Very nice to keep alive another Montego, I recently purchased in Spain a beautiful Rover 216 Vitesse EFi (1986) in great condition, just 20 years parked in the same garage, but i'm very happy to own this car and return it to the road. Greetings from Spain and good luck for your restoration job.
My Dad had a blue 2.0 HLS on a C reg back in the day. He bought it whist visting friends in Scotland and drove it from Glasgow to Northern Ireland mid winter with a knackered heating matrix had on it and remember him telling me he had to stop at Girvan on the way to the ferry to defrost the inside off the windcreen! But with the 2.0 O-series it went really well and he still has fond memories of it. Looking forward to seeing the progress of yours, subbed
My grandfather had a blue 2.0 HLS on a A plate back in the mid 80s. It was a really lovely car to travel in with a excellent ride quality and soft seat's something missing from most modern cars. He later bought a B reg blue 1.6 L montego, i remember he was a bit disappointed with how basic it was compared to the HLS and wasn't half as nice a car but it got much better fuel economy. After the dreaded tin worm sent them to the scrap yard he bought a ford sierra which none of the family thought compared to the montego especially the 2.0 HLS. He passed away a few years ago so that car really brings back the memories. I hope you keep it standard.
Brilliant! A brown Montego! A real nostalgia trip for me - I used to get a ride to school with my friend in an identical car to this one. They deserve saving 👍
My parents owned a blue B reg Montego saloon in the mid 90s. I think it was a 1.6. Velor interior/arm rest in the back/sunroof/lever for the boot. Very comfy Car and went well.
I remember having a day off school because my Dad couldn't get his Montego to start when it had been snowing lol. That's what I remember of the Montego, and the rust lol. 😂
i love my 87 1.6HL, i've owned mine 5 years years only had to do a water pump and exhaust, great cars, i'm lucky as mines french so has no rust issues, now subbed
I’m so pleased you’ve saved Clara. Looking forward to progress updates. By the way, the chrome bonnet strip is not standard on the HLS, I believe it was added by a previous owner from a VP.
I recently spent a couple of weeks in Wells Somerset,while there I visited several local towns and villages and in one I came across 4 Maestro's on someone's side driveway,all in quite reasonable condition from the quick glance I got of them. I haven't seen a Maestro or Montego for years,so I was surprised to see 4 together.prehaps someone on here knows of these cars. The only Montego I know of belongs to an old guy in a village about twenty miles from mine who sometimes sells old car parts,who has a white 2.0 petrol Montego countryman in his garage that took quite a hit on the OSF about 30 years ago that's just sitting in his garage with most of the parts to repair it,it looks very 'new' still other than the damage,but given that he also has a Morris minor with period hand controls fitted that has only covered 160 miles from new,again with front damage and again with all parts to repair it just sitting under a lovely period framed concertina canvas car cover( which must be worth a few pennies it's self) that he has been saying he is going to repair for all of the 35+ years I've been living here,I am beginning to doubt him😂. Back when I was a lad,I worked at a place where one of the services was plastic bumper welding/repair when it was still a relatively new practice, I repaired more Montego,maestro and rover 800 bumpers than all the other makes and models put together😊.
My Dad had a 1985 "Champagne Beige" Montego Estate 1.6HL...B480 EAV that he bought from Marshalls of Huntingdon in the late 80s. It'd been owned previously by a local vicar and it was immaculate. This brings back a lot of good memories and I can't wait to see you work your magic on this over the coming months 😊
Lots and lots of great memories this one is conjuring up in the comments. Managed to get through a good chunk of work so far, part 2 on Sat. Hopefully if i can keep the pace going, one vid a week dedicated to it 😳🤣
@@RetroRatchet I wish you the very best of luck with this one. Very worthwhile project especially with so few left...it needs preserving! I should think it's quite hard to source spares and replacement parts! Looking forward to part 2!
So many cars are going extinct but there are thankfully owners out there who care and maintain these beauties, They may have been crap back in the day but now they're more important than ever.
Wow that's a blast from the past, used to have a 2.0 Montego many years ago, even back then it was a shed 😂 I remember the funky illuminated wiper and indicator stalks. It was very blue, I believe it was Moonraker blue the same as your SD1, they may of called it something else, it had blue everything, seats, carpets, door cards, steering wheel and dashboard. It went well being a 2.0 but unfortunately I only had it a short while as it got rear ended in traffic but still drove ok after, that was right up until the cam belt snapped 😂 Luckily the insurance paid up and it was dragged away for scrap. My old boss had a B Reg Black Montego Vanden Plas with full leather interior and the rare talking digital dash, not seen another Montego with that fitted in since. It was brand new and was a very plush car back then. Hope you will keep your car stock and restore the Russet Brown paintwork ? 👍❤
By gum....you've bought some work there but it's not beyond your capabilities. If I was you I would keep it as standard as possible. Looking forward to the journey. Thank you.
