The Rover was designed by Gordon Bashford. This mid-size luxury car was produced between 1949 and 1964.
The P4 was not intended for everyday use. These cars are part of the British culture, driven by royalty such as Grace Kelly and King Hussein of Jordan, whose first car was a Rover 75 built in 1952.
In addition to royalty, they were bought by people who worked as doctors, vets, lawyers, bank directors and it represented the love of central England.
Tested by The Motor magazine in 1949, the car had a top speed of 134 km/h and accelerated from 0 to 100 km/h in 21.6 seconds. Fuel consumption was recorded at 10.2 l/100 km. The car cost £1106 including tax, which was a small fortune at that time.
A larger number of Rover P4s have survived for posterity, and despite certain drawbacks, such as the restart (which was a nuisance when the car was stationary for ten to thirty minutes), or the complicated rod-operated handbrake linkage (which is not easy to set correctly), it was nevertheless intended for everyday use.
The first Rover P4 was the 1949 75. It had a single central fog lamp, earning it the unglamorous nickname ‘Cyclops’.
The first major modifications were made to the car in September 1953, when the four-cylinder 60, also found in the Land Rover Series I, was introduced. At the same time a larger engine was fitted to the Rover 90, it was a 2.6.
According to a September 1956 Ninety article in MotorSport magazine, the engine was virtually inaudible at idle when used on the road, but “steering was heavy” and “pitching was considerable when cornering”, yet the firm suspension caused “very noticeable column shake and body roll”, according to the MotorSport report.
The P4 range was supplemented in September 1958 by a new, conservatively styled 3.0-engined P5, but the P4 remained in production until 1964, when it was replaced by the Rover 2000.
This car is from the age of craftsmanship – no ugly plastics here, just wood and leather interior.