1998 Rover - Austin 800 Sterling 2.0 from UK and Ireland
Summary:
Boring, out-dated, high cost rubbish
Faults:
Loads of different things have broken, or quite simply frustrated me since I bought the car.
All windows stick when going either up or down.
The exhaust has been replaced 3 times (The first time it cost me around £700.00, after that it cost me nothing as it was under guarantee.)
The buttons have all fallen off the stereo.
The driver's side door interior is coming away from the outer shell.
General Comments:
When I bought this car, I was looking for a vehicle which was big on comfort.
In essence, that is exactly what I got.
However, the only thing that is good about this car is it's comfort.
Firstly, it eats petrol. I reckon I get around 20 miles to the gallon at best.
The car rolls and squeaks around corners, making me feel very sick.
The build quality is appalling. My stereo appears to have fallen apart and certainly not through misuse. The door is completely coming away inside, whilst the windows stick.
It is the slowest and most boring car ever made. It accelerates like a train, which is ironic really as it is also of similar length!
In my opinion, it now also looks completely out-dated.
In conclusion, you do get a lot of car for your money, but now I have owned one, I know why they are so cheap on the second hand market.
I think that if you are over 65 years of age, then maybe this sort of car is a bit more acceptable. It has virtually every gadget (Heated seats, 6 cd multichanger, electric windows and sunroof, alloys, leather interior etc.) and for a few grand it is probably worth it.
However, before I bought this car I owned a BMW 320i manual which was a real treat to drive. The Rover 800 is, in contrast, the least interesting car I have ever owned or driven. As a bloke under 30, this was probably the worst choice of vehicle I could of imagined... I am therefore trading this in for a much more lively Honda CRX Del Sol VGI. Nice.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 25th September, 2004
20th Nov 2022, 14:49
You should have been getting a solid 30 mpg from the 2.0 even with the auto.
The Rover 800 was never a reliable car, but do your research before buying one. They have quite a following now. Just look about online.
Generally Honda engine'd cars are much better, usually the 2.7.
As far as I am aware, the standard 2.0 you had was Rover built and one of their worst engines. As for the build and trim quality, there is a reason the German manufacturers (Audi, BMW, Mercedes) were regarded as the best - they just had better quality. Anything UK made or even some other attempts at executive cars from France or whatever else usually fell a bit under par in regards to quality.