Blimey I didn't realise you kicked off your channel with the Montego Turbo. I'll definitely be catching up on that. Now then. Since you now have One of only Three remaining HLS Montego's and you being who you are it's a no brainer. Get it back on the road repaired restored to you own high standard But as a Standard car. Not modified. Maybe modernised for the sake of reliability. Looking forward to this series 👍
I had a 2.0 Montego, think it was a 1992, fully equipped and it was lovely. Really comfortable and reliable, really was a great car, unfortunately it got written off by someone hitting the rear near side, hitting the rear wheel and twisting the chassis.
Clove Brown. Nice to know there are other Austin/Rover fans and great that you are considering saving it. Most cars like this would get scrapped as people would consider it not worth the time and money. Its great to see someone willing to bring it back to life. I look forward to following the progress. I am a big Austin/Rover fan and have owned my Montego Turbo for 33 years. The floors do look amazing. Did you remove the rear window surrounds or were they already removed? If you removed did you have much trouble?
There is a thread on this car on the Maestro Org UK forum. I bought my first Montego in 1989 and went for a 3 year old 1.6L in a beautiful beige over a brown one of the same year. When I traded it for the Montego Turbo in 1992, it had already started to rust pretty badly in the door bottoms and on the leading edges of both rear arches.
@@RetroRatchet I have been! 😃 Out of interest, what was the deal you got? The thumbnail says it was free: were you given the car as long as you promised to save it and put it back on the road?
That’s the one AR colour I could never understand - it’s a sort ‘bl**dy poo’ colour. Imagine coming home from the dealer in a poo brown car, and presenting it to the family………Makes me wonder how this, champagne beige and those peculiar almost flat blue colours (there was a navy, which was popular on Metros and Acclaims, and later a grey/sky blue, which I think was mainly a Metro/Maestro colour) were presented to senior management for signing off. However that said, it’s great to see an early Monty in a period colour. For all my criticisms of some of the dodgy colours, I love ‘em! Looking forward to seeing how it progresses! Don’t change the colour!!!
Subscribed. My only friendly observation is your presentation style is excellent - you are really easy to listen to and the pace you deliver at is spot on👍 But the constant backing music actually interferes with all of this and makes it harder to listen to all your good stuff imo - which of course is neither right nor wrong, it's just my opinion. Looking forward to following the project and I won't comment on the music again now I've said my 2p worth😂
Hello, thanks for subscribing, hope you enjoy the content, yeah the backing music gets mixed opinions, part 2 which is airing on Sat, ive notched it down a bit during talking, might be a better compromise 😊
My Dad had one new in the 1980's, a silver 2.0lt HLS. From what I remember it ate up the miles in comfort and itcwas brisk. Seem to remember it had quite a few cam shaft problems under warranty. Also also changing the alternator was a problem as the service panel in the off side wing didn't align up properly. Pretty sure the 2.0 used a Honda gearbox?
I've always thought a vag 1.8t would make a good swap for these as the 1.6's used a VW box so mounting should be relatively simple and the engines are both reliable and well supported for parts. Always had a love for montegos as my dad had three and did probably a good half a million miles between them without issues, 2 only died cos they got written off by others and the third one made it to 225,000 miles before he sold it for something newer.
i was never a fan of the O series, i had the 1.7 in a princess that had appetite for engine oil and later had an ambassador 2.0 which was marginally better
Very nice to keep alive another Montego, I recently purchased in Spain a beautiful Rover 216 Vitesse EFi (1986) in great condition, just 20 years parked in the same garage, but i'm very happy to own this car and return it to the road. Greetings from Spain and good luck for your restoration job.
Thanks a lot, 216 vitesse is also one id like to own one day, a few days back one came up on ebay as a project!
Ok I think this channel is becoming my favourite sd1 maestro now a montego hell yea 👌
Thanks a lot mate, appreciate that! 👍🏻
My Dad had a blue 2.0 HLS on a C reg back in the day. He bought it whist visting friends in Scotland and drove it from Glasgow to Northern Ireland mid winter with a knackered heating matrix had on it and remember him telling me he had to stop at Girvan on the way to the ferry to defrost the inside off the windcreen! But with the 2.0 O-series it went really well and he still has fond memories of it. Looking forward to seeing the progress of yours, subbed
Bet that was a cold journey mate!
