1993 Rover Metro GTi VVC 1800 £3,900 - SOLD

Now sold, thanks





Testing the water... It's maybe time for the Metro to move on to a new home, it's been a brilliant car to own and drive but it all works and I want a project to work on. My other project car is also finished so I need something that actually needs mechanical work done to keep me busy. I've bought another car, so this is going to fund the new build. My wife says I can only have 2, which unfortunately puts the metro on the block.

Rover Metro 1993, originally metallic red (I believe it's flame red), now white. Thread here. Genuine Rover Metro GTi shell, listed on V5. Only 22 of these taxed and on UK roads at the moment! 99k miles on the clock, no reason not to believe it (and engine/gearbox was put in just a few thousand miles ago).















Track focused car, built specifically to go fast on track but also be road legal and usable. As the previous owner said, if you want a car you can drive to the track, go out on track all day, then drive home without worrying it'll explode then this is the car for you. He was right!

Body underwent a restoration in 2010/11, full respray in white (inside and out), new arches. 



Was told 760kg so probably sub 800kg with fluids, ridiculously light (which means it's kind to tyres and brakes too). Round trip to Snetterton including full track day it did 33mpg, pretty good I reckon.

Hydrolastic suspension was fully removed at the same time and an MGF subframe added to the front. Rear has custom built turrets for fully adjustable coilovers. Much less complex and better for the track. 

Car was built as a track car but is road legal. MOT has just run out but I'll be getting a new one added before sale. Road legal and actually perfectly driveable on the road. 

Got plenty of history although not complete, nice bit folder of receipts and V5 in my name.

It's loud in the cabin (totally stripped interior, everything is gone!), but actually not loud outside. Hit 98db at Snetterton static noise reading (at 6k rpm for test), so fine for track days. Even short journeys are an event, it feels like a race car, I do get excited every time I take it out. It is not civilised to drive at all, which is what appealed to me tbh!

No power steering, not too heavy when not moving and brilliant feel when rolling. 

Also no brake booster, so you have to give the brakes a good shove which can be a shock when you first drive it. Brakes are brilliant though, ultra firm, not much travel. Locked them up a few times on track so there's no lack of bite. Much easier to modulate braking on track, they're one of my favourite parts of the car. I considered putting a brake booster on when I first got the car but changed my mind after I got used to it, the brakes are excellent.

Has had a Rover K Series VVC 1800cc engine swap from an MGF Trophy, spec below but it's stock apart from a triple metal head gasket (no more head gasket worries), cone induction kit and custom exhaust. It's also had a remap by K-Maps, legendary K series mappers from what I read www.kmaps.co.uk/ (ex Rover/MG engineers). 177bhp, 140 ft/lb torque. 

It's really really fast, generally calm until 3k rpm then all hell brakes loose. The noise is wild, it revs to 7200 rpm effortlessly and the power is at the top so it's actually fun to rev it out. The K Series engine really is a brilliant thing, lightweight and revvy.

5 speed PG1 gearbox also from an MGF Trophy (also in the early Elises), gearbox feels solid, no crunching, slots in beautifully. Slight slop on linkage but I've never noticed it/missed gear. You can tell the car really hasn't done many miles since the rebuild. Both the engine and the gearbox are in excellent condition, all the mechanicals are. 

Underneath is nice and solid, around struts and chassis all looking good. Bodywork/paint is fine for a track car and it cleans up beautifully but there are a few bits that need attention at some point, photos included. Body kit is in good condition, the odd scrape but it's never been crashed.

Bodywork parts that could do with tidying are the roof gutter driverside and bottom of A pillar driver side. I was going to get them done before selling but seeing if there is any interest before doing repairs, if it doesn't sell then I'll get them done. It's an honest car, there is so much space between everything so you can check basically all over!

Gauges all work perfectly, electics good, lovely original dash with retro vibes. Lights, horn, windscreen washer/wipers all work fine. Has electric windows on the front too.

Plastic (perspex) rear passenger windows and rear screen window (so no rear heated window) for extra lightness. Also comes with 2 plastic front windows that I haven't fitted (in good condition still in their plastic protective film).

Here is the car embarrassing some much fruitier cars when it had a different engine in (a 215bhp K series engine that a previous owner put into something else).  (not me driving, far more talent than me!). 

Took it to Snetterton in Oct-21 and it was brilliant, no issues at all. Drove it there 2 hours, whole day on track and then home again, didn't skip a beat. This is the most reliable car I've owned for a long time, part of the problem really. I need something to try and fix! It's been built really well, good parts bought, well thought out. 

Full spec (might have missed some bits, hopefully got most of it). 

