101-776: The Rover SD1 is both the code name and eventual production name given to a series of executive cars built by the Specialist Division (later the Jaguar-Rover-Triumph division), and finally the Austin Rover division of British Leyland from 1976 until 1986, when it was replaced by the Rover 800 . The SD1 was marketed under various names. In 1977 it won the European Car of the Year title. In "SD1",
202-458: A "bodyshell dispute" at the company's Castle Bromwich plant. Closer to home, the car and its design team received The Midlander of the Year Award for 1976, because they had between them done most in the year to increase the prestige of the (English) Midlands region. Poor construction quality was apparent even in the company's press department fleet. The British magazine Motor published
303-470: A 300-acre (120 ha) site and employs over 9,000 people in manufacturing. Originally two farms, Wharhall and Fordrove, were purchased in 1936 by the British Government on which to build a shadow factory in preparation for any potential war with Nazi Germany . Construction was started almost immediately, with the factory complete as a shell and placed in mothballs in late 1938. At
404-465: A Class C win at Gingerman Raceway in 24 Hours of LeMons Endurance Racing Series. Rover SD1s fitted with V8 engines were highly popular with many police forces in the United Kingdom , with forces across England, Scotland and Wales operating SD1s extensively throughout the 1970s and 1980s, primarily for use on traffic police duties on major roads and motorways . Police specification SD1s had
505-561: A European organization founded to test car safety. The term was coined in the 1960s to describe cars targeted at successful professionals and middle-to-senior managers. It was used by businesses as an incentive for employees in senior roles and to exploit Britain and Europe's tax schemes as a company owned vehicle. Early executive cars typically offered engines with displacements of 2.0–3.5 L (122–214 cu in), compared with 1.6–2.4 L (98–146 cu in) for an equivalent sized—but less luxurious—"large family car". Prior to
606-482: A cost of £100m. A test track for demonstrating the Land Rover's off-road ability to visiting guests was opened in 1949. The original track started at the boiler house and ran over the numerous wartime air raid shelters. It is believed to be the first purpose-built off-road demonstration track for public use. The majority of the air raid shelter track had been built over with new factory buildings by 1956. To overcome
707-411: A famous racing driver and team manager during (in particular) the 1930s, 1950s and 1960s – in which Mays explained why, after driving it for 12,000 miles, he considered his Rover 3500 was "the best car he [had] ever had", both for its many qualities as a driver's car and for its excellent fuel economy even when driven hard. Similar ventilation problems persisted until 1980 and were reported in tests of
808-465: A model whose success would ultimately secure the plant's future in later decades. The factory was extended with Eastworks in 1975 for the new Rover SD1 , a bold and futuristic design which would replace the older P6 models. However the plant was ravaged by the industrial strife that had crippled (and eventually bankrupted) the rest of BL, and the resulting quality problems meant the car never fulfilled its promise. The rationalisation of car production in
909-694: A new "skeletal" version of the Rover badge would appear on the bonnet - Bache was keen that the SD1 should make use of the latest industrial design trends and be a clean break from the past. An estate body had been envisaged, but it did not get beyond the prototype stage. Two similarly specified estates have survived, and are exhibited at the Heritage Motor Centre and the Haynes International Motor Museum respectively. One
1010-454: A number of parts which had not been available for some time could again be bought new. The Rover SD1 saw considerable success in Group A touring car racing in the mid-1980s. Among its major successes were: In touring car racing , the 3.5 L Rover V8 engine produced approximately 340 bhp (254 kW; 345 PS) by 1986. The SD1 also saw use as a rally car in 1984 and 1985, contesting
1111-426: A range of new wheel trims and alloy wheels. The automatic gearbox was now a French built GM Turbo-Hydramatic 180 model ( TH180 ), still offering three speeds but better ratios. The electric window switch pack moved from the centre console to the driver's door (and is well remembered for lacking edge finishing trim around the recesses), and a fully automatic choke appeared – eliminating the manual choke lever which had
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#17327758278411212-492: A rather bright metallic "Triton" green amongst others with either gold or silver-painted alloy wheels depending on the body color. Interior specification included air-conditioning, thick luxurious carpets, velour seats and a headlamp wash/wipe system. This now very rare model was replaced in late 1980 with the Vanden Plas (VP) model, which came with a leather interior as standard. In 1980 Rover obtained US type approval for
1313-496: A road test of an automatic 3500 in January 1977, and while keen to highlight the Rover's general excellence, they also reported that the test car suffered from poor door seals, with daylight visible from inside past the rear door window frame's edge on the left side of the car, and a curious steering vibration at speed which might (or might not) have resulted from the car's front wheels not having been correctly balanced. Disappointment
