This car has given me so much pleasure and pure pride of ownership. The car initially had a forged rebuild which went so, so wrong! (see project thread)… but, I did it all again and now it’s better than ever!!! – The current engine has barely covered 1500 miles since the new rebuild and the turbo has probably done about 2000 miles!
I’m suspecting that whoever gets this car will keep it all as a Vitesse or transfer the lot to a project (please don’t tell me if it’s the latter!)
The spec.....
‘New’ indicates that I bought these items new over the course of the rebuild
1993 Rover 800 Vitesse 2.0T
Engine / Transmission……..
Fully rebuilt (AGAIN) with new Accralite 86mm forged pistons
New forged rods
New crankshaft
New mains and big ends & oil pump.
Klinger HG.
BRAND NEW head, ported and polished by Andy at Hiflowheads in Edinburgh
ARP head bolts
GBE high torque cams (Grant re-profiled my old ones)
New Piper Verniers (the real deal!)
New Garret GT28R turbo from GBE. Modified by Wilky for better flow (GT28RS).. see project thread
550 MEMS from a 200ps 220, with boost cut removed
New front mount intercooler with blue silicone hose
New Mocal oil cooler installed in front of radiator. I have the rest of the fittings somewhere including the sandwich plate for the oil pump.
New Bailey Dump valve
New GREDDY Profec B-spec 2 electronic boost controller
New Innovate wide band lambda and gauge
Gearbox rebuilt with steel caged bearings.
Re-built gear linkage with MOTO-BODGE polyurethane bushes
Uprated gearbox steady bar bushes
New Roversport AP clutch
New Walbro fuel pump
New N/A radiator to go in for better cooling
Modified turbo coolant feeds
New ITG cone filter – will need a re-oil soon but I have a can for it
New water pump, thermostat
New HT leads, cap, arm, coil
Within the last 3 months…….
Spark plugs, oil and filter change, coolant change , New fuel pressure regulator
As you would expect the oil is clean and difficult to read on the dipstick! Being a T-series engine, oil leaks come as standard – The cam carriers have been re-sealed countless times and the sump gasket likes to leak too. The right hand corner of the head has minimal weapage – The engine oil needs about 50-100ml every 2 months. I have also changed the o/s diff seal about 4 times but it still likes to leak. I top up the gearbox with about 125 ml every 2 months also. Don’t be put off by all this, anyone who knows these engines at all will know that a leak free T-series is well, unheard of!...Live with it! by all means try to cure them… good luck .
Interior……
Ditched ultra uncomfortable worn out Recaros for soft grey velour (some cig burns in drivers seat …but they were cheap!)
Later style door cards with Rover emblem in wood (will need correct door lock pins for front and rear)
Ditched old dash as someone had covered it in glue in an attempt to cure dash lift. Fitted airbag model dash. Removed passenger airbag to house another fuse box. NO DASH LIFT NOW!!!
Some of the lower trim panels round the dash are absent and have grey carpet in their place. That was always my 'I’ll get round to that at some point’ thing. I’ve been waiting for ages for a Rover 800 to appear at my local scrappy so I could finish it all
New OE leather gear gaiter
Exterior
This car comes in gleaming Nightfire red (the best colour!) – A couple of years back I got every single trolley ding removed from the flanks and both sides were re-sprayed. The finish is EXCELLENT but, unfortunately there is the dreaded lacquer run in 2 areas (3-4cm horizontal on a crease which you must look closely for) – This DOES NOT detract from the remarkable presentation that the car has. Now the upsetting bit – 3 months ago, some…(I cant repeat this word)… reversed out of their parking space right into the o/s rear quarter panel of the car and dented it. They then drove away and were never to be seen again. This is THE ONLY area of the body that lets the car down. I was quoted £400 to fix it but never got round to it….(see pictures)
Apart from the aforementioned ding, this car is stunning and whoever buys it will be VERY happy by the condition of the body work. Wheel arches, door bottoms, sills, front wings etc. ALL remarkable!
During the first week of ownership, I fully undersealed the car and waxoyled all the door cavities and box sections. The condition of this vehicle today reflects this!
OE rear spoiler from hatchback model
1 yr old 17” BK racing 299 wheels fitted (virtually mint) with Dunlop Sport Maxx RT tyres 215/45/R17 – (only done about 1000 miles!!!!!)
The exhaust on the car at the moment is completely standard but I do have a Mongoose cat back system and de-cat pipe for it which I used for the first rebuild (sounds amazing and lets the car breathe so much better!!) I removed the Mongoose system quite recently to make the car more ‘family friendly’ but that never washed with the wife!
Brakes…
Front discs are grooved and drilled EBC which are complemented with Ferodo pads (will need changing quite soon though) Rear discs are standard with Ferodo pads. All 4 calipers were replaced 3 years ago.
Suspension…
Lowered all round, 35mm at front, 20mm at rear with spring assisters. Monroe shocks are about 4 years old. The result produces excellent handling with minimal body roll at the expense of a firm ride. Suspension arms, ball joints (top and bottom) are all recent. Torque steer has been significantly reduced with polyurethane bushes in the front cross member.
ICE
Pioneer DEH-P7700MP head unit with organic display
Pioneer 17cm speakers in front doors (can’t remember part number but 200w max)
Pioneer TSA2011 (350w max) speakers installed in rear shelf (look very neat!)
Kenwood KAC6402 400w 4ch amplifier screwed to underside of dash (glove box is gone… yes I know!)
Power and pre-outs routed to the boot for any future upgrades
Short MOT (2nd Septemeber), tax til end of August (you can’t have it all!) – This car has ALWAYS gone through the MOT without ANY hassle and is ALWAYS highly complemented by whoever is testing it. The car is rock solid and puts MANY much newer cars to shame!
This car has always been driven with respect and within it’s capabilities. I drive it below 3000 rpm when cold and allow the turbo 5 mins before switching off.
Power…
In current tune I’m running standard exhaust and 12psi so not that far over standard (200ps)
Previously, the car was on the rollers and achieved 237 bhp at 15psi (first engine rebuild)
Since then the turbo has been tweaked by Wilky and if the engine management went aftermarket and the OE turbo elbow was replaced then 300+ bhp is realistically achievable with the current set up. The fully forged engine is more than capable of dealing with this. Even with the standard management I'm sure some impressive figures could be achieved here.... I've been sooooooo tempted to turn the wick up but patience is a virtue with a new engine! I was going to wait a few more thousand miles until releasing the horses!
Price…
There is absolutely no way I’ll ever get back what I’ve poured into this car over the years (IN EXCESS OF 10K!) – This is also a Rover 800 and unfortunately is worth very little. What sells this car are the upgrades which are fully transferable to any other Rover turbo or you could carry on with this car and unleash an absolute monster!
Absolute bargain….£1500 for quick sale…. Otherwise I’m breaking it and recouping as much as possible
If I can think of anything I’ve missed Ill update this post accordingly.
Cheers
Scott
Pictures..... Sorry about some of the randomness of the order!