Chassis/suspension

• MGF front subframe conversion
• AVO fully adjustable coilovers front and rear (good condition), adjustable for height and damper settings. Drives firmly but not crashy, ideal balance I think
• Custom rear strut towers for the coilovers
• Not sure if it has a rear MGF subframe too, seems like a common thing to do but I can't actually tell. No hydrolastic complexity
• Engine solid mounted, I love the vibrations in the car (feels race car), nice and tight around corners
• Everything polybushed in good condition, ARBs on front and rear by the looks of it

Engine/gearbox

• Good condition Rover K Series VVC 1.8 trophy engine - standard internals but checked over before installation
• Metal head gasket, no leaks on engine
• Ram air intake with foam filter, sounds brilliant
• Fully custom exhaust with 2 silencers and downturned rear exhaust (all stainless). 98db at 6k rpm static test
• Remap by K Maps to 177bhp, 140ft/lb, rolling road done
• Start immediately every time
• Walbro 255 fuel pump in tank - in-tank fuel line recently changed to be ok for higher ethanol mix fully submerged, only run on 98/99 ron (after a suggestion from an RR user!). Recently removed fuel pump, checked over and refitted then properly sealed the tank cover
• Fuel pump connected via kill switch for race car vibes on startup 
• Only driven harder when warmed up, the engine is in brilliant condition and you can tell it's only done a few thousand miles since the rebuild
• PG1 Rover 5 speed gearbox in excellent condition
• Gearstick is an actual solid metal hip replacement joint that is closer to your hand for quicker changes, much better positioning! No crunches, feels excellent
• Heavier clutch, perfectly fine for the road but you can tell it's stronger than a standard clutch (but I don't know the brand)
• New radiator fan with adjustable temperature selector by engine. Doesn't really need the fan, it runs perfectly in the middle of the temp gauge with no fan but added one for track work. Also wired to a switch in the cabin so can control if/when it comes on at all
• Solid metal coolant expansion tank with port hole
• Immobiliser removed so it just starts on the key no issues
• ECU under the dash for easy access (is an original GTi ECU that has had a K Tunes map flashed onto it directly, not piggyback)
• Doors both lock with the key

Interior/Other stuff

• Had no stereo fitted so I've run new wiring for a head unit, 2 speakers and a small sub woofer. Stereo and speakers will come with the car but I'll take the sub out (can be negotiated). Wired into switches so you can switch the head unit and sub fully off (stop tiny drains from the battery if you leave it standing). Stereo kit is set up to be easy to remove with a few bolts (when doing a track event), but means the long drives don't get boring!
• Race battery under the seat, smaller. Hold charge well, no issues
• Added 2 cables for the battery under the seat for easier trickle charging
• Tidied up the wiring with cloth wrap tape so no chance of snags
• 6 point bolt in roll cage custom made with Safety Devices joints and tubing, powercoated black in reasonable condition. Padding added for drive and passenger top tube
• Corbeau bucket seats in perfect condition, no wear at all, with 4 point TRS harnesses also ultra clean
• Electric windows fitted on front windows, work perfectly. Super helpful for track particularly
• Heater has stopped blowing hot which is annoying, still blows air out. I bled the coolant again in case it was the cause but no luck. Cabin warms up nicely when driving tbh so I've not done anything with it
• Perspex rear windows (3 windows) in good condition, plus have 2 front perspex windows ready to go in but not fitted (in excellent condition). At 750kg it was light enough for me already! 
• Comes with a few spares (eg new spare clutch cable, glovebox)
• Sparco alcantara steering wheel, nice and small
• Fire extinguisher
• Go pro/phone camera mount welded onto the rollcage for in-car vids at track days
• Sony head unit and vibe 5" speakers in the rear (didn't cut anything to fit them!)
• Cloth material door pulls
• Power switches for fuel pump, coolant fan, head unit and sub - in a nice metal bracket connected to the bottom of the plastic dash via existing holes (so no drilling to the tidy uncracked dash!)
• Only have 1 key unfortunately, getting copies done is easy though (no immobiliser or anything, all bypassed)

Wheels

• Ultra rare compomotive MO1563 anthracite grey (powercoated) in perfect condition. I've never seen any for sale in this fitment
• www.comp.co.uk/products/product.asp?item=mo1563-26-144 only available via special order, very expensive wheels and love how they look
  
• 15" 6.0 x 15 ET to clear the bigger brakes
• No rubbing on arches at all, speed bumps are no problem despite it being low
• 195/45 Goodyear Eagle F1 tyres all round, front left has a very slow puncture but I just top it up with air every month tbh. Loads of tread on all 4

I'd LOVE it to go to a retro rides home and get used by someone who will appreciate it, rather than have to deal with Ebay hell. I've not listed it anywhere else for now. 

DM me for more pics or any questions, I've been as honest as I can but happy to chat or whatsapp (DM and will send number).

Genuine Rover Metro GTis rarely come up for sale and they're going for punchy money these days so I think I've priced it fairly given the amount of quality parts fitted.

In Hertfordshire (Chorleywood/Rickmansworth area WD3). 

£3,900 ONO.

Bank transfer or cash on collection is fine, ideally would have a deposit to secure sale.

Loads of pics available, a few more below.

Thanks for reading (sorry it's so long)!




































































































































































Bodywork stuff