ZT and 75 reliability, the proof

[Jamie]

I always think its a shame, that some folks who 'join' the club seem to do it just as their car starts to play up, often due to poor maintenence sometimes neglect and occasionally just darn poor luck... then they go and publicly comdemn the cars in a place where they are affectionately cherished.... it just cheeses me off sometimes. Please remember we are all delighted to help when you need advice but remember most of us love the cars, they are not just 'cars' here.

However I have to say there is a core communinty here who like myself have enjoyed uber reliable ownership. I mean...no car is perfect...the only fault ive really experienced was an alternator failure which was made in france. and much like most of you folks i love my ZTT, its fun totally reliable and 'different'

Like many others I picked up on the recomended improvements and modifications to the car early on and this ensured the car didnt let me down. Its a shame some other folks had't done the same sooner.

I know im preaching to the converted here, but if it wasnt for this club, I probably would have sold my ZTT a long time ago, its the help, community spirit and like minded loyaty to the brand that keeps me here.

salute.

[afcbadam]

most forums are like that. im a member on www.themgzs.co.uk and its the same there

[pondweed]

Gives us something to read! We don't have TV so I think of it a bit like Eastenders. (Ooh - Peggy's got HGF - serves her right, scheming.... She wuz only in it for the door finishers...)

otherwise we'd just be talking about new steering wheels and meeting for love-ups.

[calibrax]

A few years ago I was pretty much a confirmed Vauxhall driver. Was on my 4th Vauxhall in fact... having had a Belmont, two Cavaliers and a Calibra.

Then I bought a Rover 620ti, and found myself in a much better car than any of my Vauxhalls, better reliability, and an excellent web community which offered great support. I learned more about cars and engines in that first year than in the preceding 30 years!

And the 620ti was so reliable, when I sadly had my accident that wrote it off, I didn't even consider another make... I bought a Rover 400 diesel. Had that for 18 months, again it was totally reliable, never failed to start in the morning.

When it was time to replace that, I did briefly consider getting a German car, as I wanted something newer with a bit of an "executive" feel. I tried a Merc and a BMW but they just didn't feel quite right. I wasn't keen on the Rover 75 as the colours were mainly all a bit... well, pastel! Not really what I was after. But then I spotted an MG ZT CDTi in black... fell in love, did a deal, and now it's parked outside!

If it wasn't for the amazing reliability of my MGR cars, and the presence of the MG/Rover community online, I would probably have moved to another manufacturer by now. But you simply don't get this level of cameraderie and instant assistance with any other car owner forums. You learn lots, and then you pass it on to other newer owners. And the community keeps on growing as people realise what great value MG Rover cars are.

[tourerfogey]

Originally Posted by Jamie

I always think its a shame, that some folks who 'join' the club seem to do it just as their car starts to play up, often due to poor maintenence sometimes neglect and occasionally just darn poor luck... then they go and publicly comdemn the cars in a place where they are affectionately cherished.... it just cheeses me off sometimes. Please remember we are all delighted to help when you need advice but remember most of us love the cars, they are not just 'cars' here.

However I have to say there is a core communinty here who like myself have enjoyed uber reliable ownership. I mean...no car is perfect...the only fault ive really experienced was an alternator failure which was made in france. and much like most of you folks i love my ZTT, its fun totally reliable and 'different'

Like many others I picked up on the recomended improvements and modifications to the car early on and this ensured the car didnt let me down. Its a shame some other folks had't done the same sooner.

I know im preaching to the converted here, but if it wasnt for this club, I probably would have sold my ZTT a long time ago, its the help, community spirit and like minded loyaty to the brand that keeps me here.

salute.

Hi Jamie

I understand what you are saying but I think it also the responsibility of us long standing club members to point out the downside of these cars - there are undeniable a few to consider.

The point of a club and forum like this is not just to look at the cars we drive through rose tinted spectacles (too many one make / one model clubs and forums do that). When I worked for the car mags as a freelance I couldn't beleive some of the letters the mags got from owners of certain classics who would defend their cars against any trivial negativity mentioned in the magazine - some even going as far to say that they would never buy that particular magazine again!

What we should do is to provide a realistic insight into owning, driving and, if the owner so desires, cherishing the 75/ZT.

