The Rover P5/P5B

[c107]

Just to expand a little on the subject of ownership of my Rovers over the years. There was, of course, a 1964 P5 3 litre Saloon that I purchased in about 1967. It was charcoal in colour, but even then I had a hankering for changing things a little, such as having the bottom part of the car sprayed in Burgundy. Registration No. DRB 303, and the picture was taken at my property in Wahroonga - first home I bought. I was pretty fit in those days, and manhandling a cast iron DG Auto Box did not present too many difficulties.

The Saloon looks nice with the two tone paint you added.

The first photo also features a 1964 Lagonda Rapide - lest you guys are wondering what sort of car it is. You may recall seeing a Lagonda badge on my 3 litre white/lavender Coupe on the radiator grille. Always loved Lagondas, and at one stage I was contemplating purchasing the car pictured, at 1450.00 British Pound sterling.

That Lagonda is an impressive machine. Granted 1450 pounds was a lot of moneyh in 1964, but that car I am sure is worth a lot today.

There is also a Mark IA, 1960 model, which was a great car. I didn't keep it too long - in fact sold it when I bought the white Coupe. In addition, there are four pictures of a P5B Saloon that I really never came to grips with. Wonderfully comfortable interior, especially the seats, but this car bounced all over the place on poorly surfaced roads.

I wonder if any of those three saloons ended up at the flynn auction? There were a few 3 liter saloons and a number of v8 saloons. Given the dilapidated nature of most of them, would have been difficult to recognise them.

That Finnie is a rare model too. Hope the new owner fixed it up instead of breaking it for spares!

BTW: I copied the last post to the P6 thread as well since it had three photos of the cars you described in that thread.

 

[sean sherry]

Great to see the Forum spreading it's wings. Mainly down to Michael and Bryce.
One crop economies are always very vulnerable to the first ill Wind.

 

[Styria]

Bryce, the 300 Finnie was purchased by a Swiss chef who was taking up a post or engagement in the Hunter Valley. When he first established contact (and he was the first person to respond to my Sydney Morning Herald advertisement), he virtually begged me not to sell the car to anyone - not that I had any other phone calls. To this day I still don't know why he bought the car, as it was a non-runner and had been sitting alongside my shed for six months at least. I never heard from him again. BTW, the photo of the Finnie might be in a different section. Regards Styria

 

[Styria]

There are three other cars in that group of four photos - the red 1974 3500S that I had half restored but became a victim of extensive rust and was taken to the Recyclers only about six months ago. There is also a blue 3500Auto that belonged to my father in law and he traded it on a Ford Falcon at Macksville on the North Coast (its whereabouts or subsequent history unknown) and there is also the White 3500S (1976) that had been fitted with the Leyland P76 4.4 litre engine. I should be able to dig up one or two pictures of that car. It became a victim of a fuel/electrical fire that destroyed the car. That was in 1982 and the subject of an unsuccessful NRMA claim. I lost $8000.00 on the non-_payment of the claim by the Insurance Company. Regards Styria

 

[c107]

There is a rather nice P5B Coupe on carsales. Makes that blue one that went for about $14,000 at the flynn auction a real rip off compared to this one at $19,990.

https://www.carsales.com.au/dealer/details/Rover-35-LT-1969/OAG-AD-15782645

 

[c107]

Now contrast this MKIIC similar to the one I sold styria. This guy wants $1,000 and its probably worse than my old one:

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Rare-19...DELIVER-no-reserve-/253511450570?roken=eLe0Nf

 

[c107]

In the theme of rough P5 Coupe's coming into the market here is the latest. This one is a better proposition than the last but would still need extensive refurbishment to body and wood, no mention of mechanicals:

"1962 Rover P5 3.0L Mark 2
$4,000
4506
Regrettable sale, meant to be a bit of a unique project, just dont have the room and time due to unforseen circumstances. 1962 MKII p5 rover, starts, runs & drives, interior is in great condition for its age all leather seems to be aged but no rips, timber venier on doors cracked and need redo, exterior has at some point had a dodgy respray and has some surface rust showing, has a couple of rust spots but not bad. Would be a great project for someone with the time and room to do so."

https://www.facebook.com/groups/245...39590909504929/?sale_post_id=1339590909504929

 

[Styria]

Two totally different cars in condition,both inside and out. The $1K. Car I had seen on Facebook, and I did venture the opinion that it was nothing but crap. It,s one of those cars that you could not even use for spares. Consign it to the recyclers.

The last one, grey, exhibits a certain amount of, shall we call it 'patina' - quite original in most respects but, again, you'd want to spend quite a bit initially to just bring it up to some sort of satisfactory standard. There was also the quite beautiful green Coupe, in very nice condition. New upholstery, although not to the highest standard, and there is also the choice of carpet material chosen for this car. - it is of the wrong texture, and probably fairly poor in quality. I also tend to think that the side-onicture of the car illustrates the overly high front and rear suspension heights which is one of the valid criticisms I have levelled at the P5B V8 model, with the engine being far too light for the standard set up of the car as it was manufactured by the Rover Company. Rgards. Styria

 

[c107]

Nice two tone rover at a recent show:

This one is a nice colour and has the lucas driving lights

 

[c107]

Interesting 3l manual overdrive in the uk. I like the colour combo of burgundy/grey. a little tatty but shows the lines of the car well. for some reason it is sporting a single lucas fog light. I also don't like the mirrors halfway upo the front wings, something you see on a lot of uk market cars. I prefer the on the doors. spoils the lines!

