DISCRETELY DASHING – THE ROVER 3-LITRE COUPE

A few years ago, I wrote that it was entirely possible to imagine David Niven or Kenneth More behind the wheel of a 3-Litre Coupe. Equally, John Steed might have driven the handsome Rover in his battles with criminal masterminds when his Bentley was being serviced. Looking at this 1963 Stone Grey over Juniper Green example offered for sale by Birchfield Classics Ltd. https://www.carandclassic.com/car/C1818892, I stand by my words.

Rover’s famed stylist David Bache created a sleeker version of the P5 when he developed the 3-Litre, but their limited resources meant the Saloon debuted first in 1958. The Coupe finally made its bow in October 1962 when the company introduced the facelifted 3-Litre Mk. II line-up with a more powerful engine and modified suspension. The copywriters claimed that the:

dashing new Rover combines all the outstanding features of the internationally acclaimed Saloon with a new sleekness of line and fleetness of foot. The already formidable Rover engine has been further developed to give 17% more brake horse power.

Compared with the Saloon, the Coupe had the same power plant but a 2 ½ inches lower roofline and four bucket seats with a second cigar lighter for the back seat passengers. The driver also benefited from power-assisted steering and a height-adjustable seat, while the instruments included an oil pressure gauge and a tachometer, which befitted a Rover for the go-head motorist. Autocar thought: “Even the exuberance of youth would be quickly tempered after a brief spell behind the wheel” but “When a fast mood takes one the car responds eagerly, and covers distances and with inconspicuous efficiency”.

Such prestige was inevitably not cheap, and the Coupe was £2,062 2s 6d - or £2 130 17s 9d for the automatic version. X’s Rover has the optional two-tone paint finish which cost another £12 1s 8d. By contrast, a Humber Super Snipe was £1,568 and the Vanden Plas Princess 3-Litre £1,533. From Browns Lane, the Jaguar 3.4 Mk. 2 cost £1,664, the vast Mk. X was £2,301, while the Daimler 2.5 V8 would set you back £1,786. 

Yet, the Rover seemed to stand apart from its rivals as the only four-door coupe made in this country. As The Illustrated London News put it, the P5 flagship had a cabin designed "for motorway driving in considerable comfort”. The Coupe was the ideal car for the (very) affluent driver who wished to combine the best of the old and the new in a Rover offering “a gracious, relaxed way of motoring that will satisfy the most experienced and critical taste”.

And I maintain that a P5 Coupe would have been perfect alternative transport for John Steed.

With thanks to Birchfield Classics Ltd. for their time and permission to use the image in this blog.