Rover 200 & 400 Owners Club

Hi,

Just joined the Rover family with the purchase of a 2004 Streetwise 1.4 K16.
Many say it's madness, let's see if the reality is as bad as the reputation.

Did 200kms on the trip back home when I've picked it up and got scared halfway as the underside was washed in oil on the gearbox side...
Not sure it was engine or gearbox oil, but work is in progress...

These are 'characterful' cars to own - finding out what's leaking will help show you that

We're here to help, so tell us what you see

Ricky

As John says these are characterful cars to own.

One good things, assumings its been in Portugal all its life is i'm assuning it has AC, mine doesn't and is largley rust free, mine isn't

As long as you can do most of the maintenance yourseft all will be good.

But enjoy

Cheers Bean

Thanks for the welcome.

I must say that it seems quite uncomplicated mechanics and relatively easy to work with (as compared to modern cars full of electronic stuff - I know as I work at a second-hand car dealership...).
Got the engine out completely, disassembled the head, checked valves for cracks, polished and lapped, need new tappets and as it's being redone will also put in some new stem seals.
The car had a HG job done not long ago and timing belt change in 2022, but it was done by some enthusiast with little real knowledge (the head gasket was covered in copper paste.... )
Also took the crank out, doesn't seem bad, pistons are a little burnt, and cylinder sleeves also, but don't seem to be worn out (need to be honed down as they are quite polished)
Piston rings seem quite ok and I'm still unsure if I will change them or not as I had around 10 bars on each cylinder so they where balanced but I was wondering what was the compression on a new engine (if somebody knows...).
I will take some more photos today.
I also think I discovered where the oil leak was coming from - probably a bad main seal as the clutch housing is full of oil (engine oil it seems as it's black).