A frog in a longship

Galcian · 16th November 2020, 08:31

Hello everyone,

I present myself : Thomas, 28, living at the moment in Paris. I'm however born and raised on the French Riviera, and I'm starting to really miss its sunshine and its mountains in the middle of this grey flat confined city. Therefore I'm planning to go back there, and preparations are underway.

One of the consequences of going back to the "countryside" is that now I will have to use a car to commute, to go visit friends, buy stuff, go skiing or to the beach. So far, I have a BMW Z3 Coupé, which I love and wouldn't sell for nothing, but this car can't be used for much of these tasks. Is too rough, too limited in space, the engine too sensible to small trip and cold starts, etc.

I've therefore been looking for a car to complete these tasks. Contrary to the BMW, a car that focus on comfort, ambiance and smoothness. A car also on which I won't lose money, either by depreciation or maintenance, because the Z had a price and demands a bit in maintenance.

However, I just don't want a random car (or I'll just buy some random 407 or Corolla). I dreamt of the cars I would buy latter as a kid, and I would like to like to keep to them. I did it with my first car (a Volvo 480), I did it with the Z, and I want to do it again with this car.

I first thought of a Lancia Thesis. Magnificent car, the last true Lancia, just pure luxury and style. However, it is highly unreliable, spare parts are impossible to come by or atrociously expensive, and no one (at least in France) is capable of working them.

Then I remembered of another car I loved when I visited the UK and Ireland as a kid and very rare here on the continent : the Rover 75/MG ZT (you would had figured that out by now I hope ^^). Hence my presence among you. I'm currently trying to gather information on the car in order to assess whether or not it fits the necessary characteristics. And I thought : who can better answer my questioning than the people who actually bought loads of them (well, maybe not enough to save the brand but still...). So here I am

So, what do you guys think about this prospect ?
- Is using a Rover 75/MG ZT as a daily driver realistic ? (I'm not fixed on either one of them, even though I must admit I prefer the styling of the MG. The Rover is maybe just too British for a French guy to pull it off ^^).
- Is the car dependable and reliable as to start every morning of the year ? (Winters are not really cold down there ^^).
- Are the spare parts easily available and reasonably affordable, as when something does occur, it doesn't spent 3 weeks in the shop ?
- What petrol engine would you suggest ? I hate diesel unit, can't help myself. I think a K engine model would be more suited for my use, but I'm a bit scared by all the mythology around its cooling and head gasket issues. I don't know to which extent it is true and expensive to fix preemptively.

Last question would be whether their is or not people able to work them in the south of France (I love to DIY my cars, but changing a HG isn't something I can do), but we have a lot of shops specialized on British oldies (Triumph, Austin Healey, MG, jags, Lotus, Sevens, etc.). I guess they may know their way around a K unit given its widespread use and a Rover when they see one.

Looking forward to discuss with you

Best regards,

PS : I'm sorry if I made any mistakes or if sentences doesn't mean anything, I did my best.
PS2 : Well done for the VI nations, still haven't swallowed this silly defensive bonus point we've given you in Paris that cost us the championship.

macafee2 · 16th November 2020, 08:56

welcome to the forum, others will be along shortly to talk about petrol versions, sorry I'm a diesel owner.
As for mistakes, my goodness if I could have written one sentence in French I'd be chuffed, your English is brilliant. I understood everything you wrote

macafee2

planenut · 16th November 2020, 08:57

Welcome Thomas and thank you for such a well written introduction, some of us could learn from it.

Everybody will have their own experience with these cars, some have several problems, some none at all but in truth, that applies to all makes of machines. Each of us who have solved a problem will suggest, time and time again, that "my idea is the only way", and I include myself in that.

You clearly have done some research and will have discovered that several other vehicles use the K-series engine, so do not just look for a Rover mechanic.

Good luck in your quest.

trikey · 16th November 2020, 08:59

Welcome along, a 75 is a good choice for a daily driver 👍👍

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Bogbrush82 · 16th November 2020, 09:13

Welcome.

Rover did 2 versions of the 4 cylinder K-series for the 75.. a 115BHP N/A version, and a 160BHP turbocharged version. Most people here would probably opt for the 160, since the 115 can be a bit sluggish. They also did a KV6 in 2 or 2.5 litre guise. Reliability is good, but as with any car check that it's been serviced regularly.

Galcian · 16th November 2020, 09:46

Thanks for the welcome

What you seem to tell me is that reliability shouldn't be a real issue if the car has been looked after properly, as with every car approaching 20 years.

Just a few questions :
- In the event of a HGF on a K engine, is it a costly repair ? If a HGF happens, is it just because the HG is rubbish, or because their is an issue with the cooling system and the whole "plumbing" must be redone ?
- More generally, are spare parts broadly available (at least to command in the UK) ? Are they expensive ?
- Is their a difference between the year of production ? I've read somewhere that cars from the 04 and 05 were more poorly built than the 98-03 ones.
- The V6 seems lovely. Sounds nice, and suits nicely the car. However, it appears it can be thirsty. Do you know if it takes well a modification to use e85 fuel ? I'm not saying I'll do it, I'm just considering options.
- Would you reckon the differences between the 75 and the ZT are just cosmetic, or is there a real difference in terms of drive ? I've seen that the V6 is a notch more powerful in the ZT, and the suspension settings a bit harsher.

For the fun, during my searches I found this : https://www.lacentrale.fr/auto-occas...101366255.html
Way too expensive, but one of the only 7 ZT260 sold in France in very pristine condition !

Bogbrush82 · 16th November 2020, 10:22

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