Some Maestro questions

[Richard H]

I have a few questions about Maestro ownership, and I wonder if anyone can answer them?

1. Can the door mirrors be folded in to prevent them being knocked off by other cars?

2. Is the first generation, brown Maestro dash prone to cracks in the same way as later ones are?

3. Are the roof ariels all the same/compatible, as I need a replacement and mine has no screws visible from the outside, yet the one in the Turbo restoration thread in Readers Cars does?

4. Was the later Maestro Base exactly the same as the Maestro City in every way except the name?

5. My car is a Base model with MW and LW radio and no cigarette lighter, but it does have a rear wash/wipe - would this have been an optional extra?

6. When did the Base model gain a glovebox lid and passenger door mirror?

Thanks!

[Jeff Turbo]

I have a few questions about Maestro ownership, and I wonder if anyone can answer them?

1. Can the door mirrors be folded in to prevent them being knocked off by other cars?

2. Is the first generation, brown Maestro dash prone to cracks in the same way as later ones are?

3. Are the roof ariels all the same/compatible, as I need a replacement and mine has no screws visible from the outside, yet the one in the Turbo restoration thread in Readers Cars does?

4. Was the later Maestro Base exactly the same as the Maestro City in every way except the name?

5. My car is a Base model with MW and LW radio and no cigarette lighter, but it does have a rear wash/wipe - would this have been an optional extra?

6. When did the Base model gain a glovebox lid and passenger door mirror?

Thanks!

1 no. There are springs inside to make the mirrors spring back if brushed by another car or a wall etc
3 early arials have a cover, later do not. All have the same size which is smaller than Montego models
Can't answer the rest but someone will be along soon to tell you all

[Austin-Rover]

2) The dash itself is not prone to cracks. The harder plastic top part will fade to a lighter shade than the padded bits around the instruments and in front of the passenger, if it hasn't done so already.

Main areas for concern for Maestro/Montego owners with Brown trim is the interior pillar trim which is prone to UV damage and will crumble to dust at the slightest touch. If yours is in good condition then look after it as brown interior trim has been nigh on impossible to find for a few years now (apart from donor vehicles).

5) I would think it possible that the rear wash/wipe was optional on the Base, but for that and other trim changeovers/additions I'm not sure. I've not got the time at the minute to go and look up the answers for you...

[BIGDAVE]

when i purchased my base model maestro new in 1984.
the rear wash wipe was already fitted but i had to pay the extra money for it.
i had a choice with the rear parcell shelf so i paid for that as well.there was no head rests or glove box lid either.no passinger door mirror either no radio i had to fit my own. dave

[BIGDAVE]

on my dads 1985 model there was a rear parcell shelf /passinger door mirror/ rear wash wipe/ radio/head rests /fitted as standard

[ian drew]

I have owned several Maestros. All I think had the rear washer fitted.

Not one of them had a rear washer that actually worked though. So I would save yourself the bother of fitting one as they get blocked REALLY easily.

Ian

[Richard H]

Yeah mine's blocked as well! My autochoke is f****d and heater pipes are burst. They all do that sir.

[Simon]

3. Are the roof ariels all the same/compatible, as I need a replacement and mine has no screws visible from the outside, yet the one in the Turbo restoration thread in Readers Cars does?

Thanks!

Part number EEP9 from Rimmer Bros. Genuine part for Maestro and it is only £9 brand new. It's the later one but all that's different is that it has exposed screws and a ball end meaning you can pull up the aerial with your fingers easily instead of having to rely on the little key (which often used to get lost anyway).

Tie the plug end of the old aerial to a piece of stiff wire and pull old aerial out leaving the wire in the body. Attach the new aerial plug to the wire and pull it through the body. I actually use the inner core of old TV aerail cable as a puller-through.

[Simon]

Archivist to the rescue!

I have a few questions about Maestro ownership, and I wonder if anyone can answer them?

4. Was the later Maestro Base exactly the same as the Maestro City in every way except the name?

5. My car is a Base model with MW and LW radio and no cigarette lighter, but it does have a rear wash/wipe - would this have been an optional extra?

6. When did the Base model gain a glovebox lid and passenger door mirror?

Thanks!

4. Base model was dropped in 1985 in favour of the City (and City X). The City model was even more basic than the outgoing Base with a manual choke. The basic had ICI "Marle" seat facings, the City had Marle and plain seat facings, No digital clock fitted on the City. Tight-wads. Both had parcel shelves, PVC trimmed though.

5. Rear wash wipe was an option on the base and remained that way on the City until Oct 1988 when the Special took over

6. Glovebox lid on a Base never fitted. Meanies. Passenger door mirror fitted during 1984MY. By the middle of 1984, the base had reclining seats, digital clock and a parcel shelf fitted as standard.

[Simon]

Yeah mine's blocked as well! My autochoke is f****d and heater pipes are burst. They all do that sir.

Cut away the end 1 1/2 inches of the pipes to leave stubs and use heater hose with Jubilee clips to connect to the heater's feed and return pipes. Autochoke can be fixed, there's a how-to on here somewhere. Rear squirter might have a pipe split issue where the tailgate hinge is placed and the pipe has flexed over the years. This is common and can be fixed by cutting the pipe and fitting an angled pipe connector. Or the squirter could really be blocked up with goo or limescale, in which case a fine dressmakers pin could be inserted into the orifice to poke out any debris, or like you say just leave it

[Richard H]

Thanks Simon! I love finding out about this kind of thing.

[PhilBill]

On the subject of the aerial, I got a replacement 'Sakura' branded one that worked fine and fitted perfectly. The top of the front window pillar mounting position, so that the driver could reach out and extend the aerial was common in the 80s especially on Japanese cars. I remember seeing UK market cars from LHD countries with the aerial still mounted on the left pillar. The same car makers often didn't change the wiper pattern for the UK either.

[Simon]

Some aftermarket brand aerials are ok, others unfortunately are not so good. I fitted an aftermarket one a few years ago which was on offer at a bargain price (£8 IIRC), but the seal didn't prevent rain leaking into the cabin. When I fitted the proper OE item (then priced at about £28 from the Rover dealer), the leak stopped. Buy cheap, pay twice as they say and I proved them right! Like I mentioned in an earlier post, these OE ones are on offer from Rimmers at £9, so if anyone thinks they might need one - well it's a bit of a no-brainer really)

[Richard H]

I bought the one from Rimmers, thanks Simon. It came today and looks great, still in its MG Rover packaging. The only thing I would mention is that once VAT and postage had been added to the price it came to just under £20. Not a problem though, if there were still Rover dealers I'm sure it would have been a similar price, or even more. It is the later type with exposed screw heads, but again that doesn't matter as long as it fits. I need to cut out the rust and weld in new metal around the ariel hole before the new one can be fitted though.