No sooner had the Phoenix Fourhanded over that famous tenner to BMW and bought Rover than the old MG saloon brochures were being pulled out of filing cabinets and dusted off.
Not since the MG Metro, Maestro and Montego had ceased production in 1990 had there been an MG saloon car, though the idea was certainly part of Rover Group’s plan to rejuvenate its model range prior to BMW taking over the reins of the company in 1994.
Under the leadership of anglophile BMW boss Bernd Pischetsrieder, Rover would instead be steered upmarket, as a manufacturer of classy and comfortable saloon cars but not overtly sporting ones, with performance-orientated tin-tops instead reserved for the German brand. It was dictated within the company that Rover should not, in any circumstances, compete with BMW, despite the fact that the British brand had some of the finest chassis engineers in the world and had proven its ability to engineer front-wheel-drive suspension set-ups that were among the best in Europe.
But when BMW left the building, the cleaners were still sweeping up the streamers from the engineering department’s party poppers when the MG Z-Car range became a reality. Using a similar concept to the MG Metro, Maestro and Montego of 10 years earlier, but this time without red seatbelts, the resurgent MG Rover would come to market with three great value performance cars based on the 25, 45 and 75 saloons.
Denne historien er fra November 20, 2019-utgaven av Classic Car Buyer.
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Denne historien er fra November 20, 2019-utgaven av Classic Car Buyer.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Staff Classics
REPORTING ON: Alfa Romeo GTV
Rootes Group - The Golden Years
The Rootes Group’s finest years commenced immediately after the end of the Second World War with the launch of a handful of brand-new models and lasted until the company was absorbed into the Chrysler empire in the middle of the following decade
MG ZT
The MG ZT was more than a Rover 75 in sports shoes. Much, much more. It was a performance saloon par excellence and today makes for a superb classic sporting bargain
MG Display Controversy
A classic vehicle insurer met with a mixed response at the Classic Motor Show when its display stand depicted a 1998 MGF apparently crushed by a WW2 Hellcat tank. But was this a sacrilegious act against a classic car, or an inspired promotional display?
Extra Ordinary
Exotics are usually the go-to classic investments, but a recent trend in everyday cars means more common street sights could be the way to go
Alternative Go
As the internal combustion engine’s fate seems in question, we look back at its past challengers
Death Of The Sports Car?
Another manufacturer belies its heritage to switch to SUVs
Cool Coupes
Every manufacturer was in on the ’90s coupe trend, stylish two-doors in abundance. But nearly three decades on, which are worth investing in?
Classic Scenes
Writing this as news reports bring us images of Sheffield residents trapped overnight in shopping centers by floods, we were struck by this image from October 1987.
500 Not Out
We identify some modern classics in danger of extinction... and the older cars which massively outnumber them
