Mike Humble
The Rover 25 unexpectedly suffers a trauma and, sadly, has to go.
They say things happen in threes: firstly my computer printer gives up the ghost after six solid years of commendable service, then the portable TV in the spare bedroom went kaput and then, this afternoon, something truly horrible happened. My ’til now solid and dependable Rover 25 died with a teeth grinding clatter.
Recently, I went back into the dirty, seedy world of vehicle sales, namely buses and coaches. Upon taking this role, I was given a company car – a Honda Civic i-CDTi which, for the record, is a truly brilliant bit of kit and totally assembled here in Blighty too. We decided to clear out the spare bedroom in the hope of making some space for a home office and, as the car sitting outside along with Mr Adams’ Polski-Rover SD1 had been unused for over a week, I opted to do the tip run in the little ol’ 25.
I can’t have got more than half a mile away from home, when – with no warning at all – the steering pulled hard towards the right feeling just like a puncture. Thankfully, I was only doing around 20 mph at the time, so pulling over to stop I got out of the silver bullet only to find the tyres perfectly inflated – not good!
Moving away, I was greeted with a nasty clunk and a clatter with a regular clicking noise. Stopping again, the gearbox decided to dump all of its oil onto the road….. my heart sank. In a nutshell, it looks very much like something in the final drive/differential has gone West. I currently have three other cars at my disposal and so have decided to let the old girl go. Sadly, I simply have neither the time nor any real inclination to replace the gearbox.
Such a shame, as I was going to do the Longbridge Rally this year and, in the longer term, also intended to mothball the car and really get it looking 110%. The thick of the work had already been done, cylinder head, part exhaust, full service and a whole host of betterment items… but now it’s all academic really.
The car is offered for sale, spares or repair and is also listed on a leading auction website. However, if anyone would like a seriously cheap little five-door car with everything working (inc. the aircon) please get in touch – I would love it to go to another enthusiast. For the full details email via the Contact Us tab or call +44 (0)7713 110241
Moving on to Rover and then PSV / HGV, he has circumnavigated most departments of dealerships including parts, service and latterly - the showroom. Mike has owned all sorts of rubbish from Lada to Leyland and also holds both Heavy Goods & Public Service Vehicle licences, he buys & sells buses and coaches during the week. Mike runs his own automotive web site and writes for a number of motoring or commercial vehicle themed publications
- Essays : Selling the brand - 18 November 2023
- Review : Land Rover Discovery – first off the line - 15 September 2023
- Events : Leyland National 51 gathering, Whitehaven 29-30 April - 5 April 2023
Bad news, but at least it happened at low speed and close to home. I’ve got to say, I’ve never had any trouble from the R65 box although some say otherwise. Whatever, getting a good used box will be cheap and easy while fitting them is very straight forward thanks to easy access and an aluminium casing.
@Lord Sward
Like your good self, I do gearboxes and heads on these bleeders with my eyes shut.
General apathy and a lack of space and time have made the Rover 25 surplus stock – a great shame too!
@Mike Humble
Well, at least it had the good grace to implode when you’d got yourself sorted with a company car.
Sold today – to an enthusiast owner too!
That’s what happens when you fix one problem – it tends to cause another one shortly afterwards. I’m glad the 25’s gone to a good home though.
It’s a good thing that you were going at a slow speed. I once had a blow out at 90mph whilst on the A14 in a Renault 25 – not a nice experience to go through.
@Jemma
Blow out or Renault 25?
@Jemma
Why were you doing 90mph?
That’s sad news, but I’m pleased to hear that the 25 has gone to a good home.
Hi, next time you or anyone has a problem like this, give me a call. I have over 500 of these gearboxes in stock as CORE units. We use a lot of the internals on the late shape MINIs.
I could have had this unit rebuilt for you for £125!! The 0800 number is on the Mini Gearboxes website!!