£700 rover p5 coupe talk me out of it
Discussion
v8 classic rover, havent done any restoration before but want to get into it? im only 17 but love the idea of fixing up this awesome rover p5 with a few friends, any major reasons why i shouldnt?
IMG_0054 by alex absolute, on Flickr
IMG_0056 by alex absolute, on Flickr
IMG_0055 by alex absolute, on Flickr
any help would be appreciated
thanks. alex
IMG_0054 by alex absolute, on Flickr
IMG_0056 by alex absolute, on Flickr
IMG_0055 by alex absolute, on Flickr
any help would be appreciated
thanks. alex
That looks pretty far gone. You might be looking at many hundreds of hours of work and not a little expense. The Rover is a large complex car too. Maybe start with something a little simpler and less in need of attention.
If you do decide to go for it, good luck! The P5 is a beautiful automobile.
If you do decide to go for it, good luck! The P5 is a beautiful automobile.
Great project. A big and complex car with many rust issues. But there will be a lot of help out there. The numberplate might be worth the same as new panels so you could save there. Once the chass is welded add new panels, etc.
Good luck if you do. And if you dont, contact he club. A V8 Coupe is a desirable car, so im sure someone rescue it
Good luck if you do. And if you dont, contact he club. A V8 Coupe is a desirable car, so im sure someone rescue it
A brave one for a first timer but nothing wrong with that!
Whilst the heart will always win over the brain I suggest you take a step back and think about a budget and timescale for the project. You see so many cars advertised where sadly owners have run out of enthusiasm, cash or both and never got to enjoy the fruits of their labours.
I'm sure there will be others who will respond to share their knowledge on the expense and time that a P5 project like this requires. There are some really good restoration threads on here and lots of good advice to help owners address problems as they come along.
Keep us posted!
Whilst the heart will always win over the brain I suggest you take a step back and think about a budget and timescale for the project. You see so many cars advertised where sadly owners have run out of enthusiasm, cash or both and never got to enjoy the fruits of their labours.
I'm sure there will be others who will respond to share their knowledge on the expense and time that a P5 project like this requires. There are some really good restoration threads on here and lots of good advice to help owners address problems as they come along.
Keep us posted!
williamp said:
The numberplate might be worth the same as new panels so you could save there.
IF the plate's still on that car, and hasn't already been transferred off (DVLA show nothing against it for a Rover), then it'd need to have had a current MOT within the last 6mo to transfer it off...TooMany2cvs said:
IF the plate's still on that car, and hasn't already been transferred off (DVLA show nothing against it for a Rover), then it'd need to have had a current MOT within the last 6mo to transfer it off...
Isn't MN an Isle of Man plate? Not sure of the rules on those.A mate (runs a small restoration business) has been working on a clients Rover P5 (not a coupe, earlier 3-litre saloon) for a light restoration, and there's a good deal of corrosion on it, requiring a fair number of repair sections. It's not terrible, but it's also not a quick job especially if you're working in your spare time. But it's a nice car, and if the price is right it's got to be worth a go.
How much cash and what skills do you have ? Looks like it needs a total nut and bolt rebuild. Check out just the cost of getting the chrome re-done and it's future value. P5s are surprisingly cheap for what I think is a fantastic car, but that just seems to make a nut and bolt rebuild even worse value for money.
Maybe start with something a bit less ambitious, like a Mini. Simple car, lots of choice of projects , every part available, less time and space needed, much less chance of tearing it apart and loosing interest/running out of money and sticking it up for sale.
Maybe start with something a bit less ambitious, like a Mini. Simple car, lots of choice of projects , every part available, less time and space needed, much less chance of tearing it apart and loosing interest/running out of money and sticking it up for sale.
Or get a loan and buy a good one?
Will be cheaper in the long run than going through a restoration. You'll get to enjoy it quicker, and learn with minor problems rather than a full-blown restoration! I always think cars are worth saving, so get in touch with the club and let someone else have the 'fun' with this one
If you have the restoration 'itch', take a look at some of the less complex stuff - Mini's, Beetles, MGB's etc.
It's no fun when you are waiting weeks for parts to arrive, or that phone call from the bodyshop as they uncover more and more rust!
Dave
Will be cheaper in the long run than going through a restoration. You'll get to enjoy it quicker, and learn with minor problems rather than a full-blown restoration! I always think cars are worth saving, so get in touch with the club and let someone else have the 'fun' with this one
If you have the restoration 'itch', take a look at some of the less complex stuff - Mini's, Beetles, MGB's etc.
It's no fun when you are waiting weeks for parts to arrive, or that phone call from the bodyshop as they uncover more and more rust!
Dave
You have to bear in mind that the £700 is just a downpayment, even if you do all the physical work yourself it is going to cost you many times that in parts and materials before you have a usable car, probably far more than just going out and buying a nice example in the first place would cost.
