1976 BL Management Car Plan
Discussion
Found an old BL Management Car Plan price list from 1976. Prices are monthly lease, and there are some proper bargains. As an ambitious young thruster/boy racer, the only possible choice was a Dolomite Sprint at £35.88 per month....or £229 in today's money ( multiply by 6.386 according to B of E website). 
I had lots of Rover management cars in the 80’s and early 90’s. These particular ones were a bit before my time to be fair. I was eligible for 2 cars (senior manager you know 
) which got changed every 5 or 6 months. It was a complete PITA 4 or 5 new cars a year, just get the damm run in and thing sorted and off it went. I did have some belters though, the 827 Rovers were a fine bit of kit, both saloon and fastback, MG maestro’s we’re good fun and I managed to wangle an MG Maestro Turbo on the scheme which I think I held onto for about a year. I had a real soft spot for the 216GTi twin cam which with its Honda engine was a proper quick car back in the day. I used to get Mrs BigM the 216SLi coupe which was also a nice thing. I once got here a Maestro Diesel because it was cheap, I still get grief for it 30 years later 
she absolutely hated it and I’ve never been forgiven.
Happy days.
) which got changed every 5 or 6 months. It was a complete PITA 4 or 5 new cars a year, just get the damm run in and thing sorted and off it went. I did have some belters though, the 827 Rovers were a fine bit of kit, both saloon and fastback, MG maestro’s we’re good fun and I managed to wangle an MG Maestro Turbo on the scheme which I think I held onto for about a year. I had a real soft spot for the 216GTi twin cam which with its Honda engine was a proper quick car back in the day. I used to get Mrs BigM the 216SLi coupe which was also a nice thing. I once got here a Maestro Diesel because it was cheap, I still get grief for it 30 years later she absolutely hated it and I’ve never been forgiven.Happy days.
bigmowley said:
I had lots of Rover management cars in the 80’s and early 90’s.
Same for me 95 - 98. I was a mere boy so only eligible for 1 management car, the price of which was about 1% of retail price per month. It was effectively a loan rather than a company car permitting some clever tax fiddle. The tasty stuff was full price or not available, the regular stuff at 1% as said and occasionally some absolute bargains as they tried to move slow stock. The Honda based 216 and coupes were great. I had a MGF as I worked on the launch, and a Freelander for the same reason - these were otherwise unobtainable on the scheme. Rover were owned by BMW at the time and I was always envious of their scheme which we didn't have access to. thegreenhell said:
What were salaries and house prices like at the time for comparison?
As an apprentice electrician i earned £5 a week My parents bought their house for £10,200 a 3 bed "modern semi " as they were called then
Petrol was about 36p a gallon (just under 5 litres ) if I remember correctly
richardracer said:
My first company car at BL was an MGBGTV8 v8 in damask red. It was an interim car until a Triumph Stag arrived, but left before it did.
Anyone know if RBW 6P survived?
Tax due in 2003. I’d have thought a V8 (or any MG) that made it that far would have made it to classic car eternity.Anyone know if RBW 6P survived?
hilly10 said:
Painter and Decorator tradesman wage was circa £55 per week if I remember right
Supposedly the nationsl average was £72/wk, so the price/annual wage ratio was 3.5. Today the ratio is about twice that, or a bit more, but then the average mortgage in the mid/late 70s was 9%-10%. hilly10 said:
Painter and Decorator tradesman wage was circa £55 per week if I remember right
Dad left the RN to work clerical insurance clerk at £40pw , then left after 3 months to work in Oman for £250pw tax free.Some of those choices is like dipping your hand into a turd bucket lucky dip though.
OP here. First car I got on the scheme was a Dolomite Sprint. Great car, but horrendously unreliable...all the gloom and doom tales are true. Highlight was the head gasket blowing and causing the thermostat housing to explode and dent the underbonnet. It also had a terrible transmission vibration which made the radio jump out of the dash. Was never sorted before it went back. It's still around though, currently Sorn.
Followed by a rubber bumper MGB Roadster (with optional wire wheels). This was a really nice car, just very, very slow compared to the Sprint due to all the emissions gubbins.
By chance my local BL dealer (Hope Scott on the outskirts of Edinburgh) were very performance minded, and didn't take much persuading to take all the emissions stuff off when it went in for a service. After this it was transformed, and much quicker. At one point I outdragged an unmarked police Rover 3500S, and when inevitably pulled over, the driver was convinced it must have been a V8.
Followed by a rubber bumper MGB Roadster (with optional wire wheels). This was a really nice car, just very, very slow compared to the Sprint due to all the emissions gubbins.
By chance my local BL dealer (Hope Scott on the outskirts of Edinburgh) were very performance minded, and didn't take much persuading to take all the emissions stuff off when it went in for a service. After this it was transformed, and much quicker. At one point I outdragged an unmarked police Rover 3500S, and when inevitably pulled over, the driver was convinced it must have been a V8.
InitialDave said:
texaxile said:
Some of those choices is like dipping your hand into a turd bucket lucky dip though.
Well, you know what they say, In other news, I had a friend who rolled his Morris Marina. Someone in the back seat of the lead car in the pub convoy said "he's spun, he's spun" having seen the dancing headlights behind. Went back to look and found the car on its roof. The solution to the scratches was to put a vinyl roof on it. Happy days.
3059hp said:
OP here. First car I got on the scheme was a Dolomite Sprint. Great car, but horrendously unreliable...all the gloom and doom tales are true. Highlight was the head gasket blowing and causing the thermostat housing to explode and dent the underbonnet.
Hah hah.......I think my cousin had the same thing happen with his Sprint he bought new in '76. It may not have been but I do remember him saying about the head gasket failure and something went bang and he needed a bonnet replaced......he hated the Sprint, it was always in the dealership broken. He only kept it 18 months before part ex-ing for a Volvo 244.Gassing Station | Classic Cars and Yesterday's Heroes | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff