Rover P5B 3.5 Litre V8 Saloon

Introduction

Perhaps the best thing about the Rover 3.5 V8 Saloon was that the designers decided to retain the traditional wood and leather luxury. The big leather seats with their enormous range of adjustment still had the Rover tang of sybaritic delight.

From the silence and tranquility inside, it might have been a solitary away-from-it-all drive. There were both front and rear speaks and, while a far cry from today's 6, 10 and 12 speaker jobs, for 1968 as standard kit this was something to behold. Remember, this was a time when the radio was rarely even included on anything other than an options list.

This sense of unreality, detached enjoyment and swaddled comfort was what the Rover 3.5 was all about. True, specifications read like a Detroit traffic light racer but in practice there was no suggestion of the lumpy, throaty power that you might reasonably except from this Oldsmobile-derived V8 power-plant.

The Rover adapted motor had a capacity of 3528cc, and was fed by a pair of 1.75 in. SU carburetors to help it push out 184 bhp at 5200 rpm and it produced 226 ft. lbs. of torque at 3000 rpm. Compression was a high 10.5:1, but the quick heat dissipation of alloy enabled it to run happily on super.

On test, a floored accelerator produced a smooth downshift to first and a surge forward more marked by the swinging speedometer than the push in the back. And as the car lifted away, there was a faint sound like rustled paper. That was the only indication that there were eight instead of Rover's traditional six cylinders under the bonnet.

Booted out of a corner the car was surefooted, with no twitchiness - even when provoked. The thought of 3500 lbs. of metal-bodied luxury all sideways on 1968 suspension was daunting. It was as well that Rover refined their rather prosaic suspension - independent front, leaf springs and live axle at the back - and it copes with the weight and power heroically.

While on the suspension bit, the stable agility was achieved by stiffening the spring action, so the ride had, to be honest, deteriorated a little. At no stage, however, would teeth fillings be endangered by transmitted bumps, as the firmness was more in the nature of sporting comfort than harsh, no-comprise GT-style ride.

Hurled at a sharp bend and given a very mild amount of power at the back wheels, the car leant only a little and rushed through with neutral handling, a blessing to those who had spent years reining-in the definite understeer tendencies of previous Rovers. The power steering had sensibly been used to keep effort low while raising steering ratio to 2 and a half turns lock to lock. Twisting the fat 6.70 section tyres on their un-Roverish, gaudy 15 in. wheels was easy but some road feel was lost in the transition.

Those tyres were 120 mph cross ply types and they required higher pressures for speeds "in excess of 105 mph". The 3.5 ran to 115 mph before a red sector on the speedometer warned the driver that things were wound pretty tight. Part of the neat handling could be attributed to the lighter engine. Cast in light alloy, the V8 weighed less than the steel six cylinder. And on the open road, the lighter engine had not reduced the car's lead-tipped arrow feel. It ran straight although it was easily guided around high speed bends.

Stopping 3500 lbs. could be a problem but Rover had 10.75 in. discs in front, 11 in. drums at the back and a 7 in. power booster to cope. A maladjustment could cause the Rover to pull to the right or left, but no fade would be experienced. Stirring up and stopping the Rover was no problem and it pointed impeccably, although the steering did feel a little dead. At high speed, there was some wind noise but scarcely enough to worry about since most owners would travel with the windows raised. Ventilation with the windows shut was good, with a heater demister working efficiently and effectively (controls were out of reach to a belted driver) andfresh air vents of ridiculous size and surprising efficacy.

Behind The Wheel

Actually, the Rover 3.5 suffered rather than profited from safety development. Some house-proud interior specialist at Solihull obviously refused to change their layout with new developments although they did permit the adoption of safer materials. This meant that while the original instrument and switch binnacle remained gloriously placed behind the steering wheel like some hooded eminence watching you, there were some knobs in the middle distance.

Summing Up: Although the body and chassis were dated by the standards of 1968, the Rover still sported the touches (such as wrapping the back leaf springs up so they wouldn’t rust, squeak or deteriorate) that marked true luxury and the V8 motor gave it a bubbling, youthful zest.