Rover 75 Saloon (1999 - 2004) 2.0 V6 Connoisseur SE 4d Auto Owner Review

Having a long standing admiration of the Rover 75, owning one seemed somehow inevitable. Buy one, I did and I was not disappointed. The interior is really quite spectacular for a car of this class, filled with thoughtful touches, excellent design cues and superb build quality. The exterior styling has aged extremely well, and it's elegant lines still attract positive comment. The ride is exceptional, smooth without being overly soft and makes quick work of even the roughest British B-road. Its handling is composed with good levels of grip and although there is some body roll it never gets unruly, overall it's capable but not exactly sport. Both me and my uncle had a 75, he had a diesel and I had a petrol V6. The diesel was surprisingly smooth and quiet for a diesel. It was rock solid reliable, with a decent spread of power throughout the Rev range and excellent fuel economy. The V6 was similarly impressive, although I'd recommend the 2.5 and not the 2.0 I got as there is no real penalty in fuel economy but there is a useful 27bhp bump in power. The economy isn't great at 23mpg average, but it is silky smooth with a fantastic Alfa Romeo Busso esque sound. In 2.0 form it is an average performer, never slow nor particularly brisk and for that reason the 2.5 is easily the better bet. the reliability was overall good, with only a few minor niggles such as the cooling fan failing but was overall dependable (the 75 forum always has good tips for any problems). In conclusion, the 75 is easily one of the finest cheap luxury cars you can get with beautiful styling, excellent comfort, good driving characteristics and a solid build quality you can't go far wrong.