MG Rover

Monster-Mat · April 7, 2005

rover is going down the pan , because of the blind ignorance shown by Many people

If more people supported the company rather than knock it for what was basically a 70's reshuffle ***** up, then rover would be doing very well now.

I think we will be loosing a very good manufacturer when rover Goes, and there will be nobody to blame but us British.

Monster-Mat · April 7, 2005

*** Its Just been reported Rover has Gone into Administration***.

i am really really Gutted, ive always Liked "Most" Rovers....tis a shame Britian didnt give the company a little more support.......really Gutted

Whitebeam · April 7, 2005

At least the directors have still got their £12million trust fund.

No such luck for the workforce who kept it going, etc. Seems to be the way these days.

Monster-Mat · April 7, 2005

BMW were the main Nail in the Coffin........

Mr Morse · April 7, 2005

All goes back to the sad old Leyland days and ***** stirring union trouble makers like "Red" Robbo....

Can you imagine, the union calls a strike because some skiving wowwypop is fired for sleeping on shift (anyone remember the pictures of the nice little bedroom they'd made in the plant?)

In the latter days, Rover was never going to be able to compete in the commodity market with the likes of Peugeot/Renault, Toyota etc. They should have targeted the prestige market, renamed the brand and gone up against LEXUS, BMW etc.

British engineering is still the most innovative and original in the world, we just haven't learned how to apply it to a successful marketing strategy yet.

A sad day indeed.

jac114 · April 7, 2005

well I am supporting them.. bit late now i guess.... there will eb even more bargains to be had now.. should of held off and got a nice new 75 model

eXOBeX · April 7, 2005

should of held off and got a nice new 75 model

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There's no such thing. Looks like a poor man's Jag.

MacRS200 · April 7, 2005

British engineering is still the most innovative and original in the world, we just haven't learned how to apply it to a successful marketing strategy yet.
A sad day indeed.

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I'm an engineer and got bits of paper to prove it.

But sorry wrong way round and maybe why we failed.

Find the market then engineer to it. Not engineer a good product then market it!

As my old man used to say an engineer is someone who can do for 2/6 what any idoit can do for 10 bob :)

flotsam · April 7, 2005

NO IT HASN'T

That stupid cow Patricia Hewitt has called time too early and has probably scuppered the deal!

As for BMW screwing up the company, that's not true. In the 1970s Rover was the third largest manufacturer IN THE WORLD. The unions sabotaged cars on the production line.

No investment was put into new cars. It all went instead into wages for lefty layabouts. The V8 was a GM reject which the BL MD spotted on a rubbish tip. Since Rover didn't do research, it bought the engine and plonked it into everything from the SD1 to Land Rovers.

The cars haven't changed in decades. No new technology NOTHING. The 75 is 7 years old in design and one commentator has said the other models are 15 years old making them "classic cars". The K-series engine is over 20 years old!!!!!

Toyota, in contrast, spends billions on research deisgn engineering and development!

Honda gave some technology to Rover but that was years ago.

BMW gave the lefties a job for life and it cost them billions almost bankrupting BMW. They even gave Rover a £500m loan when they ditched it. IT'S THE LEFTIES WHO ARE TO BLAME! This stupid government is killing businesses too. They're either collapsing or doing a runner abroad!

MacRS200 · April 7, 2005

Where were we in the 50's

Top of everything, bikes, ships, steel, cars, the lot. The first three went long ago and did we see the writing on the wall.

Where are we now

Over 50% of the working population are civil servants, probably 25% are making forms for the civil servants to send to us to fill in. The rest of us are doing computer somethings and not actually bringing money into the UK.

When I started doing a degree in Mechanical Engineering most people said "oh so you can fix my car then"

I started out in a noble profession where we in this country rated Engineers pretty low despite studying for 4 years, in other countries such as Germany an Engineer was rated almost as high as a Doctor.

When I qualified I had a choice: Production Engineer on £7k or a Sales Engineer on £9k basic with a comapny Cortina, though choice. Wonder why we don't make anything anymore?

Fidgits · April 8, 2005

So have they or havent they?

To be honest Mat - I think your way off the mark saying 'its the British fault' - well, while your right, as it is a british company, and the poor workmanship, strikes, bad deals, lack of development etc is all down to the Brits that work there.. but you can't go blaming Joe Bloggs for not buying an overpriced shoddy car just to support a local company..

Zoot · April 8, 2005

A great shame for the British Motor Industry. I feel for the people who work there that now have an uncertain future.

The directors nearly pulled off a great deal, but why have the Chineese been so slow?

Now watch the 'cherry pickers' move in.

Mr Morse · April 8, 2005

A great shame for the British Motor Industry. I feel for the people who work there that now have an uncertain future.
The directors nearly pulled off a great deal, but why have the Chineese been so slow?

Now watch the 'cherry pickers' move in.

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The Chinese are deliberately stalling so that they can get the best deal - cherry picking. All they are interested in is the technology.

China also have their own auto industry problems; their yards are full of locally assembled VW's and Dodges they can't shift for love nor money.

MacRS200 · April 8, 2005

The Chinese are deliberately stalling so that they can get the best deal - cherry picking. All they are interested in is the technology.

