Rover SD1 2600S

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The last car designed, engineered and styled by Rover’s dream team of Spen King, Gordon Bashford and David Bache, the futuristic SD1 had the same impeccable pedigree as the P5, the P6 and the Range Rover.

Launched in 1976 and remaining in production for 10 years, the SD1 was the successor to the superb P6 range and featured wonderfully modern styling by David Bache who envisioned it as a cut price Ferrari Daytona. The inside was just as effective as the outside with a deliberately ‘industrial’ style that was a stark contrast to Rover’s usual wood-and-leather nostalgia fest.

Engineering was by Spen King of Range Rover fame and it came with five different engine options ranging from a four-cylinder 2-litre unit to a 3.5-litre V8. Transmission was via either a five-speed manual gearbox or a Borg Warner three-speed automatic.

Warmly received by press and public alike, the SD1 deservedly won the European Car of The Year Award in 1977. But the promising start was not to last. The SD1 was to be produced in a state-of-the-art extension to Rover's historic Solihull factory alongside the TR7. Unfortunately teething problems with the new production line and endless industrial disputes did nothing to improve the patchy build quality that plagued all BL products and the SD1 was ultimately compromised as a result.

Although it was not the brilliant car that it would have been if built in a different factory by a different workforce, it was still a very good car nonetheless and proved so popular with the police that they actually began to stockpile cars and parts for future use when they learned that production was coming to an end – which it did in 1986 after 303,345 SD1s of all types had been sold.

This particular car is a 2600S 5-speed manual model that was first registered in May 1985 and uses the 136bhp 2.6-litre straight-six engine which gave the car a quoted top speed of 120mph. It is showing just over 67,500 miles on the clock having been bought in our last sale in September and being tinkered with before being issued a fresh MOT with no advisories. Although there is insufficient history to warrant the mileage, it is believed by the vendor to be genuine and the overall condition of the car (especially the very smart interior) would certainly lend credence to this claim, as do some old MOTs back to 1993 at 37,425 miles.

The previous vendor bought the car 15 years ago and used it regularly to begin with but then less and less frequently, finally putting it into storage about three years ago. Recently dusted off and got running again, he was reminded of what a good car it had been and states that it is still remarkably sound underneath. The current owner purchased this SD1 from Brightwells only recently, got it into a roadworthy state with an MOT until October 2016 and is now offering it again with no reserve. 

An under-rated 70s icon, this handsome SD1 now needs an enthusiastic new owner who can spoodle it up and give it the more regular exercise it deserves. Amazingly, only 62 examples of the 2600S are still UK registered according to DVLA figures, so it definitely needs saving for future generations to enjoy.