 

[Styria]

Hi Bryce, I had spotted this car on Facebook, and was going to feature it in this thread. Well, you have done it for me, and I certainly appreciate your help. When I first spotted the details of this car, I was almost smitten by its appearance and little story of "re-import" from France etc. I did ask the guy why the import back to Britain, and it's now up for auction on ebay - apparently, shortage of funds is the main criteria.

I hadn't had the benefit of your more comprehensive pictorial coverage, but I find the interior to be untidy and well below what I would look for in a car. Have a closer look at the carpet (such as can be seen), the untidy appearance of the parcel shelf - in short, not the best. Paintwork is fair to good, but notice the left mirror without the mirror in it. It could be a lot better. Regards Styria

 

[Styria]

Whatever it is, very difficult to improve on the looks of this particular V8 Coupe - timeless styling, very similar in scope to a '60s Mercedes Coupe.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...set=pcb.1717210728358633&type=3&theater&ifg=1

Regards Styria

 

[Styria]

Here is another UK car that has taken my eye. I must admit to never having seen this colour before (I am talking about the RED) and it is remarkable just how so many duo tone combinations suit the Coupe body, whether that be the V8 model or the earlier 6 cylinder P5 units.

Another feature, certainly different but barely visible is the grille pattern, having KIA type mesh instead of the standard vertical aluminium bars. Worth an experiment ? Possibly. Regards Styria

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...set=pcb.2131454906869330&type=3&theater&ifg=1

 

[c107]

Here is another UK car that has taken my eye. I must admit to never having seen this colour before (I am talking about the RED) and it is remarkable just how so many duo tone combinations suit the Coupe body, whether that be the V8 model or the earlier 6 cylinder P5 units.

Another feature, certainly different but barely visible is the grille pattern, having KIA type mesh instead of the standard vertical aluminium bars. Worth an experiment ? Possibly. Regards Styria

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...set=pcb.2131454906869330&type=3&theater&ifg=1

the grille certainly makes it look more aggressive. Not sure I like it though, but I have seen another car with this mod... I think in some photos from WA? It works better with the v8 with its restyled front end, rostyles, coachlines and I think would look a bit odd on a 3 liter.

I doubt this is a factory colour, but its very striking.

 

[c107]

Nice car on a facebook group spotted in queensland:
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=2638436196400762&set=pcb.1122112614631657&type=3&theater

 

[Styria]

Another magnificent P5B spotted on Facebook. This one has the very rare rear headrests, but I also note the different colour piping on part of upholstery that can be seen. Pity there are no pictures of the interior. Regards Styria

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...set=pcb.1717210728358633&type=3&theater&ifg=1

 

[c107]

Another magnificent P5B spotted on Facebook. This one has the very rare rear headrests, but I also note the different colour piping on part of upholstery that can be seen. Pity there are no pictures of the interior. Regards Styria

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...set=pcb.1717210728358633&type=3&theater&ifg=1

I'm a big fan of the exterior look, the midnight blue colour looks great on the P5B. Not such a fan of the piping in the interior though.

 

[Styria]

Again Bryce, look at the front and rear guard clearances of this V8 model. It is one of the less desirable features of the V8 model - "Dancing" of the suspension on uneven or broken bitumen. Mind you though, the looks of the car are hard to ignore. BTW, I have come across this video of the 1963 Le Mans 24 hours - obviously nothing to do with P5s or P5Bs, but it is 1963, the year in which the first Coupes came off the production line, including my original 4 speed with overdrive I acquired in about 1971. This 24 hour event also featured the turbine Rover driven by Graham Hill.

In my opinion, the whole video is priceless as it depicts "every day scenes" featuring spectators and crews. Regards Styria

https://www.facebook.com/groups/roverp5p6australia/permalink/1115481898628062/

 

[c107]

Again Bryce, look at the front and rear guard clearances of this V8 model. It is one of the less desirable features of the V8 model - "Dancing" of the suspension on uneven or broken bitumen. Mind you though, the looks of the car are hard to ignore. BTW, I have come across this video of the 1963 Le Mans 24 hours - obviously nothing to do with P5s or P5Bs, but it is 1963, the year in which the first Coupes came off the production line, including my original 4 speed with overdrive I acquired in about 1971. This 24 hour event also featured the turbine Rover driven by Graham Hill.

In my opinion, the whole video is priceless as it depicts "every day scenes" featuring spectators and crews. Regards Styria

https://www.facebook.com/groups/roverp5p6australia/permalink/1115481898628062/

Nice video. Well worth watching.

 

[c107]

This P5 is for sale in WA. It is in white which personally I find a poor colour for the P5, but it is in nice condition.

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/188554498490758/