Thanks for subscribing, much appreciated!
My grandfather had a blue 2.0 HLS on a A plate back in the mid 80s. It was a really lovely car to travel in with a excellent ride quality and soft seat's something missing from most modern cars. He later bought a B reg blue 1.6 L montego, i remember he was a bit disappointed with how basic it was compared to the HLS and wasn't half as nice a car but it got much better fuel economy. After the dreaded tin worm sent them to the scrap yard he bought a ford sierra which none of the family thought compared to the montego especially the 2.0 HLS. He passed away a few years ago so that car really brings back the memories. I hope you keep it standard.
Looking forward to seeing the progress on this will make a nice project to keep you busy over the winter 👍
I know plenty to get on with on it
This took me back, I had a C reg 2.0 HLS in Oporto Red in the 80s!
Oww they look nice in Red ! Any pics? 😬
Brilliant! A brown Montego! A real nostalgia trip for me - I used to get a ride to school with my friend in an identical car to this one. They deserve saving 👍
Yeah, thats it, lots of people with fond memories! Looking forward to sorting this one out! 👍🏻
Keep it all original,great to see a montego.
Thanks mate, yeah likely will
Good on you for saving another Montego.
Cheers mate!
Adrian Mole’s car saved! Best of luck on the project 👍
Thanks mate
My parents owned a blue B reg Montego saloon in the mid 90s. I think it was a 1.6. Velor interior/arm rest in the back/sunroof/lever for the boot. Very comfy Car and went well.
Cool, yeah this has a beige velour trim on it
What a great project 👍 Had one in that colour back in the day when they were everywhere and just cheap, old cars
Yeah, big plans for it! Sure it will grow arms and legs like most of this kinda project!
Car definitely deserves to be saved and love your ethos for doing so! 👍🙂
Thanks a lot mate, cant wait to see it progress
Nice Looking forward to this! looks like you’ve got a great base there for a project good luck with it 👍
Thanks a lot, yeah underside is great (so far)! Part 2 coming out Sat 👍🏻
That's really nice looking forward to this
Cheers mate! Big plans! Next instalment Saturday! 👍🏻😁
I remember having a day off school because my Dad couldn't get his Montego to start when it had been snowing lol.
That's what I remember of the Montego, and the rust lol. 😂
Haha yeah choke full out and hope for the best! Aye they did know how to rust! Thats for sure
i love my 87 1.6HL, i've owned mine 5 years years only had to do a water pump and exhaust, great cars, i'm lucky as mines french so has no rust issues, now subbed
ah yeah, lucky it being French, great it survived so well, thanks for the sub, glad your enjoying the content
Rare car keep it standard!
Yeah most likely i will 🙂
Looking forward to this, well done mate😊
Cheers mate, nxt episode out Sat 👍🏻👍🏻
Clove Brown perfection
Haha yeah i think it really suits it actually 🤫
I’m so pleased you’ve saved Clara. Looking forward to progress updates. By the way, the chrome bonnet strip is not standard on the HLS, I believe it was added by a previous owner from a VP.
That was my first thought . "i don't think it should have the chrome strip it was only on the Mayfair and VDP"
Ah right, cheers for that, ill whip that off then!
I recently spent a couple of weeks in Wells Somerset,while there I visited several local towns and villages and in one I came across 4 Maestro's on someone's side driveway,all in quite reasonable condition from the quick glance I got of them. I haven't seen a Maestro or Montego for years,so I was surprised to see 4 together.prehaps someone on here knows of these cars. The only Montego I know of belongs to an old guy in a village about twenty miles from mine who sometimes sells old car parts,who has a white 2.0 petrol Montego countryman in his garage that took quite a hit on the OSF about 30 years ago that's just sitting in his garage with most of the parts to repair it,it looks very 'new' still other than the damage,but given that he also has a Morris minor with period hand controls fitted that has only covered 160 miles from new,again with front damage and again with all parts to repair it just sitting under a lovely period framed concertina canvas car cover( which must be worth a few pennies it's self) that he has been saying he is going to repair for all of the 35+ years I've been living here,I am beginning to doubt him😂. Back when I was a lad,I worked at a place where one of the services was plastic bumper welding/repair when it was still a relatively new practice, I repaired more Montego,maestro and rover 800 bumpers than all the other makes and models put together😊.
