Mercedade's underwhelming Rover adventures

[mercedade]

Not because the Rover is underwhelming, you understand, but my chod-bothering isn't exactly Grade A (frame) Mentalism MADNESS, just that gentle drip, drip, drip of frustrating routine maintenance that anyone with a Rover will be familiar with.

 

But crucially, there's pictures of rust and bad welding, so....THIS. IS. AUTOSHITE

 

(some all of these have been swiped from rover800.info where most of my 'work' has been 'catalogued')

 

The car: 1998 Rover 820 Vitesse

 

It looked like this when I bought it

 

 

It wasn't my first 800, having previous form:

 

825 Diesel

 

 

This car was a disaster bucket in all honesty, but it did what I wanted it to do (go places quickly via diesel). It had the most miserable cooling system and spent every weekend for about 2 months having bits replaced - brass expansion tank, water pump, radiator, various pipes - the lot. I always resisted believing it was the/a headgasket (it has 4 - the VM 2.5 unit of POWAH). Also, it was red at the front, under the green paint. I probably should have been more worried, but seeing as it had 330k on the clock, I figured it had earned the right to some battle scars. Many faults, but I always kind of liked it.

 

After a bit of a break (during which time I owned this - 220 GTI non turbo):

 

 

 

I did this:

 

 

I bought an 827 which looked like it had be styled by a 90s drug dealer. I loved it.

 

 

I gave that to a mate for a year or so whilst I tooled around in this (and other less silly cars), which will look familiar to Station of this parish, seeing as he bought it from me:

 

 

 

Anyway, back to the Vitesse.

 

It's been a beaut to drive, and a swine to keep on top of.

 

For example, trying to get exactly the right front pipe for it is EFFING IMPOSSIBLE. WItness:

 

Got my 'new' cat and downpipe combo lined up, ready to attach. Having specially scoured the internet for exactly the right pair, I was particularly annoyed to discover this:

 

 

Yes, the new downpipe (pictured here with new cat attached) is about 2 inches too short. *really bloody furious*. The scrap yard in Cardiff apparently swapped it for "one in better condition" - a nice idea, but clearly not the right part. I'm especially annoyed because there have been others around my way which i rejected because they weren't from my MY(1998) and I didn't fancy the lottery.

 

It's too late to do anything about it now so....

 

8cm of pipe and flange cut off the old downpipe

 

 

This is a front pipe a very nice man in Bicester donated about 2 months ago 'in case it came in handy'. Turns out it really did

 

 

Chop

 

 

Weld

 

 

 

Eventually, it worked. The flanges don't line up exactly because they're different shapes, which left a small gap, but a little dab of plumbers maite and all is good again.

 

More to follow...

 

[mercedade]

Getting an (initially) inexplicable clutch problem sorted.

 

Basically, it took up drive exactly as you'd hope, but it would NOT go in gear with the engine running and stalled if started in gear, as if it was completely engaged.

 

I'd already changed and bled the slave cylinder, hoping it was that (particularly as the clutch on it was under 25k old)

 

I made my way down south on Sunday afternoon, driving via rev-matching to change gears (entirely crunch free), and after 200 miles, rolled into the yard of a garage in the village/town where I grew up, ready for Monday morning.

 

9.30 Monday morning

 

 

After about 50 minutes of unbolting and swearing

 

 

Still no clue what the problem was - with the box off, we could see that the clutch arm was fine, the release bearing was perfect.

 

OK, so pressure plate and clutch out.....ah.

 

 

So where the hell has that come fr....oh.

 

 

It must have been floating around, generally getting in the way (hence the changeable nature of the problem during the first day of its occurrence) before finally getting wedged good and proper. When the clutch arm was operating, it wasn't able to push properly on the diaphragm because that piece of metal was preventing it from moving fully, hence the perfect drive but no clutch operation.

 

So only one thing for it

 

 

Decent clutch kit and, now absolutely perfect. One minor panic along the way where the car started up twice in very quick succession, before refusing point blank to start again. Just...nothing. Full lights but not even a click from a starter. Have a ballsed up the immobiliser?

 

Nope, but I have forgotten to fully tighten the earth strap on the gearbox! Nipped that up with a spanner and all is good.

 

It probably took about 3 hours in total (including the 40 minute wait for the clutch to turn up) which I'm pretty pleased with. Two of us on the job (one of the workshop mechanics I used to work with very nicely helped me out, which basically meant I passed him tools and made him brews).

 

I think doing the same job on my Mk1 827 was actually easier - certainly fewer engine mounts, suspension components and the like needed to removed on the 2.7, but then I also didn't actually remove the box on that car.

 

Whilst we were at it (and once the clutch was definitely finished) I also heli-coiled the head to replace a manifold stud. Not the most pleasant job in the world, but made the right difference. An excellent use of the day.

[MarvinsMom]

rover 800's are for whinnaaarhs,

 

i loved the 820 turbot koop that i had, and i'd love another one in a shot!

[dollywobbler]

Good stuff. What an arse that clutch fault was though.

[Lord Sterling]

Great stuff Ade, love to see stuff about 800s, still have about 5 or so in my collection. Numberplate on the Vitesse is a bit worrying; ENGLUSH DEFENS LEEG.

 

I (sadly) remember the Mk1 "Hooligan" 827SLi when Brad had it. What became of it?

 

The colour of the 825 Diesel, 'Willow Green' is one of my favourite colours for the Mk2. That colour on a Mk2 KV6 Sterling with prestige alloys would be my fave combination. Still, got my other fave combo on my KV6, Storm Grey Sterling with Beige leather and Claret carpets:

 

[RoadworkUK]

Yes! Yes! Yeeeess! 

[mercedade]

Evenin' Mo, nice to see you guv.

 

I always laboured under the (mis)apprehension that it was 'Woodcote Green' - a nice bit of learning for my day, thanks!

 

My Mk1 went back and forth between me and my friend in London until he ended up selling it to Alex Sebbinger, but to be honest it was a bit of a rat by then.

 

The pictures tell the story...

 

It got bounced outside my house one night (with nobody owning up to it):

 

 

 

So me and Brad went to work on it, after he very kindly donated some bits and his Sunday morning:

 

After a few minutes work, we had the bonnet, slam panel, headlights and bumper removed:

 

 

After having to use a handy tow-rope to pull out the frame where the headlight sits, new slam panel (in gold) and new bumper (in white) attached.

 

Then, my shiny new bonnet (in blue) in place

 

Then eventually headlights in:

 

And last but not least, indicators back in and the finished product!

 

And a nicer one to finish:

 

The pictures don't tell the whole story - there were plenty of frustrations along the way, mainly centered around lining panels up (predictably) and making do with bent bits of metal.

 

My mate then rattle canned the bumper green, and the bonnet matt black. He then drove it around a bit, but at various points reversed it into a tree branch and had problems with it jumping out of 2nd. By the time he sold it, it still had the genuine konis and stainless exhaust, but I think Alex was going to scrap it. Such a shame as I loved that car.

[mercedade]

Anyway, final Vitesse picture for now. On a recent trip to the Dales

 

[Lord Sterling]

Wow! That Mk1 was interesting. I'd been in it a few times to help Brad pick up yet another purchase back when he was buying 800s like we buy packets of crisps. I know that the Shantung Gold slam panel came from an early 827SLi finished in that colour and the bonnet came from an 820i fastback that didn't have a sunroof, don't quite know where the front bumper came from. Both cars came from the same seller.

 

It's a shame the Green 827SLi is gone now, would have been good to preserve it just because of its unusual K-plate. It was either a late Mk1a or early Mk1b from what I saw, small bumpers, recessed front plate position.

 

EDIT - Just done a search on the SLi and its still on a SORN so could still be around.

[mercedade]

would have been good to preserve it just because of its unusual K-plate. It was either a late Mk1a or early Mk1b from what I saw, small bumpers, recessed front plate position.

 

Aye, Mk1b it was. And yes, the K-plate caused some problems at MOT time, because the old testing machines would default to a cat test when you input a 1992 reg date.

 

In the end, I started carrying around a print-out from the MOT regs handbook and relevant engine numbers in the register to prove that despite it's K plate, it never had a cat fitted from factory (no Mk1 did) and that, in fact, it wasn't even a late build, just a late registered car.

[mercedade]

No pics as yet, but the Vitesse has just failed on welding (again).

 

I'm resolved to getting it sorted, although I won't be the one sorting it - welding is just out of my happy zone.

 

I've had one quote so far of "between £200 and £350. It won't go over £400 anyway". To me that seems reasonable, in that I've asked them to replace both sills entirely (I have replacement panels already), but that doesn't include painting and I'll probably do the strip down myself.

 

Clearly, the car isn't worth this kind of money, but I don't really care - I just want to know that welding price is fair.

 

Does that seem sensible?

[RoadworkUK]

For an 800 that's otherwise fine? It makes no financial sense whatsoever.

 

But  I'll be doing exactly the same as you if (when) my 825Si ever needs welding.

[MarvinsMom]

yes.

 

cos a Rover 800 is a winners car.

 

a proper rover, ans still stylish, 30? years later!!

 

god i feel old....

[mercedade]

Went to go and see a proper industrial-estate-lockup-wasteground kind of place, who quoted me.........£700.

 

Fahk that.

[Lord Sterling]

I should bloody well think so, they probably thought you were some old-money wet-behind-the-ears chap amd plucked a high 3-figure sum or whatever.

 

£3/£400 sounds more reasonable.

[mercedade]

It's getting welded as I type. Dropped it off this morning and they were bang on to it.

 

Will report back with news as and when.