‘The Best Small Car in the World' - 1991 Rover Metro 1.1C 

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So proud of you for a smashing video xxx

I rented one of these in 1997, and even though the car felt ancient by then, I truly loved it. The fit and finish was questionable but it handled beautifully!

I love your enthusiasm, its rare. I had a Metro CityX in 1984, I turned it into an 'L' cosmetically, always loved BL cars, looked after my metro for a few years but later had a Saab 900 which I loved for 14 years, that was quite special. My first car was a Mini, built in Seneffe in Belgium it had the 1100 engine in which was rare. But nice trim. Allegros were made there also. Both for european markets.

Great review! In Portugal, the Metro (known as Rover 100) was targeted to the premium supermini market. The base model was the 111 SL which had the same carburetted 60hp K-Series as yours but with a fine level of equipment including power windows, power locks, digital clock and rev-counter, full-velour interior (including door cards), wood inserts (real ones), centre console, rear wiper and a different rear bumper compared to your Metro. The engine is a masterpiece, even in the 1.1 form. And the suspension, if correctly set, provides great comfort even for today's supermini standards.

Great video. Love your passion for the great little Metro.

My dad had one in the 90s a 1984 1000cc rusty but he loved it

Saw one at Goodwood festival of speed in their rally stage, awesome

I thought the area looked familiar while I was watching the video 👀😂😂

Lovely. I''ve just bought a 1.1 Quest same age as yours :)

Love your channel Xx hope we can be the best of friends

Mr first car was exactly the same even down to the colour! Loved every minute of owning it until someone reversed into the side :(

is it your first car?

Finally a RU-vid channel with the same car as me ahaha.

Beauty! My daily driver is a brilliant little 89 metro and it too gives me so much fun every drive

Between your channel and HubNut (you must get comparisons A LOT), I'm amazed at how poverty-spec some European cars were. Even by 1990, AC was very common in the US, almost mandatory in The South. Carburetors were almost gone by then, but I can't imagine *manual chokes* still being in use. And an open cubby instead of a glove box? But that's why I love watching these videos, to see the difference in cars across the pond.

Great video, and your car looks in excellent condition! MAKE SURE you get a decent anti-theft device for yours - see below... I've owned a couple of Metros. My first, back in the mid 1990s, was a 16V GTI with the multipoint injection, bought at about four years old, and at the time, about 60% the price of a contemporaneous 205GTI. It was a lot of fun and went like stink. The second was a 1.1 Quest, bought about fifteen years ago when I needed cheap wheels. It turned out to be a great car, 100% reliable. I owned it a couple of years, treated it to new sills and arches, but sadly it was subsequently stolen, joy-ridden and burnt out. I was gutted. So do make sure you take adequate anti-theft precautions with yours - Metros were one of the most stolen cars back in the day, and still a target now, on account of the ease of break-in, break the steering lock, hot-wire and off the crims go... Get a disc-lock, at the very, very least.

See you have a hubnut sticker in your wonderful metro it's in amazing condition I love small cars due to me myself being a small car driver

In the day people used to talk negatively about Metro's, and Maestro's. I've driven every derivative, and love them! The Rover Metro like you have were really good, and my favourite was the Gti 16v. Older versions I had an MG, Turbo, and Vanden Plas, for both Metro and Maestro. If you can get your hands on an MG Maestro, and the formidable turbo version, it'd be very interesting to see what you think. Thanks for the video, what you are doing here is just perfect. So nice listening to an intelligent well informed young person talking highly of these cars. I wholeheartedly agree with your review.

Brilliant - my first car was a 1992 1.4S in Nordic Blue. Like yours it was all mechanical with no fuel injection. Did some really long trips all over France and Italy - I remember it fondly. The rust got it in the end, but yours looks immaculate!

One of the best cars EVER!! to drive in snowy conditions due to a low centre of gravity and bizarrely would never get itself grounded either. Drove these when they first came out as a Police Panda car in 1981 and it was then the "go to" vehicle in the winter, when the Land Rover was in use. A much misaligned vehicle in my opinion. I also drove one of these with 4 of us in, plus luggage, through Sweden & Finland up to the Russian border......never missed a beat. There you go!

The 4 speed was the best option with the 1100cc engine. The later 5 speed box ruined the performance completely.

