You've produced a wonderful video---and without the distracting "drama"! Thank you very much from a former Rover P6 owner in the States. Andy McKane, 23 February 2022.
Hi I've been following your channel with great interest for some time now your P5 looks fantastic and the colour really suits the car hats off to you sir for keeping her in fine fettle looking forward to your next vlog 👍
I loved my coupe in the 1970s I was only 18 and kept no records so have no idea what happened too it Beautiful car And your car seems just as loved possibly more as you are mature and appreciate what you have
Lovely video. That log-book is fantastic and shows the dedication of the owner. Totally agree with what you say about confidence in a car - I think working on your own car as much as possible really helps with this, rather than relying on a garage all the time. I didn't plan on working on my car as much as I have done, but its really helped me understand things.
Another great video and the lovely sound of the 3.5l, I totally agree with you the more you drive a classic car the more you learn to trust it and gain confidence in it, I have a fully restored karmann ghia from the late sixties which I've had since 2004, I had some gearbox and reliability issues which put me off driving it for almost 10 years, glad to say it's now back gon the road and fully working, in fact I would trust it now to complete a 200 mile journey, I've used it more in the past year than ever before.
Congratulations on getting your Karmann Ghia back on the road - a great car. It would feel at home down here in Austria - I see plenty about, unlike P5bs.
I was driven as a 10 yr old to Wembley stadium to watch England play in 1978 in a 3.5 v8 P5. It belonged to my dads friend. I though it was pure luxury. It cruised so smoothly at 80+ mph. I thought it was like a Rolls Royce. The owner said the difference was the windows were shorter in the P5. I took that as the only difference. Fantastic memory of this car. Big speedo and chrome ring on the wheel for the horn.
Lovely motor, Ive actually owned both saloon and coupe, and I actually preferred the saloon , something about the chunky rear roof pillars of the saloon just makes it look like a more solid car. Also the rear seat is lower in the coupe and makes you feel a bit claustrophobic and makes it more difficult getting in and out, also wind noise is worse on the coupe due to the window frame design. But as you say, they are both nice cars. I remember getting tired of hearing the same old garbage when I had my saloon = should have got a coupe !!!! etc... unfortunately most people are like sheep. Its true that the so called lesser models get scrapped and banger raced to later become more rare, collectable and desirable.
Sounds like you have a keeper there. A fine looking car and you appear to be keeping her in very fine fettle. The colour is terrific as well. I had a good mate in London in the 90s who had a few P5Bs, all coupes of course, but never the colour of yours. I recall seeing on back of a tow truck in Streatham, south London in the 90s a Bordeaux red coupe with mulberry leather interior. Boy what a car, most coupes seem to be two-tone, but this was Bordeaux red all over. I digress though, in actual fact I prefer the saloon and drove many of them in UK in my time there. All the best from a fellow Rover fanatic now back in Australia who owns a Lunar Grey 1974 3500S wearing P5B rostyles which has fascinating UK history (where it was bought new) before being imported into Australia 4 years later.
Thanks for your kind words about the car, Mark. I've not seen many two-tone Bordeaux coupés myself. I don't think Bordeaux goes well with the factory roof paint options of grey/silver birch. Good to hear about your 3500S. It must be a challenge keeping it cool in the summer down there.
Not a problem running really. This is my fourth P6B here and never have had an issue re overheating. It's important to keep the cooling system in good order (as you know), especially the radiator, so you don't get a buildup in the cores etc. I recall speaking to an ex Rover tech guy who worked at a Rover dealership in North London back in the day and he said they never had an issue when new and it was just down to age and poor care.
It's never been an issue for me either and we regularly have summer temperatures of 30 degrees here in Austria. These cars do need lots of care and attention and I aim to be a good custodian.
A nice video, thanks. As a long term Rover enthusiast and erstwhile owner (mainly P6's, though I did have an Admiralty / Silver Birch Coupe for a while) I remember back to my youth in the seventies and how many 'old boys' owned and cared for their Rover's at that time with a similar fastidious attention to detail that yours has obviously received, it just wasn't unusual for them to be that well looked after in that era, born from a real sense of pride . That or as you point out, banger raced. Also strikes me that it was fairly well unprecedented a company like Rover would take the time and spend the money to make two completely different rooflines for the same car when the end result wasn't that different all in all. Alright maybe the coupe was a bit more raffish and brusque for some tastes. They could have just pointed those customers Jaguar's way instead.
