Discussion
In a word, yes.
You have to accept that fuel economy won't match a newer car - especially with that v8 - but other than that if it's regularly maintained it will probably be more reliable than if you just kept it for occasional Sundays.
Face it, half the bank managers in the UK were driving SD1s every day 25 or so years ago...
You have to accept that fuel economy won't match a newer car - especially with that v8 - but other than that if it's regularly maintained it will probably be more reliable than if you just kept it for occasional Sundays.
Face it, half the bank managers in the UK were driving SD1s every day 25 or so years ago...
Seem to be a few about.
Condition (as ever) dictates price.
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2380346.htm
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/cat//40/sd1/
Condition (as ever) dictates price.
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2380346.htm
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/cat//40/sd1/
tog said:
Does anyone here run an SD1 Vitesse? Would it be a sensible every day family car? Possibly with LPG? I'd consider a regular 3500, but I'd want a manual gearbox so most likely would have to be a Vitesse. I do about 20k miles a year.
A 25 year old Vitesse as a sensible every day car to do 20k miles per year in ...... 
You need to see a Psychiatrist .....
trickywoo said:
Seem to be a few about.
Condition (as ever) dictates price.
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2380346.htm
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/cat//40/sd1/
Neither are Vitesses though are they? Condition (as ever) dictates price.
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2380346.htm
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/cat//40/sd1/
vixen1700 said:
Neither are Vitesses though are they?
Shed like Vitesse just for you http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1986-ROVER-3500-SD1-T-P-VITE...
aeropilot said:
A 25 year old Vitesse as a sensible every day car to do 20k miles per year in ......
You need to see a Psychiatrist .....
Grow a pair man!You need to see a Psychiatrist .....
20k is only a 80 mile round-trip commute every day for a year and I did that a couple of winters ago in my Triumph 2.5PI, only calling the AA out once when I discovered how accurate my fuel gauge was (i.e not very).
aeropilot said:
tog said:
Does anyone here run an SD1 Vitesse? Would it be a sensible every day family car? Possibly with LPG? I'd consider a regular 3500, but I'd want a manual gearbox so most likely would have to be a Vitesse. I do about 20k miles a year.
A 25 year old Vitesse as a sensible every day car to do 20k miles per year in ...... You need to see a Psychiatrist .....
Why on earth wouldn't it be?
aeropilot said:
A 25 year old Vitesse as a sensible every day car to do 20k miles per year in ......
You need to see a Psychiatrist .....
I put 30,000 miles on my 1984 Bitter in 18 months, and my current 1988 Merc has had about 13k on it since June. Old cars work fine if they are properly looked after. I was just wondering if anyone on here actually had experience of the SD1 specifically, if there were any foibles. For example, I did look at getting an Excel a few years ago, but was told they need cambelts doing every 24,000 miles, which at the time would have been every six months (I used to do nearer 50k a year) and I thought that might be excessive!You need to see a Psychiatrist .....
No reason why not: they were used as everyday cars when they were new afterall.
providing you do preventative, as well as scheduled maintenance there is no reason why any old car cannot be used everyday.
Just dont watch "Rita, Sue and Bon too" as you might get ideas about what else they are good for!
providing you do preventative, as well as scheduled maintenance there is no reason why any old car cannot be used everyday.
Just dont watch "Rita, Sue and Bon too" as you might get ideas about what else they are good for!
No reason why it shouldn't be realistic, providing you start with a good one. They are basically simple cars, easy to maintain and the V8 is well known.
There are quite a few manual non-Vitesse V8s around, not as sought after and not as quick, but they would have twin carbs rather than injection.
I ran 2 V8 SD1s in the early 80's and then again into the early 90s; the only issues were the occasional sender issue, ie an oil pressure sender on one, replacement radiator on one and a cruise control unit that packed up. As I never really liked cruise control, I didn't spend any time finding out what was wrong, it might have been a simple issue. Other than that, no mechanical issues over a period of 8 years use between them (not my only cars though). Both were autos and one was used for towing occasionally, which it did well.
Mechanically generally strong, bodywork can suffer a bit though. Personally, if I was to have another SD1 I would only consider a V8, but I would go for condition rather than a specifc model, ie Vitesse. You might find that some Vitesses have been driven hard, whereas others may have had an easier life. They were very practical cars with the hatchback and folding rear seat, an idea now being put forward by Audi and BMW. Rover beat them to it by about 35 years. A pity they didn't build them to the same standards as Audi do now.
The best improvement you can make to any SD1 is a proper round 15" steering wheel in place of the quartic standad offering, IMHO!
There are quite a few manual non-Vitesse V8s around, not as sought after and not as quick, but they would have twin carbs rather than injection.
I ran 2 V8 SD1s in the early 80's and then again into the early 90s; the only issues were the occasional sender issue, ie an oil pressure sender on one, replacement radiator on one and a cruise control unit that packed up. As I never really liked cruise control, I didn't spend any time finding out what was wrong, it might have been a simple issue. Other than that, no mechanical issues over a period of 8 years use between them (not my only cars though). Both were autos and one was used for towing occasionally, which it did well.
Mechanically generally strong, bodywork can suffer a bit though. Personally, if I was to have another SD1 I would only consider a V8, but I would go for condition rather than a specifc model, ie Vitesse. You might find that some Vitesses have been driven hard, whereas others may have had an easier life. They were very practical cars with the hatchback and folding rear seat, an idea now being put forward by Audi and BMW. Rover beat them to it by about 35 years. A pity they didn't build them to the same standards as Audi do now.
The best improvement you can make to any SD1 is a proper round 15" steering wheel in place of the quartic standad offering, IMHO!
//j17 said:
In a word, yes.
You have to accept that fuel economy won't match a newer car - especially with that v8 - but other than that if it's regularly maintained it will probably be more reliable than if you just kept it for occasional Sundays.
Face it, half the bank managers in the UK were driving SD1s every day 25 or so years ago...
Bonuses weren't as big in those days though!You have to accept that fuel economy won't match a newer car - especially with that v8 - but other than that if it's regularly maintained it will probably be more reliable than if you just kept it for occasional Sundays.
Face it, half the bank managers in the UK were driving SD1s every day 25 or so years ago...
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