AutoCar Article on Rover 75 - not good?

[Les4048]

I see nothing wrong with that article, it’s plain speaking and honest without the rose tinted specs some people have. Not every car will be sold, the unloved and less desirable will be neglected and then scrapped

[clf]

I dont see anything negative about the article at all. I actually read it quite positively. How many articles have you seen '1.8 has a reputation for letting its head gasket go' followed by 'although I have known lots of owners to have trouble-free experiences'. That was my first!

He ends it with 'He will be spending his hard-earned on what is at the very least a 16-year-old Rover', is that his way of saying, you are looking at a 16+ year old car, and you will have to expect 16+ year old problems? That was the only piece of 'buying advice' I read lol.

'We' are at the point where the 'good' ones are being held onto by enthusiasts of the model, they will have all of the work done, and will command a higher price if selling, to be bought by another enthusiast. Those looking into this category will be willing to pay the higher price.

The banger market are bought by those who buy cheap, run into the ground, scrap and buy another. If it is in a condition that is able to be sold, it will be sold cheap again, and bought by the 'banger market'. This is a natural life cycle of any mass production car Look at the Escort, Sierra - all commanding quite high prices now that the banger market 'stock' no longer exists for them. Occasionally you do have a banger pop up over priced because 'it is rare', but they generally get bargained down to banger money. Mark 1 and 2 Mondeos (maybe not the mk2 so much lol) are in the same category as our cars now, even though they may be older, but they are a harder sell because the Mondeo is still in production. There is still a mix of banger cars and good higher priced, looked after cars selling for higher money, but still not what they are 'worth'.

There are no what I call in the middle prices. The 3-7k models, where people think they are paying that little bit extra for what they believe to be still a reliable car, but cannot afford to buy what they think will be a more reliable car (new).

We are 'lucky' in that Rover no longer exist, so there is the desirability of a now lamented defunct manufacturer.MG (zeds) may have an association issue in the near future, if the Chinese MG becomes established within the next 10 15 years.

Next stage is the abandonment of ICE cars though, but that is not an in my lifetime problem.

[roverbarmy]

That article could have been written about lots of cars that were once known as "quality" cars. A quick look at the MOT history of cars in the sub £2000 bracket will show rotten examples of Mercs, Audis, BMW's, Jaguars etc., some of which are younger than many MGs and Rovers. Those "Quality" cars are often built to similar standards by bean counters and companies who want a turnover. You will struggle to find a car that will last without a lot of work and cost.


My pet hate is turbos that are so complicated that they seem almost too fragile for purpose, often taking engines out as they self destruct.


My daughter bought her Volvo based on her grandad's trust of the brand and she is already realising that they are not the brand that they used to be, now sharing poor quality parts with other manufacturers.


I may have to resort to buying a modern shed, once I am too old to keep the Rover in shape myself!

[victorgte]

A member near to me picked up a bargain diesel auto for just £280. Granted there was a knock on a rear wing that needed a body shop repair but everything else was mint. Beautiful car. Those bargains are rare and 2 years on he still has it.