Thank you for your comment, Sir. You make some excellent points. Rover was indeed unmatched in its field. I am doing my best to preserve their heritage.
Great coverage and a very nice carriage indeed. Go on then is the pipe just for that period touch? Ironically enough l have been watching archive film of stock car racing and to be fair l tilted on the side of coupes. I paid £70 for my coupe in 1976 restored it,changed the colour from silver birch to jaguar caramel gold over rover Brasilia and sold it for £1000. It sold soon after for £2500.a good price in 1977.Thanks for an enjoyable journey.
I would guess that the meticulous keeper of records was an accountant by profession.I would guess that he would keep his cinema ticket to a really funny film and calculate how much it cost him per chuckle.
I have never understood why Rover decided to augment its P5 range with a coupe. Did it open up sales in a new sector of the market? Are there owners who would not have bought a saloon, if the coupe had not been available? I doubt it. So did the coupe even recoup the cost of its development? Meanwhile, Mercedes Benz, BMW, and Audi were selling cars to people who should have been Rover owners.
Hello Tara, My dad has one and I’m trying to find more information about the car. How do you know what production number it is? And is there any information on optional extras? Thanks!
Congratulations, Freddie. Check out this book. It will tell you all you and your Dad need to know: www.amazon.co.uk/Rover-P5-P5B-Crowood-Autoclassics/dp/1861269323/ref=sr_1_20?dchild=1&keywords=james+taylor+rover&qid=1615842521&sr=8-20
My dad has an original Saloon. Are they worth more? Because we have original everything even down to the radiator stickers. And I’ve never seen a P5B that is completely original. Also, we have rear and front headrests. I’ve heard these are rare?
You've produced a wonderful video---and without the distracting "drama"! Thank you very much from a former Rover P6 owner in the States. Andy McKane, 23 February 2022.
Glad you enjoyed it, Andy.
Hi I've been following your channel with great interest for some time now your P5 looks fantastic and the colour really suits the car hats off to you sir for keeping her in fine fettle looking forward to your next vlog 👍
Thanks for your kind words, Kevin. More to come soon.
Lovely video, thank you Sir!
Always loved the p5
I loved my coupe in the 1970s I was only 18 and kept no records so have no idea what happened too it
Beautiful car
And your car seems just as loved possibly more as you are mature and appreciate what you have
The Jaguar XJ6 and the Rover P5b, all you need want and require!
I agree - this kind of car just makes you feel good when driving it! 😎
Lovely video. That log-book is fantastic and shows the dedication of the owner. Totally agree with what you say about confidence in a car - I think working on your own car as much as possible really helps with this, rather than relying on a garage all the time. I didn't plan on working on my car as much as I have done, but its really helped me understand things.
That was fab thank you
Another great video and the lovely sound of the 3.5l, I totally agree with you the more you drive a classic car the more you learn to trust it and gain confidence in it, I have a fully restored karmann ghia from the late sixties which I've had since 2004, I had some gearbox and reliability issues which put me off driving it for almost 10 years, glad to say it's now back gon the road and fully working, in fact I would trust it now to complete a 200 mile journey, I've used it more in the past year than ever before.
Congratulations on getting your Karmann Ghia back on the road - a great car. It would feel at home down here in Austria - I see plenty about, unlike P5bs.
I was driven as a 10 yr old to Wembley stadium to watch England play in 1978 in a 3.5 v8 P5. It belonged to my dads friend. I though it was pure luxury. It cruised so smoothly at 80+ mph. I thought it was like a Rolls Royce. The owner said the difference was the windows were shorter in the P5. I took that as the only difference.
Fantastic memory of this car. Big speedo and chrome ring on the wheel for the horn.
What a great memory, thanks for sharing it. Hope the match was a good as the ride.
Very nice little video.
Thank you, Sir.
Beautiful car and an excellent film.
Thank you, Sir.
Lovely motor, Ive actually owned both saloon and coupe, and I actually preferred the saloon , something about the chunky rear roof pillars of the saloon just makes it look like a more solid car. Also the rear seat is lower in the coupe and makes you feel a bit claustrophobic and makes it more difficult getting in and out, also wind noise is worse on the coupe due to the window frame design. But as you say, they are both nice cars. I remember getting tired of hearing the same old garbage when I had my saloon = should have got a coupe !!!! etc... unfortunately most people are like sheep. Its true that the so called lesser models get scrapped and banger raced to later become more rare, collectable and desirable.
Thanks very much for your comment, Sir. I agree with everything you say!