1414-462: A taxation threshold. This broadened the SD1 range and made it more affordable to potential buyers, giving British Leyland an all-round rival to the Ford Granada , which had always featured a four-cylinder version, although unlike the SD1 or earlier P6 had never been available with a V8 engine. The Rover 2000 was not particularly fast, with a continental magazine stating that the most one could say
1515-533: A tendency to break. 1982 was also the year when SD1 buyers could finally opt for a four-cylinder engine since the two-litre BL O-Series engine of the Morris Ital was now fitted to the car, now called the Rover 2000 - marking the first time an engine from the Austin-Morris division of BL would appear in a Rover. The engine was particularly aimed at company car fleets where its size enabled it to beat
1616-618: A version of the fuel injected federalized engine with 106 kW (142 hp). Despite the necessary modifications, Rover chose not to set up an assembly plant in the US but built and shipped the cars from the Solihull factory. The SD1 gained positive reviews in the American press and was competitively priced against rivals such as the BMW 5 Series and corresponding Mercedes-Benzes . Nevertheless,
1717-549: Is " Obere Mittelklasse " (lit. upper-middle class) as defined by the German federal authorities. Luxury cars larger than this are referred to as Oberklasse ("upper class"). Mercedes-Benz has produced large luxury cars since the early 1900s. Following World War II, Mercedes Benz's first all-new models were the Mercedes-Benz W120 executive cars. This lineage continues through to the present and has been marketed as
1818-759: The Chrysler 300 was marketed in Europe as the Lancia Thema. Maserati's first executive is the Maserati Ghibli , which has been in production since 2013. Toyota has been producing large luxury cars since the 1955 Crown was released. The Crown remains in production today and is currently in its fifteenth generation. In 1991, the Crown-derived Aristo began production, and from 1993 until 2020 were marketed under Toyota's luxury sub-brand as
1919-799: The Ford Cortina . The car was warmly received by the press and even received the European Car of the Year award for 1977. Its launch on the European mainland coincided with its appearance at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1977, some three months after the Car of the Year announcement. Dealers had no left-hand drive cars for sale, however, since production had been blocked by a tool makers' strike affecting several British Leyland plants and
2020-817: The Ford Scorpio was released, being sold in the U.K. as a Ford Granada until 1994. Vauxhall entered the executive car market with the 1978 Vauxhall Carlton and related Vauxhall Royale/Senator , which were based on the Opel Rekord E. In 1986, the Vauxhall Carlton Mark II switched to the German-built Opel Omega A, which was replaced in 1994 by the Vauxhall Omega (a rebadged version of the Opel Omega B). In
2121-470: The Honda Legend and had a front-wheel drive layout. In 1999, the 800 series was replaced by the Rover 75 , which was produced until 2005. The 75 straddled the executive and compact executive categories due to its size, although a long wheelbase version was available. The first executive car to be badged a Triumph was the 1946–1954 Triumph 1800/2000/Renown versions. Triumph's next and final entry to
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#17327758278412222-791: The Lancia Lambda , Lancia Artena , and Lancia Aprilia . The Lancia Flavia was an executive car that began production in 1961 and was replaced by the Lancia 2000 in 1971. The 2000 was replaced by the Lancia Gamma , which was released in 1976. In 1984, the Gamma was replaced by the Lancia Thema , then the Lancia Kappa in 1994. The Lancia Thesis , produced from 2001-2009 is the last executive car produced by Lancia. From 2011–2015,
2323-587: The Lexus GS . Nissan's longest-running executive car began production in 1959 as the Prince Gloria , which was later renamed the Nissan Gloria, following the merger of Nissan and Prince. The Gloria was produced for 12 generations until 2004. Another Nissan executive car was the 1960 Cedric , which was produced until 2004 (although a taxi/fleet version remained in production until 2015). The Cedric
2424-583: The Mercedes-Benz E-Class since 1993. The Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class four-door fastback was added to the company's model range in 2004, with a shooting brake body style also produced from 2012-2017. BMW's first large luxury car was the 1936–1941 BMW 326 . After a hiatus of 21 years, BMW's next executive car models were the 1962 New Class Sedans . In 1972, the New Class was replaced by the BMW 5 Series , which remains in production today. Over
2525-461: The Rover 800 Series in 1986 and would be the replacement for the SD1. Early in 1982, Rover unveiled the Cowley-built, facelifted line to the public (although the final Series 1s were also built at Cowley). These cars benefited mostly from small cosmetic changes on the exterior as well as a quite extensively redesigned interior. The biggest interior change was to the instrument binnacle, which
2626-697: The Rover P6 and the Triumph 2000 /2500. The designers of both Triumph and Rover submitted proposals for the new car known as the Triumph Puma and Rover P10 respectively, of which the latter was chosen. David Bache was to head the design team, inspired by exotic machinery such as the Ferrari Daytona and 365 GTC/4 , and the late 1960s design study by Pininfarina for the BMC 1800 , which also guided
2727-685: The Rover P6 car in October 1963. The Rover P6 was awarded the International Car of the Year for 1964. The Rover Company merged with Leyland Motors in 1967, which merged shortly afterwards with British Motor Holdings to create the British Leyland Motor Corporation a year later. Solihull continued to manufacture Rover cars, but the most significant new Rover product would be the Range Rover in 1970 -
2828-850: The Sentia , which was produced until 1999. The Millenia , also sold as the Xedos 9 and the Eunos 800, was produced from 1993 until 2002. Honda introduced their first executive car, the Legend (sold as the Acura Legend in the United States) in 1985. The Legend was produced until 2012, and then from 2014 until 2021. It is believed that the standard of Korean Executive Cars came from the 3rd generation Hyundai Grandeur model launched in 1998. Previous models, Kia Potentia and Hyundai Grandeur, belonged to
2929-533: The Volvo 760 in 1982 and then the Volvo 960 in 1994. The 960 was renamed the S90 (sedan models) and V90 (wagon models) in 1996. The Volvo S80 was released in 1998, and was replaced in 2016 by a new generation of Volvo S90 / V90 sedans and wagons that presently remain in production. Daimler Company produced luxury cars in various sizes starting in the late 1890s. The lineage that led to their executive cars began with
3030-495: The speedometer moved to the centre of the dashboard for visibility from both the driver and passenger seats, had painted trim on the front bumpers replaced with matt black, and received uprated four-piston front brakes and an automatic transmission. As was the case with civilian SD1s, police specification SD1s tended to suffer from build quality issues, with some forces opting to retire their fleet of SD1s early and purchasing Ford Granadas and Vauxhall Senators to replace them. Near
3131-480: The "SD" refers to "Specialist Division" and "1" is the first car to come from the in-house design team. The SD1 was the final Rover-badged vehicle to be produced at Solihull . Future Rover models would be built at the former British Motor Corporation factories at Longbridge and Cowley . In 1971, Rover , at that time a part of the British Leyland (BL) group, began developing a new car to replace both
Rover SD1 - Misplaced Pages Continue
3232-517: The 1923–1929 Daimler 16 and Daimler 16/55 models, which were followed in 1932 by the Daimler Fifteen . The Fifteen was replaced by the 1937 Daimler New Fifteen and then the 1939 Daimler Consort (originally called the "Daimler 2½ Litre"). The Consort was replaced by the 1953–1958 Daimler Conquest . In 1962, the Daimler 2.5 V8 (later renamed the "Daimler V8-250") was released, based on
3333-506: The 1930s. Peugeot began producing large cars in the early 1900s. Following the Peugeot 601 being discontinued in 1935, Peugeot ceased production of large cars until the Peugeot 604 was introduced in 1975. The 604 was replaced by the Peugeot 605 in 1989, which in turn was replaced by the Peugeot 607 in 1999. Following the end of the 607's production run in 2010, Peugeot no longer produces any executive cars. Citroën's first large car
3434-709: The 1980 model year, the American version of the 3532 cc V8 used in the Triumph TR8 produced 133 hp with carburetors, except in California where it produced 137 hp with fuel injection. Beginning in June 1980, the American version of the Rover 3500 produced 148 hp with fuel injection, while the European version of the Rover SD1 produced 155 hp with carburetors. For the 1981 model year, both the Rover 3500 and Triumph TR8 produced 148 hp with fuel injection, and 1981 would be
3535-472: The 1982 Rover SD1 Vitesse was launched with 192 hp. strike: [Publicity material claimed it was capable of reaching 148 hp (SAE) at 5100 rpm but the car as sold actually peaked at 133 hp (at 5000 rpm). ] Since August 1978, a carbureted engine, with antismog equipment, had already been on sale in Australia with 102 kW (137 hp). Beginning in the 1981 model year, Australia received
3636-587: The 1990s, executive cars were typically sedans , however in recent years they have also been produced in other body styles, such as estates ( station wagons ), convertibles , coupés , and five-door hatch versions. They typically need to be "comfortable, refined and display some form of driving pleasure" on occasion. In general, executive cars are 4-door saloons , though may include estate , 5-door hatchback or 2-door coupé variants. Rover , Saab , Renault and Citroën formerly have been known to prefer hatchbacks, with Ford also offering alternatives through
3737-588: The 1990s. Audi , BMW and later Mercedes-AMG have recently offered hatchbacks as separate models for their executive cars since 2010s. One of the first Chinese-built executive cars was the 2006 Roewe 750 , based on the Rover 75 . In 2012, the Roewe 950 was introduced, which is a re-bodied version of the 2010 Buick LaCrosse . In 2020, BYD Han officially goes on sale in China. Several overseas brands have produced long wheelbase versions of cars specifically for
3838-533: The 2300 and 2600 were added; the V8-S was a short-lived model introduced later (remembered for its headlamp wipers, gold alloys and the option of bright metallic "Triton" green paint), and dropped before the first mild facelift, after which the range was 2300, 2300 S, 2600 S, 3500 SE and 3500 Vanden Plas. The 2000 appeared at the time of the major facelift, with 2400 SD-Turbo, 2600 SE, 2600 Vanden Plas, Vitesse and 3500 Vanden Plas EFi appearing at various times afterwards. At
3939-496: The British Leyland/Austin Rover venture with Honda , which had been in development since 1981 as "Project XX" and also formed the basis of the Honda Legend . Despite production ending in 1986, stocks of new SD1s remained available well into 1987, with the latest civilian spec examples were registered under the "E" registration prefix, with some stockpiled police specifications being registered even later,
4040-544: The British Rally Championship in the hands of Tony Pond . Pond won the Group A category of the 1985 championship, but the car was retired at the end of the season in favour of the Group B MG Metro 6R4 . In 2022 David Coxon, Captain of Test Card F led his team to IOE Victory, the highest honor in 24 Hours of LeMons Endurance Racing Series. In 2024 David Coxon, Captain of Test Card F led his team to
4141-730: The Chevrolet Impala was launched, but was discontinued. Renault Korea sold the SM7 based on the Nissan Teana from 2004 to 2020. In the Korean market, semi-large cars boast significant sales volume as a symbol of the middle class, and the Hyundai Grandeur ranks high in sales in the Korean automobile market. Currently, the semi-large business sedan models sold in the Korean market include Hyundai Grandeur and Kia K8 , and
Rover SD1 - Misplaced Pages Continue
4242-522: The Chinese market, due to the preference Chinese owners have for being driven by a chauffeur. Examples include the "XF L" version of the 2016 Jaguar XF (X260) , the "Li" version of the 2017 BMW 5 Series (G30) and other models from Audi, Mercedes-Benz, and Volvo. In France, executive cars are known as " Routière ", a class of comfortable long-distance cars that first emerged on the French market in
4343-649: The Exeo, which is basically a rebadged Audi A4 on the B7 platform, with some minor modifications to the front and rear fascias. Although it was not an E-segment vehicle but a segment D. It remained successful as a company car until 2013. Also, it was used as a police cruiser for the Guardia Civil highway corps. It was available in sedan and station wagon variants. It was the first vehicle from the brand equipped with diesel direct common raíl injection. Saab's first executive car
4444-513: The Indian version of the SD1 – powered by an elderly 2.0 L engine with only 83 hp (62 kW), and with raised suspension – was a failure since the under-powered engine did not justify the high price. Standard ceased car manufacture soon after. The factory was secured after production ceased with Rimmer Brothers acquiring the entire stock of unused parts for resale in the UK. This has meant that
4545-428: The Jaguar Mark 2. In 1966, the Daimler Sovereign was introduced, based on the Jaguar 420. The Sovereign and V8-250 were produced alongside each other until they both ended production in 1969. Jaguar began production of executive cars in 1935 with the first of the Jaguar Mark IV models. These were replaced by the 1948–1951 Jaguar Mark V . The Mark V's successor increased in size to the full-size luxury car segment, so
4646-434: The P6, the design of which was rather complicated in areas such as the De Dion-type rear suspension . The SD1 used a simple live rear axle instead. This different approach was chosen because surveys showed that although the automotive press was impressed by sophisticated and revolutionary designs the general buying public was not unless the results were good. However, with the live rear axle came another retrograde step –
4747-427: The Rover V8 engine to be used in the SD1 (as well as other models) but the problematic development programme was cancelled in 1983 in favour of engines bought-in from outside manufacturers. The flagship model was created when Rover introduced a 190 bhp (142 kW; 193 PS) fuel-injected version of its V8. Applying technologies pioneered in the US and Australian markets (where strict emissions regulations meant
4848-400: The SD1 and Triumph TR7, was mothballed, and was finally brought back into use in 1997 for the Land Rover Freelander and in 2016 for the Jaguar XE and F-PACE . 1981 also saw the beginning of "Project XX" – a venture between BL and Honda for a new executive car expected to replace the SD1, although it was not anticipated for production until the mid-1980s. Project XX ultimately emerged as
4949-509: The SD1 and re-entered the American market after a ten-year absence. The car was only made available as a single variant, using a modified version of the V8 engine and badged simply as "Rover 3500". The equipment and trim levels were similar to that of the UK market's then top-of-the-range V8-S model. The main differences were a smaller steering wheel, the manually operated sunroof being a cost option and rear passenger head restraints were not available at all. Small Union Jack badges were fixed to
5050-423: The SD1 features an air vent, unusually, directly facing the passenger. The display binnacle sits on top of the dashboard in front of the driver to aid production in left-hand drive markets, since it avoided the expense of producing two different dashboard mouldings for LHD and RHD versions. The air vent doubles as a passage for the steering-wheel column, and the "podular" display binnacle can be easily fitted on top of
