The INDIAN ROVER SD1 That BANKRUPTED IT'S MAKER - The Standard 2000 - India's Most Luxurious Car

the Rover sd1 the Flagship Car created by  the Rover Triumph division of British Leland   introduced in 1976 would go on to win the European  car of the year award in 1977 marketed by the   company as tomorrow's car today ironically the sd1  would go on to have its Legacy tarnished by the   shortsightedness of bl's management and militant  unions resulting in poor build quality despite   this the car's futuristic design and bold interior  became a staple of Motoring in the UK in the rest   of Europe the sd1 would be discontinued in 1986  or so you would think the Rover sd1 would have a   second chance at life in 1985 on its deathbed as  it was about to be replaced by the Rover 800 the   sd1 would be resurrected in a rather cruel way  as the standard 2000 rebadged and re-engineered   with an engine dating from 1947 with a crudely  copied cylinder head that resembled the Rover P   6's Heron unit for from its height as India's most  luxurious domestic built car to the lawsuits it   caused that folded the company that made it this  is the extraordinary story of the standard 2000   and how the Rover sd1 cheated death to become  India's most exclusive car hello everybody and   welcome to this video If you're not subscribed  already please make sure to do so it really does   help me out and you get to see more of this more  history videos and more cool projects like 2600   my Rover sd1 and my Ford cartina project this  video is on the Rover sd1 and it's rebirth in   India and how it took the company that made it to  bankruptcy do you have any Rover sd1 or standard   2000 memories let me know in the comments below  and what car would you like me to cover next   personally I'd love to cover the Hilman Avengers  adventures in Iran but without further delay let's   get into the rise and fall of the standard 2000  first it's important to look at the history of   Standard Motor Products in India and how it laid  the groundwork for the Indian version of the Rover   sd1 after after India gained independence in  1947 an assortment of car companies tried to   gain a foothold in the market after a series of  negotiations with the Indian government a year   later in 1948 standard Motor Products of India was  formed overall car sales in India were incredibly   small compared to its enormous population in 1951  the first locally built standard vanguards rolled   off the production line of The Madras standard  Factory that year the population would reach   361 1 million people but with only 159,000 cars  registered in total the need for a big luxury   car was far in the future in spite of this as  the population grew so did demand and with that   the standard Motor Company of India would follow  in 1961 production began of the Indian version of   the Triumph Herald becoming the standard Herald  the 60s were a significant time for standard in   India the Reliance on British imported Parts was  severed in 1965 when engines gearboxes and axles   would start being produced natively with the new  ability to build crucial components in the country   this gave the industry the tools it needed to  rise with the demands of the newly motoring   public which was growing and by the start of the  1970s the number of registered cars quadrupled   with 682,000 cars being registered by 1971 a year  later in 1972 the gazelle was launched a rebodied   Herald with new suspension and a new differential  production capacity would rise with it laying the   foundation for the standard 2000 in 1981 the  Indian car market was beginning to flourish   and standard was Keen to be part of the incoming  car Revolution but without a car for the 80s and   the lack of funds to develop their own this meant  they would need to turn to outside sources leading   the director of standard Motor Products of India  entering discussions with Austin Rover in the UK   about the possibility of producing one of its  models for the Indian market in 1984 a deal was   Str Austin Rover would provide the company with  the rights to produce the Rover sd1 in India this   included 12,000 body panels as well as the other  parts needed to make full cars but no drivetrains   without the P1 166 2.3 and 2.6 L engines or  the 3 and 1/2 L V8 this meant standard had to   improvise the standard 2000's engine would be a  modified version of the 1947 standard wet liner   in line 4 the cylinder head would be redesigned  to resemble the heren unit found in the P6 with   simplified valve gear the advantages of this would  be fuel economy but with its rush to engineering   it would come back to haunt standard in the  future compared to the blo series and its 99   brake horsepower which was already just enough for  the sd1 in the UK was just not up to the task of   moving such a large Executive Car at a decent pace  there would be another disadvantage fuel economy   the new engine was rated at 22 m per gallon with  the O Series being rated at 33 m per gallon this   was a significant reduction this would be paired  with the locally designed four-speed gearbox   losing the refinement of the five-speed boxes  offered as standard in the Rover sd1 suspension   will be raised by an inch at both the front and  back to cope with India's unforgiving roads in   April 1985 with 8 million cars on India's roads  the standard 2000 was launched in the hopes it   would capture the top end of this Emerging Market  the car had a price of 212,000 rupees which was   around £12,000 back in 1985 this would equate  to around 36,000 today but this was a problem   with its main rival the hindustani motors Contessa  India's most luxurious car before its launch being   85,000 rupees the standard 2000 was more than  double the price the contesta was a familiar   face as well being based on the Vox all Victor  with a Twist it was powered by a BMC B series   inline 4 engine another' 70s car with an older  drivetrain the price of the standard 2000 made   it the most exclusive car on India's emerging car  market with only the wealthiest buyers being able   to afford it the build quality was reported to  be adequate for its time with the madas Factory's   production capacity at 16 cars per day during  its production run this would never be reached   everything was going well the car was a desirable  futuristic piece of exclusive luxury in mid 80s   India giving the motor public something to Aspire  to but then it would all start to go wrong the   initial cars were sold mostly constructed of the  British imported Parts purchased in the deal as   these parts run out the part production would  become localized but at the time the company   wasn't in the position to produce these parts at  a sufficient quality this would have a knock on   effect the lack of Supply meant the demands of  the market couldn't be met and as the production   of these parts ramped up quality issues would  appear in the cars that did finally roll off   the production line the standard 2000 would then  be hit with another blow a big one initially the   company claimed that the fuel consumption was  around 22 to 28 m per gallon but owners were   working out slowly that they would only get around  16 m per gallon customers were not happy and with   wealthy customers comes lawsuits customers began  filing claims against the company for misleading   mileage claims this would have a devastating  Financial impact on the company and severely   reduced the car's Appeal on the market this  would produce an unrecoverable slump in sales   the standard 2000's production would end in 1988  with its final production numbers claimed to be   in the hundreds rather than the thousands that the  company had hoped standard Motor Products of India   would be taken over two years later after going  bankrupt it is claimed that the lawsuits of the   standard 2000 and the subsequent drop in sales  were the overall contributing factor the end of   the standard 2000 would have an incredible impact  for sd1 owners after its discontinuation in 1988   Parts would be sold back to the UK for unipart to  sell on the spares Market in 2006 Rimer brothers   would buy the remaining British built stock  from the remnants of the company resulting in   the sd1 having incredible Parts availability  even now in 2024 you can still buy brand new   front wings and other body panels the car in  India would go on to be improved by its later   owners with the original engines being replaced  with engines such as the Isuzu diesel 1.7 with   the Enthusiast owners of today making the standard  2000 the car it should have been on launch making   sure the legacy of the car that once stood at  the top of India's car market is not forgotten

Channel: Tom // Drives

Views: 28,004

Keywords: MG Rover Collapse, Saved MG Rover, MG Rover longbridge, MG Rover prototype, Rover Story, RDX60, Super rare cars scrapped, Longbridge, RARE CAR FOUND, WE FOUND AMAZING, WE FOUND, Rover sd1, Rover turbo, Rover sd1 turbo, Rover Vitesse, Rover sd1 janspeed, Janspeed, British leyland, Rover 2600, insane car project, PE166, Rover Straight 6

Id: GeFeRI71FE4

Length: 8min 44sec (524 seconds)

Published: Sun Mar 10 2024