Rover 25 maintenance advice

Straight_edge

Just bought my first car after leaving learning to drive until this year at the ripe old age of 31. I am completely clueless about cars.

I seem to have done ok as got hold of 2002 Rover 25 1.4 impression with only 22,000 on the clock, my only concern is timing belt hasn't been changed also no other major work has been done (guess low mileage has something to do with that)

Engine looks in excellent condition and car looks great for age.

Any advice on looking after it and keeping it in good condition as will only be doing about 3,000 miles a year. Also any issues to look out for?

Any advice welcome

flashg67

Apart from the well known head gasket problems (I've been daft enough to own 3 of these and still have a 45 with the same engine, and it will fail at some point, unless it's been done already and the cambelt changed at the same time), they're reasonably reliable in my experience. Like with all cars, routine oil changes are essential - at least once a year, even(especially) with your mileage.

Unless you're unlucky, you've a good few reliable miles ahead of you imho

forgotmyname

People tend to assume low mileage = less services. This will kill the car faster.

regular oil changes are a must. Keeping an eye on the oil level, Antifreeze/Coolant level is a big muct on those cars also.

1st a FULL service including all filters and the cambelt. Then you know its not going to snap and wreck the engine.
It may cost more than the cars worth BUT it will be good for some time.

Hoof_Hearted

These old Rovers are incredibly cheap and offer really good value for money. The head gasket may go at some point, as stated above, but you should get many miles out of it before it's a problem.

colino

If I bought a K series as a keeper, I'd seriously consider installing a low coolant alarm. They don't have enough water capacity and even a minor leak puts the head in peril.

BeenThroughItAll

OP - definitely get the timing belt changed, along with the water pump. Have the cooling system flushed and coolant changed at the same time, plus a full oil and filters service.


The one thing to bear in mind is that any car, if neglected, will suffer. Some break springs, some have electrical problems, some will rust away. Rovers blow their head gaskets more often than other makes.


But... don't worry too much about the HG - the 1.4 K series was far less prone to failure in any case, and by 2002 builds failure rates had fallen significantly.

scragend

colino wrote: »

If I bought a K series as a keeper, I'd seriously consider installing a low coolant alarm. They don't have enough water capacity and even a minor leak puts the head in peril.

My Rover 200 (1.4, V-reg, 147,000 miles) has an inbuilt low coolant alarm system. It's called a bonnet and my eyes, I lift the bonnet up every week and use my eyes to look at the level of coolant in the reservoir.

Heck, I might even check the oil while I'm there

atrixblue.-MFR-.

At this point you've bought a rover that's done 99.9% short trips and at this point if I was in ownership of it I would give it a full service before going on further.


1.timing belt KIT £35.00 approx alternator belt £11.00. water pump £18-25.00 approx.
fitting £80-120.00 in labor .


2.wynns engine oil flush, engine oil correct grade and spec, oil filter, air filter, cabin filter, THERMOSTAT (a big must) do not scimp on that especially the engine mounted thermostat (they changed the design later on to an inline thermostat design (where it was not located on the engine block), OAT antifreeze only to be put in this engine red or green OAT rated stuff.


these rovers require your full attention to detail, you need to check water levels every week and even if it needs half a cup full of water top it up, the expansion water tanks are too small for the engine, small loss of water can be a big problem later on.


1.4 16v k series don't suffer as much as the 1.8 in HG failure, and often a misdiagnosis of HG can be had with a failed inlet manifold gasket leak but you still need to be ontop of watching the water levels and oil levels all the time.

Weird_Nev

I second AtrixBlues comprehensive post above! He clearly knows his Rovers...

You may have got a 'bargain' but at that age and if you're only doing low miles yourself, then you NEED to do some vital maintenance urgently to keep the car on the road.

Urgent and Vital:

• CAMBELT!!!!!!! Including water pump
• Full Oil flush and change, new oil filter
• New air filter
• New Spark Plugs
• New Fuel Filter
• New Engine Coolant and thermostat
• Flush Brake Fluid.

Strongly recommended:

• New HT Leads (connect coils to the plugs - I don't think the 1.4 K is a coil on plug engine?)
• A more comprehensive go-over of the coolant system including replacing perished hoses.
• New brake pads and possibly discs if pitted/heavily worn through corrosion.
• New Cabin filter
• Auxiliary belt.
• Check condition of exhaust.
• Check condition and age of tyres. Any indication that those are the tyres the car was supplied with = change them. 12 years is TOO OLD for rubber exposed to the elements, and they may delaminate causing a blowout. There should be markings on the sidewall which allow you to work out their manufacture date.

Low miles are in fact a nightmare on a car. The worst thing you can do for a car is drive it only short distances. The second worst is to not drive it at all.


So, to protect your investment and have a decent car that will hopefully last a few years yet, it's time to get the wallet out and go through all the things that may well have been ignored/neglected by the previous owner since they 'didn't do any miles'. Once the initial hit is done, you can drop back to preventative routine maintenance to keep the car sweet.

bigjl

I would avoid the engine flush unless it has been done since new.

More likely to cause issues than solve them in my experience.

It will have done short trips as mentioned and has likely very rarely got up to full temp.

Be aware that the thermostat could be gummed up and the coolant hoses could spring leaks on the first long journey at a constant 60/70mph.

The continual HG problems were normally as a result of poor practice when the job was done.

The later ones as mentioned were much less troublesome.

But the advice above from Wierd Nev and Atrix may seem over the top but for continued reliability all a good idea.

As it is you first car get a Haynes manual and some tools and use this car to learn more about cars and maintenance as it will come in handy during your driving career.

Maybe even enrol in a car maintenance course at a local college and use your car as your course work. That way you will be supervised.

But first port of call. Check coolant hoses and connections. Change the thermostat and coolant.

The K series can sometimes be a pain to bleed so maybe leave that bit to a garage.

Make checking your coolant part of your daily checks.

That is a good habit to get into.

Mark_Mark

Not having a go as it's good practice, but does anyone really do daily checks?

I don't see my neighbours with the bonnet up or the tyre pressure gauge in their hand on a weekly basis yet alone daily. Modern cars tell you most things on the dash and some BMs don't even have a dipstick.

What is acceptable for home maintenance and checks? I know if you have a defect and crash the answer would be different.