Rover 400 Hatchback 420 SLDi 5d (1997/R) Owner Review
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Economy
Value
Best value 2nd hand turbo diesel on the market.
Costs
Cheap to insure, cheap to run, cheap to buy, and the engines last forever.
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On the road
Driving
Very comfortable but sluggish steering.
Performance
105bhp, around 165lb/ft torque (i believe), good brakes as standard. Turbo kicks in at 2,500 rpm. It loves going up hills :-).
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Living with it
Reliability
Engine is superb. I spoke to 3 different mechanics before i bought the car and all said they'd NEVER had a fault with the 105bhp Rover diesel engine. Alloys were blistered before I got the car, so no idea at what mileage this started to happen.
Image
Boring looking car, especially compared with the MG ZS. However, mine is white with black trim and looks very smart with the alloy wheels. Can't escape the 'granddad car' remarks though!
Comfort
Driver position is excellent and comfortable for front passenger too. Put the midgets in the back though because the headroom is shocking - especially with the sunroof recess(?)
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Security and Service
Security
Alarm and immobiliser. Then again, no joy riders are going to nick it.
Service
No service needed from Rover so no comment.
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Problems and Ownership
Problems
Engine
None, sweet as a nut. Doesn't rev very high (about 4,700) but no diesels do.
Other
(Continuing about 1st gear) - Basically, as soon as the turbo kicks in it's time to change up, and you bounce around changing to second. Never mind as 2/3/4/5 gear changes are great.
Ownership
Did you buy the car new?
Used
Would you buy the same model again?
No
Did you buy from the same manufacturer again?
No