AROnline blogs

Keith Adams 

A great TVR for a scintillating homecoming

Those who know me, know that I have a bit of thing for TVRs. Maybe it’s the Rover connection – the way that in the Griffith, the faithful old V8 sounded exactly as it should – or perhaps it’s because they come from Blackpool, the town I was lucky enough to grow up in. Whatever the reason, TVRs have a special place in AROnline’s heart and it’s nice to be able to write a few words about them when the opportunity presents itself. 

That’s just what happened at the weekend when I ended up driving to the TVR Car Club’s ‘Back to Blackpool’ event, which saw the town invaded by several hundred of its favourite cars – including me in James Agger‘s rather nice T350C. You can read the report and see the photo gallery on the Octane website but, needless to say, it was great getting back home and seeing some fledgling activity at the old factory. Indeed, it still baffles me that the Russian ownership of the company was prepared to put TVR on ice, when there’s such overwhelming love for the marque – and not just in the town where it was born. I guess it all came down to money, politics and sheer bloody mindedness… 

The T350C was a perfect animal for the weekend, though. Admittedly, by the time this one was built in 2003, the Rover connection had been severed but its TVR Power/AJP Speed Six engine remains a perfect English sports car engine: throaty, guttural, powerful and torquey. However, unlike the Rover engine, torque doesn’t come at the expense of revs, as this banshee of an engine was capable of pulling manically to 7000rpm. Nice to know when you need to shed the odd annoying Audi from your rear bumper. 

As for why the Rover V8 was dropped in the first place, it was great to hear what I hope was the right reason from one of the guys who worked at TVR back in the day. ‘They developed the AJPV8 following BMW’s takeover of Rover in 1996 because Peter Wheeler had said. “I don’t want them putting anything bloody German in my cars.” It wasn’t about supply or emissions, but because the boss decreed it.’ It’s hard not to like Peter Wheeler when you hear things like that. 

Performance of the T350 was predictably rapid: 0-30mph in under 2 seconds, 0-60 in 4, and 0-100 in 9. Considering the car has a ‘mere’ 350bhp (that’s Blackpool Horse Power, so probably a little less) on tap, those are impressive figures. Mind you, the T350 pushes the scales at under 1100kg, and that tells you all you need to know about lightweight construction. The only ABS and traction control systems are moderated by the driver’s right foot, which is a doddle, as the floor-hinged pedals are beautifully weighted and linear in response. As for the steering, it might have – shock, horror – power assistance, but it’s heavy, delivers good road feel and is beautifully geared (if you can resist sneezing) at 1.7 turns from lock-to-lock. Delightful. 

Were there any buts to the weekend, any drawbacks? Well, it’s not a car you’d use every day. For a start, refilling it is a faff (even if the filler looks lovely and is underpinned by a really simple idea), and you’d chew through fuel far too quickly. That’s not because it’s uneconomical – because it isn’t if you drive it gently. No, you’d have it drinking 99RON like there’s no tomorrow because resisting the temptation to floor it at every opportunity would be impossible. 

Anyway, on my special weekend in Blackpool, where it seemed like every other car was a TVR, it was the perfect set of wheels. The noise from the straight through exhausts, the waves from fellow owners, the look of the thing and the impossibly quick acceleration added up to making this one of what I call my purple moments. Just to put this into context, I’d been driving a Ferrari F40 a couple of days earlier – but it was the TVR’s salty charms that will live with me for longer… 

Other manufacturers

Andrew Elphick

Fidel Castro's Land Rover Station Wagon

ACCORDING TO Cuban history, the official line is that Fidel Castro used this LWB Series 1 station wagon in the last throes of the revolution against Batista’s dictatorship. Not many Lode Lane products have become a monument but, after the overthrow of power (in Cuba), this one has. Additional body modifications in the shape of bullet holes were gained during the Battle of Maffo in December 1958.

