1986 ROVER SD1

- Very low mileage example (only 22.000 kilometers since new)
- Absolute as new condition
- Desirable Vandenplas version
- European spec. example (originally delivered in Holland with only 2 owners since new)
- Known in the 80ties as gentlemen’s dragster

Back in 1971 the Rover P6 was beginning to feel long in the tooth and badly needed replacement. Technically it still was a very advanced car but the age showed up in the styling and it was quite costly to produce this marvel. As Rover and Triumph both were in the Leyland group a combined engineering team was set up to create the follow up for the Rover P6 and the Triumph 2000/2500 cars.

The codename for this combined Rover/Triumph effort was SD1 (short for Specialist Division nr. 1) The team under supervision of Spen King (Well known for the brilliantly designed P6 suspension system) started with a clean sheet to design the new car. This Rover would be different from the previous ones

Rover had established itself with a good name for high quality well engineered automobiles aimed at the luxurious middle of the market. Although the build quality of the P6's could be better, there was nothing wrong with its engineering. The SD1 would have give the same solid feel but then with newest technology.

David Bache, the designer of the SD1 was already a well known designer at Rover and designed the P5/P6 as well as the Range Rover. For the SD1 he was inspired by some exotic machinery like the Ferrari Daytona.

The nose design and placement of the indicators were clearly a hint towards the Daytona.
British Leyland even arranged a setup to compare the new SD1 with such machinery in the design stage as the picture shows.
The sensational timeless sleek and handsome shape was quite revolutionary for Rover which was always known as a bit conservative in its styling.
The SD1 would change that image drastically. And it even wasn't a saloon like a real Rover has always been. For the first time a fastback design was being developed.
The design surely contributed to the voting of the SD-1 as Car of the year in 1977.

ABOUT THIS SPECIFIC EXAMPLE

During its production life from 1976 until 1986 the SD1 received many changes. The main change taking place with the series 1 to series 2 in January 1982.

This Rover SD1 Vandenplas was newly delivered in Groningen, Holland at the 7th. Of January 1986.

The car was owned by an older couple who had to stop driving at a certain age.
My father bought the car as an old Rover dealer as he could not believe to find a brand new Rover SD1.

The owners before him always kept the car in their heated garage and didn’t drove the car when it was raining.

My father put the car in his collection and never used it.

Recently the car has been fully serviced but due to a lack of space my father decided to sell the car.

CONDITION EXTERIOR

Unfortunately the Rover was not built in a time whereby British Leyland was well known for a high quality. The bodies of the car were quickly rusting and the result is that these cars became very difficult to find and definitely in a nice condition.
This Rover is in a very beautiful condition. The body is absolute amazing and all correct and original.

The bumper which is often damaged is still in a wonderful condition.

The wheels are brand new. They showed little signs but have been recently changed for new old stock wheels.

The windows are all in a perfect condition even as all aluminium strips which were used on the Rover.

The paint on the Rover is like brand new. Due to a recent professional polish the shine on the car is fantastic.

CONDITION INTERIOR

The interior of the Rover is also amazing. Luckily nobody has used a cigarette in the car which is rather unique for cars from the 80ties.

The seats are as new even as the carpets, the steering wheel, the gear knob and the buttons and gauges. There are no signs of use in the car.

All buttons and gauges are in a perfect working order and even the inner hood has been restored as this is always coming down after a certain amount of years.

The electrical sunroof is also in a perfect working order.

DRIVING EXPERIENCE

The Rover is such a fantastic car to drive. The enjoyment starts when you take place in the car. The big squared meters on the dashboard, the thick velours carpets and the big comfortable seats give the feeling to be at home.

When the engine is started the big V8 sound is activated and from the moment that the car is in it’s first gear it becomes clear that this is a very very serious car. The power is impressive but the car always stays comfortable.

The handling of this specific Rover is as you can expect from a low mileage car. The car is hanging on the gas and the brakes (recently rebuild) are in perfect working order.

Also the gearbox is shifting very smoothly.

Altogether a very nice looking and wonderful driving example in which a lot of money has recently been invested.

For more information or an appointment, please call Rutger Houtkamp+31625098150 or send an e-mail to [email protected]. Please do not hesitate to contact us by phone during evenings or in the weekend.

The Houtkamp Collection is centrally located near Amsterdam and only 10 minutes from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport.

The Houtkamp Collection is not able to guarantee the correctness and/or the exhaustiveness of the information contained in this car description and can not accept any obligations from that.
Thank you for your cooperation.