Two Year Channel Celebration: No Budget Reviews - 1985 Austin Maestro 1.6 Vanden Plas Automatic

-One 1985 Austin Maestro 1.6 Vanden Plas Automatic
-One Mobile Phone
-No Fancy Outfits
-No Obscure In-Jokes
-No DSLRs
-No Shotgun Microphones
-No Fluid Head Tripods
-No Idea about Exposure
-No Budget Whatsoever
It is time for the newest instalment in that beloved cinematic automotive KZbin experience where we film practical cars that can be bought for less than £1,000 in a manner befitting of their inexpensive value! This may go horribly wrong...
This time, as we test a really rather lovely 1985 Austin Maestro 1.6 Vanden Plas Automatic, which is another car that you don't see any more. Hold onto your seats as we have an unexpected brake test, genuine wood veneer door caps, slightly underwhelming acceleration, suffer dashboard rattles, experience gearbox whine, get close and personal with the infamous talking dashboard, marvel at the space and visibility and get even more nostalgic than ever before. Nothing untoward, then...
As an independent vehicle consultant, I take potential buyers through the whole car buying process from choosing a make and model to a vehicle handover and road tax. In addition to information on this service, I also have a selection of written and video reviews of cars that I have owned, hired, borrowed or have somehow come into my possession. Please use the Contact Me page on my website to get in touch, visit my Facebook page for latest updates and share this video if you like it! Thank you for watching.
Website: www.lloydvehicleconsulting.co.uk
Facebook: / lloydvehicleconsulting

[@calumbaxter9946]

Well thank you for reviewing my car, really enjoyed watching it. You are a minefield of knowledge and a very fair reviewer.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Oh well, thanks very much indeed for the opportunity to film it, the experience was very nostalgic and most enjoyable.

[@peacepuffz]

My 1st car

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@peacepuffz , it won't be the last Maestro review on the channel either!

[@seancooke4127]

It is stunning in that colour. Fabulous talking dash but even without it the lovely wooden door caps would have sold it for me. Such a lovely design with little angled corners and bonnet edge, beautiful light clusters, the indent along the sides, classy wheel trims, even the base metal bumper versions and the vans looked tidy. Very nostalgic. I know that this was a 1.6, but I always felt that the 1.3 a+ sounded so strong and throaty in the Maestro.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Thanks Sean! It is indeed a lovely colour. I love the wood and the chrome door handles, even if they look a bit tacky, they are so terribly 1980s. There is an excellent review on the Furiousdriving channel of a 1.3L Maestro, which will give you the A+ noise fix if you need it!

[@alansimpson835]

Another car that has become a head turner due to its now low numbers and the fact that so many of us over thirties grew up with one in our lives. Compared with today's cars the visibility with that high roofline and huge rear window is impressive. A very enjoyable review and I look forward to seeing if one does join your fleet in the future

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Well sir, I would like a nice two tone Maestro or Montego, I must admit! You are right about the nostalgia value, probably everyone over thirty in this country will know someone who used to own one. The visibility is impressive, as is the use of space for the time. All its rivals would have been much more cramped than this. I really could have done with power steering, though.

[@mattw8332]

My home was a two Maestro household in the early 1990s. My parents had an early silver MG 1600. They both smoked like chimneys which turned the grey interior plastics light green! *cough! * In 1991 my sister bought a metallic blue 1987 Mayfair 1.6 which had an aftermarket alarm that kept draining the battery.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

I think my grandfather's 1.6 Mayfair was also that metallic blue colour, and that would have been an 1987-88 car too! Didn't have an annoying aftermarket alarm, though. Gosh, interior plastics turning light green must have been a bit unnerving.

[@marclappin2508]

i got my Mum a Vanden plas Maestro in 1997 in silver full leather she loved it, she found it easy to drive and it had power and I'm sure hers had power steering i couldnt get KIT to work i got it for £50 i liked it the MG version was great

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

By 1987, the Maestro Vanden Plas had the new dashboard, power steering and a leather interior (although you could replace it with a cloth one for free), so they are quite different from these early ones. My uncle bought a Maestro Mayfair in 2005 for £300, I think.

