The
Rover 75 is an
executive carExecutive car is a British term that refers to a car's size and is used to describe an automobile larger than a large family car. In official use, the term is adopted by EuroNCAP, a European organization founded to test car safety.- History :...
produced initially by the
Rover GroupRover Group plc was the name that was given by the British government, in 1986, to the state-owned vehicle manufacturer British Leyland or BL....
at
CowleyCowley in Oxford, England, is a residential and industrial area that forms a small conurbation within greater Oxford. It has a population of about 16,500 people...
,
OxfordshireOxfordshire is a county in the South East England region, bordering on Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, and Warwickshire....
,
UKThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, and later by
MG RoverMG Rover was the last domestically owned mass-production car manufacturer in the British motor industry. The company was formed when BMW sold the car-making and engine manufacturing assets of the original Rover Group to the Phoenix Consortium in 2000....
at their
LongbridgeLongbridge is an area of Birmingham, England. For local government purposes it is a ward within the district of Northfield.Since 1905, the area has been dominated by the Longbridge plant, which produced Austin, Nash Metropolitan, Morris, British Leyland, and most recently MG Rover cars...
site in
BirminghamBirmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands county of England. Birmingham is the second-most populous British city, with a population of 1,006,500 ....
, UK. The Rover 75 was available with
front-wheel driveFront-wheel drive is a form of engine/transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitudinal engine arrangement generally found in rear-wheel drive and...
in either a saloon or
estateA station wagon is a passenger automobile with a body style similar to a sedan, or saloon, but with the roofline following the full, sometimes extended rear cargo area and sometimes an extra row of sometimes rear-facing seats, ending with a more vertical door than on a hatchback.Also sometimes...
body and latterly, in long wheelbase form and a rear-wheel-drive, V8-engined specification.
The Rover 75 was unveiled to the public at the 1998 Birmingham Motor Show, with deliveries commencing in February 1999.
The
Rover 75 is an
executive carExecutive car is a British term that refers to a car's size and is used to describe an automobile larger than a large family car. In official use, the term is adopted by EuroNCAP, a European organization founded to test car safety.- History :...
produced initially by the
Rover GroupRover Group plc was the name that was given by the British government, in 1986, to the state-owned vehicle manufacturer British Leyland or BL....
at
CowleyCowley in Oxford, England, is a residential and industrial area that forms a small conurbation within greater Oxford. It has a population of about 16,500 people...
,
OxfordshireOxfordshire is a county in the South East England region, bordering on Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, and Warwickshire....
,
UKThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, and later by
MG RoverMG Rover was the last domestically owned mass-production car manufacturer in the British motor industry. The company was formed when BMW sold the car-making and engine manufacturing assets of the original Rover Group to the Phoenix Consortium in 2000....
at their
LongbridgeLongbridge is an area of Birmingham, England. For local government purposes it is a ward within the district of Northfield.Since 1905, the area has been dominated by the Longbridge plant, which produced Austin, Nash Metropolitan, Morris, British Leyland, and most recently MG Rover cars...
site in
BirminghamBirmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands county of England. Birmingham is the second-most populous British city, with a population of 1,006,500 ....
, UK. The Rover 75 was available with
front-wheel driveFront-wheel drive is a form of engine/transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitudinal engine arrangement generally found in rear-wheel drive and...
in either a saloon or
estateA station wagon is a passenger automobile with a body style similar to a sedan, or saloon, but with the roofline following the full, sometimes extended rear cargo area and sometimes an extra row of sometimes rear-facing seats, ending with a more vertical door than on a hatchback.Also sometimes...
body and latterly, in long wheelbase form and a rear-wheel-drive, V8-engined specification.
The Rover 75 was unveiled to the public at the 1998 Birmingham Motor Show, with deliveries commencing in February 1999. Production of the Rover and later MG badged models ceased on April 8 2005 when manufacturer MG Rover Group entered administration.
History
The Rover 75 started life as part of a group of three new designs for the company under the guidance of Richard Woolley; a large saloon codenamed flagship, a smaller vehicle with the codename of Eric, and the 75. Of these only the 75 concept progressed. The initial aim was to re-skin the
Rover 600The Rover 600 Series is a compact executive car produced by the British car maker Rover from 1993 to 1999.The Rover 600 exterior was designed by Rover, a re-skin of the Tochigi-developed Honda Accord, also built in the UK by Honda in Swindon...
but following the
BMW, is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company. Founded in 1916, it is known for its performance and luxury vehicles. It owns and produces the MINI brand, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars.-Company history:...
takeover it was quickly decided that this platform would not be re-used but replaced by an entirely new model.
Work on the new model, codenamed 'R40', progressed well with little operational interference from BMW; the styling received an enthusiastic response from the management and both companies believed the classical look would be the ideal direction Rover.
Under the lauded styling was a range of petrol and diesel engines from 1.8 to 2.5 litre sizes. Petrol engines provided were Rovers 4 cylinder K series in 1.8 litre guise and the quad cam KV6, offered in either short stroke 2.0 or revised 2.5 litre formats. The 2.0 litre was later dropped on introduction of the 1.8 litre turbo for emmissions purposes. The diesel unit was BMW's common rail motor, designated M47R. This unit was a mildly de-tuned BMW 2.0 litre turbodiesel, the same core engine being used at the same time in the parent company's 3 & 5-Series models and later found in the Land Rover Freelander from 2001.
Transmissions on all models were either the Getrag 283 5-speed manual, supplied from the company's new facility in Bari, Italy, or the JATCO 5-speed automatic unit - one of the first transverse engine deployments made with this feature.
Braking was supplied courtesy of all-round discs, complimented with a Bosch 5.7 4-channel ABS system and electronic brake force distribution. Th parking brake was a cable operated drum integral within the rear discs.
Suspension was a MacPherson strut arrangment at the front, anchored by lower alloy L-arms. The wide spacing of the mounting points, compliant bushes and a perimeter subframe gave the model a cushioned yet precise ride with relaxed handling that coud be tuned for different markets or model derivatives such as the later
MG ZTThe MG ZT is a high-performance MG-branded version of the Rover 75 executive car, produced by MG Rover at their Longbridge plant in Birmingham. They also manufactured estate versions of the vehicle, referred to as the MG ZT-T. Styling is similar to the 75, although uprated springs and chassis...
. The rear suspension, after a period of uncertainty during development, was eventually a version of BMW's Z-Axle arrangement first featured on the 1988 Z1 sports car.
At the time of the launch there had been speculation within the media that the Rover 75 used the BMW 5-Series platform, perhaps due to the overall size of the model, the apparent presence of a transmission tunnel and the use of the parent company's rear suspension system. This was in fact not the case; Rover engineers had used the concept of incorporating a central tunnel which had been explored by BMW as part of their own research into front wheel drive chassis design. As the 75 took shape, this core engineering was passed over to Rover and evolved into the Rover 75 structure . The tunnel concept, along with the rear suspension system, was also used by the Rover engineers for the design of the MINI.
At launch the Rover 75 quickly attracted praise for its styling and design integrity. Some critics of the car labelled its styling too "retro", suggesting it had been designed with an older buyer in mind, and was not sporting enough when compared to the competition. However, the 75 won a series of international awards including various "most beautiful car" awards, including one in Italy.
Assembly originally took place at Cowley but in 2000, following the sale of the company by BMW to
Pheonix Venture Holdings, production was moved to Longbridge in Birmingham, England. 2001 saw the introduction of the Rover 75 Tourer (developed alongside the saloon but never authorised for production by BMW), swiftly followed by the MG ZT and MG ZT-T, more sporting interpretations of the model, differentiated by modified, sporting chassis settings and colour and trim derivatives . Between 2000 and 2003, there were few changes to the range, the biggest being the 2.5 litre V6 engine being joined by a low pressure turbocharged 1.8 litre, 4-cylinder engine. The introduction of the 'greener' 1.8 litre turbo greatly benefited British company car drivers who are taxed on
carbon dioxideCarbon dioxide is a chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom. It is a gas at standard temperature and pressure and exists in Earth's atmosphere in this state...
emissions. A customisation programme,
Monogram, was launched, allowing buyers to order their car in a wider range of exterior paint colours and finishes, different interior trims and with optional extras installed during production .
From June 2002 A factory approved Dual Fuel Petrol-Liquid Petroleum Gas conversion was available in the UK on 1.8-litre 75 models only. The LPG conversion was an aftermarket undertaking approved by MG Rover. Developed by EcoGas Systems Ltd and Landi Renzo S.R.L. in conjunction with MG Rover Powertrain Limited, the conversion was ordered from Rover dealerships, the cars retaining the three-year factory warranty. The retail price of the conversion is £2,195, but in an effort to encourage LPG use for transport for ecological reasons the UK Government offered a Powershift Rebate of some 60% of the conversion cost. When running on LPG the Rover 75 suffers only a slight reduction in performance compared to running on petrol, LPG fuel consumption is also slightly higher than when running on petrol put this is more than offset by the greatly reduced cost of the fuel.
Also in 2002 the Rover 75 van den Plas was launched at the Geneva Motor Show. Developed in conjunction with specialist vehicle builder
S. MacNeillie & Son Limited in Walsall, England, the model was stretched by 200mm in the rear floorpan, with longer rear doors the only visual clue to the changes made. Available only in the Connoisseur specification, production moved to Longbridge after an intitial short run by the coachbuilding partner.
In early 2004, Rover face-lifted the design of the 75 to a less retro, more European, look. Changes were restricted to bolt-on components, with new bumpers front and rear, mirrors, lights and grille. Rover also added a new trim to the range called Contemporary which featured revised fittings. This refresh received mixed reactions from the media but allowed the vehicle to see production continue. Rover announced the new V8 model at the Geneva Motor Show in the same year. This was the second iteration of the modified rear wheel drive platform devloped by MG Rover and already receiving plaudits from the media. The car also boasted a new grille stretching down from the bonnet shutline to the bottom lip of the bumper - a style that had also just appeared on Audi's A8, which was not lost on the press. A long wheelbase 'limousine' version called Rover 75
Vanden PlasVanden Plas is the name of a company of coachbuilders for specialist and up-market automobile manufacturers. It originated in Belgium in 1870 as Carrosserie Vanden Plas.-History:...
– about a foot longer than the regular 75 – also adopted this new grille. The Rover V8 grille was made available as an option for the rest of the range shortly afterwards.
The Rover 75 V8 was created as means of proving MG Rovers engineering expertise and to attract a development partner to the company. The car was extensively re-engineered to accommodate a 4.6 litre V8 unit (obtained from Ford and used in the Mustang), driving the rear wheels to give a car with much higher performance, taking advantage of the stiffening tunnel in the body structure . These cars were built on the standard production line, and then removed to allow the necessary structural modifications to be carried out. The cars were then returned to the trimming lines for completion . Just under 900 were produced in both saloon and Tourer (estate or wagon) carrying either Rover 75 or MG ZT trim . The cars had numerous differences to the standard versions, drive train not withstanding, with non standard heating/ ventilation, and brakes and suspension capable of dealing with the extra power . Externally, there is little to indicate what is under the bonnet, other than quad exhaust pipes and a couple of subtle badges, although a large 'V8 grille' was fitted to some cars following the 2004 facelift. They are likely to become sought after as classics . A heavily modified MG ZT-T V8, known as the X-15 broke the speed record for a non-production estate car on Bonneville Salt Flats in September 2003, achieving . The engine was bored out to 6 litre producing , but remained normally aspirated.
Since its launch, the 75 has been one of the most popular ministerial cars in the British Government. Various Ministers are driven around in 75s and Tony Blair had access to a 75 Limousine while he was in power, but was never seen in it.. Recently though,
Alistair DarlingAlistair Maclean Darling is a British Labour politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Edinburgh South West since 1987, and was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer on 28 June 2007. Prior to this, he held a number of Cabinet positions.-Early life:Alistair Darling was born in London...
has been seen in a 'V8 Grille' Rover 75 which could be the 75 Limousine. MPs said to have or have had a 75 include:
- Patricia Hewitt
Patricia Hope Hewitt is a British politician. She is the Labour Member of Parliament for Leicester West and the former Secretary of State for Health.- Background :...
- Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party. Brown became Prime Minister in June 2007, after the resignation of Tony Blair and three days after becoming leader of the governing Labour Party...
- John Reid
John Reid is a British Labour politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Airdrie and Shotts since 2005, and has served in a number of Cabinet positions, including Home Secretary, Defence Secretary and Health Secretary...