As a motor dealer in the 1970s i can tell you that the coupe was alway worth more
Lovely big classiccar,similar one in The Man Who Haunted Himself,1970 film starring the late Roger Moore
Would you know if any of Rover P5's we're imported into the US? What a fantastic car!! Great video! Greetings from the USA!!!
Thank you! Very few made it to the U.S. Later models like the P6 were more popular Stateside.
Sounds like you have a keeper there. A fine looking car and you appear to be keeping her in very fine fettle. The colour is terrific as well. I had a good mate in London in the 90s who had a few P5Bs, all coupes of course, but never the colour of yours. I recall seeing on back of a tow truck in Streatham, south London in the 90s a Bordeaux red coupe with mulberry leather interior. Boy what a car, most coupes seem to be two-tone, but this was Bordeaux red all over. I digress though, in actual fact I prefer the saloon and drove many of them in UK in my time there. All the best from a fellow Rover fanatic now back in Australia who owns a Lunar Grey 1974 3500S wearing P5B rostyles which has fascinating UK history (where it was bought new) before being imported into Australia 4 years later.
Thanks for your kind words about the car, Mark. I've not seen many two-tone Bordeaux coupés myself. I don't think Bordeaux goes well with the factory roof paint options of grey/silver birch. Good to hear about your 3500S. It must be a challenge keeping it cool in the summer down there.
Not a problem running really. This is my fourth P6B here and never have had an issue re overheating. It's important to keep the cooling system in good order (as you know), especially the radiator, so you don't get a buildup in the cores etc. I recall speaking to an ex Rover tech guy who worked at a Rover dealership in North London back in the day and he said they never had an issue when new and it was just down to age and poor care.
It's never been an issue for me either and we regularly have summer temperatures of 30 degrees here in Austria. These cars do need lots of care and attention and I aim to be a good custodian.
A nice video, thanks.
As a long term Rover enthusiast and erstwhile owner (mainly P6's, though I did have an Admiralty / Silver Birch Coupe for a while) I remember back to my youth in the seventies and how many 'old boys' owned and cared for their Rover's at that time with a similar fastidious attention to detail that yours has obviously received, it just wasn't unusual for them to be that well looked after in that era, born from a real sense of pride . That or as you point out, banger raced.
Also strikes me that it was fairly well unprecedented a company like Rover would take the time and spend the money to make two completely different rooflines for the same car when the end result wasn't that different all in all. Alright maybe the coupe was a bit more raffish and brusque for some tastes. They could have just pointed those customers Jaguar's way instead.
Thank you for your comment, Sir. You make some excellent points. Rover was indeed unmatched in its field. I am doing my best to preserve their heritage.
Fantastic car.
Thank you, Sir.
Great coverage and a very nice carriage indeed. Go on then is the pipe just for that period touch? Ironically enough l have been watching archive film of stock car racing and to be fair l tilted on the side of coupes. I paid £70 for my coupe in 1976 restored it,changed the colour from silver birch to jaguar caramel gold over rover Brasilia and sold it for £1000. It sold soon after for £2500.a good price in 1977.Thanks for an enjoyable journey.
I think the saloon is better proportioned
I would guess that the meticulous keeper of records was an accountant by profession.I would guess that he would keep his cinema ticket to a really funny film and calculate how much it cost him per chuckle.
I have never understood why Rover decided to augment its P5 range with a coupe. Did it open up sales in a new sector of the market? Are there owners who would not have bought a saloon, if the coupe had not been available? I doubt it. So did the coupe even recoup the cost of its development?
Meanwhile, Mercedes Benz, BMW, and Audi were selling cars to people who should have been Rover owners.
Hello Tara,
My dad has one and I’m trying to find more information about the car. How do you know what production number it is? And is there any information on optional extras? Thanks!
Congratulations, Freddie. Check out this book. It will tell you all you and your Dad need to know: www.amazon.co.uk/Rover-P5-P5B-Crowood-Autoclassics/dp/1861269323/ref=sr_1_20?dchild=1&keywords=james+taylor+rover&qid=1615842521&sr=8-20
@@tarabordeaux1968 Thank you so much! I highly appreciate it :)
My dad has an original Saloon. Are they worth more? Because we have original everything even down to the radiator stickers. And I’ve never seen a P5B that is completely original. Also, we have rear and front headrests. I’ve heard these are rare?
Saloons are rarer but less desirable/valuable than the coupés. The front headrests are always in demand and worth an easy 200 GBP per set.