Rover 45 reviews

I was the second owner in 2009 with 40k on the clock. It has just had a new head gasket but they installed the standard one. The garage had replaced so many parts unnecessarily, but these in turn was to my advantage. It was on sale at £1300 and looked new and the test drive was the clincher. Being a good six footer I appreciated the leg room as the only driver. It has always started immediately and on mixed driving returned 38mpg. What I have noticed is the precise steering and it sticks to the road on cornering with a careful gear change and acceleration. It can cruise easily in 5th gear at 40mph. But at 65k the head gasket failed again and it was a no brainer to get it replaced this time with the multilayer one. But it had to have the head skimmed again, so it was a worry would it pass the pressure test, but it did. What I noticed after this repair was the increase in acceleration that I appreciated. When the E10 fuel came in, I decided to play safe and fill up with Shell's high octane. That was worth every penny as the car drives like a rocket now and at the last MOT the CO reading was 0.00% and HC 10ppm. This was the first MOT failure at 90k, with a small spot of chassis corrosion. The only obvious fault now is the sagging head liner. I like Rover, previous ones were a Land rover and a Range Rover Classic Vogue.

purchased my 2003 rover 45 impression s3 in october 2020 its the l series turbo diesel unit producing 101bhp its an old skool diesel lump with direct injection and isnt the quietest or most refined engine of the era but they a practically bomb proof and with 104k miles on the clock still has plenty of use ahead of it. the car is immaculate inside and out for a 17year old car and i can expect around 50mpg out of the fugal engine. the car drives really well and pulls hard threw the slick gearbox in every gear. the car has nicely weighted steering and is well balanced in the bends. the car is hatchback and has a huge boot with the back seats folded so i ideal for tip runs etc. as the the car is the impression s3 varient it comes with a good spec for an old rover as standard inc pas front electric windows abs rear spoiler passenger side and drivers side airbags alloy wheels working air conditioning remote central locking alarm etc etc im thinking of doing the sdi injector mod with a decat and remap the car should be good for 150bhp from the standard 101bhp. all in all if you like rovers and i do then an l series turbo diesel is a safe bet as they rarely suffer the petrol k series engine head gasket failure jobs a good un

This is my favourite car of the many, many cars I've owned in the last 40 years since my first Vauxhall Chevette at age 17. I bought my 45 1.4 ten years ago with 27000 miles on the clock. Intended it as a wee runaround. Changed the head gasket as a matter of course shortly after buying her. I have to say - I bloody love this car!!! I love how it looks. I love how I've had 10 years of great service from it. I love the total absence of body rot. I love the comfort. It's not modern, it's slow but steady. People reckon it'll never be seen as a classic. I disagree. I think it's one of Rovers finest. If you have one, keep it. I love mine

Bought at 18k miles now 40 just keeps going comfortable, a fair turn of speed and just right for me wish l had the diesel though, but still a great car.

Bought this car for £750 71k miles, history the size of war and peace. Other than a faulty coil pack on cylinder 1 has been a fine car. All the kit ( leather, a.c., 6 disc player etc.) The boot is huge- got a new washing machine in all the packing in comfortably with rear seats dropped. Is a lazy car when plodding along round town, but put the pedal to the floor and the old girl will pick up her skirts with indecent speed. As long as you check levels every week or so (30 seconds of effort), it'll run on fine- all said a damn good car for peanuts.

Reliable to a fault. Good road holding. Plenty of space inside. Does not rust. Could do with a little more hp for a 1.8. Lovely car.

I bought my 45 5 years ago on eBay for £500 and I must say it was a real bargain, reliable comfortable, cheap to run. In the 5 years I have had it I have only needed to change the battery, brake pads and tyres! Sailed through every mot and still runs beautifully, 195,000 miles on the clock and still feels like a new car! Would buy one brand new tomorrow if they were still in production. Highly recommended.

Hi Excellent garage, very professional prepared to answer any questions directly and with working knowledge of the car. The answers were 100% accurate. Amazing car, checked it over before sale then drove it across the peak district home which would have shown any immediate problems, and there weren't any. Really comfortable drive. Excellent condition and nice colour. The garage replaced cam belt and water pump as there was no record of this having been carried out. So nice to be back in a Rover after so many years. This garage was not local to me. However, people who were local were coming back for second cars. There is no better recommendation I can give.

I've had my rover since new and it's 10 years old. It is a comfortable car to drive and reasonably cheap to maintain. The biggest downside is failure of the cylinder head gasket. This seems to happen every 60,000 miles or so. It has recently gone again and I don't think it is worth repairing. I've enjoyed driving it, but I will never buy another rover again.

Don't care what anyone says about old Rovers - I've had two and will buy another, when this one packs up!For an old car it's quiet(people with newer cars have commented on this) comfortable, easy to drive, big boot and very good acceleration. As for parts - no problem if you go to the right garage. The only downside is it's quite low, so I have to be careful in floodwater, which can annoy people driving behind me! Also, for the same reason, it wouldn't be good for people with mobility problems. Of course, as with all second hand cars you have to have an expert with you to check it out. My garage man is great for this.

Best car I have had in thirty years. Reliable comfortable. If they were made in London they would still be making them today. 300 miles a week and eats motorways. Good in the ice and superb mpg. A credit to Longbridge.

its got 5 gears its got a leather interior , 6 track cd ,air conditioning , it gets me from a to b and i think its a belting car , still looks good and i think there are too many snobby people out there who look down their nose at rover drivers , but look how may rovers are on the road . bleeding loads . i rest my case

Best car I have ever owned. As long as you keep an eye on coolant level you won't have problems with head gaskets. I know that these run with minimal coolant and once you lose some coolant, problems can occur, but most problems are due to neglect i.e. not bothering to check levels and poor maintenance.This car is eleven years old still on its original clutch and exhaust. 40mpg no corrosion and easily sits at 70mph on motorway. Easy to work on and parts easy to obtain. It's cheap motoring.Ride and road holding excellent.

BOUGHT 3 YEARS AGO AS A STOP GAP. TOTALLY RELIABLE EVEN THOUGH 12 YEARS OLD. STARTS IN ALL TYPES OF WEATHER, HAS NEVER LET ME DOWN.PLENTY OF SPACE FOR 4 PASSENGERS. BODYWORK SHOWS NO SIGNS OF CORROSION.NO MAJOR EXPENSES UNTIL LAST MONTH. HOPE TO KEEP IT FOR A FURTHER 2 YEARS, GOD WILLING.

The Rover 45 is a reliable, practical, good looking vehicle.

its a comfortable nice little cae to run and drive.

Despite its numerous years of service and over 135,000 miles my car preforms well and I feel confident driving it. When it is time to let it go I will be sad.

The car is of excellent pedigree, being initially based on a Honda Civic, all the "bugs" have been ironed out long ago, if you do not mind not having a current registration / model car its a good investment, would buy one new today if I could. Only bug bare is the air bag light which comes on intermittently due to a poor contact

My Rover 45(2003) has been a very reliable car although one fairly expensive repair has been required. In general I have been very happy with the vehicle but feel that a slightly stronger body steel would have been helpful in fending off car park dents. I was very disappointed to see the demise of MG/Rover and miss the marque very much.

Has been a reliable vehicle and has needed very little cost in maintenance during the 13 years i have had this vehicle