Mods and Consequences
MG ZR
Believe it or not, the MG ZR is 17 years old this year, and the car that sired it, Rover’s 200, was launched six years before that. Yet these cars still look fresh, offer practicality aplenty, and best of all you can pick one up for peanuts. If you buy a good one in a vibrant colour you’ll have a modern classic that stands out from the crowd and is utterly usable – and if you buy one of the pokier variations on the theme you’ll have a healthy dose of performance, too.
MG-Rover offered five ZR engine variants. Entry-level models got a 102bhp 1.4, the 1.8-litre came in regular (115bhp) or VVC (158bhp thanks to variable valve timing) forms, or there was a 2.0-litre diesel in 100bhp and 115bhp guises.
One of the easiest ways to upgrade any ZR engine is to remap it; there are two types of ECU fitted (MEMS2 and MEMS3) and they’re both almost impossible to chip. Be careful when remapping, though, as you can end up with a significant increase in top-end power but not much torque in the mid-range. The same goes for camshafts; if you want to boost power and torque you need to fit something a bit fruitier, but this really needs to be done in conjunction with a remap, improved induction and a better exhaust.
None of the ZR engines breathe all that freely, so installing a panel filter is the way to go ( budget £40 for something decent). Either that or a performance induction system (£120+). If your pockets are deep enough it’s worth investing in a gas-flowed and port matched cylinder head, while some even consider turbos or superchargers. Beware, though – forced induction is a slippery slope that can be a major money pit, because achieving reliability is fraught with problems. As a result, most owners who want more performance fit a standard engine from a Rover 75 1.8T, because it’s an easy installation with some minor alterations. A Tomcat engine can also be made to fit and there are some V6 conversions too, but these aren’t exactly straightforward. An alternative to this is to source and fit a Lotus Elise VHPD engine, rated at 190bhp – but these are costly to buy as well as highly strung, so you need to be a committed enthusiast to take this route.
’A Rover 75 1.8T engine swap is an easy installation with minor changes’