|
Oddly, when the next model came along - the 214 / 216 from about 1990 on - the smaller engine was BL's own and the 1.6 was Honda's.
I drove a 220i a few times from that series: I can't rember the source of that engine but the 2-litre motor powering a smallish body meant that it went like a bomb. And the handling was good enough to cope with the extra power. Lovely car.
|
Oddly, when the next model came along - the 214 / 216 from about 1990 on - the smaller engine was BL's own and the 1.6 was Honda's.
I drove a 220i a few times from that series: I can't rember the source of that engine but the 2-litre motor powering a smallish body meant that it went like a bomb. And the handling was good enough to cope with the extra power. Lovely car.
Oddly, some thought the 1.6 Honda unit was only fitted to the Auto, but it was fitted to the manual as I bought a tourer, which drove well with plenty of room in the back, until it got rear ended/ written off...
then I found the tourer 2.0 as you say went like a bomb but juicy but still some around in VGC
|
“ Oddly, some thought the 1.6 Honda unit was only fitted to the Auto”
That was the later models post BMW takeover. The link with Honda was broken and they hugely increased the price of any engines and transmissions supplied so the new only cars from late 94 that had a Honda motor were the autos. The K series was hurriedly upsized beyond its original maximum of 1400cc to replace these and the larger versions rapidly became notorious for head gasket failure especially the 1800.
|
|
That was the later models post BMW takeover.
I thought that was the one Avant was talking about, mine was a 1996 P reg Tourer 1.6 Honda manual- rare car, and I have to admit if it had not been written off I would still have it
there are some still about but the prices were far beyond what I would consider reasonable, so didn't replace it.
|
That was the later models post BMW takeover.
I thought that was the one Avant was talking about, mine was a 1996 P reg Tourer 1.6 Honda manual- rare car, and I have to admit if it had not been written off I would still have it
there are some still about but the prices were far beyond what I would consider reasonable, so didn't replace it.
Late model R8’s used the 1600 K series but there is overlap where some had the Honda motor and some the K series. I believe all autos used the Honda motor. I have a friend with a 1996 216 Convertible he believed had a Honda motor but once the bonnet was popped there nestled a K series with soon to be brewing head gasket failure.
|
|
|
|
Oddly, when the next model came along - the 214 / 216 from about 1990 on - the smaller engine was BL's own and the 1.6 was Honda's.
I drove a 220i a few times from that series: I can't rember the source of that engine but the 2-litre motor powering a smallish body meant that it went like a bomb. And the handling was good enough to cope with the extra power. Lovely car.
That was the Rover T Series engine, the non-turbo version even found its way into the Mk1 Land Rover Discovery, slightly underpowered apparently although I have not driven one myself. If it was deemed good enough for the Discovery, no wonder it did so well in the 200!
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rover_T-series_engine
Edited by Metropolis. on 24/09/2020 at 16:42
|
|
People always knock BL , but their engines, notably the M , T and K series were clever designs and advanced at the time . Other manufacturers have since copied and improved the construction.
|
|
They made good diesels too. Shame the K Series was so bad for HGF
|
They made good diesels too. Shame the K Series was so bad for HGF
I had a Rover 45 diesel for a couple of years. Very good.
The K series were not all bad. The 1.4 rarely failed, It was the stresses of the bigger bore engines and the oil rail being too skinny.
From ARonline
www.aronline.co.uk/engines/k-series-engine/
SAIC fixed the 1.8 good and proper using the Riccardo modifications and some of their own,
Shame emissions were too high ..
In fact, I remeber that often Non-franchised repairers were re-using the old through bolts, Doh!!!
And personally, I had quite a few k series over 20 odd years, not 1 single failure!
Edited by _ORB_ on 24/09/2020 at 18:03
|
|
|
They made good diesels too. Shame the K Series was so bad for HGF
The L series diesels were really tough things. The 104bhp high output version was both economical and powerful in the 200/400 and even hauled the 600 along well enough. It was an updated version of the old Perkins diesel in the Maestro/Montego. Never had any trouble with any of them.
|
|
|
|
People always knock BL , but their engines, notably the M , T and K series were clever designs and advanced at the time . Other manufacturers have since copied and improved the construction.
