Conference terri::cars_uk

    
    Not much room in the back either, but good on looks and VFM.
    
    I won't be getting one. Anyone know the best place to get insurance on
    a Sierra Cosworth?
    
    Mark

	How much is the 200 coupe, anyone know?

	� place to get insurance on a Sierra Cosworth?

	I believe some of the Lloyds underwriters who specialise in
	high-risk insurance are considering taking on Cosworth drivers.
	I understand the premiums start at about �25k (that's for drivers
	over the age of fifty who do less than 10 miles a year ;-)

	JJ.

    
    The 220 Turbo Coupe is C.18.5k with the lesser models going down to
    around 16k for a 1.6 version (I believe).
    
    25k for Sierra insurance? With what I'll save on the purchase price
    I'll be able to do those 10 miles! And I'll've saved enough to pay for
    it by the time I'm 50 too! Perfect! :^)
    
    Mark

14,495 for the 1.6i 16v
16,??? for the 2.0i 16v
18,??? for the 2.0i 16v Turbo

I'm still trying to sort out a test drive of the cheapest.


	Ian

    
    One of those wits on Top Gear who reviewed a Cossie as a 2nd hand car
    suggested insurance could be had for about �1000. (35/Oxford/Max NCB)
    Maybe their "0898 carline" could be worth a call?
    
    

    Saw one of the new Rovers on the Road in Lower Earley a couple of
    weeks ago.  It was a dark metallic Blue.
    
    Dave Darrall

Hi,

	Has anyone placed a quote for these on the car 
scheme?

-Trev

Yes, someone has. I went up to Car fleet to have a look at
existing quotes. The quote hadn't come back yet.

Mark

Which model?

    RE: 200 Coupe Turbo
    
    
    I have just seen a some figures for the Turbo version, 0-60 in 6.2
    seconds and a top speed of 147mph, not bad for an 18,000 pound car.
    
    However, it seems the car has its minus points, 200 bhp through the
    front wheels is to much for the chassis to cope with, even with the
    traction control system! 
    
    
    Graham

I think it depends whose review you read. Auto Express gave it a fairly
good review, but Autocar & Motor raved about it. In fact A&M said the
boot was almost saloon sized, when, according to Rover, it's the 
same size as the cabrio, and according to a previous note, it's miniscule.
A&M also thought the Torsen traction control system worked very well.

I supppose the answer is to go drive one - apparantly you can test drive them
for half a day - provided you have your own insurance.

Ian

    
    Had a look at one at Motor Show, a gorgeous metallic blue one with 
    cream coloured leather seats which made it stand out a bit. The boot to
    me looked fairly large (but then again I'm used to an MR2 boot!!!).
    
    Spoke to one of the numerous females on the stand and she said she'd
    organise a test drive for me. Can't wait, I was also offered a test
    drive of a Legacy 4WD turbo from the Sabaru stand.
    
    
    POL.

    
    The boot is quite deep (front of car to back), but not very high.
    
    I've seen a lot worse, but it's not huge.
    
    Mark

I went up to Hadleys yesterday for a look round their 220. The car looks
very nice, smaller than I thought and the assisstant didn't know how to
take the roof off. I just had a quick sit in it and the seats appeared to be
very comfortable. The boot is smaller than I thought, but not bad considering 
the overall size of the car. Rear leg room looks very cramped, but would suit
my needs adequately.

I've managed to get a drive in it next week so watch this space!


	Ian

OK, I drove the 220i. First impressions were good. Tasteful interior. Apart from the
black trim and sporty steering wheel, the interior looks just like any 200 series.
Seats extrememly comfortable and supportive - lumbar support on both front
seats. I took it up the Tadley Road, but got stuck behind a lorry, so I couldn't 
thrash the thing. On the way back though, acceleration in the mid range is superb,
ABS very effective and steering responsive. Power steering not too light like some
cars. Although the sun was out, we didn't get the roof off and I didn't get above
60mph so I don't know what the noise is like at speed, or what effect having
the roof off has.

Anyway, all in all, I want one. I'm testing the 216 over the weekend seeing as
that's all I can afford - I haven't yet seen one without a spoiler.