Kudos to you young man! Lovely little car, enjoy your videos👍

When you walked around your car I noticed it does not have a rear wiper. I find with small hatchbacks the lack of rear wiper is a real hazard, dare I say dangerous in heavy rain. To keep price low, manufacturers avoid fitting wipers but they fit unnecessary items like extra driving lights or higher spec radios. They prefer adding surprise and delight items rather than important safety features.

Great video here edward,im lucky ive owned my since new back in 1995,had yearsn Years of fun.

I hardly see these anymore. They were very revvy. I remember an Alex Bamforth owning a white 1.1 8v in 1996 and then he got a green 1.4 16v twin cam around 1998.

When i was growing up my friend had a Rover Metro 1.4 GTA and it was FAST and good in the corners, believe it or not on a twisty bendy road before we beat a Lotus Elise for 4 miles from the top of the mountain to the bottom but we was at the time going hell for leather and my mate was a real good driver as well, either that or the Lotus driver was a shit house LOL. Thanks for the happy memory's

That's a lovely cute metro you have. It's great to see these cars getting the love they deserve.

my first ever car was this model in purple! i loved it so much but it used to breakdown whenever i drove through a puddle

Can confirm Metro’s are awesome! popularity really gaining traction of late, cherished examples becoming a fairly common sight round my way... Also true about the separate fresh air and heater vents its similar in my 1991 Astra GTE 16v, me and my partner agree that it feels like being wrapped up in a warm duvet but with the bedroom window open supplying a fresh breeze without compromising the heat, very nice feeling!

As a Dutchman i love them, and owned one years ago. Great video.

Wow I just realized your's have a 4 speed gearbox! I had no idea that was possible in that model. I thought all the K-Series Metros were equipped with a R65, PSA derived gearbox with 5 speed.

I love these little cars. Over here in the states, I bought a 1994 Geo Prizm which is this super tiny rebadged Corolla. I bought it for $600 because I needed something cheap and fuel efficient. I actually quite like the car, simple, easy to work on, park it anywhere, great gas mileage, surprisingly zippy. Has everything you need and nothing you don't. Unfortunately, my example is far from mint and the salty roads of the rust belt make it a bad idea to daily drive anything nice in the winter. But really, these little cars are all anyone really needs, and seeing all these huge American sedans and trucks for people to do nothing but commute with is sad. The skinny tires make the steering vague in wet and snowy conditions is my only complaint, but it's totally manageable.

Did Melvin come with that really cool Hubnut sticker? :-) I just found your channel a couple of weeks ago and I find it extremely interesting. Like Hubnut, you have a good vibe and a really clear knowledge and love of good ol' British cars. Nice job.

40 years ago I worked at The London Palladium, where Ken Dodd launched the Metro on stage. A great car. I ended up owning many of them, and Maestro’s, all great cars with just a terrible image.. they would have had a better reputation if they were sold under a foreign brand. The BL “brand reputation” was horrid, which was a shame, because they were just so good value. Cheap to own and run..

Great video. I drove a MK3 metro that was a trade in at the Saab garage Cubley's of Ainsdale Southport back in the late 90's and I drove it to the Austin Rover garage in Ormskirk. It was a 1.1 and having never driven a MK3 before I was very pleasantly surprised! The engine revved well it was comfortable and had great road holding I was very impressed and surprised. Once again great video👍

My uncle had a Metro in red. He used to visit and drive like a hooligan doing handbrake turns. Those were fun times!

Great videos, so much enthusiasm! I have two Metros, a 1989 MG Metro Mk2 in Flame red [ just posted a video of it climbing the Firle Hill Climb in anger], and a Rover Metro Mk3 Caribbean. Both are very different cars but equally fun to drive. They are all so scarce these days, I never see another when I am driving around :-( Keep up the good work!

Wow your car is so clean. I like it.

Sadly in the days where the majority lust after an Audi A1 or BMW 1 Series, you won't see many young folk learning to live with an old car. PCP and lease deals for anyone on minimum wage have caused this.

Great video! Whats the averege MPG you get with this car? City and Motorway?

I had a new Melvin lucky me a C 1.1 loved him I see all your vids great channel keep it up John in New Zealand

I remember my mum having a 1980 1.3s in Denim blue, the forerunner to the MG I believe.. JYT 22W was the reg. My dad had an A plate Red MG and for my first car back in 97, i had a 1984 B reg champagne beige 1.0 City. I put upgrades on it such as an MG maestro dash clock set with rev counter, digital clock, full size headlights and 1 piece plastic bumpers...ooh and a 1.3 carb...I loved our families Metros and working on them... Great channel. Keep up the good work!!

