Rover P4

Infobox Automobile
name = Rover P4


manufacturer = The Rover Co. Ltd.
production = 1949–1964 130,312 units
successor = Rover P6
predecessor = Rover P3
body_style = Saloon
class = Midsize car
layout = FR layout
wheelbase = 111 inches (2819 mm)cite book |last=Culshaw |first= |authorlink= |coauthors=Horrobin |title=Complete Catalogue of British Cars |year=1974 |publisher=Macmillan |location=London |id=ISBN 0-333-16689-2]
width = Auto in|65.6|0
length = Auto in|178.25|0
height = Auto in|63.25|0
designer =

The Rover P4 series was a group of saloon automobiles produced from 1949 through to 1964. Along with the later Rover P5, it was replaced by the far more modern Rover P6. All P4s were 4-door saloons with seating for four. It should be noted that the P4 designation is factory terminology for the group of cars and was not in day-to-day use by ordinary owners, who would have said simply that they had a "Rover 90" and so on.

The P4 was also the basis of the short lived Marauder car.

Engineering

The cars used a Rover engine in 4 or 6 cylinder form which came from the 1948 P3 and had overhead valves for inlet and side valves for exhaust. A four-speed manual transmission was used with a column-mounted shifter at first and floor-mounted unit from 1954. At first the gearbox only had synchromesh on third and top but it was added to second gear as well in 1953. A free wheel clutch, a traditional Rover feature, was fitted to cars without overdrive until about 1959. The cars had a separate chassis with independent suspension by coil springs at the front and a live axle with half elliptical leaf springs at the rear. The brakes on early cars were operated by a hybrid hydro-mechanical system but became fully hydraulic in 1950. Discs replaced drums at the front from 1959,

The complete body shells were made by the Pressed Steel company and featured aluminium body panels until the final 95/110 models.

P4 75

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Rover P4 75


production = 1949–1954
33,267 produced 1949-54
engine = 2.1 L Rover IOE engine straight-6
body_style = 4-door saloonThe original P4, the model 75, arrived in 1949. It featured controversial modern styling which contrasted with the outdated Rover P3 which it replaced, and which was heavily based on the bullet-nosed Studebakers of the same era. One particularly unusual feature was the centrally-mounted headlight in the grille. Known as the "Cyclops eye", it was removed after 1952.

Power came from a 2.1 L (2103 cc/128 in³) Rover IOE straight-6 engine. A four-speed manual transmission was used with a column-mounted shifter at first and floor-mounted unit from 1954.

A car tested by The Motor magazine in 1949 had a top speed of convert|83.5|mph|km/h|abbr=on and could accelerate from 0-convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on in 21.6 seconds. A fuel consumption of convert|27.8|mpgimp|L/100 km mpgus was recorded. The test car cost £1106 including taxes. cite journal | authorlink = Unsigned |title = The Rover 75 saloon Road Test| journal =The Motor| volume = | pages = | date = 1949]

Production of this original model ended in 1954 with 33,267 sold.

P4 60

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Rover P4 60


production = 1953–1959
9,666 produced
engine = 2.0 L Rover IOE engine straight-4
body_style = 4-door saloonA four-cylinder version of the P4 line was introduced in 1953 as the P4 60. Its 2.0 L (1997 cc/121 in³) convert|60|bhp|abbr=on engine was the same one Rover used in the Land Rover, but the relatively small and harsh Fact|date=April 2008 engine was out of place in the relatively sumptuous P4. It was replaced in 1959 by the P4 80, which used an updated version of the Land Rover four.

In their test of the Sixty in 1954 The Motor magazine recorded a top speed of convert|76.0|mph|km/h|abbr=on and acceleration from 0-convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on of 26.5 seconds. A fuel consumption of convert|25.8|mpgimp|L/100 km mpgus was recorded. The test car cost £1162 including taxes. cite journal | authorlink = Unsigned |title = The Rover 60 saloon | journal =The Motor| volume = | pages = | date = January 20 1954]

P4 90

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Rover P4 90


production = 1953–1959
35,903 produced
engine = 2.3 L Rover IOE engine straight-6
body_style = 4-door saloonAt the same time as the four cylinder version was introduced, the top-end P4 90 with a more-powerful 2.6 L (2639 cc/161 in³) six appeared. This engine produced a respectable 90 hp (67 kW) and could reach 90 mph (145 km/h). When it was replaced by the P4 100 in 1959, 35,903 had been produced.

Testing the Ninety in 1954 "The Motor" magazine recorded a top speed of convert|90.0|mph|km/h|abbr=on and acceleration from 0-convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on of 18.9 seconds. A fuel consumption of convert|20.3|mpgimp|L/100 km mpgus was recorded. The test car cost £1297 including taxes. cite journal | authorlink = Unsigned |title = The Rover 90 saloon | journal =The Motor| volume = | pages = | date = July 7 1954]

P4 75 Mark II

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Rover P4 75 Mark II


production = 1954–1959
9,974 produced 1955-59
engine = 2.1 L or 2.2 L Rover IOE engine straight-6
body_style = 4-door saloonAn updated P4 75 arrived in 1954 with some styling changes. A three-piece wraparound rear window was used, but the 2.1 L (2103 cc/128 in³) IOE engine continued. This model was updated again in 1955 with a larger 2.2 L (2230 cc/136 in³) version of the IOE engine. Overdrive became an option from 1956. In 1957, it was restyled, along with the rest of the P4 line, with a new grille and wings. Production ended in 1959 with the introduction of the P4 100.

