RE: Rover 200 BRM | Spotted
Discussion
Augustus Windsock said:
Not the same thing, I know, but didn’t Quentin Wilson purchase a 200 vvi from Holland and then imported it to the UK, saving £thousands? I can’t remember wether it was on Top Gear or a similar show.
Yes, he did. I did much of the research work for the story as I worked for a well-known importer at the time. Never got paid a penny. 
The BRM has got to be the one of the most marmite cars ever. I have one and have always loved it, but I accept many just don't get it and I'll not lose any sleep over that.
What I don't get is all the experts saying it's worth this or it's worth that. On a car this rare it's worth whatever an enthusiast is prepared to pay. It's not an investment car for sure.
To drive they are great cars. Big fun factor. The K-series is a sublime engine when it's working. Revvy and so smooth. The bespoke touches on the BRM, both mechanical and cosmetic, make it a special car.
I've modified mine to oblivion now and killed any of the original handling charm to be fair - it's pretty much an MG ZR 160 underneath now with over 300bhp. I started my project not long after paying £600 for it!
What I don't get is all the experts saying it's worth this or it's worth that. On a car this rare it's worth whatever an enthusiast is prepared to pay. It's not an investment car for sure.
To drive they are great cars. Big fun factor. The K-series is a sublime engine when it's working. Revvy and so smooth. The bespoke touches on the BRM, both mechanical and cosmetic, make it a special car.
I've modified mine to oblivion now and killed any of the original handling charm to be fair - it's pretty much an MG ZR 160 underneath now with over 300bhp. I started my project not long after paying £600 for it!
Stuballs said:
The BRM has got to be the one of the most marmite cars ever. I have one and have always loved it, but I accept many just don't get it and I'll not lose any sleep over that.
What I don't get is all the experts saying it's worth this or it's worth that. On a car this rare it's worth whatever an enthusiast is prepared to pay. It's not an investment car for sure.
To drive they are great cars. Big fun factor. The K-series is a sublime engine when it's working. Revvy and so smooth. The bespoke touches on the BRM, both mechanical and cosmetic, make it a special car.
I've modified mine to oblivion now and killed any of the original handling charm to be fair - it's pretty much an MG ZR 160 underneath now with over 300bhp. I started my project not long after paying £600 for it!
Agreed.What I don't get is all the experts saying it's worth this or it's worth that. On a car this rare it's worth whatever an enthusiast is prepared to pay. It's not an investment car for sure.
To drive they are great cars. Big fun factor. The K-series is a sublime engine when it's working. Revvy and so smooth. The bespoke touches on the BRM, both mechanical and cosmetic, make it a special car.
I've modified mine to oblivion now and killed any of the original handling charm to be fair - it's pretty much an MG ZR 160 underneath now with over 300bhp. I started my project not long after paying £600 for it!
I like them, but understand most people won’t get it.
I’ve had 3 K-series cars, including a 200.
At the end of the day, it’s a limited edition. The same as a GTV Cup, for example. Most won’t understand why a tarted up bodykit makes it worth more than a standard car, but it’s a rare, limited model, that enthusiasts will pay more for. It’s more than the sum of it’s parts.
legless said:
When I worked at JLR, one of my colleagues was a Rover Group old hand. He'd worked in powertrain development since the late 1970s.
He was talking to me one day about the Tomcat race series, and was describing how his team had been commissioned to build some race-spec T-series engines with forged bottom ends, lightweight valve trains and blueprinted internals specifically for the race series.
After leaving the engine plant at Cofton Hackett, these engines went into storage at Longbridge while the race cars were built. Except there was an inventory management cock-up, and these special engines ended up being installed into customer cars on the main production line by accident, and nobody realised until weeks later.
My colleague's team ended up having to build a load more engines, and the customers who'd ended up with the race series engines by accident were never any the wiser.
Love hearing about inside stories like this. Crazy to think a few customers had race engines fitted. He was talking to me one day about the Tomcat race series, and was describing how his team had been commissioned to build some race-spec T-series engines with forged bottom ends, lightweight valve trains and blueprinted internals specifically for the race series.
After leaving the engine plant at Cofton Hackett, these engines went into storage at Longbridge while the race cars were built. Except there was an inventory management cock-up, and these special engines ended up being installed into customer cars on the main production line by accident, and nobody realised until weeks later.
My colleague's team ended up having to build a load more engines, and the customers who'd ended up with the race series engines by accident were never any the wiser.
Why shouldn't this be £10,995?
The best one in the country?
They have always been rare.
I'd sooner have this than a Ford equivalent, and look what they fetch..
There's always someone out there who will pay decent money for the right car.
And to someone, this will be their "right" car.
10k for a boring modern hatch? That'll depreciate.
10k for a car that people will chat to you at petrol stations about, and car shows? That might not depreciate very much at all.
And when you've owned enough modern cars and experienced the huge repair bills, some of the older stuff starts to make sense.
Well done Skippy, keep buying the interesting stuff, making them mint, and sharing them on PH
The best one in the country?
They have always been rare.
I'd sooner have this than a Ford equivalent, and look what they fetch..
There's always someone out there who will pay decent money for the right car.
And to someone, this will be their "right" car.
10k for a boring modern hatch? That'll depreciate.
10k for a car that people will chat to you at petrol stations about, and car shows? That might not depreciate very much at all.
And when you've owned enough modern cars and experienced the huge repair bills, some of the older stuff starts to make sense.