Ah interesting story, give me a shout if that Montego needs to be rescued 🫣 bet u got plenty work out mk1 Mondeo bumpers as well!
My Dad had a 1985 "Champagne Beige" Montego Estate 1.6HL...B480 EAV that he bought from Marshalls of Huntingdon in the late 80s. It'd been owned previously by a local vicar and it was immaculate.
This brings back a lot of good memories and I can't wait to see you work your magic on this over the coming months 😊
Lots and lots of great memories this one is conjuring up in the comments. Managed to get through a good chunk of work so far, part 2 on Sat. Hopefully if i can keep the pace going, one vid a week dedicated to it 😳🤣
@@RetroRatchet I wish you the very best of luck with this one. Very worthwhile project especially with so few left...it needs preserving! I should think it's quite hard to source spares and replacement parts!
Looking forward to part 2!
Fantastic, really looking forward to seeing how this turns out.
Thanks mate, next instalment Sat 👍🏻👍🏻😬
I'm so glad this video came up on my recommendations! I l love Montegos and have subscribed! looking forward to more content!
Thanks mate! Next instalment Sat 😎
So many cars are going extinct but there are thankfully owners out there who care and maintain these beauties,
They may have been crap back in the day but now they're more important than ever.
Totally agree mate! I dont realistically have the capacity for it, but felt it needed sorting out
@@RetroRatchet if I had the ability I'd have a small fleet.....just I have no room lol
Wow that's a blast from the past, used to have a 2.0 Montego many years ago, even back then it was a shed 😂 I remember the funky illuminated wiper and indicator stalks. It was very blue, I believe it was Moonraker blue the same as your SD1, they may of called it something else, it had blue everything, seats, carpets, door cards, steering wheel and dashboard. It went well being a 2.0 but unfortunately I only had it a short while as it got rear ended in traffic but still drove ok after, that was right up until the cam belt snapped 😂 Luckily the insurance paid up and it was dragged away for scrap.
My old boss had a B Reg Black Montego Vanden Plas with full leather interior and the rare talking digital dash, not seen another Montego with that fitted in since. It was brand new and was a very plush car back then. Hope you will keep your car stock and restore the Russet Brown paintwork ? 👍❤
Yeah i remember those blue interiors, bit overwhealming 😆 yeah ill most probably keep it all stock.
Very well done video, much better than the majority of car resto videos on here!
Appreciate that mate 😊
@@RetroRatchet Majority of resto videos, show clueless bodgers. Problem is others tend to think the bodgers, are doing things right...............
By gum....you've bought some work there but it's not beyond your capabilities. If I was you I would keep it as standard as possible.
Looking forward to the journey. Thank you.
Yeah thats prob what i will do to be honest, hope u enjoy the journey!
Blimey I didn't realise you kicked off your channel with the Montego Turbo. I'll definitely be catching up on that.
Now then. Since you now have One of only Three remaining HLS Montego's and you being who you are it's a no brainer. Get it back on the road repaired restored to you own high standard But as a Standard car. Not modified. Maybe modernised for the sake of reliability. Looking forward to this series 👍
Thanks again mate, yeah the Turbo was one of first vids, presenting skills have definitely progressed since then!
I had a 2.0 Montego, think it was a 1992, fully equipped and it was lovely. Really comfortable and reliable, really was a great car, unfortunately it got written off by someone hitting the rear near side, hitting the rear wheel and twisting the chassis.
Ah, must have been a late one that! Yeah didnt take much to write them off 🫤
Not sure I can watch this video, the green eyed monster won't let me 😂. I'd love to restore a Montego. Fond memories of my mates dad VdP 2.0 EFI.
Just watched it. I would love to see a full restore, but I have the luxury of not having to pay for it 😂😂 I would keep the engine standard, I think.
Haha
Yeah thats the route ill prob go down. Part 2 out Saturday!
My Dad had a silver estate, 2.0. Was quite well spec'd out if I remember correctly.
Yeah the 2.0 tended to have all the bits in them. Not many estates floating around now 🫤
Clove Brown. Nice to know there are other Austin/Rover fans and great that you are considering saving it. Most cars like this would get scrapped as people would consider it not worth the time and money. Its great to see someone willing to bring it back to life. I look forward to following the progress. I am a big Austin/Rover fan and have owned my Montego Turbo for 33 years. The floors do look amazing. Did you remove the rear window surrounds or were they already removed? If you removed did you have much trouble?
Yeah someone has to save the more unloved ones!
Wow 33 years u must like it a lot!