That said, I applaud any 17-year-old taking on any project – and have often been in the same position when £700 is doable, but the cost of a roadworthy car is impossible - so go for it.
It's not the most sensible first project (generally anything on a Triumph chassis is a nice one to start with), but you'll have one hell of a cool car at the end of it.
Good luck.
That said, I applaud any 17-year-old taking on any project – and have often been in the same position when £700 is doable, but the cost of a roadworthy car is impossible - so go for it.
It's not the most sensible first project (generally anything on a Triumph chassis is a nice one to start with), but you'll have one hell of a cool car at the end of it.
Good luck.
Come on guys, offer some encouragement here!
I ran a variety of classic sheds when I was 17/18 including a Lancia Fulvia (which I still have), Hillman Superminx auto, Cortina Mk I etc. Fixed them all outside as a student and had a great time.
Assuming your good with a spanner and can think outside the box, I would advise the below.
1) Make sure the engine runs and doesn’t smoke too much.
2) Take some time and sort the brakes properly.
3) Check the chassis isn’t completely full of rust (see below).
4) Buy an angle grinder and a MIG welder and learn to use them.
5) Find a sympathetic MOT tester who’s pragmatic about testing old cars.
Once you’ve got an MOT you’re off and anything else can be sorted on the road.
If the worst comes to the worst I’m sure you could get your money back in parts alone.
I ran a variety of classic sheds when I was 17/18 including a Lancia Fulvia (which I still have), Hillman Superminx auto, Cortina Mk I etc. Fixed them all outside as a student and had a great time.
Assuming your good with a spanner and can think outside the box, I would advise the below.
1) Make sure the engine runs and doesn’t smoke too much.
2) Take some time and sort the brakes properly.
3) Check the chassis isn’t completely full of rust (see below).
4) Buy an angle grinder and a MIG welder and learn to use them.
5) Find a sympathetic MOT tester who’s pragmatic about testing old cars.
Once you’ve got an MOT you’re off and anything else can be sorted on the road.
If the worst comes to the worst I’m sure you could get your money back in parts alone.
Was merely pointing out that at the age of 17, the OP may want to drive the thing more than visit it once a month in somebody else's workshop. It would be cool to run it ratty for a while before a resto but if it were me at that age, I'd get frustrated with it.
Plus, being broken down on the side of the road in the pissing rain ain't fun. Don't matter how cool you look then
Either do it properly, or buy a better one. That isn't going to be a simple car to restore
Plus, being broken down on the side of the road in the pissing rain ain't fun. Don't matter how cool you look then
Either do it properly, or buy a better one. That isn't going to be a simple car to restore
Where2Guv said:
Plus, being broken down on the side of the road in the pissing rain ain't fun. Don't matter how cool you look then
Either do it properly, or buy a better one. That isn't going to be a simple car to restore
Indeed, I had a fantastic looking P5B Coupe in the early '90s but spent an awful lot of time spent at the side of the road. Either do it properly, or buy a better one. That isn't going to be a simple car to restore
OP, these things are very over-engineered, which will mean very expensive to restore, so save a bit more and get a better one if your heart is set on one.
madjules said:
Come on guys, offer some encouragement here!
I ran a variety of classic sheds when I was 17/18 including a Lancia Fulvia (which I still have), Hillman Superminx auto, Cortina Mk I etc. Fixed them all outside as a student and had a great time.
Assuming your good with a spanner and can think outside the box, I would advise the below.
1) Make sure the engine runs and doesn’t smoke too much.
2) Take some time and sort the brakes properly.
3) Check the chassis isn’t completely full of rust (see below).
4) Buy an angle grinder and a MIG welder and learn to use them.
5) Find a sympathetic MOT tester who’s pragmatic about testing old cars.
Once you’ve got an MOT you’re off and anything else can be sorted on the road.
If the worst comes to the worst I’m sure you could get your money back in parts alone.
GentsI ran a variety of classic sheds when I was 17/18 including a Lancia Fulvia (which I still have), Hillman Superminx auto, Cortina Mk I etc. Fixed them all outside as a student and had a great time.
Assuming your good with a spanner and can think outside the box, I would advise the below.
1) Make sure the engine runs and doesn’t smoke too much.
2) Take some time and sort the brakes properly.
3) Check the chassis isn’t completely full of rust (see below).
4) Buy an angle grinder and a MIG welder and learn to use them.
5) Find a sympathetic MOT tester who’s pragmatic about testing old cars.
Once you’ve got an MOT you’re off and anything else can be sorted on the road.
If the worst comes to the worst I’m sure you could get your money back in parts alone.
This is great that we have new young blood in restorations, however having been involved and running my own business for 25 odd years and more I wouldn’t want to let someone bite off more that they can chew for the first jobbie.