[@pizzalover3]

I do like the wheel trims on that . Nice to hear the voice synthesis too.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

The steering was unbearablely heavy, and this is an early No Budget Reviews episode, but it's still one of the No Budget Reviews classics. The later Vanden Plas models had power steering and a standard full leather interior, although you could change it for a cloth one at no cost.

[@FuelPower]

Happy birthday Lloyd Vehicle Consulting! What a great little car, seems like Calum's taking great care of it. The talking dashboard is definitely very 80s in sound which is cool! Thought your intro to it was going to announce you'd bought a Maestro for under £1000 rather than seeing one on Ebay sell for £960 😉 The Vanden Plas is certainly very luxurious indeed!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Ah, Mr Bill, Callum does indeed have a lovely car. There may be something else from his collection appearing on the channel if you are lucky... Yes, sadly the Vanden Plas Maestros are now out of budget. I have thought about buying one of them in the past, but it would be hard to find one...

[@mattsbeamer]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting I bet you were pretending you were the British knight rider :P

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@mattsbeamer, I haven't worked out how to do a shadowy flight into the world of a man who does not exist yet...

[@mattsbeamer]

Lloyd Vehicle Consulting 🤣

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@mattsbeamer , we aim to please, sir!

[@PlanetautoUK]

Time flies, and congratulations are certainly in order, and what a car to celebrate with, well done.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Thanks very much indeed, it was indeed a fantastic car and I am deeply privileged to have been offered to it for review. Thanks for all your support once again.

[@elvetwilliams9013]

My late mum bought a almost 3 yr old Maestro Mayfair 1.6 auto in the same Oporto red as the one you drove … being an 86 D it had newer dash from Montego hers also had the optional PAS she traded in as needed bigger car when we lived near swansea to visit my sick gran jn Wiltshire bought a MK3 cavalier GLi 2.0 auto 2 years old 82k in glacier white

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Thank you ever so much indeed for watching! I drove a Maestro Mayfair back in September, actually, although it was a 1.3 Mayfair with that newer dashboard you mention (introduced February 1986). I would have loved the optional power steering when I drove this... I also covered a 1995 Mark III Cavalier earlier this year, which is on the No Budget Reviews playlist if you are interested.

[@johnmusk4991]

Another great video with interesting facts & knowledge Keep them coming

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Thanks very much indeed, John! Glad you enjoyed it. Hoping to do a Montego and a Metro at some point as well...

[@richardhowlett9424]

Very nice car , superb review. My mate had a beige/ gold Maestro VDP in the early 90’s , took us all over the north of England following the old RAC rally, utterly faultless, great memories .

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Sounds like my grandfather's old car, which would have been around in that sort of era! Used to go everywhere in the Maestros. His weren't faultless, sadly, but good to know that they could be!

[@andygreen1a]

Beautiful condition. Great review

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Thanks ever so much indeed, Andrew! Glad you enjoyed it, I did enjoy the car very much.

[@zebedep]

The miracle Maestro gets better with age

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

It does indeed! Massively nostalgic for my family and lots of other people up and down the country, I am sure.

[@TPerry2828]

Love these old tubs! 😍

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

You aren't the only one! Got another nostalgic car coming up on No Budget Reviews this week.

[@trabali5168]

rare, very rare to see 1:-An austin maestro, 2:- A vanden plas version 3:- one with an audible warning system 4:- A middle aged man apply the push and pull steering technique on a car without power steering!!!.............Love it!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Well, sir, I had to use the push pull, otherwise it is impossible to turn the wheel at parking speeds! Same with the Polo G40. Oh yes, nothing but the best Austin Rover products on this channel!

[@trabali5168]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting yes thats right, fathers brother had one (B135 WWR 1.3HL), love to see a montego being reviewed, especially the pre 89 facelift one...........may be one day who knows?!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@trabali5168, I have already been offered a Montego 2.0 EFI, sir. Your wish is my command... It's amazing how nostalgic the Maestro is, not just in my family, but in so many others. This time, I want power steering!

[@trabali5168]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting Montego 2ltr EFI, now theres a car i wont forget, i went to the nec motor show in birmingham in that car in 1988 as a 13 year old with my friend (andrew cook) and his dad jeff cook (ex. england rugby manager) and he got done for speeding at 83 mph on the way back!!! looking forward to it........................hmm nec motor show that gives me an idea!...........

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@trabali5168 , oh no, sir! Not those ideas again. I can see that your question for next month has already been planned. Yes, used to go to the Motor Show myself in the 1990s, although I never went in a Montego.

[@mattsbeamer]

Wow, a great review on on such a nice car. The interior does it for me in this spec.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Ah yes, sir! The interior is ever so typical of the period, isn't it? Glad you liked the video, it was absolutely brilliant to review this car.

[@mattsbeamer]

Lloyd Vehicle Consulting I am glad you are meeting people who love you filming their cars. Keep on going buddy!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

We aim to please, sir! More No Budget Reviews coming up later this week.

[@mattsbeamer]

Lloyd Vehicle Consulting no budget reviews are great

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@mattsbeamer , we aim to please, sir!

[@David_H-73]

Fantastic Joseph. It's hard to underestimate how advanced I thought this car was in 1983 when I was a 10 year old boy. My dad had a 79 Morris marina which in itself I thought was posh. It had twin headlights and rear centre armrest and a glovebox light for goodness sake! That digital dash blow me away and I was always desperate to see it in operation. Lovely brown interior and of course velour seats. What more could you ask for? Oh yes dash that doesn't squeak.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Well sir, this video seems to have produced a huge outpouring of nostalgia, and of course that can only be a good thing! The Marina had ancient suspension dating back in many ways to the Morris Minor, and so wasn't particularly advanced, but having a glovebox light and a rear armrest must have been wonderful. Even when I was growing up in the early 1990s, a digital dashboard Maestro (a type my grandfather never had) was absolutely fascinating to me, and I wasn't disappointed reviewing this one in person. The rattles were very much present on anything less than entirely smooth roads, though!

[@williamwoods8022]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting Easy to get rid of rattles by taking the dash apart and tying up any cables etc that may be loose and rattling off the plastics. Should be easy enough to do on this type of Maestro dashboard but with the later one like most cars one piece dashboards the entire dashboard has to come apart to get the dashboard out to get access to anything as we had to do way back then to replace the heater matrix etc.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@williamwoods8022 , yes, I don't know if Callum has already had a go at this one, but it actually wasn't too bad. We didn't get any rattles unless on a fairly bumpy stretch of road.

[@stanleyleopard6799]

Well done to Callum for doing his bit for British motoring heritage. Lovely car. Was this the last model to bear Herbert's name? Great review Joseph, thanks!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

We aim to please, sir! Callum does indeed have some lovely cars. I very much enjoyed this lovely Maestro. Yes, the Maestro, Montego and Metro all had the Austin name and badge removed from them in 1988. The company was renamed the Rover Group, but the Rover name never appeared on the cars.

[@mickles1975]

I paused the Smith & Sniff podcast to come and watch this. Absolute no brainer.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Let's face it, sir, you are only here for the talking dashboard and the wood veneer doorcaps...

[@mickles1975]

Not at all. I would have come and watched even if it had been a lowly 1.3L. The power of nostalgia is great. They were icing on the cake though.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Ah sir, it's clearly just as nostalgic for me as it is for you! What a great car.

[@paullonghurst1390]

What a beautiful car, now you’re talking

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Very much so, it has since been sold, sadly.

[@bunter6]

Mmm nightfire red, lovely colour👍 . Had two MG's 1 R series 1600 with the twin dowdrafts, sound lovely but was slow and impossible to keep the carbs in balance. MG Efi was a revelation, so much smoother, quicker, economical and reliable.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

I think it's called Oporto Red, from what I remember, which is a bit different. I had a Nightfire Red 1996 Rover 216 SLi Automatic, and this is much more of a copper shade than I recally from the 216. Oh, the R-Series! As far as I remember, they changed all the existing Maestros with that engine to the S-Series as part of a recall, but I could be wrong. The power output was about 20 bhp more than a standard R-Series, but maybe that wasn't enough! I am sure that the 2.0 EFi was much, much better.

