75ZT Community

From ARonline.com:
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Land Rover had its best year on record, with sales reaching 381,108, up 9 per cent year-on-year. Jaguar sales were up 6 per cent for the year, retailing 81,570 vehicles. The F-TYPE, which has just completed its first full year of sales, continues to raise brand awareness around the world. The XF also recorded its best year of sales to date, contributing to Jaguar’s strongest full year performance in nearly a decade.
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Interesting that Land Rover has 82.37% of the sales - found that quite surprising.

Now building Jags in a Landy factory:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-30772631

To think that a few years ago they were looking to close one of the factories? How have they managed to turn the brand(s) around so quickly and so well?

Have they missed a marketing opportunity here? Could they not brand this as a......

Rover????

I dream.

Gary M.

Borg Warner wrote:
Have they missed a marketing opportunity here? Could they not brand this as a......

Rover????

I dream.

Gary M.

No, because they do not own the Rover brand

I thought that Tata did own the brand now.

However, I don't think it should be 'reborn'. Let sleeping dogs lie.

Land Rovers are the only Rovers left now.

Sorry, Tata does - from Wiki:

'BMW sold the Rover marque to Ford in 2006 for approximately £6 million, the latter exercising an option of first refusal to buy it dating back to its purchase of Land Rover. Ford thus reunited the original Rover Company marques, primarily for brand-protection reasons.[2]

In March 2008, Ford reached agreement with Tata Motors of India to include the Rover marque as part of the sale of their Jaguar Land Rover operations to them, alongside related Daimler and Lanchester marques. Legally the Rover marque is the property of Land Rover under the terms of Ford's purchase of the name in 2006.[3]'

Mmmm, wasn't the City Rover an Indian built car?

Take look Paul

http://www.birminghampost.co.uk/news/lo ... rn-8478247

Yep, read that last night - so now I know exactly.

Interesting read. I struggle with idea that the Rover name is somehow tainted though, but then we always remember the bad things. However I shall probably continue to dream; no Rover Return.

Gary M.

Perhaps using the name Rover for the 75, 45, 25, City Rover etc was negative as it had been a Premium brand.

The P6 was the first Rover to sell in large numbers abroad and the 2000 had good write ups in the US press. The V8 3500S Auto was being developed aimed at large sales in the US. Fuel injection was being developed and cars had been crash tested. However, Leyland told Rover they could not wait and to stick some emission gear on to the carb'd V8 and get it into the market. This was a disaster. In the 80s I spoke to the ex service manager of a UK dealers that sold a 3500S Auto to a UK resident (never actually catalogued in the UK but available so that US servicemen could buy them to take home). When I said to him 'I wonder if you can remember a car sold in the 70s' his eyes looked up and he had an expression of 'are you mad'. I then showed him a picture of a 3500S Auto. 'That bloody thing, we could never get it to run to the customers satisfaction'. Only 2042 were produced and 500 odd sold in the US the rest in LHD countries.

The SD1 - I was once speaking to Gordon Bashford who was one of the engineering design team and made a comment that was a little less than complimentary. He growled 'it was OK before Leyland got their hands on it'. Whilst Rover was owned by Leyland they operated as independently as they could. Once again poor US sales.

The 800, sold in the US as the Sterling as an attempt to distance the vehicle from the two previous ones. Better sales figures but nothing dramatic.

Then the 75 under BMW shame they did not market it more globally - did it fear BMW sales / reputation?

Certainly European countries took to Rover, especially France.

10 years later what are the memories?

Always thought that Rover only made one model at a time? OK the P6s and SD1s had different engines, but essentially one model. Hence keeping it as premium brand, having a whole different model range moved away from this what was the essence of Rover perhaps?

Gary M

Rover P4 1949 to 1964
Rover P5 1958 to 1973
Rover P6 1963 to 1977
Rover SD1 1976 to 1986

P6 and SD1 totally different models only the V8 engine shared, 2300 and 2600 engines only part by Triumph.

So, during part of 63 and part of 64 the P4, P5 and P6 was being built.

I type corrected.

Gary M.