RE: SOTW Rover SD1 3500

[911motorsport]

hornetrider said:

AM711 said:

I love these old motors...got a few myself...four in fact.Good lookers with the right wheels...plus a nice exhaust note.

Shame yours has the wrong wheels.

And exhaust

[grahamw48]

Ayup..pedant alert !

It lives though.

[911motorsport]

[Morningside]

Pedmeister said:

grahamw48 said:

Let's not forget that most other cars of the era also rusted to pieces very quickly, be they Fords, Vauxhalls or any mass-produced cars.

A lot of selective memory going on here.

Correct! Back in 'those days,' a car was considered a banger by the time it was five years old. Many were ravaged by tin worm by five years of age. Tin worm was not exclusively a Rover 'attribute!'

Too right! Saw many a Mark 3 Escort rusting round the arches in less than a year old.

At the time there was not many cars that offered:
Power steering
All round electric windows
Electric sunroof
Central locking
Automatic - An expensive luxury at the time
Aircon
Lots of load space
Etc.

When I tried to look around at cars at that price nothing else seemed to offer so much. Maybe thats why I had a least 8 of the damn things.

Yes, I know they had many faults including:
Water leaking everywhere. Glove boxes were a classic. They not only failed to stay up, but also after a storm were full of water.
Central locking blowing fuses if jammed (its in the boot!).
Overheating in the 2600 and seizing - Mine locked up solid at Dartford tunnel.
Oiling of the plug closest to the bulkhead I found.
3500s drank a bit and not as much ooommph as one would expect.
Almost an impracticable boot due to that huge slope.
Speedo being digital it would suddenly drop to zero due to the massive connector block coming away.
Plus the dash lifting away in the heat.


But, if one was offered today new would I go for it? Well, if they sorted out the niggles...yes I would!

I did have a couple of 827Sli's. Not a bad motor TBH but not in the same class.

[grahamw48]

Also...

When it was first launched on the market, how many large HATCHBACKS were there on the market, let alone with a V8 ?

In the beginning it was a very special and almost unique car.