Good cars!Have heard they have quite strong engines, am I being misled!
foxdonut,
Nov 17, 3:49pm
Its a Honda Accord with a new hat.
Just buying a Honda would be a better purchasing choice.
andy61,
Nov 17, 4:19pm
If its a 416 SLi ,they are a genuine ROVER motor,not a Honda.Best avoided at all cost.Shocking motor,well known for issues leading to blown head gaskets,usually caused by cylinder liner sinking etc.If you want to keep a mechanic wealthy, get one.
mgmad,
Nov 17, 9:11pm
A 98 Si could be either a 216 or 416. If a 416, the automatic cars were Honda powered, the rest were all Rover K series powered. Far from a shocking engine. Liners don't drop by themselves, only if the engine has seriously overheated. Most common cause of overheating is poorly bled/maintained coolant system, followed by thermostat, neither of which are major problems in themselves. Head gaskets very very seldom go of their own accord.
foxdonut,
Nov 17, 9:20pm
Most common problem is "Rover K series".
franc123,
Nov 17, 9:49pm
When you pull a K series to bits its obvious whats wrong with it, the head bolts resemble threaded knitting needles that screw right through the block into an alloy plate that lives in the sump, the potential for them stretching and thus reducing the tension on the head gasket must be huge.While Rover had made changes to materials and spec's over the years to improve them that fundamental problem is a hard one to overcome.Best of luck is all I can say if you still want to buy a car with one of these fitted in it.
socram,
Nov 18, 6:04am
Great engine.Had them in two vehicles and never the slightst problem over several years of daily usage.There is more bs on these boards about this engine than any other.Suggest you take note of mgmad's posts as he is probably the one person on here who has more direct and indirect knowledge of them than anyone else -and also more miles under his belt with abusing them too!
Yes, early ones did have problems, but that was soon fixed.
The engine was also fitted to the Lotus Elise and if there is one thing thatLotus have always been pretty good at, it is identifying an engine with performance potential.
esprit,
Nov 18, 7:29am
Wrong. The bolts were specially engineered to stretch. This puts the whole block assembly in compression rather than tension (which a conventional design does) and allows a much lighter casting to be used. A Rover K is one of the lightest car engines ever produced because of this.
I've got a modified Rover K series kicking out nearly 230bhp, I've also owned a couple and done about 50,000km in them, much of that around racetracks and I've NEVER had a problem with the cooling system or head gaskets. As has been said, it's down to poor maintenance and their reputation for repeated failures is solely down to misdiagnosis of the root cause.
mgmad,
Nov 18, 7:40am
Well said. We've had a few modified engines built up developing 200+ hp no problem, my current engine is supercharged and in the region of 250hp.
Worth noting that a very reputable engine builder in the UK has built over 100 K series race engines, from 180-300hp NA, and never had a problem with overheating or any gaskets go, using the original type Payen gasket.
thejazzpianoma,
Nov 18, 7:52am
I read a really interesting tech article on why K Series engines have problems and why some do and some don't. I saved it somewhere to post for you guys and forgot about it. I will see if I can dig it out for you.
franc123,
Nov 18, 4:35pm
Yes and stretch they do which nicely allows compression and coolant and oil to mix!Pity that it doesn't work in practice, if using that system produced the benefits you state then why do most other manufacturers not use it!I still say its a cock up from top to bottom.
mugenb20b,
Nov 18, 4:51pm
A few years ago, one of our clients, an old lady, bought a brand new sporty looking hatchback Rover 216 (I think). It had a K series engine and a strange transmission (manual gearbox but auto controlled). 4 years and 43 000 kms later, it blew the head gasket and f.ked one liner. Now, you can't tell me this happened due to a cooling system negligence.
franc123,
Nov 18, 5:01pm
Exactly, likewise the same thing happened to an MGF that was given to me to repair which was a '99 model and had done about 75K, the car was about 8 years old at the time and had a good SH, certainly upon draining what was left of the coolant there was no evidence to suggest that long term neglect had caused it, the radiator was duly removed and a mere 5% blockage was found, and no rust flakes or anything like that which would be consistant with a system that had deteriorated, surprising given the amount of metal pipework used in an MGF.The water pump was still in good condition and the thermostat was still functioning OK.
foxdonut,
Nov 18, 5:06pm
Lotus hasn't had a good engine until grey imports into the states required the Elise to run a Honda B or until they switched to Toyota ZZ's.
Case and point:
Lotus Carlton, GT1, Espirit V8 Turbo, that god awful (GM/Saab!) 4 pot turbo in the rebooted Europa etc etc.
Performance they may have, but always at the expense of even "reasonable" longevity.
mileyfan73,
Nov 18, 5:08pm
Had two1998 models within a year come back to us at our caryard with blown head gaskets,both low k's.Absolute rubbish engines.
mugenb20b,
Nov 18, 5:12pm
I understand that some people like certain types / brands of cars. 'Socram' and 'mgmad' stand by their Rovers and that's fair enough. But, I just can't recommend a K series powered Rover to anyone. I really think they are crap, based on what I've seen and there are better cars out there.
lordv81,
Nov 18, 7:31pm
The missus just got rid of one that had done around 75k of careful driving-blown engine.Every mechanic that saw the car said the same thing even before opening the bonnet,they are so common for being unreliable.Just google it and read the feedback thats on the net about them,specially in the UK.
socram,
Nov 18, 7:48pm
I admit to a bias, (few do!) and I cannot deny there have been problems with some cars.However, as a user for several years, I can only state my own experience which has been 100% positive. (Also ran the T series twin cam for several years with no problems.) I have no doubt that for every car mentioned that has had a major problem, there are plenty where an owner hasn't. Our neighbour three doors away has had an MGF from new, has travelled from the Shore to the airport every day (Y registered)and has never had a problem either. Mechanics, by the very nature of their jobs come across the problem cars.
Within this family, Toyota Surfs have been very troublesome in the engine department, but because they are Toyotas, no one really shouts!
mugenb20b,
Mar 15, 5:19pm
Yes, but not when they are near new. Surfs will give problems due to neglected cooling systems. But, TOO MANY Rover K series engines play up compared to Toyotas. Plenty of Surfs around with high mileages around, and they are still cheaper (and worthwhile) to repair than K series Rovers.
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