NOTTINGHAM, England — Throughout the last days of British Leyland, the sprawling company that when owned hallowed British marques together with Jaguar, Austin, MG, Rover, Triumph, Wolseley and Daimler, the corporate entered into partnership to develop automobiles with the Honda Motor Firm. The one merchandise of that relationship that we have been capable of purchase new in the US have been the first-generation Acura Legend and the Sterling, however issues bought much more fascinating in the UK. At this time’s Junkyard Scrapyard Gem (that is what the Brits name them) is a Rover 600 Sequence, a machine that is each a Honda Accord sibling and a genuinely British saloon, present in one of many oldest breaker’s yards in England.
Albert Loom’s is situated close to Nottingham and Sherwood Forest, and I dropped by the place on the drive between Heathrow Airport and the scrapyards of Yorkshire. Many of the autos of their stock are from our present century (The U.Ok. is a rust-prone place with strict security inspections), however I did discover a couple of fascinating older machines there.
That features at this time’s automobile, which bears the badges of a beloved British marque with ancestry stretching again to its origins as a Solihull bicycle producer in 1878. Rover started constructing cars in 1904 and went via many possession adjustments and mergers throughout the next century. Since 2006, the one autos constructed bearing the Rover identify have been Land Rovers and Vary Rovers; sadly, the Rover Viking emblems are not used.
The primary automobile to return out of the collaboration between British Leyland (later the Austin Rover Group after which simply the Rover Group) and Honda was the 1981-1984 Triumph Acclaim. That automobile, which was the final to bear the Triumph identify, was basically an England-built Honda Ballade (aka high-trim-level JDM Civic sedan) with some minor beauty adjustments. Then got here the Rover 800 plus the Rover 400 and its derivatives.
The Rover 600 Sequence was constructed for the 1993 via 1999 mannequin years, after which it was changed by the BMW-related Rover 75/MG ZT.
The chassis, inside and powertrain have been all designed in Japan by Honda and are shared with the European-market fifth-generation Accord, however many of the physique was designed by Rover. Solely the entrance doorways, decrease rear door panels, windshield and roof are the identical because the Accord’s.
The 600’s grille was very distinctive and under no circumstances Honda-ish.
Open the bonnet and it is all pure Honda beneath. That is an F20 2.0-liter SOHC straight-four. Suspension, brakes, the works — all Accord stuff. That meant that Rover 600 patrons bought automobiles that drove like Accords and lasted like Accords. Later in 600 Sequence manufacturing, the 620ti was fitted with a turbocharged Rover engine, and Rover- and Honda-built diesel engines have been accessible as nicely.
This one made it simply shy of 140,000 miles (sure, that speedometer is sort of similar to those in U.S.-market fifth-generation Accords), however a verify of its MOT inspection historical past reveals that its registration expired in 2007. That is higher than 10,000 miles per yr throughout its profession on the highway.
The inside seems to have been fairly good when it bought parked for good.
Transmission decisions have been between a five-speed guide and a four-speed computerized. This automobile has the guide.
This coaching video for Rover sellers explains the options of the 600 Sequence.
Simply the automobile for a prisoner trade in a former outpost of the British Empire.
The gentleman’s vehicle.
The color does not match your new soccer workforce’s jerseys? No downside, Rover gives a 30-day return coverage!