ROVER V8 IN 5 PICTURES

The Buick City plant in Flint, Michigan (now demolished), where Rover Engineers first met the 215 V8. 680,000 215 V8s were made by General Motors.

Almost a million Rover V8s in various guises were eventually made. The last aftermarket units were put together in 2011 by MCT of Weston Super Mare.

The EFI SD1 Vitesse was as far as the V8 would go in Rover cars because the link-up with Honda provided a new V6 engine for saloons.

From 1982 V8 production was owned by Land Rover Ltd. Engines were sold to many manufacturers, including Morgan for use in the Plus 8.

The V8 remained in Land Rover production until 2004. The last one, a 4.0-litre in a Discovery Series II, now belongs to British Motor Museum.