News : Delivery miles Rover 75 V8 for sale

Keith Adams

Rover 75 V8 (1)

It’s good to see that the ‘delivery miles’ cars from MG Rover’s past are still being unearthed, and offered for sale. This Rover 75 V8, currently on offer by the British Car Centre in Holland ticks that box – it is unregistered, with just six miles on the clock, and it can be yours to drive away for €49,900 (or about £40,900).

The 256bhp saloon is hardly the most environmentally astute purchase at the moment, especially as it kicks out 314g/km, and would struggle to beat 20mpg in daily driving, but there’s something quite appealing about it nonetheless. And it begs the question – would you buy and drive as you would a (cherished) new car – or would you wrap up in cotton wool, and preserve for the future?

This V8 is packed with many options – and we’d suggest a look at the website to go through them, assuming you can read Dutch – but it’s worth bearing in mind, this is one of only 120 LHD examples (of MG and Rover V8s), so you’re going to have to look after it. The dealer promises it comes with a full service and new MoT, which seems fair enough. If you end up buying the beast, we’d love to hear from you!

[Source: Autoscout.de]

Rover 75 V8 (2)

Keith Adams

51 Comments

  1. If it were mine I’d drive it and enjoy it. Cars are meant to be driven, if I want something to look at, I’ll buy a painting.

  2. The thing is, there is no saying how this car has been stored. Even though it has been in storage, it will have still needed regular oil changes, and starting up regularly, and looking at the miles, it is doubtful this has happened. £40k is also very, very salty for a 7 year old Rover with no real warranty to speak of. One to sit in a museum unfortunately

  3. Apart from the steering wheel being on the wrong side for me that is the exact specification I would go for – a Connoisseur SE saloon finished in Royal Blue with a Sandstone leather interior. If only I could afford it… arrrggghhhh!!!!! It’s not fair!!!

  4. @ 2 and 5 – interested to hear that there’s still a handful of delivery mileage only MGR cars still about.

    The above 75 V8 in Holland is a great find. Does the £41K price tag reflect an appreciation, a strong demand for MGR cars in Holland or is the dealer just ‘trying it on’ a bit too much? Judging by the photos it could almost be the Rover Centre – another 75 and a 600.

    Still think the 75 looked far better without the facelift – I quite like the V8 grille but those lights….

  5. Looks like the Bristol one is a full 10k less than this one. Would make a sensible classic- engine parts are readily available and should be cheap (American car parts usually are).

  6. @7. “Still think the 75 looked far better without the facelift – I quite like the V8 grille but those lights….”

    Yes, yes* and yes.

    * Apart from the fact that it now makes it look like an Audi, which is not a good look. This car badly needs de-facelifting, a bit like putting chrome bumpers (and decreasing the ride height) on a late MGB, it would be doing it a big favour!

    Totally impractical and probably one of the most efficient ways to destroy huge amounts of money, but what a completely glorious way to ruin your finances!!

  7. All the rubber components will need replacing though, and I would bank on a bottom end rebuild not far along the line. Its worth about £5-6k maximum, after all, it’s a 7 year old car, that will need a lot of re-commissioning after being stood all that time

  8. @ Chris Baglin:

    I do know of the one in Bristol which is finished in Platinum Gold as I bought an unregistered MG ZR from them in late 2006.

    However, this 75 V8 example has been subject to occasional comments in the past on aronline (as well as on other forums) and the owner of the garage will not budge on his asking price. I have heard he is rather fond of the car and does not want to sell it, hence the reason why he won’t lower his price below that advertised.

  9. Bang on Lord Sward. I looked at that SMG website and on there they had a Rover 600 for over £2k. What? £500 worth on a good day for a 600 nowadays

  10. I can never understand why people say they’d buy it and enjoy it and that they were “made to be driven” etc. If that was the case, why buy an extremely rare one with no miles on the clock and ruin it’s appeal by piling the miles on and making it like every other car with stone chips, worn carpets and a feint whiff of stale fart? Why not buy one with 50k miles on it to you to use and leave a proper collector to keep this gorgeous factory fresh car, safe and factory fresh!

    • When I started reading your comment I was thinking “what a moron” but at the end, I have to say you are right! Great remark!

  11. @10,A bottom end rebuild?what are you talking about?its not some old Cleveland V8 on lead-indium shells,and organic acid techology coolant?with synthetic rubber pipework,oil and filter,and an inspection at the most.
    I think the dealer has priced the vehicle according to it provenance and interest it will generate,someone will buy it.

  12. £40K would be very steep in the UK. In Holland I cant imagine it generating any interest at all. @15 – remember it used an old Mustang Engine – only one step removed from an old Cleveland V8!