Iv had 3 metros and they were great..but the 1.1 peugeot 205 definitely beats it.both cars are now iconic

Awww its true love & has an Excellent Mot history,prev owner or owners have Cherished Melvin😘Beep...Beep!

I had a maroon J reg 1.1 for my first car… great video bringing back lots of memories!

Have you managed to find a new radiator?, if not I'm pretty sure you can have the old one refurbished

Such a great review..I think you are going to be a star !

I had a brand new 1.4GSi back in 1993. Was a great car, never let me down. Had quite a lush interior and very nippy engine.

I think it was designed as a small family car, plenty of room in the back for two kids.

I’ve just got a m reg 1.1 rover metro gta and I love it so much 🏎 🤙🏻 🇬🇧

My Dad used to have the 1.4 GTa version of one of these Metros in White when I was a toddler he loved it and it was quick.

Just don't get in a crash! It was the worst result Euro NCAP ever got.

Brilliant little car. Here in New Zealand, we only got a few of the 114SL. Loved them

I heard the Rover-era Metros had much better rust proofing than the Austin-era ones

I had a yellow 1982 Austin Metro I loved it.

I passed my driving test in an 89 G Vauxhall Nova 1.2 Star, no power steering and a 4 speed gearbox, this was in 2005. It was a brilliant little car. I’ve always loved older cars and remember many minis and metros growing up. Love how you love your little metro, it’s in amazing condition for the age.

I have only just recently came across your channel. You are doing a fantastic job and of all the videos I have watched they are on par with many of the other RU-vidrs in here, such as Hubnut, idriveaclassic and Furious Driving to name a few. Melvin is a fantastic little car and is a car I a have an extreme liking for. The humble Metro/100 is so maligned probably by people who have never been in one let alone driven one. Anyway fantastic work and I look forward to seeing how Melvin gets on and also to seeing your future videos..

Hey Ed to familiarise my self with your vidios I am watching from the oldest to the newest grate vids keep them coming 🙂 Frankie Jacques Bedford uk

The Rover badge on it was a mismatch IMO.

5:15 I was surprised not to see a BSM pyramid in there :-)

Good video , but I think Rover made a 1.4 GTa carb version as well as the 1.4 GTi ?

I admire you young sir, your appreciation of British cars is fantastic for one of your age. I particularly liked your review of the Rover 75, I had one, I sold a 2010 Mitsubishi Colt and travelled down to Staffordshire to buy a 2006 1.8 Connoisseur. What a beautiful car in green. I've had 3 Maxi's 2 Marina's An Austin Princess 2.2 HLS an Austin 1300 Sprinzel, my wife had a Rover 114. All were great. I hopethe link works, a picture of my Rover 75. drive.google.com/file/d/1nxqaXmfm6fPRFML1UulnXTKXtpq7n37s/view?usp=sharing

You Sir have just gained a new subscriber!

Great Video and Metros are lovely little cars. I had a look around your car when I attended the first HubNut social at the Yew Tree Inn. It's in lovey condition, very original and obviously very well looked after. My dad and grandfather both had Austin Metros when I was a child and I bought a 1998 Rover 114GSi in 2000. As you say they're amazing fun to drive, handling and road holding is great and the steering is very well weighted and full of feel. I moved on to the 2003 base spec Ford Ka I have now 5 years ago. To compare the two the KA handles very well too and has an excellent chassis. Probably more composed than the Rover 100 and more planted but then it's a heavier car. I miss the revvy K-Series engine though! My KA is in a base spec other than Ford Accessories alloys and I do find base spec cars appealing. Hoping my KA becomes a classic as 1000's of them are being scrapped every year.

Just brought one

I had one of these, but it was one of the last ones, an 'N' reg, badged as a Rover 100. It was a bit over 10 years old when I bought it, but it only had 19,000 miles on it, with full service history. I ran it for a few years, and when I traded it in I got more than I paid for it. I think the only problem I had with it was a bad connection on the reversing light switch, other than that it was very reliable, and with the 1100 engine it was quick enough to keep up with traffic, and reasonably economical. Almost as much fun to drive as a Mini, but far more practical with it's extra space, it's a shame that it would have cost far too much to bring it up to modern safety requirements, and they had to kill it off.