- Charles Kennedy
Charles Peter Kennedy MP is a British politician.From 9 August 1999 until 7 January 2006, he was the leader of the Liberal Democrats, the third largest political party in the United Kingdom....
- Ruth Kelly
Ruth Maria Kelly is a British Labour politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Bolton West since 1997, athough she will stand down as an MP at the next general election...
- Tessa Jowell
Tessa Jane Helena Douglas Jowell is a British Labour politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Dulwich and West Norwood since 1992...
- Richard Burden
Richard Haines Burden is a UK Labour Party politician. He is the Member of Parliament for Birmingham Northfield.-Early life:Burden was born in Liverpool...
Awards and accolades
- What Car? ‘Car of the Year’ 1999.
- What Car? ‘Compact Executive Car of the Year’ 1999
- What Car? ‘Diesel Car of the Year’ 1999
- Auto Express ‘World Car’ 1999
- The Journal / AA ‘Business Car of the Year’ 1999
- Italian ‘World's Most Beautiful High Class Saloon’ 1999
- Bild am Sonntag ‘Golden Steering Wheel Award’ 1999
- The Society of Plastic Engineers ‘Innovative use of plastic’ for the 75's V6 plastic intake system 1999
- British International Motor Show ‘Best riding and handling front wheel drive saloon in the world’ 1999
- Japanese 'Import Car of the Year' 1999
- Middle East Wheels & Gears ‘Car of the Year’ 1999/2000
- Japanese 'Import Car of the Year' 2000
- New Zealand's National Business Review 'Car of the Year' 2000
- Executive Class ‘Portuguese Car of the Year’ 2000
- What Car? ‘Compact Executive Car of the Year’ 2000
- The only executive car to be short-listed in the 2000 ‘European Car of the Year Awards’
- Used Car Buyer 'Used Car of the Year’ 2000
- Used Car Buyer ‘Used Car of the Year’ 2001
- Diesel Car Magazine ‘Compact Executive Car’ 2001
- JD Power customer satisfaction survey ‘Only European car in the Top 5’ 2001
- Auto Express Used Car Honours 'Best Diesel Car' 2002
- Used Car Buyer 'Best Used Medium Car’ 2002
- ITM ‘Car of the Year' 2002
- Australian Institute of Transport Management ‘Car of the Year’ 2002
- Used Car Buyer ‘Used Car of the Year’ 2004
- Used Car Buyer ‘Best Used Family Car of the Year’ 2004
- ‘Most popular British Forces Germany tax free car purchase’ 2004
- Auto Express Drive Power ‘Best Ride Quality’ 2006
- Auto Trader Used Car Awards 'Best Family Car' 2007
Chinese production
Production of the Rover 75 and MG ZT ceased when
MG Rover GroupMG Rover was the last domestically owned mass-production car manufacturer in the British motor industry. The company was formed when BMW sold the car-making and engine manufacturing assets of the original Rover Group to the Phoenix Consortium in 2000....
went into administration in April 2005. The Rover 75 design was purchased by
Shanghai Automotive Industry CorporationThe Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation is a Chinese automobile manufacturer which ranks the third among the "Big Five" Chinese automakers .SAIC partnered with General Motors to form Shanghai GM,...
(SAIC) in early 2005, although the new MG Rover Group owner, Nanjing Automobile (Group) Corporation (NAC) acquired the tooling for the car. Both companies launched revised versions of the 75/ZT in China. SAIC's model was named the
Roewe 750The Roewe 750 is a car produced by SAIC Roewe in the People's Republic of China, based on the Rover 75.Launched in October 2006 and codenamed SAC528 during development, the wheelbase of the Roewe 750 is stretched by 103 mm compared to the Rover 75. The drivetrain is a 2.5L V6 petrol engine,...
(following the purchase of the Rover brand by Ford, the Roewe marque was created by SAIC for use worldwide) and NAC's the
MG 7The MG 7 is a sports saloon built by Nanjing Automobile, derived from the Rover 75 and MG ZT. Production started in early 2007. The MG 7 has received praise from British car magazine Auto Express, who test drove it in May 2008....
.
The Roewe brand and Roewe 750 were launched at the Beijing Motor Show in November 2006. The 750 is based on the long-wheelbase 75 platform, and engineering was completed by Ricardo 2010.
