RE: PH Heroes: Rover 3500 Vitesse
Discussion
Red than Dead said:
Here's some of my favourite SD1 footage...1984 Manx Rally..Pond's car looks like it's just come out of the showroom and taken a wrong turn into a rally stage http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pCbU6IljXA He makes winding roads look so easy in such a big car...legend!!
Great footage, thanks for posting it. Last time I saw this was on my parents long-defunct Grundig V2000 VCR after recording it direct from World of Sport back in the year concerned. Apparently, Pond's Vitesse boiled its power steering fluid once he got into opposite-locking the car round the hairpins on the tighter, twistier Manx stages!Presume you're also familiar with the 1983 BBC Rallysprint which also featured a works Rover Vitesse in the old traditional rally v F1 drivers face-off?
http://youtu.be/9NbG3RynL2k
Actually, that's part 2 above - part 1 is below!
http://youtu.be/VO2VX_tDmaU
Great car, great sound, great driving by Pond and others.
I still love the look of these, but having owned a 1980's made Mini for the last 8 years the thought of it corroding away in front of me and failing to start with the slight hint of damp in the air fills me with sadness. Seeing the SDI police jam sandwiches when I was a lad made me want to be a policeman. Cannot see the youth of today seeing a diesel Astra and thinking the same!
Teenage memories of being legitimately allowed to borrow a car my dad bought home from work for a quick trip to the chip shop....that rush of power from the car & yet it was so big in many ways with the wide dash & strangely shaped steering wheel. Then the fact that somehow the IOM record lasted so long until the Subaru was allowed a go last year which proved to many younger people who never saw Tony Pond at the wheel of such a mighty car of its era how commited he was & how well the car went (even if it was on slicks!). Definitely Cool Britannia with a little added spice from the boys at Longbridge 
OllieC said:
What's not to like !
Dennis Leech's car from 1988, the last time these ran in the BTCC
I would love a mint twin plenum vitesse
A few years ago I was at Brands and there were lots of old touring cars including Mustangs and Ferraris ?! The one getting all the attention was a black, Vitesse that had trouble running on all 8 cylinders. People genuinely had a soft spot for it. As an ex-SD1 owner, myself included!Dennis Leech's car from 1988, the last time these ran in the BTCC
I would love a mint twin plenum vitesse
The police run through London is always the first thing I think of too. The SD1 was the definitive Met car. I have to say though, the new Jags in police spec are starting to grow on me. The other thing I think of is this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VO2VX_tDmaU
BBC Rally Sprint, testing various famous drivers of the time against each other.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VO2VX_tDmaU
BBC Rally Sprint, testing various famous drivers of the time against each other.
te management and unions.greggy50 said:
Just, well, just, ermmm 
!That is all!
MrC986 said:
Teenage memories of being legitimately allowed to borrow a car my dad bought home from work for a quick trip to the chip shop....that rush of power from the car & yet it was so big in many ways with the wide dash & strangely shaped steering wheel. Then the fact that somehow the IOM record lasted so long until the Subaru was allowed a go last year which proved to many younger people who never saw Tony Pond at the wheel of such a mighty car of its era how commited he was & how well the car went (even if it was on slicks!). Definitely Cool Britannia with a little added spice from the boys at Longbridge
Without wishing to take anything away from the legend, wasn't the IOM record referred to actually done in the later front wheel drive Rover Vitesse ( rather than the V8 rwd one which was the subject of this thread )?s m said:
MrC986 said:
Teenage memories of being legitimately allowed to borrow a car my dad bought home from work for a quick trip to the chip shop....that rush of power from the car & yet it was so big in many ways with the wide dash & strangely shaped steering wheel. Then the fact that somehow the IOM record lasted so long until the Subaru was allowed a go last year which proved to many younger people who never saw Tony Pond at the wheel of such a mighty car of its era how commited he was & how well the car went (even if it was on slicks!). Definitely Cool Britannia with a little added spice from the boys at Longbridge
Without wishing to take anything away from the legend, wasn't the IOM record referred to actually done in the later front wheel drive Rover Vitesse ( rather than the V8 rwd one which was the subject of this thread )?I had one of those as well as driving my dads SD1
They were both brilliant
I want to go get mine out of it's winter storage now.
On the subject of size, they look small but are actually quite spacious and believe me there are not many cars with such a big boot, mine has to touch the back wall of the garage to be able to just shut the door, new cars are just like american football players, the Vitesse is a Prop Forward.
On the subject of size, they look small but are actually quite spacious and believe me there are not many cars with such a big boot, mine has to touch the back wall of the garage to be able to just shut the door, new cars are just like american football players, the Vitesse is a Prop Forward.
I had a mint low mileage 2600 SD1 when I was 19 (I couldn't find a manual V8 in my budget). Loved the shape but sold it on after 3 months because it wasn't a V8. A few years later I bought a cheap ex-police V8 manual which was in good nick but spaceship mileage. Then traded that against a nice 3500 VDP Efi (the luxury version of the Vitesse but with an auto box). I then painted it ford peppermint green and fitted some cherry bombs. Not to everyones taste but I really loved that car. I remember the landlord of the local pub had a bright red Vitesse which was stunning.
I have always had a soft spot for the SD1, a mint Vitesse would be hard to refuse even now.
I have always had a soft spot for the SD1, a mint Vitesse would be hard to refuse even now.
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