Cost-cutting is rife throughout the industry, but it seemed to affect MG Rover more than any other marque in recent history.

Here’s a brief run-down of what changes were made – and why they happened. Hopefully, you’ll also be able to ascertain from this list, which is the best model for you…

When pennies count

PROJECT Drive was an initiative introduced shortly after the creation of MG Rover in 2000. The idea was a simple one – to reduce production costs by removing equipment from current models, and simplifying specification and trim differentiation. Although you might think that this is a shocking practice, the truth is that this process takes place with most volume manufacturers, and was certainly evident in the changeover from the BAe/Honda years to BMW’s ownership in 1994.

To see for yourself, find an early R8 model, and line it up alongside with one of the last of the line examples – two tone plastics have been deleted, and the general quality of interior mouldings and electrical connections have deteriorated significantly.

During the MG Rover era, this thinking was continued – and employees were encouraged to suggest ways of saving money wherever possible. Bonuses were offered for any suggestions implemented, and if that seems generous, remember that a saving of 50p per unit will translate to an annual saving of £50,000 on a production run of 100,000 cars per annum.

The big question is – did MG Rover go too far during its existence? Were the cars decontented to such a degree that they began to look unsaleable? If you were involved in Project Drive by coming up with a suggestion, or implementing it, please get in touch because we’d love to hear from you.

Also, for your delectation, is a downloadable list of the original Project Drive bulletins – thank you to anon for sending them to AROnline.

Download the bulletins

Please note, all bulletins are in PDF format, and only go up to 2003.

Project Drive Index

Project Drive Bulletin number 1

Project Drive Bulletin number 2

Project Drive Bulletin number 3

Project Drive Bulletin number 4

Project Drive Bulletin number 5

Project Drive Bulletin number 6

Project Drive Bulletin number 7

Project Drive Bulletin number 8

Project Drive Bulletin number 9

Project Drive Bulletin number 10

Project Drive Bulletin number 11

Project Drive Bulletin number 12

Project Drive Bulletin number 13

Project Drive Bulletin number 14

Project Drive Bulletin number 15

Rover 75/MG ZT Project Drive changes

An example of Project Drive in action – you can see that piece by piece, the Rover 75 and MG ZT were decontented quite comprehensively during the months and years. Although few changes were visible to the naked eye, the opinion of those who have owned early and late models are that they made a significant difference to the ‘feel’ of theu car.

See for yourself – would it have made a difference to you?

Finally, this list does not take into account the changes made as the 75 and ZT moved into Mark 2 form, so we would be keen to see a list of changes made to the facelifted cars…

15 Jan 2001 RJ 205081 LEATHER HANDBRAKE GRIP REPLACED BY PLASTIC GRIP 29 Jan 2001 RJ 206392 BOTTOM COOLANT HOSE – HEAT SLEEVE DELETION ON 1.8 ONLY 01 Jan 2001 RJ 205371 CIGAR LIGHTER – CHANGE TO TYPE FITTED 08 Mar 2001 RJ 206814 VIN PLATE – CHANGE TO CONTENT 26 Mar 2001 RJ 208804 D POST BADGE – DELETION FROM D POST FINISHER 04 May 2001 RJ 218882 FRONT SEAT BELT LOWER ANCHORAGE BOLT HEAD CAPS – DELETION 07 May 2001 RJ 215291 HIGH PRESSURE PAS SENSOR – DELETION ON KV6 14 May 2001 RJ 215035 LEATHER GEAR KNOB – CHANGE TO PLASTIC TYPE – CLASSIC & CLUB MODELS 04 Jun 2001 RJ 218712 ROVER ‘VIKING’ BOOT BADGE – DELETION 11 Jun 2001 RJ 219627 CATALYST HEAT SHIELD – DELETION ON 1.8 & KV6 21 Jun 2001 RJ 218712 FRONT DOOR ENGINE DERIVATIVE BADGES – DELETION 01 Jul 2001 RJ 225237 SUN VISORS – CHANGE IN SPECIFICATION – CLASSIC NOW PVC –

