Lot details Registration No: 815 XUP Chassis No: 650103615 Mot Expiry: Dec 2012
Launched in 1949, the distinctive Phil Armstrong-designed Rover P4 family of four-door saloons remained in production until 1964. Over 130,000 were produced in that time, many of which continue to provide sterling service to this day. The cars featured a separate chassis, all but the last of which were clothed in aluminium body panels made by the Pressed Steel company. The front suspension was by coil springs, while the rear comprised a live axle supported by semi-elliptic leaf springs. The early cars had drum brakes all round, with Girling discs becoming standard on the front from 1959 onwards. With the exception of the P4 `80' models, all versions were powered by either a four- or six-cylinder version of the overhead inlet/side exhaust valve (F-head) unit that originally saw the light of day in the P3. The first derivative of the P4, dubbed the `75', was undoubtedly the most distinctive, thanks to a centrally mounted third headlight - or `Cyclops Eye'. It featured the six-cylinder engine in 2.1-litre form, which was coupled to a four-speed manual gearbox with column-mounted lever and remained in production until 1954. The 2.0-litre four-cylinder `60', 2.6-litre six-cylinder `90', 2.1-litre/2.2-litre `75 Mark II' and 2.6-litre `105R' and `105S' were all offered prior to 1959, at which point the P4 range was rationalised to two models - the four-cylinder `80' (with Land Rover-derived OHV engine) and six-cylinder `100' (with 2625cc short-stroke version of the 3-litre P5 unit).
The right-hand drive Rover 100 offered left the Solihull production line in 1961 and sports two-tone Grey bodywork complemented by a Blue leather interior. It is equipped with the manual four-speed gearbox plus overdrive and rides on original style Avon tyres. The vendor considers the car to be in "outstanding condition" and believes it to have needed no more than `light' restoration over the years. He also reckons but does not warrant the indicated mileage of 58,000 to be genuine and tells us that the `815 XUP' "drives superbly and runs very quietly", has "excellent" brightwork and a "like new" interior. Arguably undervalued for years, good original examples of the stately P4 are inevitably harder and harder to find and therefore now appreciating quite quickly.
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