Rover 45 1.4-LITRE RANGE
The
Rover 45 1.4-Litre Range Offers Cheap, Simple Motoring And Plenty Of Metal For The Money. Steve Walker Reports
So youve got a £10,000 budget with which to buy a new family car. Walk into most mainstream franchised dealerships and youll be ushered in the direction of that particular manufacturers supermini. Itll be a compact car but with a reasonably roomy interior and, for the kind of money youre talking, youll probably be able to get a well equipped mid-range model. Youre not overly impressed, however, and when the salesperson suggests alternatives, the supermini-MPV is too twee for your tastes and the van-based MPV looks to much like a van.
Youre stumped. These cars dont feel substantial enough and their modern practical design features seem unduly complicated. You want a large, simple car from the old school for around £10,000. Could a 1.
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4-litre
Rover 45 be an option worth considering?
Say what you like about the Rover 45s advanced years, at prices starting from £9,995 the 1.4-litre models represent a good hunk of car for the money. The superminis and supermini-based MPVs you can acquire in exchange for a similar outlay are all very well but if youre unimpressed by their boxy styling and suspect that you can survive without removable rear seats, dash-mounted gear levers, innovative storage solutions and enough headroom to wear a top hat at the wheel, the 45 could be the answer. In terms of its exterior dimensions, the 4,360mm long 45 is closer to a medium range family car than a supermini (the average length for which is around 3,800mm).
Its certainly bigger than most family hatchbacks youll come across (Volkswagens Golf is 4,200mm nose to tail). Car design techniques have progressed considerably since the 45 was on the drawing board but while the interior isnt as versatile as those of more modern competitors, it can
seat five in relative comfort which is all many buyers want and you get that big car feel when behind the wheel. There are other budget saloons and hatchbacks around with similar dimensions for similar money but the 45 has build quality and Britishness in its favour. The only Rover 45 youll actually get on a £10,000 budget is the 1.
4-litre Classic and it gives you a heated rear window with washer and wiper, front airbags, side airbags, ABS brakes, a height adjustable drivers seat and the ITR tyre repair system which will temporarily seal a punctured tyre to get home safely. Its not the most lavishly equipped car youll come across but neither is the Classic SE and that costs £1,000 more. The Trafficmaster traffic alert system is included here along with an electric sunroof parking distance sensors, an RDS radio cassette and various other features. If you yearn for a touch of luxury, the GLi also costs £10,995 and features leather trim.
"There are budget saloons and hatchbacks around with similar dimensions for similar money but the 45 has better build quality and Britishness in its favour."
The Club models cost another £1,000 on top and at this level the equipment quota is more respectable. The presence of a CD-player, air-conditioning and electric windows inside is hinted at by the body-coloured door mirrors. Above that comes the GSi which features leather, alloy wheels, climate control and chrome door mirrors. The plushest trim level in the 1.
4-litre engine range is the Club SE and for £12,995 it features alloy wheels, leather on the steering wheel and gear knob, a rear centre armrest and climate control. The Classic is sparsely equipped to put it mildly but the £1,000 premium attached to each rung up the trim level ladder means things get pricey fairly quickly so it may well be the best bet if you can put up with winding the windows down yourself. The recently added GLi and GSi models also look good value. The 102bhp 1.
4-litre engine is the smallest and cheapest unit in the 45 range but it has an acceptable turn of speed. Maximum velocity is well inside licence confiscation territory at 115mph and flooring the throttle off the line you may be able to achieve 60mph in just over 11 seconds. This should be more than adequate for most and average fuel economy of 40mpg flat is good for a small engine powering a car of the 45s size. The 1.
4-litre unit is only available with the 5-door bodystyle so if you want a choice of hatch and saloon, youll have to pay more for one of the bigger powerplants. The premium for the 1.6-litre option is £700 and for that you get almost identical fuel economy to the 1.4 plus a second shaved off the 0-60mph time.
The current 45 styling is a little more modern than you may have anticipated. A facelift in the spring of 2004 saw a tidier grille installed complete with a redesigned Rover badge. The headlamps feature a trendy bulge on their lower edge much like those found on various
BMW models and the rear has also been significantly reworked. If the intention was to modernise the 45, the designers have done their job but there is the suspicion that in doing so they may have diluted the cars classic appeal.
The front end looks fine but round the back, traditionalist Rover buyers may baulk at the uninterrupted expanse of metal that forms the boot or tailgate. The large triple-spaced Rover lettering across the rear spread below an even larger 45 will also be a bit gaudy for some tastes. Inside, todays 45 is a considerably more attractive prospect. The chunky round vents with their notchy bevels are a nice touch and the centre console controls are clearly laid out.
Buyers can still have the obligatory traces of wood positioned around the place if they so desire and, overall, the cabin is a well-worked compromise between progress and established Rover themes. Other manufacturers do more in terms of build quality, space and practicality but the cabin of a 45 is a far from unpleasant place to be for driver and passengers. The Rover 45 1.4-litre Classic is a big car for supermini money with decent build quality and pleasant styling.
Climb up the 1.4-litre range, however, and the hefty price increments soon mean youre paying equivalent rates to those asked for well-equipped mainstream family hatchbacks with larger, better engines. The £13,000 45 Club SE looks its age when compared to a £13,000
Ford Focus or
Volkswagen Golf, so the bottom of the range is probably where the best value is located.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Rover 45 1.4-litre range
PRICES: £9,995-£12,995 - on the road
INSURANCE GROUP: 8
CO2 EMISSIONS: 168g/km
PERFORMANCE: 0-60mph 11.2s / Max Speed 115mph
FUEL CONSUMPTION: (urban) 30.4mpg/ (extra urban) 49.4mpg / (combined) 40mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front and side airbags, ABS.
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: length/width/height 4360/1700/1395mm
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