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Agree with that. Does anyone think that they would actually manufacture cars here when they could make them for half the price back home?

legendswraith · April 8, 2005

got to agree with neil that engineers are undervalued but the knock on effect of rover going down will see engineering in this country decline even further

I think rover lost its way and never got over the stigma of being an old mans car

(although 6R4's were mental although not road legal)

Unfortunately they were a square peg that found a round hole

not many british manufacturers left now

Rillo · April 8, 2005

It is a sad day but unfortunately Rover didn't produce cars that people wanted to buy. If people don't buy the cars you don't have the money to design new models...chicken and egg.

It's all very well getting all patriotic but this is the Lexus Owners CLub where we enthuse about Japanese cars. If Rovers's were that good we would be driving them and this would be ROC.

Sad day but almost inevitable I feel.

Also can't help but feel that using Gordon Brown to visit China might have scared the Chinese away :P

legendswraith · April 8, 2005

Buy Blitish

chib1177 · April 8, 2005

It is a sad day but unfortunately Rover didn't produce cars that people wanted to buy. If people don't buy the cars you don't have the money to design new models...chicken and egg.
It's all very well getting all patriotic but this is the Lexus Owners CLub where we enthuse about Japanese cars. If Rovers's were that good we would be driving them and this would be ROC.

Sad day but almost inevitable I feel.

Also can't help but feel that using Gordon Brown to visit China might have scared the Chinese away :P

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thats the point i was just gonna make rillo, its no good feeling sorry for rover they have had years and years to sort their sh*t out and follow the japs but they either didnt or couldnt, now they are going to pay the ultimate price.

however with the election looming methinks labour will pull them out of the mire and gain some valuable ground in the midlands.

the british union system killed rover years ago, they must take the blame for this sad outcome.

baby_lexus · April 8, 2005

It's interesting to hear people talk about BMW and their efforts with Rover.

Why didn't Rover stick with Honda as a partner when they had the chance ? Instead they shunned them for whatever reason and allowed BMW in.

How did BMW gain in all of this ? Was there any 4X4 technology that they were after ?

I seem to remember a news report on this many years ago.

chib1177 · April 8, 2005

BMW swapped rover some old engines, a few spanners, some spare bmw overalls, a bumper pack of tetley tea bags for the union meetings and in return they got the MINI

now thats good management init

Monster-Mat · April 8, 2005

BMW bought up Rover to "Take" the 4x4 technology, also the rover 600 was taking sales in germany from the 3 series, the easiest way to stop your competitor is to buy it.

the first thing BMW did was stop rover from producing powerfull hot hatches,(216 GTI,220 GTI,Coupe, and the 220 turbo) ASWELL as the other Turbo cars(620 Turbo and 820 Turbo Vitess)

they then brought out the 75, for this BMW kindly donated the old rear suspension set up from the E30 bmw, knowing it was a 70:s design, and not upto the same std as the BMW they obviously would rather sell.

Once the Designers at Rover had come up with a good working design for the new Mini, BMW knew that the car was going to be a seller.

it was time to sell.....

the sold Land Rover to Ford

the also Sold Gaydon, a major centre for Automobile reserch...a diamond for Rover.

They took the MINI, and also the Cowley, the most advanced production line in the UK.

what they left Longbridge with was not very much, the reason Rover MG havnt been able to develop new cars is Money.

another thing BMW did when they took control was to Make all dealer conform to a single look.a look that BMW wanted, this cost dealers Millions, many couldnt match what BMW wanted, so Bmw made them loose the franchise, there by reducing the number of dealers in the UK, in Europe this practically reduced the number of Rover MG dealers down to 1 % of the former number!!.

all the ex rover dealerships were either demolished, or if in a Good location, converted to BMW dealerships..

i agree, the designs are old.....i hope that out of this mess at least the MG name is saved

harlowrog · April 8, 2005

Is this thread not just a bit hypocritcal? Now I have liked some Rovers as much as the next man but your all on here blaming everyone from the government to BMW for there demise but at the end of the day it's down to all of US! We are the one's who are driving around in our Jap cars and so proud we are of them too, so it's a bit late to be moaning we never bought that 75 isn't it?

Just my opinion.

Roger.

Scorpion · April 8, 2005

I always believed that if a product is good then it will sell,the people on the workshop floor believed in it as did the designers but unfortunately you have to persuade the consumers.

Thats why Rover have gone down the pan.

I've had a few SD1's and Vitesses............stoncking engines.

Rodders_UK · April 8, 2005

Surely the brutal truth is that Rover didn't make cars that people wanted to buy, and now they've gone bust - as would any company that made sub-standard products that nobody wanted.

Monster-Mat · April 8, 2005

Is this thread not just a bit hypocritcal? Now I have liked some Rovers as much as the next man but your all on here blaming everyone from the government to BMW for there demise but at the end of the day it's down to all of US! We are the one's who are driving around in our Jap cars and so proud we are of them too, so it's a bit late to be moaning we never bought that 75 isn't it?
Just my opinion.

Roger.

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ive owned a fair few rovers.......and Raced One aswell for 2 years.