Bodily straight and bearing low mileage (in kilometres), its Birmabright body has been painted many times over. Now lying in state in Havana’s Museum of the Revolution, this Landie currently sits alongside similar four-wheeled monuments to the revolution including a CJ5 and a very early Toyota Land Cruiser, not to mention the tailfin of the ubiquitous B26 bomber shot down during the Bay of Pigs incident.

The car is a surprising find given Cuba’s heavy reliance on the American automotive industry prior to the revolution. One wonders if Land Rovers were a more popular choice in South America… It is known Che Guevara travelled extensively across South America from his Argentinian birthplace before calling Cuba his home.

Morris Minor Series 2

At odds with the chrome and fins of the abundant ‘Americana’ two of Oxford’s finest were spotted - the first (alas not on film) was a Steel-bodied Traveller (the roof gave it away), the second was this Series Two split-screen Minor.

Whether its original beating heart of 803cc and running gear still lived beneath is unknown – the smart money would point towards the USSR; note the tight PCD of the wheelnuts compared to the original. The smart flush fitting (Lada?) door handles are quite a nice touch and a fairly regular modification on Cuba’s highways. Britain’s workforce ought to be proud of the condition of the chromework over 50 years later.

Austin A95 Westminster

Two Lane Blacktop Zephyr meets Fast and Furious Westminster: dig deeper though and, apart from the electric green paint job, some startling body modifications appear – not least the major bootlid and tail lamp surgery. The bootlid has actually been shortened a good six inches in depth!

Rover 100 in Cuba?

An unusual find to say the least! As a product that is post-revolution, but not of a Communist origin, it is rather surprising to stumble (from the top of a moving bus!) on a bog-standard R6 Rover Metro/100. The blue number plates mark it as a Government- rather than contractor-owned car, so maybe this was a gift from our own British embassy?

It’s hard to identify where in the model range it came, does anyone from the firm know more?

If you’d like to see more, visit Andrew’s new site, Stratosilver.

AR Cars, Old knackers

Alexander Boucke 

I’m sure you think there must be an abandoned, dead 827 Vitesse in front of my place – given that, when I last wrote about the car around four months ago, I said that the car was so unreliable that I had simply stopped using it. But no – it’s gone. Under its own power the Vitesse went on to compete in the Rally Munich-Barcelona, which was why it had been bought in the first place. 

However, as you can guess from my previous ramblings, there were still some tasks to complete before this could happen. Once I managed to free off some spare time, I finally got things rolling. First was a visit to a local testing station who offered a free safety check as part of a road safety campaign. No bad thing – seeing this was my first chance to have the car up on ramps and also to get brakes and suspension properly checked before deciding what needed to be done mechanically. 

Anyway, as it turned out, it looked pretty good: no rust on the lower panels, all the suspension joints free of play, perfect front brakes. But also a torn CV-joint rubber and sticky rear brake calipers (not surprising – having seen the rusty brake discs). Lucky as I was, the car did not fail to start that day! 

The Vitesse was then booked into a garage for a new CV gaiter, a set of rear discs and pads, freeing off the rear brakes, new belts (apart from the timing belt that looked recent) and a new thermostat. I kept my fingers crossed that they did not need to push it all the time due to it not-starting (as it turned out to happen quite often). 

With the car in good mechanical condition, it was now my task to finally dive into the electrical problems plaguing this car. The PGM-FI main relay was believed to be the major culprit, so out it came for some fresh solder. Unlike on the R8, the removal of the relay is not really a 5 minute job so, while I was at it, I made sure all those connectors and multi-plugs on and around the fuse board were clean and connected safely. It made a major difference, the main relay clicked away as it should on the first try and many of the minor faults, like an erratic interior light, were resolved in one go… 

Finally, in true James Bond-style, the car was just ready as my brother turned up to collect it. He had to leave without any further testing – just like BMC left many a car to be tested by the customer… 

Oh, and, I hear you ask, did it make it to Barcelona? Yes, it did – and back. Without missing a beat, no overheating and no fluids that needed replacing – unlike the seemingly reliable competition from BMW or VW which suffered all sorts of problems, but that’s another story. 

