RE: MG ZT-T V8 Catch it while you can.
Discussion
Bill said:
XJ Flyer said:
It was proof and an admission that Rover had effectively committed suicide by the change from the rwd V8 formula in favour of fwd and changed it's mind when it was all too late while in mid flight having jumped off the roof.
Eh?
grosserbaby said:
Hello Keith. Saw the headline, knew the byline!
One of my favorite stories about these was the development and testing one for top speed trials that they did on a derestricted Autobahn; the fuel gauge was calibrated for a V6 190 so had a maximum fall rate based on the maximum possible fuel use for said car. I understand on the top speed runs the car in question and probably the very car SMC had, ran out of fuel on the return pass with the gauge still showing half a tank. Now that is what I call thirsty, like a night on the tiles with Oliver Reed.
ZT-T V8 with a blower, a car I would like to try.
Or to check for rear axle location, they'd strap down the prototype in the Flightshed, and someone would watch from underneath in a pit, while another engineer would do a static burn-out. Class.One of my favorite stories about these was the development and testing one for top speed trials that they did on a derestricted Autobahn; the fuel gauge was calibrated for a V6 190 so had a maximum fall rate based on the maximum possible fuel use for said car. I understand on the top speed runs the car in question and probably the very car SMC had, ran out of fuel on the return pass with the gauge still showing half a tank. Now that is what I call thirsty, like a night on the tiles with Oliver Reed.
ZT-T V8 with a blower, a car I would like to try.
Admittedly I've been taking a good long look at these... and stumbled across the estate version, certainly one of the more desirable estates and one that I, for once, wouldn't be able to resist the urge to mod the engine. Alas continuing repairs on my other Rover means no splashing the cash.
Having owned a '260' I will say they are very nice cars. They have a couple of quirks though, nothing serious. They are NOT fast cars though, the engine being far too lazy in this guise.
They also have a serious drink problem! Getting 200 miles to a tank was hard work.
By comparison, my Monaro VXR (6litre LS2 version) will return low 300's to a tank of roughly equal size and the extra 140bhp makes it a much faster car! Seriously, the difference in economy is very odd.
The Mustang V8 makes a nicer noise though once fitted with X-Power tail pipes!
I kind of miss it though, future classic for sure!
They also have a serious drink problem! Getting 200 miles to a tank was hard work.
By comparison, my Monaro VXR (6litre LS2 version) will return low 300's to a tank of roughly equal size and the extra 140bhp makes it a much faster car! Seriously, the difference in economy is very odd.
The Mustang V8 makes a nicer noise though once fitted with X-Power tail pipes!
I kind of miss it though, future classic for sure!
Good article. I'd love to try a supercharged car, the performance of my standard 260 is more hot-hatch territory. Still a lot of fun though 
http://youtu.be/7qDEfXjSLZ4
http://youtu.be/7qDEfXjSLZ4
This car sums up all that was wrong. Tiny market for a car that was really not much good (except in base 1.8 club trim which was a bit of a laugh as you'd have never known about the V8) Biggest problem was that the 330i was in many ways a better car than the V8 and when I look at the market of fabulous high performance cars that came soon after, often with diesel economy, it was a terrifying market place!!!
With almost no resource what was needed was a new mid size (Stilo got my vote) to replace the 45 and a range of quality efficient engines, but instead we had daft vanity projects put together by idiots who thought if they built it the market would appear!
I did get on first name terms with an AA man though - and economy was excellent when on the back of a truck!
With almost no resource what was needed was a new mid size (Stilo got my vote) to replace the 45 and a range of quality efficient engines, but instead we had daft vanity projects put together by idiots who thought if they built it the market would appear!
I did get on first name terms with an AA man though - and economy was excellent when on the back of a truck!
Numeric said:
This car sums up all that was wrong. Tiny market for a car that was really not much good (except in base 1.8 club trim which was a bit of a laugh as you'd have never known about the V8) Biggest problem was that the 330i was in many ways a better car than the V8 and when I look at the market of fabulous high performance cars that came soon after, often with diesel economy, it was a terrifying market place!!!
With almost no resource what was needed was a new mid size (Stilo got my vote) to replace the 45 and a range of quality efficient engines, but instead we had daft vanity projects put together by idiots who thought if they built it the market would appear!
I did get on first name terms with an AA man though - and economy was excellent when on the back of a truck!
That lot doesnt make much sense With almost no resource what was needed was a new mid size (Stilo got my vote) to replace the 45 and a range of quality efficient engines, but instead we had daft vanity projects put together by idiots who thought if they built it the market would appear!
