Lot 11: Rover P3 60

With new designs having been shelved and materials in short supply, most manufacturers' post-WW2 offerings were understandably closely related to those sold before the onset of hostilities. This was certainly the case with Rover, whose P3 of 1948/1949 shared the general styling of the old 12 and 16 and the actual wings and bonnet of the 12. The marque's old hydraulic / mechanical braking system was also retained. New, however, and a first for Rover, was the independent front suspension. Also fresh, was the engine. A unit that had been on the stocks since the late '30s, its cylinder head was configured with overhead inlet and side exhaust valves. Two versions were offered - the '60', which was a four-cylinder unit of 1595cc and the '75', a six-cylinder version of 2103cc. The box-section chassis was somewhat unusual too, in that it ceased ahead of the rear axle and the semi-elliptic leaf springs were attached direct to the body. The P3 was available in two body styles - a six-light Saloon and a four-light Sports Saloon. Always intended as an interim model, the somewhat expensive P3 was replaced by the all new P4 in 1949 after some 1274 '60s' and 7837 '75s' had been produced.

Finished in black with green upholstery, the P3 for sale has remained within the same family since 1977. Its chassis number prefix `R921' is understood to decode as follows: R = right-hand drive export, 9 = manufactured in 1949, 2 = `60' model and 1 = 6-light saloon. Thought to have been repatriated during 1952, the year it was first road registered in the UK, accompanying paperwork reportedly includes: 1960s letters from Rover, Girling service sheets and manuals etc not to mention photographs of the restoration carried out by the vendor's father in the late 1990s; evidently an extensive job that included the engine. Conceding that (a) the carburetter could do with tuning, (b) a small area of paint has worn thin due to over-zealous polishing and (c) the interior was reupholstered in a leather substitute rather than genuine hide, the vendor regards the coachwork as "good", the paintwork and transmission as "very good" and the engine as "excellent". The Rover is MOT'd into July and taxed until the end of October.