It was Rover’s last throw of the dice. In the early part of this decade things were looking dire for the company and so in a bid to flog a few cars they decided to bung an MG badge on the front of them (why didn’t they think of that before?). Peter Stevens was drafted in to resuscitate the styling and various sporting bits and bobs were bolted to the Rover range and the letter ‘Z’ was bolted on the back.
Sounds like recipe for disaster, but incredibly they just about pulled it off. The cars may as well have been held together with Blue Tac, such was the quality, but as far as handling went they really weren’t that bad. One of this motley crew of sports saloons and hatches was the ZS 120 (don’t worry if you can’t remember which is which – neither can I) which sat midway down the range. It was keenly priced and as the name suggests had 120bhp. Actually it had 116bhp but never mind, but the 1.8-litre 16-valve engine was peppy enough to get the car from 0-60mph in 9-seconds, which is respectable.
There was a decent engine note and considering the car’s basic roots very good handling. Thanks to the simple, straightforward chassis, the car delivered good honest thrills and connected the driver better than its more advanced rivals. I’ve been looking for one of these to use as Shed of the Week for a while but they are strangely elusive, holding their value freakishly well.
That’s why the example we found on Autotrader.com isn’t perfect. As you can see from the pictures there is a knock in the wing that needs to be sorted, but apart from that it looks like a decent car. It has 105,000 miles and an MOT until May ’09. And as you would expect there are a lot of extras, and all this for £800.
Ad Reads: '2001 MG ZS 1.8 120 + 5dr Hatchback. 105,000 miles, Grey, 5 Door Hatchback, Grey, Petrol, Manual, Air conditioning, Alarm, Drivers airbag, Electric door mirrors, Folding rear seats, Front electric windows. light damage to indicater, wing and scuffs on bumper. damage is cosmetic only and still drives as normal. MOT- May 09 Tax- jan 09. £800 ONO.'
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Meanwhile at PH Towers we have been preparing our own Shed, the £250 Golf GTI 16V, for sale. After a wash and wax the car is now out on the street looking for offers. We hope to advertise it properly next week...
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