Jeremy Clarkson reviews the Rover 800 Coupe explaining how much Rover has came along since the late 1970's in terms of build quality. It shows in the 800.
I had two 800 coupes, one a 827 very happy with them. I was in the RAF and thoroughly enjoyed driving them. Smooth and quiet, reliable, and the interior was absolutely beautiful.
I had a 1993 827 SLi Coupe in New Zealand from 2004 until 2013. It was a Japanese import with about 140,000kms (almost 90,000 miles) when I bought it. And still less than 160,000kms in 2013. It was pearlescent blue, looked green, with grey leather, and had the original wood dash before they introduced the passenger side airbag. I nearly bought an XJ40 instead, but am glad I bought the Rover. I came to really love it, and it was a very reluctant parting due to leaving NZ. Would probably still have it, otherwise. And other people, including those with nice new cars, regularly told me what a nice car I had.
I had two Rover 800's . The first was the an 'O' series 8-valve carburettor automatic economy version - even had manual window winders in the back. Sparkling the performance was not, but I got 40mpg over a whole tankful on a long trip to Wales carrying 4 people and luggage - staggering economy for such a large automatic car carrying such weight. And I still got it up to 110mph once carrying 4 people before I bottled out. And it was very comfortable to drive over a long distance.
No. The 800 4 cyl models used Rover 2.0 O series and 16v M and later T series forms. All 600's used Honda engines (1.8i, 2.0i and 2.3i) except the 620ti which used a turbocharged RoverT series@@jerry6711
A beautiful, elegant car that was probably the equal of the Saab 9000 or Alfa Romeo 164, if not the rather more upmarket Mercedes or Jaguars mentioned in the video.
That SD1 was as well built as the one Jeremy had in the British Leyland challenge. He seemed more kind and less critical of the 800 back then especially the sedan he tested earlier but on new top gear absolutely despised them along with the rest of rover
I watched this review the first time it aired and Jeremy's buttock joke had me laughing so hard that I was gasping for air. I was expecting it this time but it still put a smile on my face.
I had four Rover 800s. The first was a MK1 2.0. Second was a MK1 2.7. Third a MK2 2.0. And fourth a MK2 Vitesse. I preferred the MK1s because the seats fitted me a lot better. Some clown in a stolen Cavalier wrote off the first on the Nottingham bypass. The 827 was anything but lethargic. It was a white saloon, ex police pursuit car, it had a manual gearbox, went like stink and sounded like a racing car. One of the top five cars I have owned.
They were great. Leyland ruined them. They did get back on their feet again around this time but BMWs buyout was just an asset stripping exercise and ultimately killed it off.
I saw one of these in the states and thought it was a Honda/Acura Legend, but noticed the Rover badge on it and was a bit amused. Didn't realize we got some here. That or someone brought one over.
Bought an M plate Rover 600i back in 2003 with a 2 liter Honda engine and it was great. Really comfy and quick. 2 year later I got an S plate manual 820i with a Rover wnging for £250 in Kilmarnock and my was that solid built or what? Felt like a tank, comfy, quick and a working AC. Great cars and very luxurious for what it was.
