Car question.

[Radical-Al]

Where is Sterling made? I know its a car from another country (at least I think I know), I saw a Sterling 825 and was wondering what country it came from and if its a good car.

[DCMattius]

Here's what I could find Al:

"
I had looked for a "deal" on a luxury sport car for about a year and came upon a 1991 Sterling SL in a used car lot. This was 1994 and Sterling were already quite rare as production was halted in 1994. If you are not familiar with a Sterling, the car is a joint venture automobile with Rover supplying the body and interior and Acura the motor and transmission. Anyway, I bought the car for $7,000 and have been driving ever since.
The car has its share of true British blood with its beautiful leather interior and sometimes quirky wiring phenomenons. The car locked my keys in the ignition with me in my house. I swear!! The motor and transmission has been like any Honda motor and transmission; well behaved, reliable and very smooth.
The Sterling has been the most satisfying driving experience in my 30 years of being behind the wheel. I have not had a visual sighting of another Sterling (I live in San Antonio TX) in almost 3 years but continue to enjoy this unique experience that all Chevy and Ford drivers will never know. "

Maybe someone else has more...

Matt

[DCMattius]

Here's a bit more...ps. my Dad has an Acura Legend:

"
The Sterling nameplate is little known in the US. This car had a very limited production run from 1986 to 1991 in the states. The car was basically an Acura Legend with fancy coachwork. Honda did all of the mechanicals on the car (engine, suspension, chassis) while the British firm Rover, did the body work and interiors.

I myself do not own a Sterling, but I have driven a few and I’m a huge fan of the car. Rarity is the car’s magic. If you are lucky enough to own one, you will most likely see 2-3 others in a year’s time even if you live in a major city like I do. The rarity can also be a curse though. Parts such as body panels and interior trim are impossible to get. There is a place in Houston, Texas that special orders parts from Rover but their list is very limited. However, this is a minor problem. If you care for the car and avoid damaging the body and interior, you should be fine.

The car can be serviced by any Acura dealership since it is the same as every Legend that rolled out between the aforementioned years. For those not familiar with the Legend, it was the car that showed the world that the Japanese could build luxury cars that were world class. Things such as 4 wheel independent suspension, 4 wheel disc brakes, and just plain solid build quality are incorporated into the design. With proper care, the engines in these cars can do well over 300K miles.

The exterior design is rather ordinary on the Sterling. Although, it is an interesting bit of trivia to know that all body panels were laser aligned at the factory in England. That aside, it can be said that the design is rather bland. The car looks very ordinary and plain Jane. There are no gorgeous lines, elaborate trim parts, or fancy wheels. It just looks like a car. However, when you get inside, things change SO MUCH! The cabin is first class all of the way! This is the part of the car the money went into. Everything is power operated. All seats, windows, locks, sunroof, etc. It even has power adjustments for the rear seats! Plush leather covers all seating areas. I’m not sure what type of leather this is, but I would say it has a glove soft feel to it.

Dash and door trim is decked out in genuine wood trim instead of that plastic stuff with wood grain stickers. I can attest to this because I have seen a Sterling in a junkyard where the door was smashed and the wood was broken……it is real wood. HVAC controls along with the instruments are very Honda in design; large, easy to read, well thought out. The radio is very elaborate. The 91 models had a weather band in addition to the outstanding stereo. Some of the perks of owning such a special car include great attention to detail. For example, the door sills are covered in a finely polished steel plate, the door opening trim in lined in felt, and the sun shade in the roof has slits in it that permit the “just right” amount of light to some through. Oh, the glass is also tinted in a pale bronze. This sounds bad, but in reality it makes the interior of the car look much more expensive from the outside.

The ride is smooth and comfortable. The 2.7 V6 moves the car well and you have enough power on tap at all times. See a Legend review if you need more information. I highly recommend this car. It might very well be a collectable in the future, but even if it is not, owning one will allow you to experience something that only a select few drivers get to. A nice example can be had for under $5000
"

[Justin Martin]

I wouldn't touch one with a ten foot stick, yes, it's a Acura Legend built under license by Rover, but that's the problem, it was built by Rover. Basically, you're buying a Rover with a Honda engine. The engine will be reliable like any other Honda, but engine reliability never was the main achilies heal of Rovers, it's their horrible wiring and quality control, and Sterlings had wiring and quality issues as bad as any other Rover. Add to that the fact that parts are nearly nonexsistent in the US, and it's a pretty scary buy.

