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Is this Rover 220GSI saveable?

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  • Is this Rover 220GSI saveable?

    I know this is probably not the best place to highlight the plight of a Rover 200 but I know some of you are interested in them. This weekend I met of family friend who has had to park up her Rover 220 after over 20 years of use. She bought it from the original selling Rover dealer with 2,000 miles on it as an ex-demonstrator and has owned it ever since. It has all the paperwork you would expect and is original and not messed with. She'd love to restore it and keep it on the road but isn't in a position to cover the cost. She would hate to see it scrapped and would prefer it to go to someone who would bring it back to life. I don't want to raise a false expectation so would like to know what forum members think of its chances. The car started fine and the engine sounds very sweet. You can see from the pictures the MOT fail sheet and you will also see that areas of the lower body will need attention too. The wheel arches and the lower doors all have rust. The boot floor was rust free and the underside looked OK but I am not and expert. The biggest job I guess will be replacing one if not both of the engine subframes. It would be lovely to be able to fettle it and then give it back to her to run with a first refusal should she want rid, but that's probably not going to happen in reality.

    Although this variant of Rover 200 is rare the values seem to be low when they come up for sale so this would never be a money spinner - more for the love of the car really. Let me know your views. I'll also go and find someone from the Rover 200 club at the Pride of Longbridge next month.

    Nick

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  • #2
    Items 1,6,7,8 and 9 look like parts that need replacing. These should be relatively easy to source and fit. Items 10 and 11 could be a few things but is essentially just tuning/fuelling, etc. and ought to be easy to sort.

    So it is items 2,3,4 and 5 that are going to be trickier. It sounds like the inner arches have gone on the rear (judging from the fails) as well as the subframes. This is what I'd look to get a quote for first as this tends to be harder to find someone to do this kind of work, whereas the mechanical items above will be straightforward.

    What is not on the fail sheet - but will be in a couple of years - is those corroded arches and sills which will soon be too weak near the suspension or seat belt mountings for an MOT pass.

    Quite why you'd want to take this on if the owner cannot pay for the repairs will have to remain a mystery - but let's face it the repairs could easily run to four figures and be beyond the (current) value of these models. That is not to say that there aren't people out there who embark on repairs that are beyond the value of the vehicle for sentimental reasons - but not usually for a car they don't own.

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    • #3
      Fail sheet looks like a pair of sills (that'll be the front subframe and rear suspension mounting point corrosion bits). And a few other minor bits. The sills I've had to do on mine not too long ago.
      www.maestroturbo.org.uk - The Tickford Maestro Turbo Register
      www.rover200.org.uk - The Rover 200/400 (R8) Owners Club
      www.roverdiesel.co.uk - My Rover Diesel Site

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      • #4
        The thing is as Matthew says is repairs are going to be more than its worth unless you are a good welder.
        Having said that it is a rare car and once sorted are excellent to drive. I bought an MGf last summer and have booked it in for some expensive paintwork and with this it will probably be more than its worth. But it's a great car and very rare being a prototype for the year 2000 mk2. Both the MGf and the rover will increase in value.
        I would say do it, it's very rare to find a GSi in any condition

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        • #5
          Originally posted by E_T_V View Post
          Fail sheet looks like a pair of sills (that'll be the front subframe and rear suspension mounting point corrosion bits). And a few other minor bits. The sills I've had to do on mine not too long ago.
          Do you think that is just the sills? The fail items aren't that clear. I thought it could be the suspension turrets but I could be wrong.

          Either way, anything can be done at cost and I am not one to rule out repairs because they are more than the car is worth IF it is a car I own that I intend to keep for a long time. But in the original post it says the owner doesn't have the money to repair it and the original poster is wondering if he could do the work in return for first refusal.

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          • #6
            Similar sort of work we do to Maestro's & Montego's to be fair. That Rover is definitely worth repairing, must be as rare as an MG Maestro I suspect. May not be worth much now but I bet it will in the not too distant future!

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            • #7
              Thanks for the responses. Repairing it and giving back was just wishful thinking, I haven't got the skills. I'll see if I can find it a good home.

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              • #8
                Originally posted by matthewsemple View Post
                Do you think that is just the sills? The fail items aren't that clear. I thought it could be the suspension turrets but I could be wrong.

                The MOT tester picks the nearest item on the list.

                Knowing that the R8 sills and rear arches rot out first (From bitter experience!), I'd say that it is a fair bet that a couple of skin sills and some patching and off you go again. I've done the missis 220 Gti turbo not too long ago. The rear spats do tend to make things much worse - when you pull them off you'll see a big hole!

                Sill Replacement 2012-05-19 013 by E_T_V, on Flickr

                Sill Replacement 2012-05-28 008 by E_T_V, on Flickr
                www.maestroturbo.org.uk - The Tickford Maestro Turbo Register
                www.rover200.org.uk - The Rover 200/400 (R8) Owners Club
                www.roverdiesel.co.uk - My Rover Diesel Site

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                • #9
                  I am with ETV regarding the rear end of the sills - similar experience here, except that on 5-door cars with no spats on the rear sills, the amount of corrosion is usually much more local. The front end of the trailing arm is located close to the rusty sill end. The front end really will need the subframe replaced. This is not too much work, the engine may not need to be removed. I have not yet seen rusty rear inner wings and rusty front sill edges on these cars.
                  http://www.austin-rover.co.uk/index....berbouckef.htm

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