Rover’s distinguished history seemed to be at an end in 2005 when the company went into administration but an acquisition by the Nanjing Automobile Group has ensured that the British manufacturer will continue production. This production has taken place at Birmingham’s Longbridge plant since 1980 but its future remains uncertain as it is likely that Nanjing will focus its efforts in China.

The company manufactured its first car in 1904, though it had been producing bicycles since the 1880s and is credited with creating the first of what is now recognised as the standard design of two similarly sized wheels. Rover grew slowly, with two wars and a depression preventing the brand from really taking off until the release of the Land Rover.

When this happened in 1948 it heralded the beginning of two decades of prosperity for Rover, with the SUV becoming by far the brand’s biggest seller. However after joining British Leyland in 1968 Rover began to suffer - as poor industrial relations and management impacted on the entire industry in Britain during the 1970s.

British Leyland’s financial difficulties led to its nationalisation in 1975 but a collaboration with Honda produced the Triumph Acclaim in 1981 and established a partnership that would continue for several years. 1994 saw BMW taking control of Rover but the two similarly marketed companies did not sit well together and it was released in 2000 - combining with MG to form the MG Rover Group.

Government support ensured the Phoenix Consortium of businessmen would take control, though BMW retained the rights to the Rover name itself. This was recently purchased by the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation - the company which also owns the rights to build the award winning Rover 75.

EuroNCAP Safety Ratings for Rover cars
The European New Car Assessment Programme produces reports on the safety of vehicles based on the results of several crash tests. As well as measuring how the car will hold up in a crash the risk to a pedestrian struck by the car is assessed. The star ratings (maximum 5) of key Rover models are shown below.