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Austin/MG Montego: the rivals
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When it arrived in 1984, Austin Rover was confident that the Montego could fight its major rivals head on, and safeguard the company's future into the 1990s.

As we know, events didn't quite pan out that way, and sales collapsed under the sheer weight of buyer apathy. We take a look at the rivals and ask why that should be so...

Reps: start your engines...

Alfa Romeo Alfa 75: 1985-1992 If the 75 looked a little odd to the uninitiated, that's because it was actually a top and tail job of the appealing 1977 Giulietta, featuring a 33-apeing wedge front, and sharper rear end... and a billiard table-flat roof. Under the skin, it was also pure Giulietta, which meant rear wheel drive and a transxale. Alfa engines delivered ample performance, later Twin Sparks, especially so. In truth, patchy, but loveable.
Audi 80 B2: 1984-1986 Coinciding with the arrival of the Montego, Audi tidied up the Giugiaro-styled B2 generation 80. Ushering in the '80s, Ingolstadt's midliner received a lean back nose, bulkier bootline and tidied up interior. The five-pot cars were redesignated 90s, and priced accordingly. These 80s were bland but efficient and always offered excellent performance for every given engine. In the UK, you'd get a 2-litre Montego for 1.6CL money...
Citroen BX: 1982-1994 UK reps loved their saloons back in the 1980s, and that put the Citroen BX at something of a disadvantage against more traditional rivals. But following the 1986 facelift, sales took off thanks to value pricing, excellent equipment levels and, in later years, the arrival of the XUD engine in turbocharged form. GTi versions were great MG rivals, but some buyers disliked their lightweight construction, confusing it with poor built quality.
Ford Sierra: 1982-1993 The Sierra's sheer quirkiness was something of an open-goal for Austin Rover. Its looks clearly didn't gel with company car buyers, and the traditional looking (but more contemporaneously engineered) Montego should have been an easy sell against the 'Jellymould'. But the mighty Ford marketing machine quickly turned around the situation, and following the clever 1987 facelift, the RWD Sierra became the bestseller it should have always been.
Honda Accord III: 1985-1989 Honda's middle-market offerings simply got better with each generation, and nowhere was this phenomenon more clearly seen than in the Accord. The 1985 car proved a huge hit in Japan and the USA, and quietly racked up sales in Europe. Good to drive and underpinned with engineering excellence that transcended its modest list price, all that stopped the Accord becoming a genuine force was its artificially limited sales and sparse dealer network.
Nissan Bluebird: 1986-1990 Dull as ditchwater to look at and drive, the Bluebird's real significance lay in its production. The T12/72 series car was actually a bebadged Auster/Stanza - but unlike all of its predecessors, for the European market was built in the UK in a new plant in Washington near Sunderland. Alongside the Triumph Acclaim, the Bluebird proved that UK workers would assemble cars to an equally high standard as their Japanese counterparts.
Nissan Primera P10: 1990-1996 Of course, the worry for the UK's 'big three' was that once the Japanese started building decent cars on their patch, they'd be finished. And although that doomsday scenario never happened, the Primera did signal the arrival of the first genuinely good Japanese car to be built here. Well engineered and built, nicely styled and reliable, it was a genuine front runner. Sadly, Nissan's UK importer imploded and failed to capitalise.
Peugeot 405: 1987-1996 Considering the 405 was Peugeot's first true upper-medium challenger since the 504, it showed a devastating return to form for the company. It shared its platform with the Citroen BX, but it felt quite different, and ended up being the best driver's car in this sector. Sadly, it lacked solidity or any real quality, and its excellence on road was overshadowed by owners' tales of woe. The Mi16 remains an all-time classic.
Renault 21: 1986-1993 Giugiaro-styled, and underpinned by a sensible chassis, the Renault 21 somehow is less than the sum of its parts. Reasonable to drive, and flighty in two-litre form, it was overshadowed by more talented players. Technical interest points are limited to the mix of transverse and in-line engines, the late adoption of a frumpy hatchback, and the firebreathing turbo models. Rare now, and probably for a very good reason.
Vauxhall Cavalier Mk2: 1981-1988 When the Cortina finally went out of production in 1982, fleet managers flocked to Vauxhall dealers to buy its replacement. The front wheel drive J-Car may well have looked conventional, but it was all-new under the skin, and gave the pushy rep all he needed. All models felt quick and purposeful, and were offered in saloon and hatchback form - very unusual in 1981. Outsold the Sierra and Montego comfortably between 1984 and 1987.
Vauxhall Cavalier Mk3: 1988-1995 The slow-selling Sierra proved that it's not always good to push the boundaries in the fleet market - but such was its influence, that within six short years of its launch, no one batted an eyelid when GM produced something equally aerodynamic to replace the fast-ageing Cavalier Mk2. The '88 version redefined market expectations to a huge degree - the standard 2-litre versions pushed 125mph and could crack 0-60mph in under 9 seconds... GTi territory!
Volkswagen Passat/Santana: 1980-1987 The original Passat was little more than a badge-engineered Audi 80, but come 1980 and Volkswagen's big saloon started to diversify from its Ingolstadt cousin. It retained the inline engine layout and smooth ohc engine line-up, and was available in hatchback, saloon (pictured and known as the Santana) and estate guises. Failed to sell in huge quantities although not through lack of any real ability. Soulless and drab in terms of design, but the five-pot GX5 version was an interesting Q-car.