I did get on first name terms with an AA man though - and economy was excellent when on the back of a truck!
insideimsmiling said:
Vanity projects? well maybe, but its amazing what was achieved on minute budgets & with some excellent engineering - these v8's along with the SV8 are already seen by many including myself as classics.
Agreed. The ZT 260 was a well engineered, over engineered car. Word has it that it was this way ready made for the extra power of the SC engine.The rest of the ZT range was excellent, they now make brilliant 2nd hand cars.
My 260 was also 100% reliable.
I don't think anyone will suggest that they were better than the competition, but if you wanted something rare & different & smiles per mile you couldn't go wrong.
Mr2Mike said:
Bill said:
XJ Flyer said:
It was proof and an admission that Rover had effectively committed suicide by the change from the rwd V8 formula in favour of fwd and changed it's mind when it was all too late while in mid flight having jumped off the roof.
Eh?
tbox fwd Honda based ones and then changing it's mind when it was all too late.lincsls2 said:
insideimsmiling said:
Vanity projects? well maybe, but its amazing what was achieved on minute budgets & with some excellent engineering - these v8's along with the SV8 are already seen by many including myself as classics.
Agreed. The ZT 260 was a well engineered, over engineered car. Word has it that it was this way ready made for the extra power of the SC engine.The rest of the ZT range was excellent, they now make brilliant 2nd hand cars.
My 260 was also 100% reliable.
I don't think anyone will suggest that they were better than the competition, but if you wanted something rare & different & smiles per mile you couldn't go wrong.
Anyone who buys a front drive 75/ZT pre-facelift has done very well I reckon - I always preferred the 75 as I did big miles but the ZT with the softer suspension was dash good too. Post facelift the ZT seemed the better option. So don't knock them till you've tried one :-)
But my loathing of the stock V8 is based on what was a flawed business case (you'd have been amazed how few BMW 3 and Merc C were sold with big engines as a proportion) and what seemed to me to be a "we fancy doing this" type attitude. Add to that the expense incurred getting it engineered by outside contractors (that was a sorry saga) and it's lack of reliability in its early days and you have a car that sounds nice, isn't very fast, had very little market and sucked money away from other projects that were desperately under-resourced. At a time of rising company car tax etc a 4.6 ltr petrol V8 made much more sense than a high performance diesel offering of course...
So I hope people love them and they are cherished for years to come, but every time I see one I want to beat it with a stick.
But my loathing of the stock V8 is based on what was a flawed business case (you'd have been amazed how few BMW 3 and Merc C were sold with big engines as a proportion) and what seemed to me to be a "we fancy doing this" type attitude. Add to that the expense incurred getting it engineered by outside contractors (that was a sorry saga) and it's lack of reliability in its early days and you have a car that sounds nice, isn't very fast, had very little market and sucked money away from other projects that were desperately under-resourced. At a time of rising company car tax etc a 4.6 ltr petrol V8 made much more sense than a high performance diesel offering of course...
So I hope people love them and they are cherished for years to come, but every time I see one I want to beat it with a stick.
I absolutely love them! I saw one at a British car show when I was too young to recognise what it was. Have no clue how the owner managed to bring it into the country, as it's not on the EPA/DOT's "approved" list. It had that wacky, TVR-esque flip-flop/chameleon paint which looked outrageous on an otherwise sedate-looking estate.
I'm hoping the price won't appreciate too much in the next twenty years-or-so (that's when they become eligible for legal importation).
When you think about it, it would make perfect sense in the US, given that 4.6 Mustang parts are practically everywhere and you could probably get it serviced at most Ford dealerships. Also, there are a myriad of supercharger options for the 4.6 and a plethora of shops with 4.6 blower install experience in virtually any state in the country. Eaton/screw-type, Magnussen, centrifugal (Vortech, ProCharger, etc), the choices are seemingly endless. There are probably over a hundred supercharged Mustangs in my small-ish suburban hometown, alone.
I'm hoping the price won't appreciate too much in the next twenty years-or-so (that's when they become eligible for legal importation).
When you think about it, it would make perfect sense in the US, given that 4.6 Mustang parts are practically everywhere and you could probably get it serviced at most Ford dealerships. Also, there are a myriad of supercharger options for the 4.6 and a plethora of shops with 4.6 blower install experience in virtually any state in the country. Eaton/screw-type, Magnussen, centrifugal (Vortech, ProCharger, etc), the choices are seemingly endless. There are probably over a hundred supercharged Mustangs in my small-ish suburban hometown, alone.
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