To cite a well known TV presenter: “The most unreliable car is the most reliable car in the world!“ 

827 - in front of unreliable competition

Old knackers, Vitesse madness

Richard Truett 

The 712-mile TR7 couldn't be in better hands

THE LAST thing anyone needs when they are in the middle of moving house is another old car, especially if said old car doesn’t run – and hasn’t run since the days of Reagan and Thatcher -  and yet, at the exact moment the movers were collecting boxes and relocating furniture from my old house to my new one, I was eagerly peeling off hundred bills and handing them to an elderly lady for another old car that didn’t run – and hadn’t since the days of Reagan and Thatcher. 

What provoked this irrational behaviour, of course, is not just any old car, but a classic British sports car. A Triumph. Specifically, a rare fuel-injected 1981 TR7, one of the last ever made. With only 712 total original miles, this particular TR must be one of the lowest mileage Triumphs left on the planet that is not in a museum. 

How could I, a lifelong admirer of Coventry’s second-most famous marque, resist the opportunity to own this TR, especially since some inspired bargaining reduced the asking price from $2500 to just $1250? 

With the car came every scrap of paperwork one could hope for. The most telling is the dealer sales order which details the price of the car. It’s those numbers that help to explain why, even after Triumph and BL invested major development money to upgrade the fuel system from twin Zenith Strombergs to Bosch fuel injection and installed a nicer interior, the TR7 still did not sell in large enough numbers to justify its existence – on 28 May 1982, Mr. Andrew Wansach, handed over the princely sum of $13,992 for the TR7. 

He ordered everything you could want in the car, including air con. Still, for that kind of money, any number of American muscle cars, such the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro and Pontiac Firebird — all with V8 engines – could be had for less. Worse than the high price was the interest rate on the loan, 16.5 per cent. With interest, then, the TR’s total purchase price was an astounding $17,350.88. That’s Chevrolet Corvette money. 

Extracting the dusty, dirty TR7 from its narrow storage facility when it had been entombed along with boxes of unopened dolls, model aeroplanes and other artefacts from a life spent collecting things, required the business end of a powerful winch. Two of the original Goodyear tyres were not just deflated, but rotted halfway off the rims. As the TR emerged into the sunlight, I felt a little like Indiana Jones unearthing some rare and coveted artefact. 

Once outside, I was able to have a good look at the TR. The boot contained some interesting items that had never been installed by the selling dealer. There was the original AM-FM radio, still in the unopened British Leyland box. Also in the original packages: a stainless steel BL luggage rack for the boot lid, door edge guards and two sets of heavy rubber floor mats with the Standard-Triumph logo. 

The original convertible top cover had never been removed from its bag. Mine were the first hands since the car left Solihull to touch the spare tire and jack. That was the end of the pleasant surprises, however. Over the years, critters nested and nestled all over the TR, leaving behind debris and damage. The driver’s seat had been chewed. 

Shells of chestnuts and acorns, twigs, leaves, grass and other botanical objects were in just about every crack, crevice and corner of the TR. The body had suffered a few small dents during its long imprisonment. Still, you could see that with a good cleaning, the TR would be very respectable. 

Anyway, an hour after the money and ownership papers changed hands, the TR7 was deposited in the driveway of my old house. Two days later, with my new house up and running, I started down that long road of bringing the TR7 back to life.The engine would not turn over and so I removed the spark plugs and rocker cover and marinated the engine in Marvel Mystery Oil. 

Three days later, the engine was free. Using a strong wet-dry shop vacuum cleaner, I cleared the TR of its rodent faeces and other natural compost, including the bodies of four deceased mice. Then I washed down the dash and interior, cleaned the boot and gave the rest of the car a bath with warm, soapy water. As I expected, the TR7 cleaned up well. 

Now it was time to focus on the mechanicals. I connected up a battery to see what would work and what wouldn’t. To my great surprise, there was not so much as a single burned out light bulb in the entire car. Everything worked just as it should, including the annoying federally mandated door buzzer which squawks at you if the key is in the ignition while the driver’s door is open. Curiously, the relay for the fuel injection system had been unscrewed and was dangling below the cubby box. 

The fuel injection system, a Bosch L-Jetronic affair, is generally very reliable but who can say what effect 25 years of dormancy will have on the best of German engineering? 

I took off the air filter, disconnected the fuel line and tried the electric fuel pump. It didn’t work. I switched the fuel injection relay for a spare leftover from my TR8 EFi conversion and within minutes the fuel pump was humming quietly and pumping brown, smelly goo from the tank. Seven gallons later the tank was empty. In went fresh gas for a flush of the system. A compression test started off with encouraging results. Cylinders one and two tested at 160 pounds. 

Number three sported a worrying 130 pounds but number four showed only 30 pounds so I know the TR has either a blown head gasket or needs rings or valves. I have driven a TR7 with three cylinders so I knew it would run. Back in went the spark plugs. I hit the key and was shocked beyond belief when, after a loud backfire, the engine started immediately. 

The clutch plate had frozen to the flywheel, so I couldn’t put the car in gear but I was eventually able to break it free. With it running just well enough, the TR7 limped into the garage and that’s where she stands today. In the coming weeks, the cylinder head will come off. If the bores are in good shape, the 8.0:1 compression USA pistons will give way to some proper UK market high compression pistons. 

While we are lucky to have gotten fuel injection on the TR7 and TR8, this didn’t do anything for power. The 1981 TR7 injection is rated at a measly 88.9hp. The UK pistons should see power safely over 100hp. I also plan to install a sports exhaust. Otherwise, no other modifications are planned. 

Now I am pondering the big question for after the TR is made roadworthy: What does one do with a TR with so few miles? If I drive it, it just becomes another old used British classic sports car. Letting it sit also is no good. It’s done enough of that. 

AR Cars, Old knackers, Our cars

Kev Mills 

Rover SD1 goes to Longbridge

As some of you will know, I was the lucky fellow who took Keith’s Rover SD1 down to Sussex a few weeks ago for the Vintage at Goodwood festival. It was an ace event; really something else. Once I’ve gone through my pictures, I’ll make sure some come on here. 

Since Goodwood, I’ve been looking after the Rover while Keith enjoyed his holidays. To be honest, I’ve been a bit reluctant to use it – it is a really nice car and I was paranoid about putting a dent in it or somesuch. Then my daily driver – my trusty 46-year-old Land Rover – threw a brake-related wobbly. Mrs Mills was away working and had taken her Rover 200, the Mini is out of test and the 1952 Landy is in bits. The SD1 was therefore pressed into use for a couple of days. 

My commute takes me from my house in deepest Rutland, over the hills into Leicestershire and beyond to the tropical paradise that is Northamptonshire. Quite frankly, I fell in love with the old 3500 – it just felt ‘right’, with a nice feel to everything and a proper gearbox that felt like you are connected directly to the ‘box’s internals. It wasn’t even that bad on fuel. Why haven’t I got one?? 

Anyway, on the second day of SD1 commuting I wasn’t in the office. I had to go to rural Staffordshire to see a man about a Land Rover and some steam engine repairing so we growled down the A47, through Leicester and onto the A5, a fuzzy tape of Earth Wind & Fire’s Greatest Hits crackling away from the quality ’70s Unipart ‘stereo’. 

My job only took until noon and, with time on my hands and a full tank of fuel, I had a look at the map. Hmm, not far from Birmingham – I could burble home the long way round and take in some BL history. I also reckoned the old Rover would get some looks in its spiritual home. 

We left Tamworth in the pouring rain. From the driver’s seat, the wipers are about the only thing that really betray the car’s age. Don’t get me wrong, they work, but with the space-age dash and four-door-Ferrari looks, the chrome arms and relatively slow speed look rather odd. I decided to avoid motorways and headed down the A453 and onto the A38, round the Sutton Coldfield bypass, and onto Castle Bromwich and past the Jaguar assembly plant. The road is bordered by old factories and brick-built, grime-stained industrial buildings, now either empty or housing double glazing firms, hire companies or those ‘self-storage’ establishments. 

