Last boom time I knew was when they sold white MG metro's that became all the rage

Mmm, red seatbelts!!! :bowdown1: :bowdown1:

Trouble is the work force in this country, general it's been our down fall for ages, I guess it dont help that they know that they could be out of a job at any given time, that doesn't make you want to give it your best.

Looking back at Rovers history it's always had management/employee problems.

Looking back at Rovers history it's always had management/employee problems.

Perhaps if Rover does survive, they can appoint Glenn Hoddle as chairman. He's famous for his man-management skills ( ), and being manager at Wolves he lives in the area now too. After 20 draws in a season, it's pretty definite he'll be looking for a job come next month...

Oh dear, I think I may have drifted a little off-topic there trying to inject a little humour into what is a truly tragic state of affairs for Rover.

...and Wolves of course!

Just appeared on BBC news:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4423181.stm

They've announced they will go into administration.

Trouble is the work force in this country' date=' general it's been our down fall for ages, I guess it dont help that they know that they could be out of a job at any given time, that doesn't make you want to give it your best.

Looking back at Rovers history it's always had management/employee problems. [/quote']

I doubt that it's anything to do with the workforce.

Look how many other car manufacturers have very successful plants in the uk....

Rover has gone tits up because they weren't making cars that people wanted to buy. That may be because of bad management or because they couldn't afford to do what needed to be done 5 years ago , but it's unfair to blame the workers

Never know , VW may buy them....

I could see them interested in the MG brand, sort of turn it into a TVR/Aston type company.

Rover could be for VW what Volvo is for Ford, a semi premium brand above VW but below Audi, although I don't think that will work with the current VW pricing structure.

True Dr Z, Honda have plants here with no such issue's. Though I wasn't blaming them just saying that I'm sure they have got the best moral.

I dont think there is one point that caused MG/R's downfall just a knock on effect of one c*ck up after another.

Mg Rovers in bigger sctook that we thought.....

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4423725.stm

oooooh dear.This could turn into a rather big scandal I think.

At least they offloaded the k series

Oh dear!!

WTF does a car company need with a blinkin' castle, when they don't even own their own factory??? :confused:

True Dr Z' date=' Honda have plants here with no such issue's. Though I wasn't blaming them just saying that I'm sure they have got the best moral.

I dont think there is one point that caused MG/R's downfall just a knock on effect of one c*ck up after another.[/quote']

You have to take a serious look at what BMW did to Rover. The company took the Mini, designed by Rover over many years, to be sold as a 'mini' brand, an realised that this would make huge profits.

With the normal saloons not pulling in much profit, BMW sold 'Rover' leaving it in huge finacial difficulty, keeping the mini (which went on to deliver huge profits to the german company) and just for good measure, sold the other profit returning part of rover- Land Rove- to Ford.

BMW pillaged rover for their own gain. They bought the company cheap when it was privatized, took the mini and sold Range Rover to fund the exercise.

If mini and Range Rover had remained part of Rover making a profit, the company would have stood a fighting chance

It's their own fault though.

They had the goods.They lost the goods.

Beaten by better businessmen (who probably thought it's like taking candy off a kid)

Like they said on the news this morning, there's a saying in business that's it's OK to lose money, but criminal to run out. Too many people at the top obviously took their eyes off the ball for too long...

50m for a brand like MG seems, oh I'm almost without words. A shocking waste!

I know it's now how it was, but I saw MG as making a good comeback. Not without problems, I'm usre if it was a lower yield with more care on finish it could of defeated the "motoring" jurnos who saw it as an easy target.

Tough to say that the small stuff was wrong or right to do, it sold and sold a lot. Gave people an access to a historical brand. Although as we see dwindling memories in the youth of today about core values and respect for forefathers, the same could be said for manufacturing and heritage brands.

Why did people buy them, price or heritiage?

If it was price it was too low or high for the quality

I had a primera and it wasa joint nissan / rover dealer. Two times I was asked when waiting if I was in for an engine change on my MG...driver said they were very common failures, this was 4 years ago mind.