Ian

    
    >> ABS very effective and steering responsive.
    
    I'm not trying to nit-pick - but how do you know that the ABS was
    very effective? - I thought that ABS really only came into it's own
    when conditions were 'extreme' - eg hard braking in the wet while
    cornering. These are not really the sort of things which people
    would normally try doing while test driving a car...... 
    
    Elaine (yes, it's me again :-)  ) 

    �                <<< Note 1938.16 by FORTY2::MITCHELL >>>
    �                  -< How do test an ABS-fitted car? >-
    
    Mash the brake pedal, that's how - at speed and then listen out for a
    screeching sound (that'll be your tyres locking up). If there's no
    said sound, the ABS works. Capiche ?
    
    Mike.

    
    
    re -1
    
    teach your grandmother to suck eggs!  - I'm talking about a reasonable
    test - which _you_ can do on the road which will distinguish between
    one ABS system and another in such a way as you can state it was
    'effective'.  I would imagine that any ABS system on road car would
    let the avarage driver brake hard in a straight line and convince them
    that it was working.
    
    Capiche?
    
    Elaine 
      
    
       

I'm comparing the effects of sharp braking in the 220 Coupe with doing it in
my 214!

Had a look at the 216 on Saturday. Interior less luxurious, no front fogs
(which annoy me anyway!) and no rear spoiler. The 216 is now under 14k.

	Ian

    re -2 

    Pardonez-moi, Elaine, my note was not meant to patronize. However an
    A.B.S.'s effectiveness is gauged on at what point it 'cuts in' under
    hard braking. In the dry, too early and full retardation would take
    longer and too late would cause the wheels to lock up momentarily. The
    most effective set up for A.B.S. is when it acts _on_ the moment of wheel
    lock. Therefore a "chirp" from the tyres is the language of an
    effective A.B.S..

    Mike.

    
    In the original mention of ABS then, - the comparison was between the
    'feel' of the brakes in driver's current car, and the 'feel' of the
    brakes on the coupe, which just happened to be an ABS system. The
    comparison may just as well have been with a non-ABS fitted car, as it
    was a question of how happy the driver felt with how well the car
    stopped.  
    
    re -1, your description of good/bad ABS is fine - but is not easily
    guaged on a road test, since without repeatable tests in measurable
    conditions (ie road surface/temp/'wetness', tyres, braking point,
    driver experience/skill), I don't think Mr/Ms Road_driver is able to
    say any more than 'feels ok to me...'. (Same as a non-ABS sytem)  
    
    Another point - does anyone on a road-test ever _really_ slam the brakes
    on as hard as they possibly can? I know I don't, I'll try braking hard,
    but my sense of self preservation takes over, and once the car starts
    to slow - I'll lift and re-apply the brakes. (No I'm not saying I can do
    it better than an ABS system - just that I'm not really testing the
    effectiveness of the cars' braking system, ABS or not!)

    OK rathole concluded.

    But, as a postscript, I would add that if I were road testing a
    performance car such as the 220i, I would test the brakes [hard] just
    as I would [Yob-ishly] hold it out in second to see how it went.

    We Brits seem not to want to offend and therefore test drive cars
    almost apologetically. What I would find more offensive would be the
    shelling out of the BPO �20,000 and then finding the car not worthy
    of the breed i.e. that of 'performance car'.  

    Mike (who's not a yob, but anticipates the accusation) :-)
    

    
    Yes, I agree, if you are test-driving a performance car ( for it's
    performance, rather than pose value:-) ) you should expect to
    test-drive it in such a way as to give some indication of it's
    performance, both going and stopping - but I doubt if anyone on a test
    drive would/could(?)  deliberately be doing anything which would really
    show the performance range of any car.

    Anyone got any lease quotes yet ....??
    
    
    Rgds
    
    Mark

    �Anyone got any lease quotes yet ....??
    
    See 1538.460
    
    Roy

    Reawakened after a while.....
    
    Anyone out there been driving a 220 Coupe for a while and have some
    practical experiences? My wife is thinking about getting one on her
    scheme - probably the 2.0i.
    
    Paul