Rather surprisingly, the traffic was free-flowing and the Rover was getting plenty of attention from other road users. Further ahead I needed to decide my ultimate destination - do I turn left and head for Lode Lane and the Land Rover works, where this SD1 was built but where I’ve been dozens of times, or carry on to Longbridge, recent home of Rover and with far more to look at? I pluck for Longbridge. 

I come into the place from Longbridge Lane, over the bridge and past the ‘new’ British Rail station, which is almost as old as the SD1 I am sitting in. On the right is the Austin Sports & Social Club, whose sign also probably rivals the SD1 for age. To the left they are building a new Bournville College on the site of North Works, while at the traffic lights you can just see over the fence opposite to the new and old West Works – which, of course, aren’t there any more. All that remains is just a flat landscape with a few piles of rubble. 

Left at the lights and over another bridge. The old Longbridge station, boarded up and graffiti’d, sticks out like a sore thumb. I don’t reckon it’ll be there much longer – doesn’t really go with the developers’ ‘Fresh start for Longbridge’ motto which is emblazoned on virtually the whole parameter of the old works. Trouble is, with the lack of progress on any form of development (bar knocking the place down, and the new college), it feels like a bit of an empty promise. 

At the roundabout, the Council have plonked a Mini in the middle and covered it with flowers. It looks pretty sad, the poor old thing, but pleasingly it retains its funky ’80s Austin Rover wheeltrims. To the right of the roundabout, the old K Gate is a hive of activity. They are knocking down the old Paint Shop and two rather bored looking blokes are standing in the left-hand carriageway to divert traffic into the right-hand lane, just in case the demolition rig drops a few tons of bricks into the road. I clearly can’t park the old Rover here so we head on down Bristol Road and left into Lowhill Lane. 

It is spookily quiet. Outside Q Gate, the main entrance, a lone TF stands guard while the car park beyond is fairly full of cars. Not many Rovers or MGs, mind. I burble down the hill, past the flight shed to the site of the old East Works, and park up. 

East Works and the Cofton Works beyond are long gone, but the security building at the gate still stands, complete with a message written in a dusty window – ‘Don’t worry, lads – we’ve still got the Allegro!’ Across the barren, flat site the works’ painted walkways are still in place, snaking around the missing buildings. I walk back up the road and around the outside of the works as far as the bridge on Longbridge Lane. Here are a few pictures of what I saw. Poor old Longbridge. 

Old knackers, Polish Rover SD1

Words: Clive Goldthorp Photographs: Michael Callaghan

Jon Trinder's AROC Concours award-winning 1976 Alfa Romeo Alfasud 1.2ti

Any AROnline readers who have read the mini-biographies on our Contact Us page will know that the other famous automotive ‘AR’, Alfa Romeo, has a place in my heart.

The Alfa Romeo and BMC>MG stories share a number of interesting historical parallels: the companies were both Government-owned for significant periods and both developed some of the most ground-breaking and influential front wheel drive family cars of the 20th Century: think Sir Alec Issigonis’ Mini and Rudolf Hruska’s Alfasud. An article exploring those historical parallels in some depth might be one for the future but this story was prompted by a much more recent, if somewhat tenuous, connection: a conversation with SMTC UK’s Director – Chassis, Andy Kitson, during the opening of MG’s new Global Design Centre at MG Birmingham back in June.

Andy and his colleagues had been using the current Ford Focus as one of the benchmarks for the MG6′s ride and handling. However, having just driven the new Alfa Romeo Giulietta at Alfa Romeo’s famous Balocco test facility in Northern Italy for Octane Magazine, our Editor, Keith Adams, reckoned that the Giulietta had now set a new benchmark for C-segment ride and handling. Andy no doubt took Keith’s feedback on board but had not at that point, prior to the Giulietta’s UK launch, had a chance to drive one himself. A passing reference to the Alfasud, though, set me thinking about past and present ride and handling benchmarks…

You see, back in the late 1970s and early 1980s, when my friends were driving MG Midgets and Triumph Spitfire 1500s, I was driving Alfa Romeo Alfasuds - I had four of them in succession. My last 82/X Alfasud 1.3Ti was sold in January, 1984 but, since then, the Alfasud has always been one of my two benchmark front wheel drive cars. However, after my conversation with Andy Kitson, I found myself thinking that now might be the time to review that opinion and wondering how a ‘Sud would compare with, say, the Giulietta. Time, then, to hatch a plan!

