Rover 213/216 as an Anglo-Japanese hybrid
Cornelis Kit often confesses guilty pleasures from the English corner. This time it is the Rover that is labeled as 213 and 216. Where does his fascination for this special sedan from the history of the British brand come from?
You probably know them, those neat, somewhat well-behaved types who hardly make an impression. The kind where everything seems to be right, but where experience is hard to find. In my opinion, the Rover 213/216 (also known as the SD3) is one of those, the ideal son-in-law among cars. Somewhere in the late 80’s or early 90’s I was loaned one as a replacement vehicle. Fortunately it remained just that one time. Ultimately, the model ended up on the periphery of my attention, not least thanks to his appearance in the TV series ‘Keeping up appearances’, as a middle class status symbol of the Bucket family. An image can’t get much sillier.
SD3 was standalone
The SD3 is the second product from the collaboration between what is now called Austin Rover and Honda. With its nose and rear drawn in England, the Honda origins are actually quite well obscured. Nevertheless, it has remained somewhat of an oddity at the local Austin Rover dealer. It is not a large car, as Rovers had always been until then. It also has nothing at all to do with its more mundane showroom companions, such as the Austins Maestro and Montego. The SD3 is actually a bit of a standalone in the Austin Rover range at the time; It also does not have the nasty qualities that come with a car from the latter days of the British Leyland group. In fact, soon after its introduction the car was praised for its reliability and the low consumption of the Japanese powertrain. Partly because of this, it does not take long before it overtakes the Montego, which is used as a volume model, in the sales statistics. Economical and hassle-free. Nice, but for me it lacks the frayed edge to make it interesting. Just find another father-in-law!
Anglo-Japanese bastards
I had actually completely forgotten about the SD3 until a few years ago when I attended a major event near Coventry where more than 500 Rovers were gathered together. The turbine prototype JET1, desirable P5s, P6s and SD1s, the latest 75s, literally everything is there. Also two SD3s. They are standing at the edge of the large lawn, half hidden under a tree. They are no longer the ideal sons-in-law among cars, but with their dull paint, window seals with green edges and ultra-dull mud flaps, they are so much more real than all those shiny museum pieces. Secretly, I have been checking the world’s marketplaces on a regular basis for almost a year now to see if any Anglo-Japanese hybrids are still on offer. I don’t rule anything out…
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl