Rover Streetwise
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The Rover Streetwise is a compact British
car A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded as ...
made by
MG Rover MG Rover Group was the last domestically owned mass-production car manufacturer in the British motor industry. The company was formed when BMW sold the car-making and engine manufacturing assets of the original Rover Group to the Phoenix Consor ...
. It was based on the
Rover 25 The Rover 200 Series, and later the Rover 25, are a series of small family cars that were produced by British manufacturer Rover (marque), Rover from 1984 until 2005. There have been three distinct generations of the Rover 200. The first gener ...
, but had an increased
ride height Ride height or ground clearance is the amount of space between the base of an automobile tire and the lowest point of the automobile (typically the axle); or, more properly, to the shortest distance between a flat, level surface, and the lowest p ...
and chunkier bumpers. The car was marketed by Rover as an 'urban on-roader'. Production ended in April 2005, due to the bankruptcy of MG Rover, but reappeared in March 2008 in China as the MG 3 SW, following the purchase of MG Rover's assets by Nanjing Automobile Group.


History

The Rover Streetwise was an attempt by Rover to appeal to younger drivers.
Rover Rover may refer to: People * Constance Rover (1910–2005), English historian * Jolanda de Rover (born 1963), Dutch swimmer * Rover Thomas (c. 1920–1998), Indigenous Australian artist Places * Rover, Arkansas, US * Rover, Missouri, US ...
had modernised the existing models in 1999 with a facelift for the 25, 45 and the Rover designed 75 models but Rover was suffering falling sales and a tarnished brand after the sale of Rover to the consortium of Phoenix in March 2000 by BMW. Although new models were in the planning stages, the 25 and 45 models would be at least ten years old before the new models were launched. Phoenix owned the rights to the MG brand, and had marketed the ZR, ZS and ZT with some success, restyling the existing 25, 45 and 75 models. This included tweaked suspension, new wheels, altered dashboard inserts, different seats and bodykits. With the MG brand proving popular, MG Rover Group turned their attention to the Rover brand. The cars badged as Rover had a rather staid image, and were commonly associated with elderly motorists. Thus, MG Rover attempted to appeal to a younger market. MG Rover decided to design a car for a
niche market A niche market is the subset of the market on which a specific product is focused. The market niche defines the product features aimed at satisfying specific market needs, as well as the price range, production quality and the demographics that it ...
, and chose the ‘urban on roader’ look, similar to the Audi A6 Allroad, Škoda Octavia Scout,
Volvo XC70 The Volvo V70 is an executive car manufactured and marketed by Volvo Cars from 1996 to 2016 across three generations. The name ''V70'' combines the letter ''V'', standing for ''versatility'', and ''70'', denoting relative platform size (i.e., a ...
and the Volkswagen Polo Fun/CrossPolo. The Streetwise ceased production in April 2005, when Rover ceased trading and went into administration.


Design

The tough looking Streetwise was designed as a
two-wheel drive Two-wheel-drive (2WD) denotes Motor vehicle, vehicles with a Powertrain, drivetrain that allows two wheels to be driven, and receive Engine power, power and torque from the engine, simultaneously. Four-wheeled vehicles For four-wheeled vehicles ( ...
urban car with
4x4 Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer case ...
looks. The Streetwise had a 10mm higher ride height than the basic 25, and although it shared many of the common characteristics of the 25, it was visually different with large impact absorbing grey or black plastic
bumper Bumper or Bumpers may refer to: People * Betty Bumpers (1925-2018), American activist, First Lady of Arkansas, wife of Dale Bumpers * Dale Bumpers (1925–2016), American politician, governor of Arkansas and senator * Bumper Robinson (born 197 ...
s. Unlike the rest of the Rover and MG range, the Streetwise bumpers were not colour coded. The front indicators were redesigned to complement the circular headlamps, and most models came with chunky sixteen inch wheels as standard. To extend the load space, the Streetwise was fitted with multi purpose roof bars, which also served to distinguish the Streetwise from the ZR and the 25, in addition to the standard 60/40 split rear seats. The Streetwise offered a choice of sporty interiors, available in four or five seats (optional). The standard four seats had two separate rear seats and a separating centre console, and body hugging front sports seats on all models, trimmed in half leather on SE and later GSi models. All models came with a driver's
airbag An airbag is a vehicle occupant-restraint system using a bag designed to inflate extremely quickly, then quickly deflate during a collision. It consists of the airbag cushion, a flexible fabric bag, an inflation module, and an impact sensor. Th ...
, PAS, remote central locking with perimetric alarm and ABS. The S added electric front windows, body coloured door mirrors, 16" Alloy wheels with security wheel nuts, CD Tuner with rear speakers and steering wheel remote audio controls. Top spec SE models further added air conditioning, electric door mirrors, leather steering wheel and gearknob, part leather seats with rear headrests, vhoice of seat facing colourway, front fog lamps, and body coloured bumper inserts. Other subtle changes included a revised centre console and a restyled blue instrument dials. All Streetwises came with Trafficmaster Alert, an early warning device to warn the drivers of congested routes. The Streetwise also came with rear parking sensors, as an option or as standard on higher models.


Engines

The Streetwise engines were available as 1.4, 1.6, 1.8 stepspeed (Automatic), and a 2.0 TD. The 1.6 and the 1.8 were less common.


MG3 SW

In February 2008, the Streetwise, rebadged as the MG3 SW, was relaunched in China by Nanjing Automobile Group.


References


External links


AROnline
{{Automobiles made by BMC, BL and Rover Group companies, post-1945 Streetwise Cars introduced in 2003