Maybe, but even so, it means they were using a 40-odd year old design up until then. There's not necessarily anything wrong with that by itself (e.g. I wonder how long the 1.9 SDi / TDi / TDi PD block has been around in one form or another) but I do feel it was symptomatic of the 'make do and mend' attitude amongst Rover's High Command, rather than the innovative approach that's needed for a Western car manufacturer to be competitive...

Nope: Rover haven't used the Rover/Buick V8 in a car for ages. It was still being used by Land Rover until recently, but it did indeed cease production last year.

The Rover V8 actually saw a lot of development in its time, and it still has a very impressive power output for its size and weight (it premiered thin wall aluminium casting technology: the key to its success).

The collapse of Rover has been inevitable since BMW pulled out. They simply didn't have enough money to develop new cars, so they've been flogging 12 year-old Hondas (with new headlights) ever since.

Even the Rover 75 is a bit of a white elephant: it's only good by Rover's standards. If BMW or Mercedes had built it, it would have been laughed at as a backwards step. Unfortunately, with the costs associated with manufacturing in this country, you can't exist by building bread and butter motors.

Rover is a dog (in more ways than one) end of story.

Perhaps if the 4 owners hadnt taken

Wow! Did I hear correctly on the radio that Australia wants all the rover employees :eek: (this is not a wind up)

Apparently they all have very much in demand skills and it is suggested they apply to live and work in beautiful Australia

I would have filled in my application like a shot and my bags would be packed ready to go!

What a fantastic opportunity for them I do hope there is a silver lining

They had this short video on the news about this this morning (about 3am) and it shown around SAIC (the company who were initally linked to Rover) and what were they building?

Passats

Rover is dead because it never recovered from red robbo and the union power in the 70's - never shook the image..

MG could have survived - as per Moultons plan but the short sighted muppets (too keep the electorate sweet) chose Phoenix to stave off the 4k job losses that were needed years ago... now they have 20k job losses... close the door after you tony....

At least 45 years!

Apparently it was first produced by GM in 1960' date=' but dropped in 1963 'cos the Americans didn't see the merits of an alloy block V8. Rover bought the rights in 1965, and I think the first car it went into was the P5. So even if you just consider Rover's ownership of the design, it's still middle-aged!!![/quote']

close but no cigar!!!

It was a MARINE engine that failed to see the light of day....until some bright spark at BL saw it and thought it might fit into a car.....

.....and the rest, as they say is history.........

which might explain why BL/Rover cars corroded so badly ??? The designer looked at the marine engine and stipulated GRP for the hull and the accountants said no!

Rest In Pieces Rover....you ain't ever coming back :thumbdwn: :thumbdwn:

unless there is another John De Lorean out there?????????/ :eek:

Nope: Rover haven't used the Rover/Buick V8 in a car for ages. It was still being used by Land Rover until recently' date=' but it did indeed cease production last year.

The Rover V8 actually saw a lot of development in its time, and it still has a very impressive power output for its size and weight (it premiered thin wall aluminium casting technology: the key to its success).

The collapse of Rover has been inevitable since BMW pulled out. They simply didn't have enough money to develop new cars, so they've been flogging 12 year-old Hondas (with new headlights) ever since.

Even the Rover 75 is a bit of a white elephant: it's only good by Rover's standards. If BMW or Mercedes had built it, it would have been laughed at as a backwards step. Unfortunately, with the costs associated with manufacturing in this country, you can't exist by building bread and butter motors.[/quote']

Spot on. (except the 75 comment, I owned one amd loved it!)

I agree and it's very sad. Iv'e been to Longbridge on business several times and only just over a week ago did my company get the go-ahead on the supply of a new product in there (not prepared to say what) but what a s*****r all round!! Not for us as we had yet to supply but for all the really decent guys and girls who work there. I hope eventually it works out and maybe just maybe something can be salvaged! MG, which is a good product!

Rover is dead because it never recovered from red robbo and the union power in the 70's - never shook the image..

MG could have survived - as per Moultons plan but the short sighted muppets (too keep the electorate sweet) chose Phoenix to stave off the 4k job losses that were needed years ago... now they have 20k job losses... close the door after you tony....

Give over will you.....

The job losses now will be much more manageable now than had they gone before.

Since when do the workers have any control over the company finances, including the seperate management pension scheme worth a reported