The easy part was arranging a Test Drive in an Alfa Romeo Giulietta – my local Alfa Romeo Dealer was happy to oblige. Keith Adams’ 82/X Alfasud 1.5SC needs re-commissioning so we thought that finding an Alfasud to drive would probably be a real problem. However, fortunately sometime AROnline Contributor, Graham Eason, of Great Escape Classic Car Hire came to our aid. Graham has an 84/Y Alfasud 1.5Ti which, to his great credit, he was prepared to lend me even though the car is not currently available for hire.

The final element of the plan also slotted neatly into place – my friend, Michael Callaghan, and two workmates were taking his 147 GTA to the Alfa Romeo Owners Club’s (AROC) National Alfa Weekend at the famous Shelsley Walsh Hillclimb course in Worcesterhire. Graham keeps his ‘Sud at his company’s base near Inkberrow which is also in Worcestershire and just 25 miles from Shelsley Walsh so, last Sunday, we were able to combine a run in the ‘Sud with a visit to the National Alfa Weekend.

My Test Drive in the Alfa Romeo Giulietta 1.4TB 170 Lusso last Saturday therefore helped me to give some context to the following day’s drive in the Alfasud. Alfa Romeo engines such as the Alfasud’s Boxer Flat 4 and the Busso V6 possess such a combination of character and performance that they are hard acts to follow but the Giulietta’s new MultiAir engine lives up to that tradition. However, whilst the Giulietta’s ride and handling were, at least on the Lusso’s 16in alloys, impressive and probably at or near best in class, the car seemed to be a little lacking in soul irrespective of whether the DNA switch was in Dynamic or Normal mode. An Alfa should beg to be driven, will you to wake up at 5.00am for a lap or two of the Evo Triangle but, for some reason, this version of the Giulietta did not quite connect with me in that way. Mind you, a 1750 TBi Cloverleaf might still work the Alfa magic…

The ‘Sud on Sunday? Well, the drive from Inkberrow to Shelsley Walsh really did turn back time for me. Alfasuds are so eager to engage and entertain the driver that they have an almost terrier-like character - the aural and tactile feedback from the engine and chassis is communicated with a clarity and purity that most of today’s affordable family cars struggle to match. Colin Metcalfe, the enthusiastic Secretary of the Alfa Romeo Owners Club’s Alfasud Register, says that ‘Suds do, indeed, will you to drive them but that, with just 247 registered here in the UK back in 2007, there are fewer and fewer opportunities to do that.

However, based on my conversations with Colin, Bryan Alexander, the Alfasud Register’s Webmaster, and the other members of the Register at Shelsley Walsh last weekend, the ‘Suds that survive are in good hands. Interestingly, a 76/P Alfasud 1.2ti belonging to Jon Trinder was third overall in the AROC’s Concours and won an award for “Best Original Car.” Jon has owned his ‘Sud for the last 33 years and, when asked why he had kept the car for so long, he replied: “The memory of the first drive…” My friend, Michael, who had never driven an Alfasud before, drove Graham Eason’s back to Inkberrow and, by the end of the journey, he knew exactly what Jon Trinder had meant – he would have happily driven the ‘Sud home instead of his 147 GTA!

My weekend affair with the other ‘AR’ left me reflecting on several points:-

1) a full-spec Giulietta 1750 TBi Cloverleaf would cost around £30,000 otr while a good little ‘Sud would cost around £3,000 and yet still reward the driver with more smiles per mile. Interestingly, UK-spec Giuliettas do not have a rest for the driver’s left foot whereas the Alfasuds do – some might say that neatly defines the difference in the character of the two cars…

2) Andy Kitson and his colleagues at SMTC UK might, by now, have driven an Alfa Romeo Giulietta but, perhaps, they and, indeed, every Chassis Engineer should drive a ‘Sud at least once in their professional lives just to provide themselves with an historical benchmark for a car’s ability to communicate with the driver – they would have a lot of fun in the process as well!