No that trim was already removed. I have replacements waiting 😎
There is a thread on this car on the Maestro Org UK forum. I bought my first Montego in 1989 and went for a 3 year old 1.6L in a beautiful beige over a brown one of the same year. When I traded it for the Montego Turbo in 1992, it had already started to rust pretty badly in the door bottoms and on the leading edges of both rear arches.
Hi, yeah ive read it, any pics of the Turbo? Corrosion was always an issue, sometimes in random places 😁
Sadly not. Any pics I had were lost in a messy divorce in 2001@@RetroRatchet
It was this video that made me notice your channel. Given the rarity of the car, I'd say restore it to standard spec. 😃
Cheers, welcome, hope you enjoy the content!
@@RetroRatchet I have been! 😃 Out of interest, what was the deal you got? The thumbnail says it was free: were you given the car as long as you promised to save it and put it back on the road?
That’s the one AR colour I could never understand - it’s a sort ‘bl**dy poo’ colour. Imagine coming home from the dealer in a poo brown car, and presenting it to the family………Makes me wonder how this, champagne beige and those peculiar almost flat blue colours (there was a navy, which was popular on Metros and Acclaims, and later a grey/sky blue, which I think was mainly a Metro/Maestro colour) were presented to senior management for signing off. However that said, it’s great to see an early Monty in a period colour. For all my criticisms of some of the dodgy colours, I love ‘em! Looking forward to seeing how it progresses! Don’t change the colour!!!
Haha cheers mate, yeah difficult to understand the thought process, although the same happens now!
I like the dolomites in this colour too 🤫
I think keeping it totally standard will be the best step.
Yeah most probably will 👍🏻👍🏻
Why?? I remember sales reps being in tears when they were assigned a Montego instead of a Sierra or Cavalier.
Haha, nostalgia, and someone needs to save them 🤣
Subscribed. My only friendly observation is your presentation style is excellent - you are really easy to listen to and the pace you deliver at is spot on👍 But the constant backing music actually interferes with all of this and makes it harder to listen to all your good stuff imo - which of course is neither right nor wrong, it's just my opinion. Looking forward to following the project and I won't comment on the music again now I've said my 2p worth😂
Hello, thanks for subscribing, hope you enjoy the content, yeah the backing music gets mixed opinions, part 2 which is airing on Sat, ive notched it down a bit during talking, might be a better compromise 😊
My Dad had one new in the 1980's, a silver 2.0lt HLS. From what I remember it ate up the miles in comfort and itcwas brisk. Seem to remember it had quite a few cam shaft problems under warranty. Also also changing the alternator was a problem as the service panel in the off side wing didn't align up properly. Pretty sure the 2.0 used a Honda gearbox?
Yes my 2 litre Turbo has a Honda gearbox.
Wonder what the issue with the cams were?
The HLS spec was replaced, I think, by the Mayfair in about 1986.
Yeah they didnt make them for a very long period of time 🫤
Im 18 and just traded my estate montego for a 89 saloon gsi, off the road since 07, getting a full run down get it back on the roads
Great to hear someone your age with one, my first car was a 1982 metro hle !
Yeah I've always loved the idea of restoring a classic car since a kid so I bit the bullet on the monty and uts coming along great so far
I've always thought a vag 1.8t would make a good swap for these as the 1.6's used a VW box so mounting should be relatively simple and the engines are both reliable and well supported for parts. Always had a love for montegos as my dad had three and did probably a good half a million miles between them without issues, 2 only died cos they got written off by others and the third one made it to 225,000 miles before he sold it for something newer.
Yeah they were popular mile munchers back in the day, especially the diesels
didn't know you could get a 2.0 in a austin model, thought it was only in the MG models
Yeah u got a vandenplas too, pretty rare tho
If you need any bits mate there is a rover garage in my village that I'm sure could possibly help you with parts maybe
Cheers, i bet lots of these places have bits stored away unlisted
Subbed yah
Cheers, hope u enjoy 👍🏻
I’ve got a pair of montego wing mirrors if you are in need
Thanks mate for the offer, i found them in the box of bits 😬
i was never a fan of the O series, i had the 1.7 in a princess that had appetite for engine oil and later had an ambassador 2.0 which was marginally better
Yeah they werent that robust were they
@@RetroRatchet ok at higher revs but high revs alien to me as i like low down pullers so i preferred the older 1800 and 2200 engines
They were awful new, Doubt it’s got better LOL
haha, I think in 2024, they are just more involved to drive unlike modern stuff
The background music is too intrusive and isn’t necessary 😟