  13. Francis, even you should realise how bad modern synthetic lubricants absorb moisture, and if it does still have in the lube that was put in when built, it will not bode well for the engine. And clearly its not been run, which means lots of vital parts will have been starved of lubrication, and things like electric windows will need a good strip down and re grease of the mechanisms. Modern cars hate a lack of use, and this car is not really suitable to be put on the road, and at £40k, is way overpriced, bearing in mind how little Rover 75’s are actually worth nowadays, and how much BMW it buys you

  14. Why the bottom end rebuild? My own Rover V8 did about 6 miles over a period of 10 years and needed nothing other than rear caliper seals to get it roadworthy again. Hasn’t missed a beat since. While changing the sump gasket my mechanic rattled the bottom end and pronounced it fit for the next 40 years.

  15. Come on, seriously, you would just do a quick oil change & service on a car like this? Everything would need stripping down and inspecting at the very least, to check if it was safe to use, and all 4 tyres will need binning for starters.

    Also you can pick these up a damn slight cheaper, that by now will have had all the faults rectified, as remember, these cars were built as the vultures were circling, and MGR often had suppliers putting them ‘on stop’, so often had to source components from outside the normal supply chain, which weren’t 100% correct, so a fair bit of production line bodgery went on.

    And has already been stated, the vendor really doesn’t want to shift it, as has formed a ‘bond’ with it. It will stay in that showroom forever as a museum piece, because be serious here, nobody would pay just over £40k for a nigh on 8 year old Rover 75, unless they had a few slates missing and too much money, someone such as Francesca after he wins the lottery for instance 🙂

  16. Blimey, I don’t know about this Dutch ZT, but in three years time when I’m looking to replace my ZT-T, I might be tempted to pop down to SMG and replace it with another, much lower mileage example!

  17. Yorkie! I wonder what you’ve been on over christmas!
    Your making a lot of assumptions.
    But I’m sure just a good service, with particular attention to the fuel system ,is all this car will need, especially if its been dry stored. I own a 32 year old very low mileage car which had been in dry storeage for 15 years. All it needed was attention to fuel system new brake flexi’s a brake inspection new & new fluid. Yes its still has it’s original pads & discs. Plus 4 new tyres. This Rovers tyres would possibly be ok if it’s been stored out of sunlight. however they will probably now have flat spots
    All i would assume this Rover would need is attention to the fuel sytem a brake inspection oil change & a change of coolant

  18. This car, along with others (CDTi’s may be sold now)is for for sale from at least 2008 (this is the first time I saw it).
    I assume that the seller at least starts the engine by time to time…in this case I believe that the car just needs an oil change and nothing else. My 75 has been always garaged when home, has done from new 95.000 KMs and she doesn’t need anything, neither rubbers or things like that. I could argue that the price is high and is the same as was 4 years ago, meaning that will not sell: It is not so rare to find british cars overseas, new and never sold: I’ve seen so far an SD1, a Princess, an Allegro and a couple of TR7 never sold in Swiss !!

  19. If that thing started and completed it’s journey the first time in however many years, I will eat my hat. If it does (and I want footage for concrete proof) I will make a YouTube video of me frying, seasoning and eating my water proof baseball cap.

    If I won the lottery you think I’d spend 40k on a hamster faced monstrosity with a crap engine from a s**t Ford? I may be mad enough to take a Metro rallying but I’m not that mad 😀

  20. @20,It goes without saying that an inspection would be carried out but not stripping motors and caliper glide bushes that are sat in high temp,waterproof grease its absurd,fresh fuel and oil and filter of course but a strip down would not at all be required,assuming it has been in the showroom all its life,if this car does sell(there must be a die hard Rover nut somewhere)it will be because it aint no BMW.

  21. Not saying I’d turn my nose up at one Keith, but about 260 bhp out of a hulking great V8? Give me an AJ-V8 anyday 😉

  22. Francis, speaking from personal experience here with modern cars, coolant goes off, and actually becomes slightly acidic after a while, and starts to eat away at the waterways, and inside rads & hoses, plus even leaving a car stood for even just a couple of years, it is amazing how much actually seizes up, even things that are so called ‘well lubricated’. And your ‘aint no BMW’ line is exactly why it didn’t sell in the first place. It’s a Rover, so to 99.999% of people,it’s as attractive as a dose of genital warts. And what are the odds that this car has spent quite a while in the outside lot? No dealer in their right mind would have a car like this cluttering up valuable showroom space for so long, but quite frankly I think this dealer is a bit ‘3 sheets to the wind’ anyway. If he slashed the price by say 60%, he may stand a chance of shifting it, but as he won’t budge, and its been sat there for 4 years at least, well….

  23. @29, The clue is in organic acid technology coolant,which can be left in the cooling system upwards of five years if not the lifetime of the car,unlike the old ethylene glycol stuff of old.Its obvious that this car isnt “cluttering up valuable showroom space”isnt it?Maybe the guy loves cars of whatever marque,anyway most BMW drivers have small cocks and are status chasers,forever reinforced and confirmed at most road junctions,thus tarring the minority of such car owners with the same brush.

  24. @ Frankie:

    “If I won the lottery you think I’d spend 40k on a hamster faced monstrosity with a crap engine from a s**t Ford?”

    Francis Brett:

    “(there must be a die hard Rover nut somewhere)”

    Yorkie:

    “It’s a Rover, so to 99.999% of people,it’s as attractive as a dose of genital warts.”

