Rover 25 Il 16v (5 Door Hatchback)

richard734

We sued to have one of these - you are never going to set teh world on fire with it, but as long as you keep it well maintained, should last a few more years.
Ignore the 'its a rover' crowd. Its a K series, proven engine, on a proven platform, devloped in the BMW owned days. Parts are cheap and plentiful, its easy to work on and most bits are home fixable.

The Head gasket problems are linked to there being a relativly small amount of oil in teh engine, as long as you keep an eye on the dipstick (once a week when you fill up with Petrol) and dont rely on teh oil warning light, you should be fine.

richard734

Milage - if it is the 1.4 you should be looking at around mid to high 30's around town.

malkyh

Sarah2490 wrote: »

I do trust my friend as he wouldn't try to sell me anything that wasn't right.

He had said that I can have the car overnight to test drive and if it is not right for me I can borrow it until he finds me something else

I have ready lots of reviews on What Car but I will also check out the above. I am not looking to get anything more than a year out of it I just need a 'for now' car that is practical for a family

Does anyone know the MPG for this type of car?

the official technical information given by rover is

1.4
28.6 MPG for urban
52.0MPG for extra urban
39.9 MPG for combined of the two.

1.6
28.2 MPG urban
50.5 MPG extra urban
39.2 MPG for combined of the two.

Although your own driving style is what bases your MPG.

verityboo

richard734 wrote: »

Its a K series, proven engine, on a proven platform, devloped in the BMW owned days.

This is not correct, the K series was introduced in 1988, BMW purchased the Rover group from British Aerospace in 1994

iolanthe07

The car is not as bad as some people make out. The head gasket issue is caused because Rover fitted a radiator that proves too small, but if you keep an eye on the coolant level and perhaps fit an extra Kenlowe fan, you should be OK. The K series engine had nothing to do with BMW, but was reliable and efficient enough for its time.

eschaton

For the money, MOT, HG having been done, it isn't a bad price for a runabout.

They aren't the best cars but what is in that price range?

flashg67

We've owned a number of Rovers including a 25 (I Know, I know) and head gasket failed on 2 of them. As long as the repair is done properly with the proper MLS gasket (cost me about £400 inc water pump, cambelt etc), there's no reason it shouldn't last for a good few years.

Personally, I think the Rovers still look ok, design-wise, and most are fairly well equipped & comfortable enough.

At that price, set your expectations accordingly - there's a lot to be said for buying from a trusted friend IMO

s_b

Sarah2490 wrote: »

Ok if you can offer no real information please don't make silly comments!

im a motor trader
it isnt a silly comment
i offered advice
you didnt say it was a council house reject at £450 that had had the chickens taken out of it

get it bought love
you deserve each other

atrixblue.-MFR-.

TBH, ask the seller what was replaced at time of HG failure.

you want to hear.

multi layer head gasket.
new headbolts.
new thermostat.
oil change.
waterchange.
oilfilterchange.

at the very very least.

parts are mainly cheap, easily obtainable (ignore the rover bust parts cant be had rubbish) xparts euocarparts local factors fleabay and any motor factors.

done the right correct way, the HG shouldnt fail again and mgforum guys are really helpfull theres even mobile mechanics on there that will help out when and where they can at cheap rates.

in my honest opinion if you want a car for a stop gap to get you from a to b, for a 12-18 month then its one to considder.

alot of people hate rover purely because of the HG failure, and TBH never owned one (i have had a few) the drive is good better than most corsa punto saxo's out there and power under the bonnet when you need it.

ROY47

mikey72 wrote: »

For £450, with a new headgasket, and a years MOT it sounds decent enough. 1 owner means it will have been looked after fairly well, most original Rover owners weren't boy racers, .

As said ,for £450 if it lasts a year ....cheap motoring

Buy a car for £2500 and in a year it's worth £1000
work out the chepest of those 2 :T