Verdict

It's clear from the beginning of the Montego design process that what the Longbridge engineers and stylists were trying to create from the LM10/11 platform was a convincing middle marker challenger to take on the might of Ford. And in those aims, we reckon they achieved it from what must be now be acknowledged as unpromising starting point.

Not that there's anything wrong with the Maestro, of course. It was a competent Golf-class competitor - and that's the point. The Montego was so effectively put together that few potential customers considered it anything less than a genuine Sierra/Cavalier rival, when in reality, it should have been fighting the Orion/Belmont.

But cleverly conceived as it was, could it be considered as a front running upper-middle market car in the mid-1980s? In many ways, yes - it competed head-on with Ford and GM, and although it lacked a certain amount of showroom appeal thanks to its gawky styling and - initially - lacklustre trim and spec packages, on the road it easily trounced the Sierra (in standard form) and Cavalier. And yet, it didn't sell in anywhere near the same numbers...

And in truth, that was the Montego's fundamental problem - in an era when styling and equipment were of paramount importance, the dear old Monte simply couldn't cut it. When the overseas opposition was factored in, too, things looked even bleaker: the Peugeot 405 and Citroen BX outdrove it; the Honda Accord and Nissan Bluebird were screwed together a whole lot better; the Audi 80 would outlast it; and left field choices, such as the Alfa Romeo 75 simply had more interest. Heck, it had a U-shaped handbrake!

Now we're looking at these cars as Youngtimer neo-classics, of course, things are different. Thanks to the existence of the MG versions, the Montego lives on, and has attracted something of a cult following. Compared with the opposition here, it's also an impressive long-term bet, as long as you can find a rust-free example - and then keep it that way.

And that makes it an easy choice over no-hopers such as the Nissan Bluebird and Renault 21. Even cars, such as the Primera, 405, and Accord (which are far better on rational grounds), struggle in terms of classic and community support, as well as nostalgic appeal.

The Sierra in its earliest form has more, though, as does a nice minty fresh Cavalier Mk2, but these cars are even rarer. So, enjoy a Montego safe in the knowledge that it's easy to fix and - in MG form at least - has some street cred to add into the mix...

But before you buy one, do consider the following cars very seriously: Peugeot 405 Mi16, Citroen BX 16 Valve, Vauxhall Cavalier SRi 130 or GSI 2000, or even a Nissan Primera eZX. You might not want an MG Montego after doing so.

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