These Rovers can be a nightmare and are very expensive to restore, in fact I wouldn’t worry about the engine at the moment, the old V8 is still well supported for parts and availability and is a really easy engine to rebuild.
Rust will be your demoralising factor, with these old girls the rust you can see will only be anything up to 25% of what is there. They have all sorts of box sections and a lot of the rust will be well hidden until you get her apart.
I would rather see this one sat in a garage until you are ready for a challenge rather than see it given up and sold for parts and banger racing.
You may not like them but MGB’s some Fords etc are a lot easier to repair for a first car and you do have a better chance of seeing the project out and driving it.
But if you were my son I would be saying “buy it” but then the wife has said I am irresponsible and never grown up.
By all means have a go but it will be a big job, and will be expensive.
By the way I do think they are super cool, and would love one of my own but the Memsaab has banned me form getting one.
Fair play to the OP for even considering it, and what great taste he has. These are wonderful cars, often called the poor man's Rolls Royce with good reason. If you take it on as a true long term project with a good budget worked out (and a contingency fund on top of that) then I'd say go ahead, but the other advice so far about tackling something smaller and less complex is worth bearing in mind too.
A lot of parts for P5Bs are available but a lot aren't, perticularly the chrome, mazak and stainless steel trim which only the Coupes have. If the bumpers need chroming they could cost you around £400 - £700 each to get done, but there are some stainless steel versions available for about £800 (a complete front and rear kit this). The interior will cost you an arm and a leg to put right or have recovered although decent s/hand items are available if yo uask around. If you are seriously considering a P5 / P5B project you should join the owner's club, the expertise there is fantastic and most owners have a stash of spares which they're usally willing to trade. V8 engines and parts are in good supply and some owners put later SD1 lumps in.
I'm on my second P5B Coupe now, my first was ok, at £4,800 it looked good from a few yards away but every panel on the car had rot bubbling through the paint. Mechanically it was very good and the interior was nearly mint. My current one which I bought last year cost me nearly twice as much, it had been about 90% restored by the bloke I bought it from but it still needs a few jobs doing here and there, mostly cosmetic but it drives like a dream. For a big old barge they can shift surprisingly well, it's not so much the speed attainable but how it goes about it that's most impressive, they are supern cruisers - in good fettle they have a turbine like smoothness about them which I've never experienced in any other classic car before.
Good luck whichever way you decide to go!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21403537@N00/11913193...
A lot of parts for P5Bs are available but a lot aren't, perticularly the chrome, mazak and stainless steel trim which only the Coupes have. If the bumpers need chroming they could cost you around £400 - £700 each to get done, but there are some stainless steel versions available for about £800 (a complete front and rear kit this). The interior will cost you an arm and a leg to put right or have recovered although decent s/hand items are available if yo uask around. If you are seriously considering a P5 / P5B project you should join the owner's club, the expertise there is fantastic and most owners have a stash of spares which they're usally willing to trade. V8 engines and parts are in good supply and some owners put later SD1 lumps in.
I'm on my second P5B Coupe now, my first was ok, at £4,800 it looked good from a few yards away but every panel on the car had rot bubbling through the paint. Mechanically it was very good and the interior was nearly mint. My current one which I bought last year cost me nearly twice as much, it had been about 90% restored by the bloke I bought it from but it still needs a few jobs doing here and there, mostly cosmetic but it drives like a dream. For a big old barge they can shift surprisingly well, it's not so much the speed attainable but how it goes about it that's most impressive, they are supern cruisers - in good fettle they have a turbine like smoothness about them which I've never experienced in any other classic car before.
Good luck whichever way you decide to go!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21403537@N00/11913193...
Edited by P5Nij on Tuesday 21st January 15:53
OP,
have you done any research at all on what it would take to restore this
Do you want to drive it, if so have you researched insurance
Have you looked in on the Young Guns Classics site
Other posters,
how many times have we seen this sort of thread and then the OP rarely replies or soon puts up another thread looking at another car to restore or they've bought a modern instead
I hope I'm wrong as classics need much, much younger people owning them and driving them rather than the ancient oxygen thieves (I like that term, still makes me laugh) that have them polished and hidden away
have you done any research at all on what it would take to restore this
Do you want to drive it, if so have you researched insurance
Have you looked in on the Young Guns Classics site
Other posters,
how many times have we seen this sort of thread and then the OP rarely replies or soon puts up another thread looking at another car to restore or they've bought a modern instead
I hope I'm wrong as classics need much, much younger people owning them and driving them rather than the ancient oxygen thieves (I like that term, still makes me laugh) that have them polished and hidden away
droopsnoot said:
Isn't MN an Isle of Man plate?
Yes, it is! Well spotted. I thought there was something odd about it...[quote]Not sure of the rules on those.
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