P4 105R/105S

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Rover P4 105R/105S


production = 1956–1959
10,781 produced
engine = 2.6 L Rover IOE engine straight-6
body_style = 4-door saloonThe P4 90 was not to be the top of the P4 line. Introduced in 1956, the P4 105R and P4 105S used a high-output, 8.5:1 compression, version of the 2.6 L (2639 cc/161 in³) engine also used in the 90. This twin-SU carburettor engine produced 108 hp (80 kW). Both 105 models also featured an updated exterior and more luxurious trim inside.

The 105R featured a "Roverdrive" automatic transmission. This troublesome unit was actually a two-speed automatic with an overdrive unit for a total of four forward gears. The 105S made do with a manual transmission with overdrive but could hit 101 mph (163 km).

"The Motor" magazine tested a 105R de luxe in 1957 and found it to have a top speed of convert|93.9|mph|km/h|abbr=on and acceleration from 0-convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on of 23.1 seconds. A fuel consumption of convert|23.6|mpgimp|L/100 km mpgus was recorded. The test car cost £1696 including taxes of £566. cite journal | authorlink = Unsigned |title = The Rover 105R de luxe | journal =The Motor| volume = | pages = | date = February 13 1957]

When production of the 105 line ended (in 1958 for the 105R and 1959 for the 105S), 10,781 had been produced, two thirds with the manual transmission option.

P4 80

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Rover P4 80


production = 1959–1962
5,900 producedcite book |last=Sedgwick |first=M. |coauthors= Gillies.M|title=A-Z of Cars 1945-1970|year=1986 |publisher=Bay View Books |location=Devon, UK |id=ISBN 1-870979-39-7]
engine = 2.3 L Rover straight-4
body_style = 4-door saloonIn 1959/1960 the P4 range was rationalised to two models, the 80 and the 100. The P4 80 was the four cylinder version It continued the use of the Land Rover-derived straight-4 engine, this time displacing 2.3 L (2286 cc/139 in³). With 80 hp (59 kW) available, the car could top 85 mph (137 km/h). Girling vacuum servo asssietd disc brakes at the front were new, and the car used wider tyres and had updated styling.

The four cylinder P4s were never popular, and just 5,900 had been built when the line was cancelled in 1962.

P4 100

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Rover P4 100


production = 1960–1962
16,521 produced
engine = 2.6 L Rover IOE engine straight-6
body_style = 4-door saloonThe P4 90 was replaced in 1960 by the more-powerful P4 100. Its similar 2.6 L (2625 cc/160 in³) "IOE" straight-6 engine was in fact a short-stroke version of the P5 3-Litre unit. The car could now reach 100 mph (161 km/h). The interior was luxurious, with wood and leather accents on traditional English car elements like a curved "Shepherds Crook" handbrake lever. Either a bench or individual front seats could be ordered. A heater was a standard fitting. Like the smaller 80 version the 100 got servo assisted Girling disc brakes at the front keeping drum brakes at the rear. Overdrive, on top gear only, was a standard fitting.

16,521 had been produced when it was replaced by the 110 version in 1962.

Testing the 100 in 1960 The Motor magazine recorded a top speed of convert|92.1|mph|km/h|abbr=on, acceleration from 0-convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on of 17.6 seconds and a fuel consumption of convert|23.9|mpgimp|L/100 km mpgus. The test car cost £1538 including taxes. cite journal | authorlink = Unsigned |title = The Rover 100 | journal =The Motor| volume = | pages = | date = February 24, 1960]

P4 95/110

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Rover P4 95/110


production = 1962–1964
3,680 (95) & 4,620 (110) produced
engine = 2.6 L Rover IOE engine straight-6
body_style = 4-door saloonThe final member of the P4 family was the P4 95 and P4 110 series. Introduced in 1962, and looking quite dated by then, the P4 was later altered to have steel door panels and electric windscreen washers. Though the Roverdrive automatic had been put to rest, overdrive was standard on the 110, whereas the 95 made do with a high ratio differential (3.9:1).

Both models used the same 2.6 L (2625 cc/160 in³) version of the IOE engine. This old unit produced 123 hp (91 kW) in 110 guise, which used a Weslake cylinder head, and 102 hp (76 kW) for the 95. Both were replaced by the futuristic Rover P6 after 1964.

Rover P4 Gallery

References

External links

* [http://www.roverp4dg.org.uk/ Rover P4 cars guild site]
* [http://www.roverp4.com/ old now disused guild site]
* [http://v8villager.blogspot.com/2007/04/crazy-rover-p4-tv-station.html Rover P4 on Film]