[@bunter6]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting Yeah they were meant to be 103bhp when in fine fettle which they never were, Efi was much torquier as well as more powerful and started on the button every time.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

I am really looking forward to testing out a Montego 2.0 EFI that I have been offered. I think it's a manual too. I am sure that it was a revelation back in the day compared with the MG 1600 versions...

[@elvetwilliams9013]

Definitely Oporto red.. my mum had a 86 Mayfair with newer dash and optional PAS in ooorto

[@johnbradshaw5900]

Terrific review of a classic car! The Maestro was a very good car in its day, I lasted after the hot MG turbo model as a boy. In Vanden Plas trim it was very plush. Many people laugh at BL/Austin Rover cars but they did some terrific designs and in the 80's they didn't seem any worse built than many rivals despite the jokes. They deserved more respect than they recieved. The MG turbo was genuinely quick in its day but I seem to remember the chassis struggled to handle the power in anything other than a straight line.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Thanks John! I gather that the torque steer on the MG Turbo was pretty bad. You won't find any laughing at Austin Rover products on this channel, just acknowledgements that they had their weak points, like many cars of the era, and masses of nostalgia. The late MG Maestros with similar wheels to a 216 GTI to look very nice, I must say. I do like a bit of Vanden Plas luxury myself...

[@simonbcity]

My dad had the Montego 2ltr Vanden plas he loved it.. think he wishes he had another but they are rare as hens teeth

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Yes, Maestro and Montego Vanden Plas models are really, really rare these days, but really rather sort after by the discerning Austin Rover connoisseur... I am hoping to cover a later Maestro and a Montego soon!

[@simonbcity]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting Can't find one anywhere.. looked all over the internet..

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

There are some in the Owners' Club, I don't think there are many!

[@simonbcity]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting Loved that car.. full leather and walnut finish

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

I do like the Vanden Plas and Mayfair models very much!

[@Pauljn67]

I had one of these back in the day and I'd love to get my hands on that one!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

It's wonderful, isn't it? Callum has done a great job in resurrecting her from her previous life living on a farm! Such a rare variant these days.

[@Pauljn67]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting That missing sunroof panel would drive me mad!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@Pauljn67 , I think Callum is planning on fixing it at some point.

[@calumbaxter9946]

Paul JN Winter project along with the headliner...

[@MajorKlanga]

The Maestro wasn't the 1st production car with a bonded windscreen; the Sierra had one before using the new technology which as usual wasn't tested properly resulting in cracks appearing if the car hit a sharp bump in the road although bonding of windscreens actually started in the 60's on some American cars. The bonded windscreen, plastic bumpers and digital dash were all added to the design at a late stage because the protracted seven year development of the car made it look dated on launch. The plastic bumpers weren't developed properly either resulting in cracking and fracturing.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Yes, I think development started around 1976/77. Those plastic bumpers are similar to the ones in the Mk VI Escort and Mk I Mondeo in the respect that they enjoy cracking. I think that the windscreen in this car is starting to de-laminate ever so slightly in one corner, but it isn't too bad. The Montego looks far better resolved than this as they had the time to straighten some things out, the Maestro wasn't quite so lucky.

[@Banom7a]

"Warning, you have bought an Austin Rover!"

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

If only my grandfather had bought one of these with the talking dashboard and it had given him that message...

[@mattw8332]

The voice synth warning messages in my parents' MG 1600 was erratic at times. On hot summer days the digital dashboard would go completely blank!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@mattw8332 , I have heard that the MG 1600 was a pretty bad car, and its swift cancellation after just 18 months seems to underline this!

[@williamwoods8022]

FarhanAxiq - Actually Maestros and Montegos were very reliable cars - far better than the Escorts, Astras and Golfs etc at the time - Clarkson was miffed at that when it came out that he made the quip that it must have been the diesel ones that were reliable but then again he talked DRIVEL all the time anyway. They also came out near the top in the crash tests as well with only Volvo etc rivals coming ahead of them. We worked on them in the garages I worked in and the sills were double the thickness of their rivals but unfortunately that didn't stop them rusting out the same as all the other cars from back then. My aunt had three Maestros in a row back then because she needed a car that she could get her fold up wheelchair into and the Maestro was the only car in that class back then that she could - they were very reliable cars for her as well.

[@williamwoods8022]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting The problem with the early MG 1600's was the carburetors over the exhaust manifold that was causing the fuel to evaporate as far as I remember.

[@SuperFIFTHGEAR]

Very nice car! I would love to see (and hear!) a Perkins-powered Maestro or Montego, I know Tanya has one although I've only seen pictures I've never seen it in person.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

There's only one problem, sir: we don't talk about diesels on this channel!

[@SuperFIFTHGEAR]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting I'm sure we can make an exception for an Austin Rover Group vehicle, can we not ,sir? Especially one with a Perkins Prima diesel!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@SuperFIFTHGEAR , I am not sure, sir, even for a Maestro...

[@keithnewton8981]

I had 1.6 VP. A no d two MG one 2.0efi and the other turbo. Both were stolen and used as get away cars for bank raids the police said these car are fast handle great can carry large loads. Police said they had very little to catch them. It was so said I loved my MG maestro love the look on GTE a no d xr3 RSturbo drivers face as my red mg left them standing

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Thank you ever so much indeed for watching! Yes, the MG Maestro Turbo was a bit ridiculous, wasn't it? Much faster with more power than even an RS Turbo. Sorry to hear that you had problems with some of the lighter fingered members of society! I don't think those Austin Rover locks were up to much, were they?

[@Victor-DOOM]

Super car love it vdp and mg my favourites

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Oh yes, I am definitely with you there! It's definitely not the last Maestro, Montego and Metro video you will see on the channel either. Thank you very much indeed for watching!

[@Victor-DOOM]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting good il keep watching. I could even treat myself to a maestro in the near future the last time I had a maestro was in 1999

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Thanks very much indeed! Yes, Maestros were a definite tradition in my family for a very long time... The prices are now on the rise, so it may be a good time to buy one!

[@cambs0181]

Lets make everything on the dashboard digital, except for the milage gauge. Thats what all cars will be like in the future. BL/Austin Rover thinking.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Yes, let's make it as easy to clock as always and add a slightly unfathomable digital instrument cluster! That will be perfect.....

[@jdnrotterdam2150]

You also had a renault 25. That dashboard also talks

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Yes, the Renault 11 with the talking dashboard beat the Maestro to market by a couple of months, I believe.

[@eggy1962]

i actually preferred the R series engine in the petrols but my favourite by far was the diesels i had 1 atmo and 1 turbo, 60mpg was easy and pulled like a train.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Sadly, I think it's going to be impossible to get hold of an R Series these days, but that is interesting! We have a long running joke on the channel, which was present right from the first video, that we don't talk about diesels, so I don't think that we will see a Perkins Prima powered Maestro on the channel any time soon, sadly... I have been offered a lovely Montego EFI, though!

[@terrificspokesman7416]

Vanden Plas!!!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Indeed, sir!

[@colinhicks4174]

Love that dash. Everything digital except, oddly, the odometer. I hope you could switch off the voice, it’s the first thing I do with most in car Sat Navs. A pity they replaced with it one that looked a bit boring, rather than trying to perfect the digital one.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

I think the Montego style dashboard was to unify the look of the Metro, Maestro and Montego, and elements of it even ended up in other Rover Group products such as the Leyland DAF vans and the first Land Rover Discovery. It's a very nostalgic design for me, but the fancy bits of this interior were not carried over. I think you can turn the voice synthesiser off, not entirely sure, though!

[@predragv.365]

What happend with the sun roof

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

No idea, I am afraid...

[@AsherPiesman]

Congrats on two years Lloyd: love your videos. I think these earlier Maestros’s interior design was much nicer than later ones, made even cooler if you got a variant with the talking dash board and digital display. For all its flaws at least Austin-Rover were trying to make something new and exciting. Never been so keen on the Maestro’s exterior styling and no offence to the cars owner but I think the V.P. trim makes it look even worse. The chrome door handles look naff, and those hubcaps are the stuff of nightmares: there so gaudy and ugly in my opinion and don’t fit with the rest of the car at all

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Thanks very much indeed, sir!

[@terrificspokesman7416]

Rue the chrome does look a bit tachy. But I do quite like the aluminium wing mirrors

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@terrificspokesman7416 , it's 35 years old, that's probably why it is a bit tacky now.

[@terrificspokesman7416]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting Yeah. But still a nice car

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@terrificspokesman7416 , that is an understatement, sir!

[@betaman22]

You have pronounced Vanden Plas correctly sir!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

I did check a 1985 Austin Rover promotional video which pronounced it like that, so I am pretty sure that I have a case for saying it like that. Not everyone agrees, though!

[@seancooke4127]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting I do not know why but I have always pronounced it Vanden Plarrr as well right back through Allegro, SD1, Metro, Maestro, Montego and SD3. Must have heard Chris Goffey or Sue Baker, really don't know. At the time electronic ignition really transformed the running of the A+. The Maestro really was a competitor in the Escort class. As Matt said Rover spent the resources on high price high profit motors like THE Rover 75 V8. It should have been invested in the high volume low profit Metro and Maestro to secure the long term. You'd think that I was the CEO of Austin Rover wouldn't you.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@seancooke4127 , as I mentioned, I checked a period promotional film to check my pronunciation, although other ways of saying it are probably equally correct. You do sound a bit like Harold Musgrove, I must admit...

[@philnewstead5388]

I had a 1.6 HLS with the R series unit fitted. Those early cars were not terribly nice to drive, the R series unit was asthmatic and not very free revving and as with everything that BL did in those days and you eluded to in your commentary the car was launched underdeveloped and with make do power units because the S series units weren't ready. The original Maestro 1.6 MG was an eleventh hour addition to the range to compete with the XR3 and was a bit of a disaster as it had Weber carbs but because of their location would get vapour locks and the car would then not start after a hot soak. All Gear changes on those early cars were terrible. I'm not going to criticise the electronic dash as I think it was quite innovative and very much of its time, remember the Aston Martin Lagonda of the same era had a similar readout. You will never stop those early dash rattles we had devils own job stopping them rattling for long enough to hand them over to the customer when they were new. The later cars with the S series engines were a much better drive and although after we sold our 1.6 HLS I swore I would never have another one I was given an MG 2.0 Efi as a company car in about 1988 and that was a great car and that was replaced with a Montego MG Turbo which I kept until it fell to bits. It's such a shame this early cars were so mediocre because the interiors were in all BL products excellent and the VDP that you tested was lovely inside and the late cars were as good as anything Ford made and better than a lot of Vauxhalls. By the way nothing wrong with your pronunciation of Vanden Plas the man on the launch course spent about five minutes banging on about the correct pronunciation and I wasn't even on the sales course.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Thanks ever so much indeed for watching the video! I actually watched a 1985 Austin Rover promotional video after filming, and it had the same pronunciation for Vanden Plas that I used, and so I was very relieved. It is just that some others prefer a different way of saying it. Oh, the notorious R-Series! I have heard that they were bad, but I didn't realise that they were that bad. I have been offered a Maestro Mayfair with the later dash in it for review, so I look forward to that. I think that it is a manual with power steering as well, so I am interested to see how that performs. This one was a bit slow and the steering was really heavy! I also am looking forward to a 2.0 Montego EFI. Yes, I am hoping to get a Mark III Escort on the channel soon, and I am not convinced the interior is any better than a Maestro. Certainly there is not as much space!

[@jdnrotterdam2150]

Van den plas sound like a dutch name

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

It definitely is!