Rover P4 95

About the Rover P4 95

The Rover P4 series is a group of mid-size luxury saloon automobiles produced by the Rover Company from 1949 until 1964. They were designed by Gordon Bashford.

Their P4 designation is factory terminology for this group of cars and was not in day-to-day use by ordinary owners who would have used the appropriate consumer designations for their models such as Rover 90 or Rover 100.

Production began in 1949 with the 6-cylinder 2.1-litre Rover 75. Four years later a 2-litre 4-cylinder Rover 60 was brought to the market to fit below the 75 and a 2.6-litre 6-cylinder Rover 90 to top the three car range. Variations followed. These cars are very much part of British culture and became known as the "Auntie" Rovers.They were driven by topmost royalty including Grace Kelly.

The final members of the series were the 95 and 110. The Rover 95 was a re-geared for economy Rover 100 offered at the price level of the four-cylinder Rover 80 it replaced. The Rover 110 was a Rover 100 with a more powerful engine.Announced 27 September 1962 these cars represented the end of an era. They were fitted with not alloy but steel door panels to reduce cost. Their very full equipment included electric windscreen washers. Although the Roverdrive automatic had been put to rest, overdrive was standard on the 110. The 95 made do with a higher ratio differential (3.9:1).

Both cars used the same 2.6 litres (160 cu in) version of the IOE engine. The wider availability of higher octane fuels permitted an increase in the compression ratio to 8.8:1, and the old unit now produced 123 hp (91 kW) in 110 guise,which used a Weslake cylinder head, and 102 hp (76 kW) in the 95.

A useful buyers checklist can be viewed here.

Production numbers for all P4 models : Production numbers