, get the fan and the VIS motors tested using that.

Parking sensors? Are the connectors in the wiring OK?

Is the airbag light OK? Bad connections on the connectors under the seats?

[xsport]

lovely cars i think you would agree ...;) with these cars now all aged 15yrs + minimum age it goes without saying corrosion will take hold eventually. luckily the rover has been outstanding from this perspective. even so a bit of TLC would not go amiss. rear sills and jacking points are a point of corrosion that is becoming more problematic as the years roll on. you could adress this asap with some prepwork underneath and inside the sills before hand with some anti rust / weatherproofing /waxoil or bilthamber S50 as i use. inside of crossmembers underneath and suspension arms and subframe depending on condition. other than this they are pretty durable cars . maybe you would like to do a coolant and brake fluid change too. the handbrakes on these cars are not very good and you can improve this by having an upgraded compensator st/steel which are available from member ARCTIC on here. also V.I.S motors from suppliers are not particularly long lived but an upgraded version is available on here from member STOCKTAKE. spare parts available on here DMGRS on here as well as RIMMER BROS if you struggle for parts over there . but most of all enjoy the car .. ;)

[xsport]

international delivery is available through dmgrs and rimmer bros. jules may send you your plenum guard via post if you message him on here. or alternately you could use some mesh from hardware store and cut it yourself .easy fix. others on here have done so. quality spare parts are becoming a problem to obtain so choose very carefully any aftermarket parts you may want to buy beforehand. members on here use dmgrs and rimmer bros mostly so compare prices before you buy. you could always seek advice on here first and im sure other members will help with any advice and suggestions first. i hope you will enjoy the car as much as we do and be warned that they are addictive and once bitten by the rover bug ... you will find it hard to recover .. :D

[xsport]

Thanks for the tip guys!

Forgot to mention that, I knew about the service period, and I also wanted to ask about that.
It was changed 5 years ago, which was also only 10k kilometres ago (it received Gates parts).
Guess I should swap it next year even though the mileage is low, right?

i do remember looking for a complete gates cambelt kit before i changed mine. this was e few years back 4yrs or so IIRC. i could find one for the 1.8 models but not the 2.0 or 2.6 v6. ended up with gates belt and xpart ancillaries. has been fine but you may struggle to find the complete set up from gates. your best bet for every day spares would probably be autodoc. good selection of quality parts at reasonable prices and of course delivery should be alot quicker as its E.U and import tax minimal. good luck with all.

[AlexF75]

Thanks loads for all your replies!

I've had issues with rust in the past, I also have a BMW 328i E36 convertible that was basically resurrected from the dead - it was rusted EVERYWHERE. Cost a fortune and took a very long time to properly fix it. So I know a fair bit about how rust can be a problem :D

My Rover is almost immaculate for now on the rust department, the previous owner is quite a fanatic so he took care of it. However there is some rust starting at the rear right-side skirt, that will be addressed shortly (fortunately I have a guy who can do these right - same guy that did my 36).

It sure is addictive. I had a BMW E46 (320i fl), and a BMW E39 (523i) in the past as well, both were similarly well-sorted, but none of them offered the same luxury and unique feel that the 75 does. Ride comfort is also waaaaaaay ahead of the E46, quite on par with the E39 to be honest, but the KV6 sound is even better for me than the M52-M54 I/6 engines I had in the beamers.

Fuel consumption is the only thing I'm a bit disappointed about, even my 328i (2.8 straight 6) E36 convertible consumes 1-2-3 litres less depending on the use case, but I never expected it to be a fuel mileage hero anyway so I don't care that much.
Other than this, already absolutely in love with the car, and very glad to see this great forum with so much knowledge and help available from members. Very glad to be here!

[AlexF75]

Yup, I have a sunroof - so far so good.

TOAF - you mean the diagnostics app? I'll check what it's about for sure.

Airbag, parking sensors - all OK for now, everything seems fine on the wiring.

[richw]

Yes, TOAF is the diagnostic app. Windows or Android. Just need a suitable USB cable. It is handy for reading error codes and live data.