The MG 7 was launched in March 2007.
NAC also introduced a long-wheelbase version of the MG 7, called the MG 7L.
Popularity
Initial sales of the Rover 75 were disappointing, as it failed to match the
BMW 3 SeriesThe BMW 3 Series is a compact executive car manufactured by the German automaker BMW since May 1975. Successor to the BMW New Class, it has been produced in five different generations and in no less than five different body styles...
and
Audi A4The Audi A4 is a compact executive car produced by the German car manufacturer Audi AG since late 1994. The initial generation A4 succeeded the four previous generations of the Audi 80...
in the British car sales charts during 1999 . The public unveiling of the car at the Birmingham Motor Show was unfortunately over-shadowed by a speech containing criticism of the British Government's attitude to financial assistance in the redevelopment of the Rover
LongbridgeLongbridge is an area of Birmingham, England. For local government purposes it is a ward within the district of Northfield.Since 1905, the area has been dominated by the Longbridge plant, which produced Austin, Nash Metropolitan, Morris, British Leyland, and most recently MG Rover cars...
factory (where the new Mini was to have been produced) . Stunned press reaction interpreted this as saying that
BMW, is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company. Founded in 1916, it is known for its performance and luxury vehicles. It owns and produces the MINI brand, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars.-Company history:...
were unhappy with continuing financial losses and were intending to close Rover down . This undoubtedly scared off many prospective buyers, despite the very positive reaction to the car itself . Indeed it did (and still does) hold up very well with the
Jaguar S-TypeThe Jaguar S-Type, introduced at the 1998 Birmingham Motor Show, was a mid-size luxury/executive car. The car went on sale 1999. The name was a revival of a previous Jaguar model, the S-Type introduced in 1963, while the bodywork appeared to have been inspired by the Jaguar Mark 2 of the same...
that was unveiled at the same show .
Sales picked up substantially during 2000, and it was Britain's fifth most popular new car in the month of April of that year. It was still selling reasonably well at the time of MG Rover's bankruptcy in April 2005 , and a small number of unsold 75s were still in stock as of early 2007 , as Nanjing Automobile was preparing to re-open Longbridge .
The cars are still popular and actively supported by an owners club
Engines and performance
| Displacement |
Cylinders |
Fuel |
Induction |
Power |
Torque |
| Maximum Speed |
| Production |
Manufacturer |
| 1.8 |
I4 The inline-four engine or straight-four engine is a four-cylinder internal combustion engine with all four cylinders mounted in a straight line, or plane along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a...
|
Petrol |
NA |
|
| 10.9 |
|
| 1999-2005 |
MG Rover |
| 1.8 T |
I4 |
Petrol |
Turbocharged |
|
| 9.1 |
|
| 2002-2005 |
MG Rover |
| 2.0 |
V6 |
Petrol |
NA |
|
| 9.6 |
|
| 1999-2002 |
MG Rover |
| 2.5 |
V6 |
Petrol |
NA |
|
| 8.2 |
|
| 1999-2005 |
MG Rover |
| 4.6 |
V8 |
Petrol |
NA |
|
| 7.0 |
|
| 2003-2005 |
Ford |
| 2.0 CDT |
I4 |
Diesel A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber during the final stage of compression...
|
Turbocharged |
|
| 11.0 |
| |
1999-2005 |
BMW, is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company. Founded in 1916, it is known for its performance and luxury vehicles. It owns and produces the MINI brand, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars.-Company history:...
|
| 2.0 CDTI |
I4 |
Diesel |
Turbocharged |
|
| 10.3 |
|
| 1999-2005 |
BMW |
Models
1999-2004
- Classic
- Classic SE
- Club
- Club SE
- Connoisseur
- Connoisseur SE
- Vanden Plas (long wheel base model)
2004-05 (facelift)
- Classic
- Connoisseur
- Connoisseur SE
- Contemporary
- Contemporary SE
- Limousine (replaced Vanden Plas as name for LWB model)
2006 SAIC Roewe 750
- 1.8 Turbo base (18K4G, essentially a Rover K-series)
- 1.8 Turbo high-line (18K4G)
- 2.5 base (25K4F, essentially a detuned Rover KV6)
- 2.5 high-line (25K4F, essentially the Rover KV6)