[daveangel]

1993 Rover Metro 1.1 I made the mistake of buying new. The rear wheel arches rusted out within three years (fixed under warranty initially) and it began to show in other places. Used to blow the main fuse for the engine electrics once every six months or so in all the best places (heavy traffic, on roundabouts). Oil pump blew all the oil out once while I was on the M25, luckily I had come off onto an A road and when the oil light winked at me while changing gear I instantly went to neutral and switched engine off and coasted to a halt which saved it from making any expensive noises. It had early single-point injection which used to frequently play up and result in a kangaroo ride occasionally on three cylinders which the dealer never quite fixed.

Eventually the now long-gone dealer refused to honour the warranty with the rust etc. so after telling them it was a pile of sh1te and the last Rover I would own I took it to a nearby Arfur Daley with all the receipts for the bad stuff that happened with it removed and he said would £1995 be OK? I accepted while trying not to smile. With half the money I bought a replacement in a 1990 Ford Fiesta 1.1 as a cheap runaround - it never missed a beat over the 4 years I owned it and is still the best, most reliable car I've owned. I've had Fiesta's ever since.