I can think of alot better cars than a Sterling. If i'm gonna put up with poor British quality and wiring, i'd get a Jaguar XJ6 of the same era, which is a beautifull classic that I can actually get parts for without having wait for them to be shipped from England. Better yet, i'd look for a early 90s BMW 5 series or Audi 100, about the same price, much better quality, and quite frankly, more prestigious even if they aren't as rare.

[DCMattius]

Don't forget about the Acura Legend. My Dad's 87 is still running strong. Plus you'de have the good half of a Sterling :)

Matt

[Radical-Al]

i guess i shoulda got some pictures... the one I saw was like a dark redish/copperish color. Oh well. It was an 825 Model.

[[SK]Tammy]

Originally posted by IH8COPS
I can think of alot better cars than a Sterling. If i'm gonna put up with poor British quality and wiring, i'd get a Jaguar XJ6 of the same era, which is a beautifull classic that I can actually get parts for without having wait for them to be shipped from England. Better yet, i'd look for a early 90s BMW 5 series or Audi 100, about the same price, much better quality, and quite frankly, more prestigious even if they aren't as rare. [/color]

Or how about an Aston Martin! Built here in Britain AND in my hometown! :)

I see them rolling off the lines each and every day.

I agree about Rover, they were a rubbish car. They used to be Austin, then Leyland. The best car to come out of there was the MGB-GT.

Rover are again owned by a british company after being ditched by BMW. (Except BMW still own the Mini and Land Rover was sold to another company!)

The cars coming out of the factory now are completely different, have no links with Honda and are actually quite good. They are also bringing out the MG badge again and there are some lovely MG models.

Rover parts are even harder to get hold of, which hopefully will be changing shortly with the new owners.

Tammy

:love: :love:

[Justin Martin]

Heh, well, Astons are extremely expensive here, when you can even find one. Very nice cars though, must be cool seeing them regulary. -^

The new MG's nice, finally have the quality and reliability to match their looks and handling. I wish they'd export them here.

[VQ]

Were getting the new MG's which are based ont he Rover models and the one that I wouldn't mine getting would be the Rover 75-based v8 engine model (I think its the 75.) Ne way the old 3.5 Alloy v8 was a good engine wasn't it? I mean Leyland australia built it up and managed to get 4.4 litres out of the engine and the car is quite nice too - p76 ne one? The problem was that they had poor build quality on an otheriwse good car and they made a large range of concept cars but they scrapped most of them.

[Justin Martin]

Yeah, the old Rover V8 was an excellent engine. It was originally designed by Buick in 1962, and it was used in Buicks and Oldsmobiles until 1965, when it was effectively replaced by a slightly larger cast-iron block engine. Rover then bought the design, and they've been updating it ever since. It's also been used in alot of other British sports cars, like TVR's and Morgans.

[FDA]

Originally posted by IH8COPS
Yeah, the old Rover V8 was an excellent engine. It was originally designed by Buick in 1962, and it was used in Buicks and Oldsmobiles until 1965, when it was effectively replaced by a slightly larger cast-iron block engine. Rover then bought the design, and they've been updating it ever since. It's also been used in alot of other British sports cars, like TVR's and Morgans.

They used to make a kit to do a mid-engined Corvair using that engine and the transaxle from the old independent rear suspension Pontiac Tempest (which was essentially the Covair transmision turned around). Made for a pretty good car, I'd think. It's a pretty good engine that can still be upgraded and used after 40 years.

Edit: I was looking at this and realized that the Crown Corvair kits I mentioned were for a small block Chevy; I'd remembered them as being for the aluminum Buick engine. The old Buick/Rover V-8 is still one of the more amazing engines for longevity.

Further edit: would you believe there's a company making V8 motorcycles using the Rover engine? http://www.v8bike.com/

[DCsplash]

That lovelly V8 ended up being 4.6 gas guzzling litres, and has only recently been replaced in Range Rovers...
Rovers used to make fairly good cars, until they were taken over by what was BMC,,, then British Leyland,, in fact BL was the end of a few manufacturers... Honda's first input, was the Triumph Acclaim^_^ ,, what a car to be proud of,,,not... The Rover name was dropped completely (barring Land/Range Rover) at one stage,,,