3) Keith Adams, might well have changed his mind about disposing of his ‘Sud had he been with us last Sunday and will probably come to regret the decision. However, if any AROnline readers can help find a good home for the little car, then please contact him via this email address: kadams@aronline.co.uk.

[Editor's Note: My personal thanks go to Graham Eason of Great Escape Classic Car Hire and to Colin Metcalfe and the other members of the Alfa Romeo Owners Club's Alfasud Register for helping to make last Sunday such a memorable day.]

Graham Eason of Great Escape Classic Car Hire’s 1984 Alfa Romeo Alfasud 1.5Ti

Old knackers, Other manufacturers

Keith Adams 

1990 Lexus LS400

Suddenly, it all becomes clear. What am I talking about? Why Alan Partridge traded in his Rover for a Lexus… 

I jest, of course, but it seems timely that I should get my hands on Lexus GB’s 1990 LS400 on the same day that I upload the story of Jaguar’s exciting AJV8 engine – because it’s clear that the appearance and capability of the former must have had a bearing on the latter. 

It’s the 20th Anniversary of Lexus in the UK and, to celebrate, the company has bought a couple of 1990 LS400s in order to form the beginnings of a heritage fleet. I think it’s great that manufacturers are increasingly doing this because, looking at what they were doing years ago and comparing it with today’s output shows that, if there’s continuity in the cars, we can see it first hand. 

The reason I have the LS400 with me is because some of the guys at Lexus HQ were keen to drive my SD1 and it seemed only fair to swap for a few days. 

Anyway, back to the LS400. It’s a car that the magazines hailed as being ground-breaking when launched. In terms of refinement, power and luxury, it broke new ground for Toyota – and was to be a fitting product to slap a brand new nameplate on – before going BMW and Mercedes-Benz chasing. 

The heart of the Lexus LS400 is its unerringly smooth quad-cam V8.

Is the LS400 as good as the magazines said it was? In terms of mechanical refinement, absolutely. The quad-cam V8 is astonishingly silent in use, but delivers effortless, creamy performance whenever needed. The engineers considered it so good, they gave the throttle two kick-down points and, boy, does that work. Even comparing it with today’s luxury V8s, the LS400 is still up there in terms of ultimate refinement – and that’s no exaggeration. 

The engine’s huge capability had Lexus’ rivals at BMW, Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz running back to their drawing boards in order to come up with something close to matching the creamy V8. No doubt, we really should thank the Japanese – indirectly – for the magnificence of Jaguar’s current V8. 

The LS400 brought new standards of quality into the arena, too. Ultimately, it might not be quite as solid as what Mercedes-Benz was putting out at the time, but those parts of the car you touch with any regularity have been so well damped and engineered to perfection, that you’d swear blind an LS400 was more tightly screwed together than a W124 or W126 Benz. 

So, it changed everything? 

Yes, and no. 

The styling was criticised for being too anodyne and maybe a little generic when new, which did count against it in Europe. We’re a badge conscious lot here and the luxury car set wasn’t ready for something so overtly Japanese – so we bypassed it. The Americans, on the other hand, lapped it up. The marque has gone on to become an international phenomenon and, slowly but surely, is developing a profile on our side of the Atlantic, too. 

I must admit that I have a massive admiration for the Japanese way of engineering cars – and I love this thing in the same way I do the Honda NSX and Datsun 240Z. It might not be the first car you’d think of when asked to come up with examples of game-changing vehicles but, having driven this 100K 1990 car – which still feels as tight as a drum, I’d rate it up there. 

Once again, I find myself thinking like Mr Partridge of Norwich and hankering after one of these wonders as a direct replacement for my much-loved and sometimes missed Rover Sterling. 