Not as advanced as you think - the T series engine was a development of the M series, which was in turn a development of the O series, which dated back to the BMC B-series
|
People always knock BL , but their engines, notably the M , T and K series were clever designs and advanced at the time . Other manufacturers have since copied and improved the construction.
Not as advanced as you think - the T series engine was a development of the M series, which was in turn a development of the O series, which dated back to the BMC B-series
I agree BUT, evolution is generally better than revolution. There are probably far too few of us left on here who could pull out an A series from a Moggie or A35 without a hoist..
Like all the A nd B series engines (as well as some othet makers) they were a delight to work on. I remember in switzerland in the 70's VW apprentices were invited to dis-assemble and re-assemble the VW 4 pot air cooled engine as in the Bug.. BLINDFOLD,
The only so and so of a job I absolutely hated was taking a gearbox off a mini and using the clutch extractor tool. How many of those broke, (the tool not the clutch)
Edited by _ORB_ on 24/09/2020 at 18:46
|
|
Now for sale according to Practical Classics, quote:
DH: Here is is then.... the mega mileage Rover 200 saved from scrapple and now for sale to raise money for Muscular Dystrophy charity. John Batchelor from the Rover 200/400 Club said: 'The collection went well and the car drove the 60 miles home surprisingly well. It drives better than it looks with rather a lot of poor paint repairs, which reflect it's long life, but it is solid.
Due to the limited amount of work we think we can do, in fact 'should
do' to the car, it is now up for sale at: www.rover200.org.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=13...8 by sealed bid auction.'
'It has had a clean and will be at the BL Rally at the Milton Keynes Museum tomorrow but as the big shows have gone (CMS), or are likely to be postponed, we thought it better to find a new owner now.' The car will be sold via a sealed bid auction ending at 8pm on Sunday October 11th, with all profits going to Muscular Dystrophy UK.
|
|
|
|
People always knock BL , but their engines, notably the M , T and K series were clever designs and advanced at the time .
One of the cleverest was the Triumph Slant 4 with sixteen valves and a single camshaft for the Dolomite Sprint. It was married to a four speed manual gearbox with overdrive on 3rd and 4th gear which could be seamlessly engaged during full throttle by a tiny switch on top of the gear lever knob - useful for 'A' road overtaking.
|
People always knock BL , but their engines, notably the M , T and K series were clever designs and advanced at the time .
One of the cleverest was the Triumph Slant 4 with sixteen valves and a single camshaft for the Dolomite Sprint. It was married to a four speed manual gearbox with overdrive on 3rd and 4th gear which could be seamlessly engaged during full throttle by a tiny switch on top of the gear lever knob - useful for 'A' road overtaking.
And of course it was the Triumph slant 4 which provided the basis of the engine which went on to have a very long life under the bonnets of various Saab‘s!.
|
People always knock BL , but their engines, notably the M , T and K series were clever designs and advanced at the time .
One of the cleverest was the Triumph Slant 4 with sixteen valves and a single camshaft for the Dolomite Sprint. It was married to a four speed manual gearbox with overdrive on 3rd and 4th gear which could be seamlessly engaged during full throttle by a tiny switch on top of the gear lever knob - useful for 'A' road overtaking.
And of course it was the Triumph slant 4 which provided the basis of the engine which went on to have a very long life under the bonnets of various Saab‘s!.
Triumph designed/built the engine initially for Saab and used it for their own cars - Saab took production away from Triumph, redesigned the engine and built their own because of quality issues - Triumph never really overcame those issues - the 16v Sprint engine was notorious for needing constant attention, particularly to valve clearances which were time consuming due to the design.
The Saab version lasted into their ownership by GM but eventually dropped as it couldn't be modified to meet Euro 5 emission regulations.
|
|
|
|
People always knock BL , but their engines, notably the M , T and K series were clever designs and advanced at the time .
One of the cleverest was the Triumph Slant 4 with sixteen valves and a single camshaft for the Dolomite Sprint. It was married to a four speed manual gearbox with overdrive on 3rd and 4th gear which could be seamlessly engaged during full throttle by a tiny switch on top of the gear lever knob - useful for 'A' road overtaking.