I guess it's almost inevitable that many owners will find this site when their car goes wrong and they look on the internet for guidance. If we all take the pro 75 and ZT stance and close our eyes to the failings of the 75/ZT a suffering owner who stumbles upon this site may well get the impression that his/her car is just jinxed and not typical of the breed.

I've had my 03 Tourer from new and I don't have the slightest inclinition to change it - but my eyes are open to its faults.

TF

[Bigus]

Originally Posted by calibrax

Then I bought a Rover 620ti, and found myself in a much better car than any of my Vauxhalls, better reliability, and an excellent web community which offered great support.

My last car was a '99 620Ti. Had it 6 years and did 90K miles in it and no sign of HGF or gearbox problems which were often reported and I always drive my cars "enthusiastically". I had it lowered at the start and 17" wheels put on and it used to turn heads whereever it went. Brilliant car and so damn quick.

My main motivators in buying a car are looks first then acceleration (well speeding may be illegal but you can sure make the most of a car's acceleration ). When I saw my very first 600 I fell in love and said to myself one day I'll have one of those - 9 years later I did. When I first saw the Rover 75 the seed of desire was sown, but when I saw the ZT I fell in love again.

It's not because of any specific loyalty to Rover (although evidently Mr Woolley designs cars just how I like 'em). I'm very fussy with looks on a car and I think the ZT is far better looking than almost every other car in it's class. The only other cars that I considered alongside the ZT was the 2002+ Saab 9-3 or the X-Type Jag (economy and some apparently common and v.expensive problem with the AWD transmission put me off the latter and the 9-3's in my price range were all high milers).

I joined this forum because I was wanting to buy a ZT but had heard about the HGF issue on the 1.8s so wanted to find out how much of a likelihood it was (HGFs seem to be almost a certainty on K-series petrol engines on Rover 200/400/25/45s so was more worried than normal). Information from here helped put things into perspective, I learnt about why HGFs can happen on these cars and that if it did go there is an uprated HG that can be fitted. This was reassuring and helped swing my decision to buy one. It's an absolute mine of knowledge in here and some very helpful people :-). If it wasn't for this forum I probably wouldn't have upgraded to dual cup holders and luggage nets in the boot either!

Incdentally, shortly after getting my ZT, I was driving back from Hereford down some windy country road and this little Seat Ibiza was behind me trying to keep up. My eyes were suddenly drawn to the rear view mirror to see the whole road filled with a massive cloud of white smoke. For the very slightest of moments panick started to well up but of course it wasn't from me, the Ibiza was pulling off the road into a laybay. His HG must have pretty much exploded and the entire contents of his cooling system had decided to make a break for it and turn into steam. Poor guy but I couldn't quite stem the feeling of smugness.

[amableson]

Why do we join this forum?
Simple really, years ago if you had any trouble with your car you either fixed it yourself or found a garage you trust that could. The knowledge from the assembled members on here is second to none, most problems have been experienced by someone on here and how to fix them. I myself can truly say without this forum my life would have been more stressed as someone can tell you by experience the best way to solve the problems we all face with our automobiles.
So there it is gentlemen and long it may continue(Q fade out music)

[karl_683]

Well said that man!

This forum has made owning my 75 a much more enjoyable experience!

[GreyGhost]

Originally Posted by karl_683

Well said that man!

This forum has made owning my 75 a much more enjoyable experience!

I think you can change your sig now.

Thanks for subscribing.

[majedm75]

A lot of us on this forum enjoy our cars for what they are and tend to consider them more than cars (I do ). But our cars, like many others from different brands, have their quirks and failures. This forum is a great help and make the cars more enjoyable. Before the 75, I had a 620 SDi that had cooling system, then alternator and battery and finally exhaust failure (exhaust supports rusted and the whole thing fell under the car ). I also had the alternator and power steering belt braking and doing damage under the hood... I was very annoyed and was going to get me a Saab 9-3 at first then I got "stung" when I saw my car (well actually I was getting ready to buy a diesel 75, then changed my mind on the spot and got my current car ).
Anyway, and to cut a long story short, I think Jamie is right that people tend to quickly slay a car just on the basis of brand reputation... then try to cling to whatever they can to get out of trouble. In 2000, I could have steered away from Rover based on my experience with the 620, and on my friends' advices, but I'm glad I didn't :lol: