Vehicle Description
Available now is this beautiful 1970 Rover 3500. These Rovers are
rare cars that you won't see at your local car shows too often.
Being 1 of 285 imported into the U.S., it is unlikely you will see
another one in your town anytime soon. This particular example is
dressed in an dark green with a two tone green/black interior. This
vehicle had undergone a restoration in the past but is still in
great overall condition. The Rover is powered by a 3.5L V8 engine
mated to an automatic transmission. Rover cars enjoyed an
illustrious history in their home market, but the story was
somewhat different here in North America. These cars from Solihull,
Warwickshire, were never inexpensive and didn't have mass-market
appeal, so those selective few who sought them out appreciated
their quality and quietly innovative designs. Rover's flagship was
the executive saloon of the early 1970s, the Three Thousand Five
(as the Brits called it). Offered here from 1968 through 1971, it
combined the advanced P6 platform with the famous ex-Buick V-8
engine. While U.K.-market 3500 S cars were fitted with a four-speed
manual gearbox, U.S.-market 3500 S's featured Borg-Warner Type 35
three-speed automatics. Sending power through that transmission was
the GM-designed, Rover-refined, five main-bearing, 90-degree,
3,528cc (215-cubic-inch) V-8 engine. Noted for its light weight
(aluminum alloy cylinder block with inserted iron liners, aluminum
alloy cylinder heads and intake manifold), this engine's 88.9 x
71.1mm bore and stroke, 10.5:1 compression ratio and twin SU HIF 6
semi-downdraft carburetors allowed it to make 146hp at 5,000 RPM
and 197.5-lbs.ft. of torque at 2,600 RPM, figures impressive enough
to move the 3,184-pound, four-seat sedan smartly. Driving a rarity
is one aspect of being an American Rover car enthusiast, but just
because these cars are little-seen, doesn't mean that you're on
your own or that you have to travel across the pond to find a
vibrant enthusiast community. The rights to build the Buick V8 were
bought from Buick, which had abandoned it after 1963 in favor of a
cheaper and less problematic cast iron evolution of its design. It
took some changes to adapt the aluminum block to Rover's production
methods and needs, such as sand-casting the block instead of GM's
die-cast method. With twin S.U. carburetors, the Rover 3500 engine
was rated at 184 gross/146 net hp; a substantial jump over the
four, and much more amenable to being teamed with an automatic
transmission (Borg-Warner 35), which all 3500s had, until 1971,
when the European-spec 3500S became available with a four-speed
stick. All US-bound 3500 cars, even though they had the S in their
designation, came only with the automatic. Performance was lively
for the times, with a 114 mph top speed and a 0-60 time of about
10.5 seconds. The 3500S sold very poorly in the US, and was
discontinued after just three years , in 1971. It was a combination
of factors, including Rover's damaged reputation from the 2000,
sketchy service and parts, and the P6 was hardly fresh-looking
anymore by then. For about the same price as the 3500S ($5398), one
could buy a much more modern-looking BMW 2500 with its silky and
powerful six. Rover looked to be in precarious shape in the US, and
tried one more comeback with the SD1 3500, but that turned out
badly in the US too.
