I saw a Rover automobile! In the US!

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I think it was this car, the name on the trunk lid (boot?) was definitely Vitesse. It was smashed in on the passenger (right!) side but was still being driven along quite smartly by, I think, a young woman. I had no idea these cars were ever sold in the States, I wonder where it gets repaired and how hard it is to get parts for it.

About 1980 I remember Car and Driver magazine testing a Rover, a five door hatchback model. I forget the name, but the internet tells me it was also called Vitesse, but was a different car than the one I just saw. It was supposed to be quite a nice car with good road manners and performance, especially compared to the Fairmonts and Cutlasses of the day. I actually saw one locally one time. It’s the only time I’ve ever scene a Rover that was not a truck.

Any of your European dopers ever owned such a car?

2

Weren’t Rovers basically Hondas for a while? Could someone have taken an equivalent Honda model and put Rover badges on it?

3

Looks an awful lot like an early 90s Toyota Corolla.

4

Yes. Yes.

I saw one in the late 80’s. IIRC, it was based on the Acura Legend.

5

Just because this is the kind of thing that bugs me, I found a link.

And it’s a late 80s Corolla I was thinking of.

6

Honda and Rover built the Sterling which was based on the Acura. It did not have a good reputation for quality or reliability in the US and it did not last long. I was thinking that this car looked like a Nissan from the mid/late 80s, it was the precursor to the Altima, and I can’t think of the name right now.

7

This is what I was thinking of, an 87 Nissan Stanza. That’s all you get from a quick search.