5151-428: The SD1 in the US are open to speculation. The weak value of the American dollar against European currencies at the time rendered imports relatively expensive in comparison to a home-built product. A significant rise in oil prices during 1979 led to many motorists opting for more fuel-efficient cars. Public awareness of the SD1 may have been low as the dealership network across America was small, while Rover's expenditure on
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#17327758278415252-411: The Solihull plant has remained the home and birthplace of Land Rover ever since, being the principal assembly plant for both the classic Land Rover (both Series and Defender ) and the full-size Range Rover for their entire production runs. North Works was added to the Solihull site beginning in late 1956 as two storage warehouses. North Works became a complete factory of its own for the introduction of
5353-427: The Solihull plant if their own was not viable to use at the war's end and in 1945 the Rover Company officially relocated from Coventry to the Lode Lane plant. As in the tradition of Rover previous main factories dating back to the original Starley and Sutton Rover Bicycle plant from Victorian times, the Solihull plant was named The Meteor Works. Car production started again in 1946, with the first new car to be produced at
5454-443: The TR7. It was largely funded by the British government, who had bailed BL out from bankruptcy in 1975. Unfortunately, this did nothing to improve the patchy build quality that then plagued all of British Leyland. That, along with quick-wearing interior materials and poor detailing ensured that initial enthusiasm soon turned to disappointment. This car was launched on its home market in June 1976 in hatchback / fastback form only, as
5555-454: The United States, executive cars are referred to as full-sized cars. The first executive car produced by a Vietnamese company is the VinFast LUX A2.0 , which debuted at the 2018 Paris Motor Show. Production started in 2019 and it achieved success in the Vietnamese domestic car market. Solihull plant Solihull plant is a car manufacturing factory in Lode Lane, Lode Heath, Solihull , UK, owned by Jaguar Land Rover . The plant sits on
5656-426: The V8-S version. Another area of concern was flaking paint on early models, forcing British Leyland to spend a lot of money on repainting cars. In television shows John Steed in The New Avengers and George Cowley in The Professionals both used yellow Rover 3500 models. Between 1976 and 1981 there were some very minor updates to the car including new badging (front and rear) and chrome backed door mirrors -
5757-416: The V8-engined Rover 3500: SOHC 2.3 L and 2.6 L sixes followed in November 1977, when the Rover P6 and Triumph 2000 were finally discontinued. Although there was no four-cylinder version of the SD1 at this point, British Leyland produced 1.8, 2.0 and 2.2 versions of the smaller Princess in order to compete with the entry-level versions of the Ford Granada , as well as more expensive versions of
5858-491: The Vitesse, but later withdrew the option and lured the customers to the plush Vanden Plas EFi instead which had all the standard comforts of the Vitesse, such as electric mirrors, windows and locks, a trip computer, headlight washers, an adjustable steering column and a four-speaker stereo (something special at that time). Additionally, it added as standard leather seats (velour cloth was a no-cost option), an electrically operated sunroof (available on all models) and cruise control;
5959-576: The aforementioned modifications, testing, and approval for the US market left limited budget for publicity and advertising. (To save money the official press launch was combined with that of the Triumph TR8 .) Major restructuring of BL following the Ryder Report resulted in the SD1 production line being moved to the former Morris plant in Cowley in 1981. The Solihull plant was turned over to produce Land Rover models, following on from that marque's separation from Rover in 1978. The hugely expensive extension to Solihull, which had been built specifically for
6060-423: The brand was dissolved in 1967. Rover entered the executive car market in 1948 with the Rover P3 . The P3 was replaced by the Rover P4 in 1949, which was produced until 1964. The 1963 Rover P6 was the next executive car produced by Rover, which was replaced by the Rover SD1 in 1976 (marketed as the Standard 2000 in India). The SD1 was replaced by the 1986 Rover 800 series , which was a jointly developed with
6161-407: The car achieved just 480 sales between its launch in June 1980 and the end of that year. The whole of 1981 attracted 774 sales, although most of these cars had actually been built and stockpiled the previous year. Rover ceased the supply of American market SD1s at the end of 1981, although unsold cars remained available from dealers well into the following year. Reasons for the commercial failure of
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#17327758278416262-440: The car was fitted with drum brakes at the rear. Rover's plans to use a new 2.2-litre DOHC 16-valve Slant-Four engine with Bosch L-Jetronic fuel injection were soon abandoned as BL management ruled that substantially redesigned versions of Triumph's six-cylinder engine were to power the car instead. The Rover V8 engine was fitted in the engine bay. The three-speed automatic gearbox was the BorgWarner 65 model. The dashboard of
6363-417: The dashboard on either the left or right-hand side of the car. This concept was not entirely new; it had also been used on the Range Rover and was used again on the Mk.1 Austin Metro , both of which were also designed by David Bache. The interior of the Series 1 was notable for its lack of wood embellishment in comparison to previous Rover saloons, with an extensive use instead of modern soft-feel plastics, and
6464-432: The design of the Citroën CX . Spen King was responsible for the engineering. The two had previously collaborated on the Range Rover . The project was first code-named RT1 (for Rover Triumph Number 1) but then soon changed to SD1 (for Specialist Division Number 1) as Rover and Triumph were put in the new "Specialist Division" of British Leyland. The new car was designed with simplicity of manufacture in mind in contrast to
6565-526: The end of the SD1's production, some unsold Vanden Plas 2300 and 2600 SD1s were painted white and fitted out to police specification. Executive car Executive car is a British term for a large car, and is considered equivalent to the European E-segment and American full-size classifications. Executive cars are larger than compact executive cars (and the non-luxury equivalent mid-size cars ), but smaller than luxury saloons / full-size luxury sedans . The term has also been adopted by Euro NCAP ,
6666-403: The executive car market was the 1963–1977 Triumph 2000 , which was a sales success in Britain. Ford Europe's first executive car was the 1950 Ford Zephyr . The Zephyr— and related Consul, Zodiac, and Executive models— were produced over four generations until 1972. The 1972 Ford Granada was initially built in the United Kingdom before switching to being imported from Germany in 1976. In 1985,
6767-399: The executive car segment in 1975 with the Renault 20/30 models. They were replaced, in 1983, by the Renault 25 which featured a fastback rear end. In 1992, the 25 was replaced by the Renault Safrane . The Safrane was replaced by the Renault Vel Satis hatchback in 2002, which in turn was replaced by the Latitude in 2010 and later the Talisman . The equivalent class for cars in Germany
6868-400: The factory the Rover P4 , from 1949. As well as producing many Rover cars there until the late 1970s, the plant was also the development site of the Land Rover four-wheel drive vehicle in late 1947 and 1948. It is also the development site for Rover's other four wheel drive in the late 1960s, the Range Rover. The Land Rover instantly began out selling Rover cars from its beginning in 1948 and
6969-406: The fastback version of the 800 arrived in 1988. The Rover V8 engine remained in volume production and continued to be used in Land Rover products until 2003. The car was never marketed as the "SD1". The models produced (throughout the life of the range, not all at once) were usually named according to their engine size. The initial June 1976 launch was for the 3500 only. A little over a year later
7070-468: The first Rover-built Hercules engine in October 1940. The factory became a guarded and fortified location, and air raid shelters are still in the grounds of the plant. The oldest part of the Rover factory is the present day South Works, with its late 1930s art deco facade still with wartime camouflage. The engines were to be used in either planes or tanks, specifically Bristol Beaufighters and Handley Page Halifaxes , but mainly Short Stirlings . Locally,
7171-424: The front glass panels. Also larger, heavier bumpers were required, increasing the overall length to 191 inches (4850 mm). American emissions regulations necessitated replacing the carburetors with Lucas' L-Jetronic fuel injection system , using dual catalytic converters , using a modified exhaust manifold and adding antismog equipment. The engine's compression ratio was modified to 8.13:1. Beginning in
7272-521: The inclusion of high compression carburetted engines was not feasible) the new derivative was originally only available in the Vitesse model, but from 1984 onwards it was also offered in the luxury Vanden Plas range, badged as the Vanden Plas EFi. To meet the demands of the luxury executive car market, where automatic transmission tended to be preferred, Rover first offered an auto as an option in
7373-724: The large car position and were shopper-driven, but were relegated to owner-driven from the XG model. Afterward, the launch of Kia Opirus and Daewoo Magnus formed the semi-large car market. In the 2000s, Daewoo Motors (now GM KOREA) sold the Holden Commodore under the name Daewoo Statesman from the Australian Holden company and sold the Holden Caprice as the follow-up model as the Daewoo Veritas. Afterwards,
7474-576: The last year for both models in the United States. Fuel injection for the 3532 cc V8 Rover engine was first introduced in the Triumph TR8 (137 hp) intended for California, and then introduced in the Rover 3500 (148 hp) later in the year when it was launched in America. Fuel injection for the Rover V8 was introduced in Europe, along with other modifications such as having a hotter camshaft, when
7575-464: The late 1970s by British Leyland had almost wiped out all their major British car brands. At Solihull all car production, except for Land Rover vehicles, ceased at Lode Lane. Land Rover and Range Rover as specialist lines of the old Rover Company had remained relatively unscathed from the British Leyland bankruptcy and were split as separate operating company based there. The Rover SD1 assembly hall and paint shop were mothballed, and production of that car
7676-518: The lower section of each front wing, just ahead of the doors, to promote the car's British origins. Canadian market cars had V8 badges instead of the Union Jack. The five-speed manual gearbox was supplied as standard, with the three-speed automatic version being a cost option. US safety legislation (that first applied to the Citroën DS ) demanded that the headlamp arrangement exclude
7777-625: The luxury brand is the Genesis G80 . SEAT's first executive car was the 1963–1973 SEAT 1500 , then in 1973, it launched the 132 which was the same FIAT 131 of the era since all cars from the brand were produced under license from FIAT. It was produced until 1982 when it was replaced by the Málaga in 1984, which was the first to be produced in-house entirely, to be replaced afterward with the Toledo, in 1991. Many years later, in 2009, SEAT launched
7878-818: The majority of engines were shipped to the Austin Motors Elmdon factory at Cofton Hackett , part of the Longbridge plant , which produced the Stirling. In 2010 as part of the Land Rover Legacy Project, the Heritage Motor Centre sponsored a project to research and note the history of the factory. Rover's main Coventry car factory had been extensively damaged during the Nazi bombing of Coventry. Rover had negotiated an option to use
7979-458: The motoring press at the time. Rover 'hid' the power increase as they couldn't afford to re-homologate the engine for their touring car racing programme. The 'plug-was-pulled' early and out of a planned production run of 500 cars somewhere between 200 and 250 are known to have been produced. The SD1 continued until the launch of its successor, the Rover 800 Series , in July 1986, the third product of
8080-581: The next executive car was the 1955 Jaguar Mark 1 . In 1959, the Mark 1 was replaced by the Jaguar Mark 2 . In 1963, the Jaguar S-Type was introduced and sold alongside the Mark 2. Both models were replaced by the 1966-1968. The Jaguar XJ series began in 1968 and received updates (with a redesign in 2010) until 2019. Following a 30-year hiatus from the executive car market, Jaguar returned in 1998 with
8181-602: The old SD1 assembly hall. In 2000, the situation changed once again when BMW (by now the owners of the Rover Group - the successor to BL) decided to sell Land Rover (and the Solihull plant) to Ford . In 2005, production of the Range Rover and the Range Rover Sport at the Solihull plant was temporarily interrupted by protestors from the environmental organization Greenpeace . The protesters infiltrated an assembly facility and temporarily delayed production of
8282-434: The only option being air-conditioning. The SD1 twin-plenum Vitesse was produced as a homologation special to aid the model's performance for the 1986 European Touring Car Championship season, and featured a new twin, side-entry throttle plenum fuel injection system. Although Rover quoted no power increase in their brochures, power output was actually increased to somewhere between 210 to 220 brake horse power as reported in
8383-582: The outbreak of World War II in September 1939, the factory was allocated to the Coventry -based Rover Company , who were assigned the task to build Bristol Hercules engines. Named No.2 Solihull , after starting fitting out initial production was undertaken in Acocks Green , with machined parts supplied from Drakelow . Rover took possession of the fitted-out factory in January 1940, and produced
8484-717: The production of vehicles such as the Land Rover Defender as they are typically used for off-road applications on a much more frequent basis than vehicles such as the Range Rover Sport which they claim "has been tuned primarily for on road performance". In March 2008, Ford finalised a deal to sell Jaguar and Land Rover to Tata Motors – part of the Indian-based Tata Group, one of the world's largest manufacturers of commercial vehicles. Solihull has since benefited from massive investment in
8585-498: The retro-styled S-Type . The S-Type was replaced by the 2007 Jaguar XF (X250) and then the 2015 Jaguar XF (X260) , which currently remains in production. Humber's first executive car was the 1945 Humber Hawk . The Hawk was available with features such as two-tone and metallic paintwork, leather upholstery, wood trim, and a sunroof. Production of the Hawk, along with the similarly sized Humber Super Snipe and Imperial , ceased when
8686-473: The run up to the launch of the fourth generation Range Rover in 2012 and second generation Range Rover Sport in 2013, following the installation of a new aluminium bodyshell production facility. The plant has now been designated as a "centre for excellence" for aluminium body technology. Production of the Jaguar XE , the first non-4x4 vehicle to be produced at the plant since 1981, began on 13 April 2015, and
8787-630: The seven generations of the 5 Series, it has been produced in sedan, wagon, and four-door hatchback body styles. The first large luxury car produced by Audi was the Audi 100 , which was released in 1968. The Audi 100 was replaced by the Audi A6 in 1994, which remains in production today. In 2010, the Audi A7 four-door fastback model range was added. The Ford Granada is an executive car produced by Ford Europe from 1972-1994. Fiat's first large luxury car
8888-431: The traditional-style Rover Longship emblem returned for the 1981 model year, thus replacing the 'skeletal' version, although the latter continued to be used on the hubcaps, and indeed a variant of this Rover logo was later used as a hubcap emblem on both the later SD3 Rover 200 and Rover 800 models as late as 1989. 1979 also saw the introduction of the then range-topping V8-S model with no mechanical alterations, available in