Well done Skippy, keep buying the interesting stuff, making them mint, and sharing them on PH
MC Bodge said:
I'd have a Vi or a BRM (with the orange grille painted a more subtle colour) for shed money.
Yes I think I’d go for the silver colour you see quite a few of them were done in.Could do with those 100k Merc seats in as well ( with the big bolsters ) to make use of the LSD, uprated suspension and bigger wheels/tyres
As ever there are diverging opinions on the car itself, which is to be expected, and actually welcomed.
However, I think the consternation over the price of this car and several other 'modern classics' recently featured isn't unfounded.
Most people with a classic have experienced a depreciation curve followed by an appreciation curve. The appreciation curve can be quite sharp, e.g. an F430, or shallow, e.g. an Allegro, but it is a curve, a 'U' shape. Most mainstream cars around this age are around the bottom of the curve. They will start to climb, but gradually. Some dealers are suggesting appreciation curve shapes that are completely ridiculous. I imagine they are trying their luck, and will take a low offer if there is no interest. Cheeky though.
However, I think the consternation over the price of this car and several other 'modern classics' recently featured isn't unfounded.
Most people with a classic have experienced a depreciation curve followed by an appreciation curve. The appreciation curve can be quite sharp, e.g. an F430, or shallow, e.g. an Allegro, but it is a curve, a 'U' shape. Most mainstream cars around this age are around the bottom of the curve. They will start to climb, but gradually. Some dealers are suggesting appreciation curve shapes that are completely ridiculous. I imagine they are trying their luck, and will take a low offer if there is no interest. Cheeky though.
I had a 200vi as a company car. Gave it back after 10 months - I remember writing to the fleet manager, calling it "the devil's own car". It fell apart. Then went for the Alemera! Bloody brilliant. Built like a tank and even completed a couple of laps of the beginners rally stage at Phil ??? Rally school in Wales. Would cock it's rear wheel and handle beautifully.
Trevor555 said:
Why shouldn't this be £10,995?
Because it’s a lightly breathed on Rover 200. One with a more terrible interior than most and a frankly embarrassing and tenuous association with BRM. What is better;
DC2
Corrado
Clio
Saxo
145
Any old car which is rare will sell high. Simple economics.
Trevor555 said:
Why shouldn't this be £10,995?
The best one in the country?
They have always been rare.
I'd sooner have this than a Ford equivalent, and look what they fetch..
There's always someone out there who will pay decent money for the right car.
And to someone, this will be their "right" car.
10k for a boring modern hatch? That'll depreciate.
10k for a car that people will chat to you at petrol stations about, and car shows? That might not depreciate very much at all.
And when you've owned enough modern cars and experienced the huge repair bills, some of the older stuff starts to make sense.
Well done Skippy, keep buying the interesting stuff, making them mint, and sharing them on PH
How many people are going to be coming up to chat at the petrol station with this? I like this car a lot, but let's be reasonable here. The best one in the country?
They have always been rare.
I'd sooner have this than a Ford equivalent, and look what they fetch..
There's always someone out there who will pay decent money for the right car.
And to someone, this will be their "right" car.
10k for a boring modern hatch? That'll depreciate.
10k for a car that people will chat to you at petrol stations about, and car shows? That might not depreciate very much at all.
And when you've owned enough modern cars and experienced the huge repair bills, some of the older stuff starts to make sense.
Well done Skippy, keep buying the interesting stuff, making them mint, and sharing them on PH
Wheel_Turned_Out said:
Trevor555 said:
Why shouldn't this be £10,995?
The best one in the country?
They have always been rare.
I'd sooner have this than a Ford equivalent, and look what they fetch..
There's always someone out there who will pay decent money for the right car.
And to someone, this will be their "right" car.
10k for a boring modern hatch? That'll depreciate.
10k for a car that people will chat to you at petrol stations about, and car shows? That might not depreciate very much at all.
And when you've owned enough modern cars and experienced the huge repair bills, some of the older stuff starts to make sense.
Well done Skippy, keep buying the interesting stuff, making them mint, and sharing them on PH
How many people are going to be coming up to chat at the petrol station with this? I like this car a lot, but let's be reasonable here. The best one in the country?
They have always been rare.
I'd sooner have this than a Ford equivalent, and look what they fetch..
There's always someone out there who will pay decent money for the right car.
And to someone, this will be their "right" car.
10k for a boring modern hatch? That'll depreciate.
10k for a car that people will chat to you at petrol stations about, and car shows? That might not depreciate very much at all.
And when you've owned enough modern cars and experienced the huge repair bills, some of the older stuff starts to make sense.
Well done Skippy, keep buying the interesting stuff, making them mint, and sharing them on PH
But if I saw a mint one I'd say something to the owner.
I've owned loads of modern classics.
The one i got the most comments on was a Renault Spider, not surprisingly.
But the one that did surprise me was a lowly white Z3 in mint condition. Plenty of people said they loved that car.
And let's take that Z3 for an example.
Not rare, but 37,000 miles in white.
4 years ago I sold it to a prestige car dealer for £6700
They put it up for £9995 and sold it.
I don't get the people on here saying the BRM is £3,000 worth.
Have they actually been out car shopping recently to see what £2995 buys you?
I guess I'm biased though I'll admit.
I'm one of those silly people who'll pay strong money for a low mileage, mint example, of an interesting car from the 80's, 90's, 2000's
But funnily enough, I've made a profit on most of them.
Edited by Trevor555 on Thursday 4th March 17:02
Edited by Trevor555 on Thursday 4th March 17:07
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