CLUB NOW NON ILLUMINATED 13 Jul 2001 RJ 223061 TYRE SIZE CHANGE FROM 205/65 R15 TO 195/65 R15 06 Aug 2001 RJ 223061 LOAD SPACE STOWAGE LID – DELETED ON 75 TOURER 17 Sep 2001 N/A JACK HANDLE – GRIP DELETION 21 Oct 2001 RJ 233774 BONNET LOCKING PLATFORM WARNING LABELS – COMBINE 3 INTO 1 05 Nov 2001 RJ 234500 AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION OIL COOLER – CHANGE TO FLUID TYPE FITTED

– ROVER 75 CDT AUTOMATIC 05 Nov 2001 RJ 235722 ENGINE OIL COOLER – CHANGE TO FLUID TYPE FITTED 14 Nov 2001 RJ 235915 REAR LAMP ACCESS PANEL DELETION 19 Nov 2001 RJ 235526 REAR PARCEL SHELF SOUND INSULATION – DELETION 10 Dec 2001 RJ 240702 AM/FM DIVERSITY AERIAL AMPLIFIER – DELETION 07 Jan 2002 RJ 241521 DESIGN CHANGE – ROVER 75 CDT SALOON & TOURER EXHAUST SYSTEM 04 Mar 2002 RJ 249425 DRIVERS GRAB HANDLE – DELETION 04 Mar 2002 RJ 250641 REAR PARCEL SHELF – MODIFICATION & FITMENT OF DYNAMIC ABSORBER

– 75 CDT WITH 16″/17″ WHEELS 11 Mar 2002 RJ 251669 PLENUM DRAIN TUBE – MODIFICATION 18 Mar 2002 RJ 251971 POWER STEERING PUMP COVER – DELETION ON KV6 08 Apr 2002 RJ 253427 HEADREST TRIM PIPING ON NON LEATHER 75’S – DELETION 06 May 2002 RJ 255987 DOOR MIRROR – SPECIFICATION CHANGE 23 May 2002 RJ 252351 VENTED REAR BRAKE DISC – SPECIFICATION CHANGE TO

SOLID BRAKE DISC (ZT 160) 01 Jun 2002 N/A REAR ANTI-ROLL BAR DELETION –

1.8 & 2.0 CDT SALOON (EXCLUDES KV6, TOURER & MG) 05 Aug 2002 RJ 264921 TAILGATE LATCH FINISHER – DELETION ON 75 TOURER & MG ZT-T 02 Sep 2002 RJ 267855 FUEL BURNING HEATER – DELETION ON ALL DIESEL MODELS 02 Sep 2002 RJ 266128 BODY COLOUR SIDE FINISHER – DELETION ON ZT & ZT-T MODELS

(REINSTATED QUICKLY) 23 Sep 2002 RJ 269854 ENGINE COMPARTMENT UNDERTRAY – DELETION (K1.8) 07 Oct 2002 N/A INSTANT TYRE REPAIR (ITR) – INTRODUCTION 07 Oct 2002 RJ 270482 AUTOMATIC TEMPERATURE CONTROL (ATC)

– CHANGE TO MODEL APPLICABILITY (CLUB MODELS) 30 Oct 2002 RJ 274483 PLUG CAP COIL INTRODUCTION ON KV6 02 Sep 2002 RJ 268228 TWIN HORN REPLACED WITH SINGLE HORN 06 Nov 2002 RJ 274575 ALLOY WHEEL CENTRES – MATERIAL CHANGE 11 Nov 2002 RJ 275024 DRIVERS SIDE PLENUM DRAIN TUBE – DELETION 14 Nov 2002 RJ 271850 TAILGATE RELEASE SWITCH – DELETION ON TOURER & ZT-T 25 Nov 2002 RJ 276797 SIDE DOOR REFLECTORS – MATERIAL CHANGE 04 Dec 2002 RJ 277641 TOOLKIT STOWAGE – COMMON ACROSS RANGE 13 Jan 2003 RJ 279607 BODY COLOUR DOOR MIRROR CAPS – DELETION ON 75 CLASSIC & ZT 120

Thanks to Ian Robertson for tabulating the above data