8989-483: The two series by the headlights, which were chrome-rimmed and flush fitting on the Series 2, recessed on the Series 1, the deeper rear window, now fitted with a rear wash wipe, and the new plastic wrap around bumpers which replaced the three-piece rubber and stainless steel ones. Other details, which are not as easy to assign include the full-width rear badge strip under the tail lights, engine size badges on front wings, and
9090-468: The vehicle. Greenpeace cited issues with greenhouse gas emissions , and by extension, global warming . The United States Environmental Protection Agency estimates for the non-supercharged car are 14 mpg ‑US (17 L/100 km; 17 mpg ‑imp ) (combined). Although for this test the EPA used their newly calibrated system for 2008 and on. Greenpeace stated they did not take issue with
9191-564: The very end of the life of the car the range was briefly reduced to 2300, 2600 Vanden Plas, and Vitesse (now with a flush chin spoiler, deleted front fog lights, 190 bhp (140 kW) and deleted side graphics) After its replacement by the Rover 800 series in the UK in 1986, the SD1 emerged in India as the "Standard 2000". From 1985 to 1988, it was assembled at the now-defunct Standard factory in Madras ( renamed Chennai in 1996). However,
9292-586: Was followed by production of the Jaguar F-Pace in 2016. Sir Stirling Moss , Jaguar test driver Norman Dewis and motoring expert Quentin Willson led a procession of classic Jaguar and Land Rover models to celebrate the beginning of Jaguar production at Solihull, with Stirling Moss formally opening the new production facility. Production of the Jaguar XE moved to Castle Bromwich Assembly in 2016, at
9393-456: Was made both flatter and longer than the original, with the ancillary gauges and digital clock moved out of the driver's line of sight almost over the centre of the dashboard, whilst the dials themselves followed modern practice being under a glass hood instead of being deeply recessed as before. Wood trim on both the dashboard and the door cards were included after criticism that the original interior looked downmarket. Car spotters can distinguish
9494-769: Was moved to the former Morris plant in Cowley, Oxfordshire . All future Rover car production would take place both here, and at the Austin assembly plant in Longbridge. Following the de-merger of Jaguar from BL in 1984, the Range Rover became BL's flagship product and a stable situation existed from thereon, with new models such as the Discovery debuting in 1989, and the Freelander in 1998 - which finally made use of
9595-435: Was recorded that the ventilation outlet directly in front of the driver appeared to be blocked, delivering barely a breeze even when fully open; the writer had encountered this problem on one other Rover 3500, although he had also driven other cars of the same type with an abundant output of fresh air through the vent in question. Nevertheless, in March 1977, Britain's Autocar was able to publish an article by Raymond Mays –
9696-673: Was replaced by the 2004 Fuga , also sold as the Infiniti M from 2003 until 2012, and the Q70 since 2012. Mitsubishi began producing executive cars in 1964 with the Debonair . The Debonair was replaced in 1999 by the Proudia , which was discontinued in 2001 and then returned from 2012 until 2016 as a rebadged Fuga. Mazda's first executive car was the 1969 Luce . In 1991, the Luce was replaced by
9797-527: Was that it was faster than diesel and turbodiesel cars in the same class. Another four-cylinder engine became available in the 90 bhp (67 kW; 91 PS) Rover 2400 SD Turbo . This was the only diesel-engined SD1, utilising the HR492 motor from Italian VM Motori also used in the Range Rover Turbo D model, chosen for its petrol-like smoothness. BL had intended for a diesel version of
9898-529: Was the Fiat 24-32 HP , which was introduced in 1903. Other large luxury Fiats produced before World War II include the Fiat 510 , Fiat 520 , Fiat 527 , and Fiat 2800 . In 1959, the Fiat 1800 and 2100 executive sedans and station wagons were introduced. These models were replaced by the Fiat 2300 in 1961. Fiat's last executive car was the Fiat 130 , which was produced from 1969 until 1977. Lancia produced several large luxury cars prior to World War II, including
9999-521: Was the 1934 Citroën Traction Avant . In 1955, the Traction Avant was replaced by the iconic Citroën DS , which was replaced in 1974 by the Citroën CX and then the 1989 Citroën XM . The XM was discontinued in 2000 and for five years Citroën did not produce an executive car. The 2005 Citroën C6 was produced until 2012, and Citroën has not produced any executive cars since. Renault entered
10100-451: Was the 1984 Saab 9000 , which was produced in sedan and liftback body styles. The 9000 was replaced by the Saab 9-5 . In 2010 the second generation of the 9-5 switched to a platform shared with various General Motors models until Saab went bankrupt in 2012. Volvo began producing executive cars in 1968 with the Volvo 164 . In 1974, the 164 was replaced by the Volvo 260 , which was replaced by
10201-415: Was used by BL chairman Sir Michael Edwardes as personal transport in the late 1970s. The two cars as befit prototypes differ in the detail of and around the tailgate. One car has a recessed tailgate, while the other has a clamshell arrangement, where the whole tailgate is visible when closed. The SD1 was intended to be produced in a state-of-the-art extension to Rover's historic Solihull factory alongside
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