The Rover 800 mkI

Purchasing classics there

ROVERX NUMXThe Rover 800 mkI was a bad car. And that while he was presented under the proud British flag as 'World Beater'. And was developed together with Honda.

The styling was kindly understated. Others said: impersonal, unobtrusive and boring. The 2,5 liter Honda V6 in the Rover was a bit too much a hangman for a car with limousine aspirations and the alternative Rover M16 twin cam engine of 2 liter content did not hold its reputation. Both sources of power caused reputation damage in their own way.

But the misery only started after the car left the showroom. The 800 quickly became famous for its huge number of electrical and engineering ... Let's just say 'properties'. All parts that were difficult to reach were broken.

Rover2Fitters were screamed crazy after they got lost behind the sticky dashboard in a forest of non-working transmitters, wiring, plugs and other discomfort. And it turned out to be impossible to assemble things properly afterwards, or at least neatly. That was not a problem during the warranty period ...

The 800 was developed in collaboration with Honda, and as Honda it was called "Legend."

ROVERX NUMXAt the Cowley plant, Rover Legends and Rover made 800s. They all received their 'delivery check' at Honda's factory in nearby Swindon. But the mistakes made at Rover also didn't get all the people from Honda out.

Meanwhile, there are still Rover 800s. If you find one now, it could be that it has driven few kilometers and that most of the factory carelessness has been tinkered with.

If you find such a copy, then you have a large, modestly designed car that is suitable for large occupants. The 800 is spacious. And still worth almost nothing.

The Rover 800 mk
From: 1986-1991
Engine: four-cylinder, 1994 cc, six-cylinder 2594 / 2675 cc
Top speed: approx. 200 km / h max.
Produced: 221228 pieces

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12 comments

  1. "And I am indeed not a specialist in this field."

    Why then write / place that piece for it?

    Nice and smart! Do you also write recipe books while you cannot cook?

    Next time to write about the sparta-met… But first drive!

  2. So editors, what prejudices. Bit of level auto week, article. In other words, not based on anything, full of prejudices and 'hearsay' things.

    Have you done any preliminary work at all? Have you driven such a car? Or spoke to an owner?
    You probably wouldn't recognize a rover 800 if one drove over you>: D

    You know what: I bet when there is MKI next to an MKII you don't even know which one is what!

    I would say get out of your naivety (and from behind your pc) and check out one of those things before throwing stuff out into the world!

  3. Hey everyone,

    It was not meant to hurt feelings. The text was adapted from English. That book is about “the worst cars of all time” and was of course written by an Englishman. And indeed I am not a specialist in this field. Fortunately, Rover specialist and enthusiast Rene Winters had a positive approach. "Come by and I'll let you drive those cars." And of course I take that opportunity with both hands. I'll call him for an appointment next week and hope to agree with you all.
    And I just understand electric windows 🙂

    Yours faithfully,

    Dolf Peeters

    • I was very surprised about the quality of this page and you can't just think about pens without research. Very incompetent and certainly if there is a recognized magazine after the name.

      First contact us about a car that is apparently unknown to you. Your job is precisely to make people enlarge their world and not to make them think more narrow-minded. I am fairly familiar with the 800 series, if I say so myself, and I have an extensive collection of magazines and tests that did not include all of the above statements. 2e hands tests from the UK also made the 800 very high as a good holiday car and miles faster. The police car photo that you used is a highway police car and I know the owner and the car, this car has run tons of police miles and now the engine still has the original compression value.

    • So if I understand correctly, is this a copied part of an English book? Where is this source mentioned in your article? As it stands now, this is plagiarism ...

  4. I did not have your magazine particularly high on the list of quality magazines, but this really makes no sense. As if you are reading a speech by a child from group 6.
    How bad and unsubstantiated can you write. Please have this editor sit comfortably behind the geraniums. I'm sure he's good at that.
    It also seems that the writer has never driven such a car or is used to a pre-war car. Courageous executioner? That bike is known for feeling rather lazy. Very suitable for such a limo. You can feel that all too well when you start driving it yourself (highly recommended to do that before you write an article about the car in question) Just like that comment about sticky wood. That is only partial. Real (!) Wood veneer was used in this car. It is not for nothing that it will burst when it has been in one of these for a lifetime

  5. Maybe next time also a nice idea to see what an mk1 and an mk2 look like at all. An unprofessional start with "the 800 mk1 a bad car" with mostly mk2 photos underneath underlines that this piece was composed / written by an amateur.

    And if anything more mile-eaten by the British police, it was the 800s. And another mistake is that the 2,5 would be a "couple executioner"
    if the writer of this piece had done his / her job well and had also read only two old reports, he / she would have read that the 2,5 had too little torque according to the Rover people of the collaboration and that Rover with Honda pushed through the 2,7 because that block has more torque.

    I do not pretend that an 800 is indestructible in terms of electronics, but as above, it is really an exaggeration. If one has an 800 and a possible malfunction would occur, which also occurred with other brands, then there are (simple) solutions and problem descriptions known.

    A pity, because I think AMK is normally a very nice magazine that does good research into things, but if from now on these kinds of unsubstantiated things appear in it, I don't have to read it anymore.

  6. This seems like a message written by someone who already finds power windows complicated and scary in a car. The 800 is a car with many options and is not a car that is “vandal proof” but often ends up badly treated. I have an 800 mk1 and although it will be said that I am partial, it is a good and simple car to maintain if you have some sense.

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