Lexus LS400 interior: a switch-feel fetishist's delight.

Old knackers, Other manufacturers

Andrew Elphick 

Jaguar XJ Sport

We were wrong – Scrappage didn’t wipe out the smokey Jaguar. Trainee Publicans across the nation rejoice! 

Admittedly sub-£1000 bangers are getting thin on the ground today, but gems like this Jaguar XJ still appear every now and then. What’s not to like? Nine months’ MoT, XKR alloy wheels (and, rather strangely, two of the correct alloys in a metre square ballast bag on the back seat…), the Irish cherished registration and no real major body damage. Okay, so it was last washed using a scourer, but what do you expect for £800 or near offer? 

With £700 in crumpled £50 notes and RAC stored as Speed Dial 1 in your mobile the world is your oyster… 

Unfortunately, the wedding ring I own precluded me from making the fateful call. I never got the chance to squeeze the keys and watch most of the central door locking motors release as I stickily shuffled into the gummy leather and wondered just why the previous owner had grasped the wheel while eating a kebab. 

Hopefully, as I slowly opened each eye maybe the instruments would only show one or two warning lights; the unimportant ones – low washer fluid, ABS failure, that little engine one with the exclamation mark on it. Then the moment of truth – IGNITION! Followed by ‘popping’ the bonnet to get the jump leads on (of course, trying to go direct to the battery via the boot lid that was ‘working earlier’ is just foolish). 

Nope, I never did discover whether this once proud feline pulled like a Carthorse or a three-pot Corsa, but go on, give the number a ring and leave me a reply about how you got on. 

Jaguar XJ Sport

Old knackers

Keith Adams 

French Rover 100 straight off the cover of a fashion magazine...

AFTER A WEEK spent in France – relaxing and unwinding – I can officially say that British cars look cooler over there than in their homeland. Admittedly, spotting a Rover in France these days is no longer a frequent occurrence but there are still enough around to make that judgement. 

Maybe it’s the ‘plates – silver on black for the older ones just look so nice; or maybe it’s a case of them being used and abused in the way their designers intended. Maybe it’s just the laissez faire way they end up being slung on the roadside… 

Who knows? 

Anyway, whenever I spotted one of our cars there, it almost always seems to have been in a posed position, in order to flatter the photographer. The shame is, of course, that they are dying out slowly over there (and in the rest of Europe), with each passing year seemingly revealing increasingly badly dented examples. 

Still, cars last longer there, so maybe in another ten years’ time, when all the Rovers on UK roads have been replaced by some awful anodyne German ‘box’, there will still be a hardcore forever motoring in France. Who’d have thought that ten years ago? 

A Mini British Open: looking good in France

Old knackers, Random stuff

Keith Adams 

Rover SD1

It’s been a long and tough 2010 so far. There never seem to be quite enough hours in the day to get everything done, what with the demands of Octane Magazine and AROnline but, here we are, still delivering great stories online. This week’s scoop about the Rover 55 is a case in point – and the reason why this site, and the stories that are on it, will never die through lack of interest. 

Simply put, there will always be new material coming out of the woodwork, new cars we never knew about and missed opportunities that will bring a tear to the eye. 

Anyway, it’s time for a few days off… but the site will continue ticking along thank you very much. We’ll be bringing you the latest news, all the blogs you could ever want and more of the same copy that you seem to enjoy reading. Thanks to Alexander Boucke and the rest of the team, AROnline will be at the forefront of all new developments. 

As for me – I’m off for a quick break in France. I was going to take the Polski-Rover SD1, but that’s on display at Vintage at Goodwood this weekend, so instead, I’ll be cruising down in a nice Lexus IS220d. It might not look or feel like a Rover, but it’s certainly painted in what looks like a fetching shade of Nightfire Red. 

When I get back next week, I’ll start planning an AROnline gathering. We’ve not had one in ages so it would be nice to meet you… and give that old Rover of mine a bit of an outing. 

TTFN! 

Holiday transport in a Rover-ish colour...

Other manufacturers, Polish Rover SD1, Random stuff