Just been chatting to my neighbour - a retired and fairly well-to-do company director who's just replaced his ageing Rover 416gti with a new Rover 45. Knowing how fastidious he is about his cars I thought I'd have a quick look and I'm sorry to have to say this but I was rather disappointed.
The car is a very well specified model (leather, climate control, full electrics etc.) but after even a cursory 'inspection' it was evident that the attention to detail was lacking. There was a large and obvious paint 'run' on the o/s rear pillar, very cheap looking and poorly fitted lining in the boot and numerous seams and joints which seemed to be shoddy to say the least. So far as the dealer experience was concerned he told me that the mud flaps he'd ordered weren't fitted and that only 6 months VED was provided rather than the 12 months they'd agreed.
So, all in all, pretty poor and very disappointing 'cos I really hope Rover can get it right and grow into a company we can all be proud of. My old 820e was a pile of rubbish and I was hoping those days were well behind Rover but perhaps not quite yet!
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Please re-assure us that you didn't point any of this out to the poor guy!
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Hi V.
Please understand that I have no axe to grind, in this application.
I well remember the installation of the new paint plant at Rover. It could be said, and was at the time, that it was the best in Europe.
I have seen no installation for a very long time since.
Going nowhere, doing nothing but surviving.
Patriotism is great, but my personal money needs to buy the BEST. Whose doesn't?
I look at Sony in wales, Panasonic/ Technics/ Matsushita in Wakefield and Seiko/ Pulsar/ somethibg else/ in Kobe Asaki.
They rip perfectly good lines out after 2 years to install "world class"
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You don,t have to rip out the old lines, my company keeps ahead by reseach and development, improving on tried and tested methods, why reinvent the wheel, when you can put pneumatic tyres on it?
VW decided a few years ago to redesign gearboxes, the old ones were bomb proof, now lets make them of a lighter softer metal and case harden the gears, ah they don't last very long, still they have invested so much money in the idea they can't lose face and go back to the old tried and tested, or maybe they don't even have the old line!
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OMG, somebody actually bought a brand new Rover 45???
Actually, you'll find that sales of Rover 45s have actually picked up a bit this year. I can't really think why that would be, but it has prompted MG Rover to give the car another facelift very shortly, as its replacement is still probably 18 months away.
TBH, a paint run and a cheap looking boot carpet is not exactly the end of the world is it? It's things like the car breaking down with a faulty ignition coil which the manufacturer cannot get a replacement for that I would worry more about. ;)
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Paint run is not the end of the world but what is the rest of the car and its components like when they cannot be bothered to sort that out.
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Your Royal Highness is of course correct in saying that paint runs and poorly fitting boot lining isn't the end of the world. I guess I was just very surprised that this man had been given a brand new car in such a condition. Who was working in Rover quality control that day and what was the dealer thinking of ??
The paint run in question is large and very conspicuous, in fact I spotted it immediately. The other issues are probably not serious but don't inspire much confidence. As always the difference between the sublime and barely acceptable can be simply fine attention to detail. My thoughts are that if they can't be bothered with what's obvious to my untrained eye God knows what the mechanical and electrical systems are going to be like! Perhaps that'll prove to be totally wrong but the poor first impression has already been created and now Rover has to undo it.
It's a pity 'cos I really want to like Rovers - my old man had an old Rover 2200sc when we were kids and we all loved it but my only experience was a very costly disaster.
I'm not sure how many of these faults are down to a lack of state of the art manufacturing techniques as opposed to pure sloppiness and that's what's really sad.
BTW - I have only highlighted the negative points - many other aspects of the car seemed fine. The leather seats were very nice and the controls felt pretty solid too so please don't anyone think there's nothing good about this car. It's just that what's so obviously wrong is obviously wrong and should have been put right prior to delivery.
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I had a few Rover 75 V6's recently as hire cars and I think they are superb, well put together, really nice - except for the handling.
VD5D.
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Could you elaborate about the handling on the 75, VD5D? I've been tossing a few alternatives around for replacing the Passat when the time comes, and the shortlist is currently 75, 320d and Mazda6 (all in diesel guise). There are pros & cons for all, but I reckon if the 75 handled well enough then it would probably edge out the other two on grounds of cost, refinement, kit and comfort. I'd also thought about the MGZT CDT, but the few I've seen advertised have been out of my price range. Anyone heard of aftermarket conversions from 75 suspension to the ZT setup, or would that be too horrendously expensive?
andymc
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Our 75's handling was straight out of Sofa Workshop.
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What you say about the dealers is true, some definitely seem to be better than others.
As regards the handling, I believe the 75 estate has uprated handling from the saloon, and I believe it may also be possible to order this upgrade for the saloon too when buying new. Whether you can add it as an aftermarket option I'm not sure. Better ask someone who knows about these things!
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