Left out of the BL trap and given half a chance Triumph could have been Britain’s BMW but sadly they failed thanks to lack of funding and a confused top heavy BL really not knowing what to do with the firm. The slant 4 was basically a very good design but it was greatly improved by Saab after they bought the rights to it and then went on to used it well into the 90’s.
|
|
Yes, so sad - most people I knew who had Triumphs loved them. Same goes for Rileys. If anything perhaps Riley could have been Britain's BMW and Triumph Britain's Audi: Rover's equivalent maybe Mercedes.
Just a thought - if we were 50 years older and in the same situation in 1970 as we are now, I suppose we might have two Triumphs instead of two Audis - say, a 2000 estate and a Herald or Vitesse convertible - and feel splendidly patriotic about it.
|
Yes, so sad - most people I knew who had Triumphs loved them. Same goes for Rileys. If anything perhaps Riley could have been Britain's BMW and Triumph Britain's Audi: Rover's equivalent maybe Mercedes.
Just a thought - if we were 50 years older and in the same situation in 1970 as we are now, I suppose we might have two Triumphs instead of two Audis - say, a 2000 estate and a Herald or Vitesse convertible - and feel splendidly patriotic about it.
I never understood why they jettisoned the Triumph marque instead of Rover. Perhaps Triumph was too close to MG in spirit?
|
|
|
|
They could have all been great cars and great marques still going strong to day if it were not for the lack of investment, poor management and union strife and better quality control.
They even kept the A series engine for the Metro, a design from the 50's in a car introduced in the late '80s!
|
They could have all been great cars and great marques still going strong to day if it were not for the lack of investment, poor management and union strife and better quality control.
They even kept the A series engine for the Metro, a design from the 50's in a car introduced in the late '80s!
And wasted money developing cars only not to launch because of internal politics. Also wasted money developing an engine that wasn't needed. There were some appalling design decisions along the way too.
|
|
|
|
|
|
People always knock BL , but their engines, notably the M , T and K series were clever designs and advanced at the time .
One of the cleverest was the Triumph Slant 4 with sixteen valves and a single camshaft for the Dolomite Sprint. It was married to a four speed manual gearbox with overdrive on 3rd and 4th gear which could be seamlessly engaged during full throttle by a tiny switch on top of the gear lever knob - useful for 'A' road overtaking.
You could get overdrive to work in 1st and second as well to make it a bit quicker, it worked a treat as well, one of the fastest cars around at the time, some were easily written off
|
People always knock BL , but their engines, notably the M , T and K series were clever designs and advanced at the time .
One of the cleverest was the Triumph Slant 4 with sixteen valves and a single camshaft for the Dolomite Sprint. It was married to a four speed manual gearbox with overdrive on 3rd and 4th gear which could be seamlessly engaged during full throttle by a tiny switch on top of the gear lever knob - useful for 'A' road overtaking.
You could get overdrive to work in 1st and second as well to make it a bit quicker, it worked a treat as well, one of the fastest cars around at the time, some were easily written off
You could, but I doubt if it would have lasted long. It was indeed quick and the top speed would have been higher had it not had the aerodynamics of a brick. In those days of quiet camera-free motorways it would happily cruise at 90mph. Our current sporty little Peugeot 2008 reminds me of it - much the same power to weight ratio, but hopefully better rust protection.
|
People always knock BL , but their engines, notably the M , T and K series were clever designs and advanced at the time .
One of the cleverest was the Triumph Slant 4 with sixteen valves and a single camshaft for the Dolomite Sprint. It was married to a four speed manual gearbox with overdrive on 3rd and 4th gear which could be seamlessly engaged during full throttle by a tiny switch on top of the gear lever knob - useful for 'A' road overtaking.
You could get overdrive to work in 1st and second as well to make it a bit quicker, it worked a treat as well, one of the fastest cars around at the time, some were easily written off
You could, but I doubt if it would have lasted long. It was indeed quick and the top speed would have been higher had it not had the aerodynamics of a brick. In those days of quiet camera-free motorways it would happily cruise at 90mph. Our current sporty little Peugeot 2008 reminds me of it - much the same power to weight ratio, but hopefully better rust protection.
They did as I made them work that way, very simple to do and had 90 in 3rd gear on A21 didnt check at time what it did in 1st and 2nd but car lasted 2 years before rust took over
|
|
The best description I've heard of BL/ARG is it was a dysfunctional family with some talented children. Unfortunately some children had little talent.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
