Rover - 28 days later.....

[Roadsterchinsk]

I feel the biggest crime was by the management in the final days.

Instead of looking for a new partner to marry with its dowry from BMW thay use the cash to tart up old models for a couple of years and keep giving the management nice bonuses. They knew full well that once the cash ran out the company woudl close.

That money could have been used to re-establish a deal with another car firm and maybe just maybe they woudl still be making new rovers now.

[rick the biker]

fresh start required methinks..after all triumph did it (motorbikes) with the skill and vision of john bloor...just took the name..new staff and new premises and quietly started from scratch designing and building propper bikes to compete with the jap stuff.

I think the rover name is tainted now..what about re- launching with another bmc cast off...riley or wolseley or morris or austin or...you get the idea..could be done..as truimph have demonstarted so well.
if mr bloor is reading this why not buy the truimph car name rights and design us a properly built truimph motor car too!
by the way john..thanxs for designing the new bonniville..I'll be back next year for another one!!

[Mytocon]

Triumph Motorcycles are a good example (Like Luxobarge, I have a 94 Trophy in BRITISH Racing Green and a 98 Daytona) but I believe the original philosophy was VERY different:- John Bloor took the opportunity to prove that Britain COULD make a product that sold on it's own merits, and the Triumph name happened to be available at the right time.

That has to be admired, unlike the Rover (Phoenix?) management, milking the perception of heritage beyond the limit. The directors of the time didn't even run their own products! The Triumph car name is still owned by BMW I believe. (A little irony is that Triumph cars and motorcycles share a founder who was German)

Could the MG range could have done something more than it did, if an MX5 type product had been concentrated on?

[Luxobarge]

Yeah, mine's a British Racing Green Trophy - a bit off topic, but I'll post a pic when I've cleaned it - it's normally immaculate (naturally....) but covered in goo after riding in recent weather. Great minds think alike!

Interesting point you make about milking the retro thing - as it happens Triumph have done this very successfully as well with the Bonneville etc. but they've done it well because a) the retro bikes are very clearly just that, and while they are good bikes they are not pretending to be anything else b) Triumph produce lots of other models which are most definately NOT retro - there is a clear distinction in a clear market, I don't think Rover had this clarity of product line IMHO.

[Mytocon]

Sorry for the off topic chaps, but I may have been unclear in the "milking the retro " comment, my feeling is that Hinckley Triumph / John Bloor used heritage and perception of the name to excellent effect, building a strong customer base with a good (not necessarily outstanding) product generating the finance to improve the product steadily in to an excellent motorcycle capable of holding it's own in the target markets.
Phoenix seemed to have a "Rover is for retired old duffers with more money than sense:- lets get what we can while we can" attitude, hence the 25/City-Rover was dumped in to in a mass market when the niche markets (e.g MG brand) were available for building a stronger base of clients that could have generated cash for investment in the mass market.

Put another way, I think great minds do think alike Luxobarge:- This might clinch it:- My XJR is Antigua Blue:- what colour is your XK8?

[Luxobarge]

You'r not gonna believe this.......

Antigua blue!

Pics in "show us yours" thread somewhere....

Totally agree with above post, that's what I meant about Triumphs really but you sed it better!

[Mytocon]

Pics in "show us yours" thread somewhere....

Iknow, Iknow:- I cheated:- That's how I knew the answer before I asked, but it is definitely the top colour!
I will add the XJR on to the "show us yours thread" sometime, but I want to put a caravan pic up first, to yank a few chains

Anyway, definitely Hinckley Triumph :-Good British Business model but is the same POSSIBLE for the car manufacturing trade? Are motorcycles easier to make/sell/profit from? I guess the answer will be yes. How can ANY motor car manufacturer make money in the UK? Morgan are the only success story really aren't they? Having written that, I don't even know if they ARE a success. Are they still around even? Has health and safety/council/ local government done it's job in Malvern and put local people out of work?

And another thing, what about Lotus? Still Malaysian, after all these years? Chunky must be spinning like a 'kin top!
I'm going down the pub!

[stejack]

[i]I will add the XJR on to the "show us yours thread" sometime, but I want to put a caravan pic up first, to yank a few chains

anyones chain in particular??

[Mytocon]

so many to choose from...

But we digress. Now about the pub. Coming?

[stejack]

be right there mines a pint cheers