Not my type of car (I drive a Leon Cupra mark one), but it's in amazing condition. That said, I admire your positivity regarding the Metro. Good video 👍

Brings back memories - my first car was a 1.1c with optional radio and rear was wipe, purchased when it was six years old. It was built late 1990 so had the full wheel trims and rear bumper. The radiator was thought to be from the A series engine and was too big so could take a while to warm up, especially on chilly days. The suspension was great when refreshed, but does tend to leak fluid. When the ride gets crashy it needs more fluid added. Can remember getting 48mpg from it. I did get the bits from the dealer and put the glove box door on. It was a fiddly job and the door tended to fall open on bumps. I wouldn't advise doing it.

Great video, thank you I really enjoyed watching. yes great little cars, I have a dark blue 1982 city 1.0 which I need to get back on the road and a Midas mk3 coupe (A series Metro based) and can highly recommend the Kennadys at Telford for sorting the hydogas units. In the early pre 1985 Metros if the heater doesn`t work, only blowing cold or slightly warm air then all the foam needs replacing inside the units, easy to do yourself if you can drop the unit out to work on it (best to use fire retardent foam with self adhesive backing). Anyway great to see and your Metro is in fabulous condition too.

Stumbled on your videos a month or two ago - obviously well researched and filled with enthusiasm! Been trying to decide on a classic for a while, never considered a Metro but you've made the decision for me - looking for a nice MG/GTa/GTi but there aren't many about in sunny Chorley! I'm obviously going to have to travel to find one. I remember my dad taking me to a preview at the dealers in Leyland the night before the launch, makes me feel old.. Keep the videos coming!

Excellent video buddy, and not a million miles away from me, great little car, i had owned many of the metro range, tho be it I'm a Ford fan but do enjoy the older ones, i get out of the daily runner and jump in my old school and I'm back to the 80s 😁

I have one of these. It's almost identical to the one in the vid. Simply in 45 yrs of motoring it's one of the best cars I've ever owned. And it's lots of fun!

My first car was a rover 100. Welll metro lol. And I’d been in a few Austin ones as a kid. Thanks for all these uploads they have been great to watch and see

I had a 93 1.4 auto as a commute to work and back . Always made me smile .well until somebody ran into when parked and wrote it off 🙃

We got a first new car in 1983 - a base model Metro. It seemed so fantastic and clean! Yours looks a lot posher.

Great looking car. The engine looks like the fiat fire engines, like in the cinquecento, seicento, panda, lancia ypsilon, punto,

My metro story: I owned a 1:28 (ish) model of a metro as my prized possession in the early 80s. Iconic of my childhood... it's awesome to see someone younger than me loving on them :) ...(47 now... but i was only 10... what happened?) Edit: end of video... this was your first ever video... Holy WOW... *standing ovation*

I had six metros over the years. 4 a series and 2 k series. Only one was a complete nightmare. Loved them.. so comfy reliable and economical.

The Rover Group did the Metro proud with the GTA and GTI versions which replaced the MG Metro.

How is car in the winter? Any starting issues?

Nice metro get a Custom made twin core aluminium Radiator it will last for ages it’s a bit Pricey but well worth it

My Rover 75 had a K series engine. Rhey were designed to run with a low coolant level, people were ignoring maintenance and did not check coolant levels. I learnt about all this and bought a new radiator cap and used Viton o rings. Never had a problem. I'd suggest you get Viton o rings, far superior to standard o rings.

The base Rover 214 had the 1.4 8 valve K series with the same carburettor.

Brilliant Video keep making them and lovely little Rover Metro

I have a 1.1s k series metro as my first car, it has been sitting for at least a year

Had same car, 1.1c full fitting bumpers on mine, paid extra for 5 gears plus passenger mirror, burnt out the valves luckily it was under warranty, bought car from j,b hepburns of Crosby, reg number H867HKA, Drive careful in your metro bad car to have an accident in, crumple up in a crash believe me!!

Nice video mate and great channel. Metros are very rare little cars on the roads today so great to see one in such perfect condition

I love how much you love your car. Well done presentation, especially interesting in the US where these aren’t well known.

An interesting retrospect look at the Metro. Fraid I disagree with you though as the best small car in the world has always been the Mini as it has everything the Metro lacks!

Great first video :-)

Looks tidy 😎👍

How do you know all this about Metros?

Great video 👍

Lovely metro in brilliant condition, needs to be cherished.

Andrew Ryan sent me 🖒

Same wing mirrors used on lotus Elise mate👍🏻

Come and test drive my Austin Allegro 😊