He heaped praise on these cars because they were British, more so than they deserved for sure. And slated them later because they were never great cars to begin with
Correct. Though to be fair here Rover were atleast trying to get back on their feet and their lineup sorta right with the new 200, 400, 600 and 75 later on. The Metro/100 shoulda pissed off years before Lol maybe about 1993 or soo once the facelift model had a couple years run and defo not hung around till 97 when it became a big embarrassment to itself and the company against everyone else. However as usual BAE refusing to fund new projects, lazy management then seeking to sell out to BMW who lets face it weren't the least bit interested as they obv didn't want Rover to rival thier cars (dunno if most folk would compare they would have haha) and couldn't care a toss whether Rover survived they just poured some dosh in to keep the ball rolling and they got Mini and dumped whatever was left after on Phoenix Corp who didn't have enough to develop new models so it was only gonna be so long before game was over 🙁. I'll give ye the 800 and the R8 200 and the Domoni derived 400 aswell were all Hands at thier base and as others say very 9verpriced next to the competition (obv didny do their homework or were just greedy and optimistic😃) and I think Rover engineers coulda produced some class leading designs of their own eventually if given the right resources and leadership which obv somebody somewhere up the ranks wasn't providing 😃. Alot of no doubt brilliant talented ppl worked there and just like BL before if the designers like Harris Mann could build a car without being constrained by the company's sometimes daft policies then we might still have Rover today 😃. Rover just like Triumph certainly had alot to blame themselves for their own decline and collapse the tieup with Honda was back in the BL days and they became abit too reliant on that i suppose but I dunno if it's entirely fair to say they were any worse than Ford, Vauxhall etc in the same class at the time and they're still around. Plus alot 9f things R9ver /BL developed were rushed ,underdeveloped when they were 1st in car, S-Series engine, Voice synth, K-Series all good ideas but had major probs that damaged the brand for many folk. As someone else put it, canny mind who but Rover couldn't get itself the right image. I think theres something to that 😎. Esp after the SD1. They could never f8gure out which sector 9f the market they slotted into and i think folk got that perception off them they were abit all over the shop with MG, Austin, Rover etc in the early days n that mighta put strain on R&D whereas Ford, BMW, Merc, etc, etc ye knew what ye were getting with each brand. Plus as far as i knew Rover never really had any motorsports presence after the SD1. Atleast until the MG ZR & ZT and they were way too late for boy racers etc to g8ve em any cred for being cool cars backed up by rallying or racing pedigree. Ford, Citroen, Peugeot, Toyota, Mazda ,Nissan, Vauxhall, Lancia, Renault you name it all had some sorta sporty image somewhere in their brands which might've appealed to the younger buyer. Parts bin sharing now that really put a dent in each models uniqueness & appeal too Lol. BMW, Mercedes etc had their problems too although I suppose their prestige, customer care and general fit n finish were held to a higher standard plus they had the reputation and money to back up any niggles that cropped up. Ppl expected high standards from Rover after the successful P5 & P6 (which had build quality issues n9 doubt aswell but musta been less severe to g8ve both a bad name) and as Jeremy says they were bitterly disappointed with the SD1 soo much soo that they'd never buy another one. When that kinda customer loyalty is tarnished sometimes doesny matter what ye do or how much ye impr9ve, folks perceptions stick, whether rightly so or not 😎.
This was 'Peak Rover' The new Metro was still competitive, the 200/400 were good, and the facelifted 800 looks fantastic. Its a shame about the 75 and getting tarred with the 'old folks image.
Is it reliable though? I hardly see rovers around. But i see old hondas around. And this has honda equipment. And i know they have built japanese cars in uk for years too like the Nissans. So whats the catch?
What made rovers better was using Honda parts and basically building hondas. In terms of being radical that 800 was hardly. BLs wedges were more so TR7 Princess, Range rover was BL.Although I do like the Rover 800 couple
It was a joint development: Project XX. The V6 engines and associated gearboxes, suspension and exhaust are from Honda. The R4 and diesel engines + gearboxes are from Rover. Identical are also the front windows and the doors of the coupés. While the second generation of the Honda Legend 1990/91 came on the market and 1996 already the third, Rover still sold the 827 Coupé. For me as a Legend collector a good way to get spare parts, which are not new to buy, because Rover is available here in Germany on the scrap heaps. The Hondas have been exported to Africa several times. This is why slaughter vehicles are extremely rare. From 1986 to 1988 the Honda Legend was produced for the European market in GB. Unfortunately the quality was not satisfactory, which is why the coupé available since 1987 was produced in Japan and shipped to Europe. 1989 the facelift of the sedan was also sent from Japan and the production of the Legend in GB finished. In the end, in my opinion, Rover has been gutted and disposed of. Thanks BMW. Interesting were only Range Rover and Mini, which today bring much profit.
Lethargic I think not….. pull the shifter down one and press the S4 button. Pull the inch thick shag pile car mat back from under the pedal box and see how lethargic she is when you push the loud pedal to the floor and she kicks down lolz and then pulls to 5500RPM
bought the saloon, 2 years old 40k mileage 820se £5k, what a piece of crap! oil leak, water bottle cracks went through 2 of them made from cheap quality plastic, radiator, bushes, trim falling off, absolute nightmare got rid of it after 18months!
I had a L reg 820sli. Only paid £100. Water bottle all cracked overheated all the time, even with fan on, joke handling leaked water into the car when it rain no rust, maybe sunroof seal. Most of the electrical items failed. Electric windows only worked when they felt like working.
