Project Nigel - The Multi Coloured Rover 25 That Melted My Heart

Today, I get to drive another car that as a child I would have been ashamed to sit in - a Rover 25. Today, these are a rare sight and one of the few genuinely cheap cars still available. Their reputation was doomed from day one, with Rover's famous build quality and the infamous K-series doing everything they could to make these a car to avoid. Now though, there's a reason we should be saving them - they're actually good!
A huge thankyou to Paul from ‪@ProjectNigel‬ for bringing this car out today
#Rover25 #Rover #MGZR
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[@simsalabim1159]

That‘s why this Channel is so great. Nobody gave this car a second look, except a real Patrolhead. Best car Channel for me, thanks Jay!

[@wardog0086]

Agreed! The variety of old, new, cheap, expensive, and everything in between is one of the best things about this channel.

[@JankyAF]

Totally agree

[@ollycollie]

Precisely. As Wardog says in the first reply to your post, variety is the spice of life, and JayEmm's channel offers a perfectly balanced representation of the variety of cars on our roads.

[@ProjectNigel]

Thank you, James! This is a lovely video of a lovely car 😊

[@bradrobshaw9910]

Paul Rover Man is A Legend..His KZbin channel is awesome

[@Buck3366]

Sounds like you have been making plans for Nigel 😁

[@miraclearranger6438]

He only wants what's best for him

[@neiladam2832]

But his future wasn’t in British steel.

[@ProjectNigel]

That was the song I had in mind when I first started messing with it.😊

[@MrOvershoot]

@@ProjectNigel As you can imagine its not exactly my favourite song!!!

[@klutchcustoms2428]

@@ProjectNigel and project Nigel's headlining is saggy, It's really saggy...

[@mikemagoomcgrady]

Someone who actually loves cars unlike most KZbinrs. Well done J for featuring something like this. It’s not all about the high end stuff.

[@windymiller5058]

Project Nigel is the third best channel on all of KZbin.

[@bobhob35]

I’m just glad cars like this are still around

[@Snarfcat]

Why ?

[@TheMentalblockrock]

@@Snarfcat because they are better than modern cars.....

[@Snarfcat]

@@TheMentalblockrock Don't get me wrong I love classic cars and own a few, but this period from the the late 90's to the early 2010's are some of the worst built and cheaply made cars of all time. It does not matter if it's a Mercedes, BMW, Ford, Rover etc. Manufacturers spent that time putting out cheaply made and badly designed crud that only made profit at the expense of safety and build quality. Mercedes were losing so many customers in this period as their bullet proof tank-like cars ended up having cheap plastics and cheap components that make cars from that era a joke. If you love the looks and it's used as a classic car then fair play, but I certainly would not want to risk driving one regularly.

[@jasonk7072]

@@Snarfcat I don’t wish to be rude, but your statement is absolute nonsense.

[@Snarfcat]

@@jasonk7072 ok do 10 seconds of research on cars from this period and you will find hundreds of articles about the subject. There is a reason cars from this period are rare, they were badly made and used cheap materials for maximum profit. Jay even says this clearly in his video, it does not distract from those cars being fun to drive though.

[@johnny2scoobs197]

I’ve been waiting for this one! Paul is a lovely guy and his channel is worth watching even if you’re not into Rovers, such is his humour and ‘unique’ outlook. And of course a fantastic review of a sorely underrated car. Thank you!

[@repairupdaterepeat5815]

He's a good lad is Paul. Ive owned a few r75 but after blowing my daily up, because of Nigel I bought a very late r25 1.4. I've still got a bit of anxiety about the OMGHGF but it's a fun little motor

[@paul1978g]

My partner had a Rover 25 ix, with the optional extra spoiler, leather interior and honeycombe alloys. She loved that thing, it was only a 1.4, but it is the car she misses the most of her past ones. The leather was decent, the wood was in good condition and it looked really quite handsome in the metalic BRG it was painted in. It cost her £1,000 with 35k miles. It needed a head gasket after a year, an Alternator, and ultimately it let her down coming onto the M25 at J10. Sad really, but after that, she lost confidence in the car (which had now covered 70k miles) and it went to the car recycler whilst she moved on to a 2011 Honda Civic 1.4 Type S. Incidentally, to add to your point about the excellent community, I cannot say enough good things about Steve at British Legends in Southend. He really knows his MG/Rover stuff, and is a VERY honest and decent chap.

[@TheMentalblockrock]

Illogical that she had the usual Rover issues fixed and than scrapped the car!

[@v4skunk739]

I had a cheap MG ZR 1.8 160bhp back in the day. Swapped it for a 2003 EP3 Civic Type-R and the difference in stability, road holding just everything was shocking compared to MG ZR, how bad it was compared to the Honda.

[@Tuberuser187]

Nigel seems an adorably goofy, he got my sub. Though, old Rovers. I saw a Rover 75 with pretty much the top trim, V6 engine with 17" Alloys and traction control, a dark metal blue with chromed brightwork and sandstone leather interior with all the wood and chrome, Harmon Kardon audio system and lots of other features like the powered folding mirrors and parking sensors. Quite a lot more going on with it, the purchaser really specced it up. It was a well loved and preserved car, the owner was past the point where the cost-benefit of keeping the car so mint even as a daily driver and did everything and anything needed to keep it on the road. It was *achingly* beautiful, to my eye the car had aged magnificently and it just looked so elegant. I didnt get to drive it, just a look around and sit inside but just on appearance and style I fell in love with it.

[@BillyBoy444]

Reminds me of the Polo Harlequin... Rovers were very underrated though and not as bad as they were made out to be.

[@simonbrader8408]

Great video of a great car owned by a great bloke. Some of the finer personal touches weren't highlighted - such as the Streetwise roof bars and the 'Not Streetwise' rubbing strips. The steering wheel and rear spoiler are obviously not standard fare on a 25 either. I bought the 'DriveTribe' Rover 25 restored, brilliantly, by MADFord Engineering and I absolutely love it. Paul supplied many of the parts for the rebuild. Your comments about the steering and handling are spot on. I just love this car. I hope @ProjectNigel gets a major and well-deserved bump in views and subs after this. Only fair JM - I subscribed to your channel once I knew you'd done this review.

[@johnmoruzzi7236]

Lucky you didn’t buy the Mondeo ST they did a very average job on….

[@RAPIDNISMO]

Nigel and Paul are legends! Came across them both on Paul's review of a nismo rs, can't help but faul for nigel, he's plucky, abit rusty in places, but he's nigel!

[@SpitfireFortyFour]

A word of note for anyone with a K thats suffered HGF. When you are replacing the gasket just replacing it with an MLS or Elastomer replacement is not the way to go! You need to check the liner heights and make sure they are 0.04mm proud of the block and then you're safe for the years to come! The issue back in the day was many garages would just fit the MLS gasket after being told it was a fix and then (if the liners had moved) it would fail again. There are also several independent mobile specialists (MGRoverSolutions, MGRoverMobile Mechanics etc) that charge around £400 to do all the work you need on your K with a good warranty. A friend of mine had his 45 done by one of them, 70k and 8 years have passed since then and it's still running nicely!

[@sherpafan033]

Big fan of Project Nigel, great you’ve reviewed his car

[@paulmoor595]

I used to have an MGZR in yellow...what a great car. I Ragged it around and it was like a little go cart.If you can find one now... buy it..you won't be disappointed

[@Dick-Dastardly]

Yep, yep yep, its Project Nigel! 👀👀😃

[@chrisogrady28]

This is the closest car to a Jay Emm shirt I've ever seen

[@jimmyjt16]

These Rovers were great. I had the MG variant and it was reliable for the two years I had it. Sadly most have now gone to the scap yard in the sky as they were owned by people that couldn't be bothered to keep on top of routine maintenance.

[@fabokavrs]

Brother has had a few rovers back in the day. Best ones were his 218is and a 45 connoisseur. Friend also had a BRM. I have a soft spot for Rover and recently bought a TF 135.

[@scalecrawlnl]

Great presentation James, thank you. Absolutely on par with the Micra K10 film. The joy of driving personified. And a surprise this car is still here and driving. Good fun, cheers!

[@darrylwebb3625]

It warms my heart to see this old stuff kept going. The early noughties was proper motoring. It also reminds me of the Rover 414 with HGF I got off a workmate for a slab of beers :D

[@fugawiaus]

Matt from furious driving has a couple of episodes on Paul, Nigel and his cars. That’s how I first heard of him.

[@GentilsGarage]

This is a great video! I’ve been following Project Nigel for a good while now. Love the originality and character of Paul.

[@KieronK98]

I saw Nigel in the flesh today! A splash of colour in the sea of normal cars at a supermarket, what a refreshing thing to see, bravo!

[@malcolmhardwick4258]

Can only smile if you were to see that car about !

[@fatkev1983]

The K series is a great engine! The 1.6 being the real pick of the litter if you want a really light engine that revs nicely and gives decent performance. You know, to stick in a light kit car. The engines sound nice at full chat. I have seen someone turbo an early 1.4 engine with amazing results. The earlier engines are tougher, seemingly. A 1.6 K in a classic Mini makes for a very fun car. Yes, the VVC engine has more grunt but the 1.6 just suits the vibe more and is fast enough for a Mini or a basic lightweight kit car. My friends and I did a ramshackle rally from Dover to Krakow years ago. The car - a Rover 200 Diesel. It performed very well. We thought we had an extra day in Krakow but realised we needed to leave to catch our ferry, the Rover thundered along out of Poland and along the roads in Germany... at some speed. On the way to Krakow, the Rover was subjected to all manner of road surfaces and abuse. Just kept going.

[@Simon-ui6db]

Them L series diesels are really great on fuel and solid motors.

[@6770connor]

My parents had a 25 1.6 3dr on a X Reg that we had as a spare car. It ended up not being used, left sat on the driveway for a year and when the mot and tax was up it was scraped. What got me is that it was a good runner and it only had just 34,000 on the clock but no one wanted it so it had to go.

[@pistonburner6448]

That thing is appropriately like a used pair of underwear: yellow in the front, brown in the back

[@Buck3366]

Come back a second time to this comment and it still had me laughing like a kid 🤣

[@JohnDoe-jy1kn]

Had a MG 1.8 zs. I loved it. It handled better than it should have. Loved chewing through head gaskets.

[@mrb6094]

I've been watching Project Nigel the last few months. Great channel.

[@simonelliott5956]

Well I didn’t expect that! Great video and nice to see something so left-field as Nigel!

[@888johnmac]

damn-it James .. finished watching this , then went to E bay looking for a ZR near me ( preferably in yellow )

[@michaelcole455]

Yes,Nigels plans were brilliant,I remember the 25 but never had one,I did love the MG and MG Maestro,I always had something different,or a sports car Jaguar XK8 4.2R later when I could afford it,it was a great review,grateful 🙏 🤲 to you for a fabulous review,well done matey😁

[@silverandgoldportugal]

Proud to say i still have a Rover 200 sdi 1994cc 105hp from 1998. I have it since 2008 (14 years).

[@The_Original_Geoff_B]

Thank you James - I'm in the mood for something fun, cheap, and that I won't be scared to leave on the side of the road. Looks ideal to me :)

[@timbre7999]

Great presentation with personality and humor, makes for more enjoyable watching than many other channels out there. Well done and such a nice subject.

[@spainter1985]

A mate of mine used to have a Streetwise 1.4, it handled way better than it had any right to considering the raised ride height

[@eze8970]

Thanks J, Rover had some good Engineers, but hampered by budget & (lack of) Quality Control, together with continually improving competition. Lightish cars, with revving 4 pot is always a good mix though! 🙏

[@TheMileswin]

I have been looking forward to watching this video. Excellent job James and well researched.

[@shand1967]

20 years ago I had a 2001 Rover 25iS which was the sporty 25 before the ZR came along, with the same 103 bhp 1.4 K series lump as the ZR. It was a hoot and I loved it. It never caused me any bother until the inevitable HGF came along and I traded it in for a Civic. The K series was otherwise a frugal, revvy and lovely sounding unit if very light on torque. I disagree with you about the switchgear, they were Honda derived and unlike most Ford's and Vauxhall's of the era were robust.

[@Simon-ui6db]

This reminds me I must get 2 new door actuators have to see if Paul has any for my 75.

[@cirian75]

late ZR/25s are ULEZ compliant as well

[@Lot76CARS]

Love both channels in different ways and shows the total diversity of KZbin, both car channels but poles apart!

[@TheMrFishnDucks]

Fun little car. Very creative art project. Nice video. Keep up the good work.

[@seinsmeld13]

Thank you Paul.

[@pizzalover3]

A nice , cheap car review, more relevant to lots of us than supercars.

[@davidflanagan7457]

A friend of mine had a 1.8 with the factory rally team ecu that thing was rapid but only lasted 30 k before it went Pete tong but was class

[@markdoyle6414]

I'm not quite sure why I find this Rover content so interesting.

[@freemanscott78]

I had a n MG Streetwise 2 litre TD...I loved it for work ...and am led to believe that model was supposed to get 4 wheel drive from the freelander...the extra 50 mm height made a hugr difference on forestry roads 👌💚

[@morgman43]

The Streetwise was widely mocked for being a bit fake in period, but look at all the faux-SUV crossovers out there today and you realise that Rover were quite ahead of their time.

[@michaelstaunton1632]

Another enjoyable video enjoyed that now I must say 👍👍

[@mattgeosweirdworld8129]

Great video! Me and my brother bumped into you on a OpenTrack Track day at Cadwell park a while back. We were driving a Rover 25GTI. It has a few mods to the brakes and a remap but other than that is standard. Its done 145,000 miles now!! and i think about 10 track days. It gets laughed at when i arrive at track events in it. But it keeps up with Clio 182's and many other much more expensive cars. More than welcome to do a feature on it anytime.

[@JayEmmOnCars]

I remember that! Epic choice of track car

[@Captain_Scarlet_SIG]

Haha I subscribe to you both and I have an early 3 door 1.6 R25, cracking car handles B roads really well with refined and smooth drive and as you say 200 Vi suspension and 40mpg fun practical and can look cool with the right upgrades. The early pre pro-drive are better built, great to see this on your channel Jay.

[@nick140i2]

My first car was a Rover Metro 1.1C that got crashed several times before being traded in for the fire breathing monster that was a 1.4 Metro GTi 16v. At the time it felt like I’d bought a Ferrari! Funny how perceptions change over time….. I’d love to see a GTi on the channel at some point though - assuming there are any left of course…

[@JishJosh]

i have one i call her Wendy and she has become a legend in her own right shes on the road absolutely no issues for the 3 years ive had her just got her with a failing gasket and did the upgrade myself so it was just parts and my own labor really easy car to work on really fun to drive i love the 25 over the zr zr is way to stiff suspension breaks my back over the smallest of bumps

[@tomcole020]

It’s great that despite driving supercars on a regular basis you can still appreciate the more simple cars like these. I’ve got a ZR you could review but it’s a 1.4 so you’d probably want a 1.8 160. It’s been remapped though and actually pulls a lot better than the standard 1.4 it’s around 125hp now

[@JankyAF]

These are my fav reviews, Janky cars are the best cars! Cheap, fun, and who cares about the flaws makes it that much more guilt free to enjoy

[@sammygirlie345]

Always liked the streetwise on why I have no idea

[@catkin1671]

That’s so endearing

[@Kacpa2]

I find similar things to be true with most older cars i got in even Peugeot, something as basic as 307 SW diesel it felt more direct and connected and hell when i go into Focus MK1 2.0L(non rs just basic Ghia lot) it's gear lever and steering feel like something out of a sportscar next to modern hellscape of NVH design and numbness all around. Its like engineers who understood how to make a good car have died out replaced by clueless freshmen and freshwomen who do not even understand they are doing things wrong and focus on "comfort" and performance/economy numbers. When they attempt to make something sporty they are incredibly ignorant of what actually sporty car should be.

[@condemned7515]

Yay, it's Nigel!

[@markoverton5858]

Never had one but agree with your thinking 👍

[@user-wc2iq5hy7d]

I have an MG ZR 160 which was modified to 175 via ECU. Also it has modified exhaust, a bumper, skirts and tail bumper kit. 17 inch Chrome wheels, but is located in Bulgaria. Currently rebuilding the whole engine (Pistons, head gasket..etc..)

[@posimativelynegative]

My first car was a 216i that I got through my late grandma via my parents who used it as a runabout until they got a brand new Polo. Underneath its dark green exterior, beige interior, automatic gearbox, and the general essence of a car that a woman in her late 70s would buy was a proper little rocket. It was nimble in the exit of the student parking lot, yet also unassuming enough that it would fly under the radar. In spite of its shortcomings, it was a great little car, and I have a soft spot for Rover, as they granted me my vehicular independence. Oddly enough, the head gasket wasn't its undoing, but being rear-ended by Land Cruiser. And whilst it was fixed up. It just wasn't the same, I felt like I needed a change, and I ended up with still the best car I've ever owned and wish I had just bitten the bullet and got a new gearbox when the old one ate itself. The VW Polo GTi.

[@bentullett6068]

Did you know that the Rover 25 automatic was faster than a MK4 VW Golf GTi in a drag race? But saying that VW Golf MK4 was a big disappointment and VW at the time said that the MK4 GTi was a cruiser not a hot hatchback.

[@Buck3366]

Legend says my late grans mobility scooter had a mk4 GTI off at the lights. 😆

[@jamessheehy4895]

The streetwise was cool 😎

[@forresttm]

I don't have a mg. But i do have a heavy tuned (170bhp) rover streetwise diesel.. Come have a go.

[@wayland7150]

I used to drive a Rover 214 that came before this. The same engine. Really revvy and agile, great fun to thrash.

[@FleetAdmiral215]

Reminds me of the VW Harlequin range in the 90's ? James you certainly love your diversity !, thank you James you've just reminded me to watch an old film this weekend " The Last Boy Scout" another good Bruce Willis film .

[@JayEmmOnCars]

Epic film!

[@scottcarr862]

Agree, I bought a 2002 turbo diesel version and tbh it looks scabby but what a peach it is. The torque surprises a few small modern cars which they absolutely hate getting rinsed by a rover. Couple shite videos of it on my channel

[@clivebrackstone1896]

Nigel lives next door to me in Rochdale.... ha small world

[@markwright3161]

Paul has a good demonstration of how rapidly the build quality fell off after phonix took over which I hope you had shared with you. One door is from an earlier car, the other from a later model (I can't remember which way around they are). The later is considerably more tinny when shut. Something that's sad as it is what lead to their demise, but a fun q***k (to avoid that American channel being summoned, although it also looks like I'm swearing at a duck, no offence intended :) ) to have a decade plus later.

[@thedetailingdoctor5746]

That tub of washing up liquid is from a backstreet cash and carry in Bradford… don’t ask me how I know that 😆

[@TheMrFishnDucks]

Sorry Jayem Cobra is the ultimate Christmas film.

[@nigelbattersby7557]

Great video, I bought the wife one of these back in 2010 and cost me £150 as it had a bad 5th gear, I changed the gearbox (£80) and we had it for 5 years, started on the button every time. It eventually suffered the dreaded head gasket failure and wasn't worth repairing as the parts would have cost £200, the reason it failed was probably because we revved the life out of it at every opportunity or back road. The wife named it "Fat Bum Car" and loved it. needless to say its razor blades now 😀

[@phillpidgeon8961]

Loved my zr. Never driven a car so hard, never went wrong unless I crashed it. Used to get 30 ish in 1st 🥇

[@davidhaygarth648]

I remember when mid- range car models were fun to driven not just the top hot one. It was a good sign. Examples ? The Ford Focus and Pug 306.

[@jumpferjoy1st]

Spooky. After watching this, I went onto Ebay to have a nose about at cheap stuff and the first thing that came up was a Rover Streetwise.

[@michael32A]

Great video! More space than a new Fiesta though: I can take a few more bags of my parents' garden rubbish to the tip in my 25 than Dad can in his 2013 Fiesta. The brakes aren't so responsive as the Fiesta, but the 25 has a _lot_ more poke. I hope to keep it going as long as I can.🤞

[@TheDirkdams]

i had a 216 cabrio for 18 year's and 250000km it was a good car never got a problem with it toke it whit me to Spain and sold it to a neighbor and she is still troubles driving around here in benidorm

[@ash7990]

Any electrical problems with central locking, rear wiper, boot not opening etc is nearly always the tailgate wiring loom chaffing. This would sometimes blow the same fuse that the cooling fan used - so many that over heated and blew the head gasket was due to this tailgate wiring popping that fuse. It used to be a relatively common sight to see a 200 driving around with the rear wiper ‘parked’ (aka dead) somewhere randomly on the rear screen - I used to cringe knowing that the rad fan would be inop on all of them driving around like that.

[@goose4150]

Finally a model that I own as well

[@ollycollie]

I love old Rovers, well most old British marques, but especially Rover. It's unlikely to happen, but I never totally give up hope that one day I may own an SD1 Vitesse, or an XJS V12, or a 2500Pi.

[@michaelb6729]

That car can be considered Hub-nutty !

[@oknicelady]

I can't be the only one humming XTC's "Making Plans for Nigel", right?! Have I've gone mad, James?! I mean "He has this future in British Steel", right?!

[@thedetailingdoctor5746]

As much of a petrolhead as I am my mum owned a 214si both the old and new shape and I do have a soft spot for both of them. Maybe because they’re British maybe because we owned some I’m not sure. But I’d rather drive something like that or a micra than a corsa/fiesta or electric car anyday.

[@hexgraphica]

Eras work like books, you can't tell how a chapter is like until you begin the next. For the same reason, you can't taste the distinct feeling of a decade or an era before the next one has started. Also it's hard to develop fondness for something that we don't consistently love and is not gone yet, and Rover group was easy to hate in the very last years before it failed

[@Zlin0035]

as a kid I never liked rovers, but now I think they are pretty neat. never driven one though.

[@SpitfireFortyFour]

They're a lot of fun to drive. The engineers really knew what they were doing with suspension!

[@Pommieboi13]

I implore you to find a 1.4 16v ZR that’s had an upgraded intake of some description, a 52mm throttle body off the bigger 1.8 vvc and a map to raise the Rev limit to around 7500 rpm for a review. The mods make literally no noticeable extra power but the sound is great and the 1.4 is more peppy with the bigger throttle body. I had one a few years ago with the above and it made it more of a hoot to drive

[@SpitfireFortyFour]

The 1.4 ZR had the 52mm throttle body from the get go! It was only base 85bhp 25s that had the restricted one. And I agree, mapping them makes for a lot of extra fun! Better economy too!

[@TheSimonhammond]

Has anyone dropped the KV6 in one of these? It's great that the car underdog is getting some love.

[@Unclemiffato100]

What a car 🚗 😳

[@cupidstunt22]

I've got my eye on those savoury crackers, lightly salted.

[@TheMentalblockrock]

Fun fact ; the BMW 1 series hatch-back is rumoured to have been based on the Rover 25 platform.

[@SpitfireFortyFour]

That's not quite right. BMW commissioned three cars from Rover during their ownership to replace the Austin Mini, Rover 200/400 and the Rover 800. They were coded R30, R40 and R50. The 800 replacement was R40 and the only one that made it to market as a Rover, it was the 75. R50 was the first gen MINI which was due to replace the the old Austin and the 3 door Rover 200/25. Obviously BMW took this car when they asset stripped Rover. R30 was to replace the 5 door 25 and the 400/45 range. It was also taken by BMW during the asset stripping. It was modified and reworked to become the 1-Series. You can see Rover touches in the design though, as an example the top of the windscreen and roofline is very similar to the 75.

[@adam.677]

That headliner has seen better days 😂

[@floriandanzinger6027]

I could watch JayEmm review bread bakers without the intent of ever baking.

[@sionjones1257]

My first car was a 2005 Rover 25, it was an absolutely terrible car that my friends all took the piss out of, I absolutely loved it.

[@gabrielcaramet3238]

This car is so intresting.

[@ThomasDoubting5]

Under rated cars , apart from the head gasket.

[@chrisdawson9537]

I have to admit there is something about a Rover...funny how then they was new we all laughed. now I cannot help but want a gold Rover 75, I think I'm mentally ill...