    I have never had genital warts but I can confirm that there is a ‘die hard Rover nut’ out there who, if they could afford it, would love to buy this very rare car. Yes, seriously.

    As already mentioned, with the exception of the steering wheel being on the left, it is in my ‘perfect’ specification in terms of bodystyle, trim level and exterior and interior colourways. I can even forgive it for not having the optional 18-inch Vortex alloy wheels or the Hi-Line satellite navigation system. I also had the pleasure of driving one of these cars back in January 2005, so know how appealing they are.

    Would I use it? Definitely not, with delivery mileage. But I would offer it on long term loan to the Heritage Motor Centre at Gaydon as a vehicle exhibit (as I would have done if I had been successful in trying to acquire the Rover 75 V8 Limousine from Longbridge over two years ago, although for a lot less money!). That way fellow Rover enthusiasts could enjoy it, while it would also add a very rare development in Rover’s final chapter to the museum’s Rover marque portfolio.

    However, I am not in the financial position to shell out £40,000 on this car, or any other car, unfortunately.

  25. I’ve just had a look at the SMG website too out of curiosity. The prices they are asking for Rovers is nothing short of astonishing! Granted a few have minimal or delivery miles but even for Rover fans they are having a laugh.

  26. @Frankie No25
    Is that comment at me?
    The car in question DID complete its first journey to the MOT staion without incident (28 Mile round trip) Before i had replaced the fuel tank/fuel pump, inspected the brakes, changed the fluid, Cleaned out the cooling system ended up fitting a new radiator.
    It was reliable for about the first 500 miles. It did play up mainly due to crap in the fuel, plus nobody au-fait with bosch K jet mechanical injection systems. I am now an expert 🙂

  27. Better buy it now as for 2013 in Holland the amount of tax to be paid to register the car will be , based on the CO2 discharge per km : for 242 grams it will be 16310 euro , add to this 559 euro for every gram extra, which comes to a whopping total of 56558 Euro!!!! So indeed the cas is destined for the museum.

  28. @Tim Hayton:

    When I spoke to them in September 2010 they were very interested in the opportunity to display the 75 V8 Limousine, should I have been successful in acquiring it from MG Motor UK Ltd.

    I take it the Geneva Rover 75 you offered them was either the 2004 Rover 75 V8 (which I last heard was living in Lithuania) or a front-wheel drive car from an earlier Geneva Motor Show?

  29. No it was the V8 which was at that time in Lithuania owned by a member of the Two Sixties. Tom wanted to keep it the time but was hoping HMC would put it on display. They politely declined, even with the history of the car.

  30. A friend of mine who’s an experienced mechanic once told me that a consequence of an under-used engine was glazed bores. This problem tended to be found in cars bought from new by elderly drivers who did little mileage and seldom drove over 30 mph.

    If this car has indeed had the engine turned over occasionally without turning a wheel and running under load, then the bottom end refurb might not be that far off the mark. You would find out soon enough when the blue reek started belching from the exhaust.

  31. Glazed bores are usually found on overheated diesels,the KV6 engine would sometimes spin with “no compression” if for instance was stored outside at a breakers yard,but would start with a quick tow and run faultlessly,it can be due to overuse of additives in fuel and neglect.
    A bottom end rebuild on this particular car seems so far from warranted it is absurd.Bore washout from faulty EGR is again unlikely.

  32. Glazed bores is a problem I associate with days gone by and older oil technology. My Rover V8 sat for 10 years from 2001-2011 and was absolutely fine. After I clocked up a bit of mileage post-recommissioning, I took the top of the engine off. It started out as a job to powder coat the rocker covers (along with the inlet manifold) and replace their leaking cork gaskets, and ended up with me deciding to replace the head gaskets while I was that far down. No problem with bores, anything. The engine has done 98,000 miles now, and other than needing a good tune up at the present moment, it hasn’t missed a beat.

  33. its a really nice car. I hope it has satnav? I could sell my house and go for it!!! But the misses would not be happy. No where to put the china ducks!!! LOL
    I am after a 25 if I can get one? any offers?

    Rover 216sli red

  34. The new owner is a lucky man at any price. Fabulous car I love mine. at 12 K from new in 2007 its a joy to drive in a world of mediocrity. Also no sluggard at 1.3 round the Top Gear track it equalls Merc 500 SL AMG and better than Aston Martin V12 Vanquish, Audi Q7 V12, Noble M12 GTO or Lotus Elise S11. “Speed and style”

  35. A very lucky person indeed owning this car finished in my ideal colour, trim and specification combination. Definitely a more interesting choice than some of its more recent rivals.

  36. I have 75 rover contemporary smooth 2.5 auto se estate red petrol.
    traffic mazter rare sunroof mot tax one previous owner Vgc £1850

  37. I had my eye on the Rover 75 when it was introduced, along with rumors it would mark Rover’s return to the US.Check this : Inside and out it looked like a 3/4 scale Bentley and I wanted one.

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