PRIZE-WINNING LIST
Irefer to your editorial in the latest edition [Issue No. 335], and wish to comment on some models that may indeed be future classics, or, in one case, a classic already.
1. Nissan Figaro, 1990 and 1991— a limitededition retro 1000cc turbocharged convertible; now a ‘cult’ car in the UK, with a very strong owners club. A remarkable little car with some unusual features, including being the first production model to be fitted with a CD player — or so I’ve read. There are very few in New Zealand, but some have been imported from Japan.
2. Rover 75 V8 (4.6-litre Mustang powered) and MG ZT V8. I believe there were four of each imported to New Zealand, one of which I owned for seven years — one of only 25 built of the 75 ‘contemporary V8’. Featured in your magazine as a new car in 2005. A truly rare and beautiful car, sadly not well known and denigrated by people who should know better. In my opinion, already a classic.
3. The MG Rover MG ZT V6 2.5 190 and 180 2.5 V6 Sports Auto. Now between 14 and 16 years old. Both are great cars to drive — comfortable, fantastic handling, reasonably fast, especially at the top end, and, in NZ, very rare. In the UK, there is a strong owners club — in fact, about four of them — and they are becoming increasingly rare there, too. These are a misunderstood car, with some people associating them with the old Honda Rovers and thinking that they’re unreliable. Many in the UK have reached very high mileages — up to 500,000km that I know of — without major work. The quad-cam V6 is very responsive and smooth, with a lovely induction roar. Being an MG, fairly rare, and a smartlooking car, this will one day be a classic.
4. The unloved Rover 75 V6. A more refined and comfortable older brother to the MG ZT. Thanks to the likes of [ Jeremy] Clarkson, it got a bad reputation that it does definitely not deserve. A beautifully built, mechanically advanced machine, with the high reliability mentioned above for the ZT. The K-series four-cylinder engine in the 1.8-litre was not so fabulous — very few in NZ, if any — and this gave the model an undeserved reputation for HGF [head-gasket failure]. The V6 has no such problem. Often confused with the S-type Jaguar; I know this because I owned one for many years and got sick of being asked if it was a Jag. In 2000, this model was voted, by motoring journalists, as the world’s most beautiful FWD car. So how come your mag has ignored this model line-up for so long? Perhaps too young at the moment.
Anyway, there are a few thoughts on some future classics, and a little plug for an unrecognized beauty. Note that Practical Classics has no qualms about declaring both the 75 and ZT V8 and the MG ZT V6 as future classics, and has declared the ZT as the best MG saloon ever built. Autocar, when comparing the ZT to a BMW 3 Series, commented that the BMW felt like a “sensory deprivation capsule” next to the ZT.
All the best, Roger Smith Thanks, Roger; we’ ll try to look at some of your suggestions in a future issue. Ed.