MG ZR

rhondadunphy

Hi lloking for advice I've seen a MG ZR that i want to buy but I've been told that there is no way of getting parts for the MG's as they are no longer in business could someone please tell me if this is ture as I really want to buy this car

Thanks

L1011

There is no real problem getting parts - there was a huge supply in the supply chain when they hit the wall; there is even a former dealer still trading as an MG 'dealer' (service centre basically).

Also the ZR is likely to re-enter production as the "MG 3" shortly under the new owners - should be moslty parts compatible.

A bigger concern about buying a ZR is the weak head gasket on the petrol versions I'd think.

mickdw

No problem at all with parts. A friend has a rover 75 and everything is available locally. There are also rover/mg specialists in uk who have a comprehensive parts catalogue for mail order. The head gasket is a problem even in the later model models produced but its not the end of the world either and prices for all rover cars as very very reasonable so buy it if ya want it but keep some money for head gasket change.

S.I.R

apart from the head gasket and the fact that they are liked by car theifs


id actually buy one, because they looks such fun, and if their anything like the rover 25/45 id buy one.

jodaw

I've got one forsale at the minute in adverts. And yes the head gaskets are a problem. The factory one went in mine in August of this year. I have had an upgrade MLS head gasket fitted. Reports from the MG owners forum are that generally there is no more trouble after the upgraded gasket and shim are fitted ...

Apart from the one thing i have been very happy with the car ... a blast to drive ...

Parts are easy enough to come by. On the cheap your have the old 25's from the scrappies for cheap parts. White Bishops still sell the parts new (a little expensive though) ...

All in all they are a good enough little car ...

Just be sure the have a good check on the engine ... low coolant levels or a rough idle

fletch

My mate drives one. One of the best handing cars I've ever driven. Pokey for a 1.4(105bhp) too. Guzzles coolant though, need to check it every week.

bazz26

fletch wrote: »

Guzzles coolant though, need to check it every week.

That's the major design flaw of the K-Series engine that causes the car to overhead and the head gasket to go.

groupb

fletch wrote: »

My mate drives one. One of the best handing cars I've ever driven. Pokey for a 1.4(105bhp) too. Guzzles coolant though, need to check it every week.

He still drives it? His engine will go bang if he does'nt get it looked at.

mcwhirter

rhondadunphy wrote: »

Hi lloking for advice I've seen a MG ZR that i want to buy but I've been told that there is no way of getting parts for the MG's as they are no longer in business could someone please tell me if this is ture as I really want to buy this car

Thanks

This might be of some use.
http://forums.mg-rover.org/

ssmith6287

i recently bought one. erm the coolent level is gone right down. might be a bit of a stupid question but do i just keep topping it up or do i have to bleed it first. mine went earlier but got a lil coolant and some water and it seemed fine. only have it 2 weeks and thinking of changing it. not as fun as i taught itd be, my old 1.4 escort was quicker. can barely hit d 120kph mark in the mg.

ARGINITE

If it is using that amount of coolant, its time to check for leaks. Make sure you check around the water pump, its hard to see leaks their.
Also the inlet manifold gasket can go in them this causes a misfire on start up. But once its warmed up its grand. Also an easy enough fix and the gasket is only €4 or €5 so worth taking care of.

mcwhirter wrote:

This might be of some use.
http://forums.mg-rover.org/

Excellent forum, very helpful people on it.

BnA

I have a ZS with the 1.8 K series engine. Head Gaskets definately a problem. It's a pity because, besides that it is a fine car. Cheap to run and super road holding.

ssmith6287

have the car about 2 weeks. rang the garage today, theyre collecting it tomorrow. Paid €2500 for it. didnt get a waranty but took the guys word that hed fix anything that cud go wrong with it. just looking through the internet, im bricking it that its gonna cost a shed load of money to repair. just did a new fan belt yesterday. bt there was a fair amount of steam coming for the water bottle today. thinking of asking him for my old car back at a loss. mite try and get 2000 + my old car back. nothing wrong with my old escort bar the whole grandad look. dya think i be successful or would it not seem like a vaiable option for the garage. as far as i can see is theyre getting the mg back with a new alternator and belt, theyre getting rid of a ford escort that they most likely wont be able to sell, and theyre getting €500 for my trouble. bought the mg on impulse and the more i look at it, the more disgusted i am.

L-M

I'd say you would be lucky to get it back. It's not something we can tell you, it'll completely differ with every dealer. One thing, you are not entitled to get your old car back.

Pity really. I hope it doesn't cost you too much.

Drummerboy08

The car could be sold to the trade or anything by now. I personally think you'd be better keeping the MG.

Halfrauds

bazz26 wrote: »

That's the major design flaw of the K-Series engine that causes the car to overhead and the head gasket to go.

the problem with the Kseries, is the way the thermostat operates, which causes a thermal shock when it opens. The fact the head is aluminium and block cast iron doesnt help:(

Rover solved the problem with the shim mentioned above.

so late k-series with the mod should be fine.

if your car is losing coolant, that is a leak, and isnt common or normal on any engine(even a rover one:D)

If its losing it into a cylinder due to a head gasket and you dont notice the steam, or into the oil then you should be allowed near a car:pac:

CasimiR

As other have stated, parts are no problems - worst case you can order most of them new from the UK.

The head gasket is an issue, what model are you looking at ? 1.8 VCC are nice & quick , but be aware services/maintenance costs on those babies will be a lot higher.

I got mine new in 05, the only problem i had with it was a noisy door lock motor i had to replace after 3 years.
Forget about the MG/Rover bashing idiots, Great car to drive imo

Check out http://forums.mg-rover.org/, lots of advice etc ..

can barely hit d 120kph mark in the mg.

Yeah .. that should have been a hint there was a problem with the car in the first place

foundry

Hi all

Bought a mg zr 02 1.4 about 2wks ago with no warranty. Within 5 days it had broke down, got it push started and ran smoothly for about 2 days till it broke down.

Called a recovery truck which came had a look at it and told me i had basically bought a lemon, the car was very sick and i should go back to the dealer straight away.

Rang the dealer explained what had happened and got the car towed back to Tallaght where I bought as I'm in Carlow at my expense.

The dealer had a look at the car and rings me to say it needs a new head gasket, fan motor, water pump and while he's at it he'l do the timing belt for a rough price of €400-500 euro.

I was quite suprised at the low figure, I had it in my head to shoot him down with my consumer rights and small claims court threats.

Now that he has offered a reasonable deal I feel I should take it as if i threatened legal proceedings and the rest he would just throw the car back together.

I'd be so greatful with any advice on what someone would do in my situation.

Thanks for reading

Foundry

Tony Broke

foundry wrote: »

Hi all

Bought a mg zr 02 1.4 about 2wks ago with no warranty. Within 5 days it had broke down, got it push started and ran smoothly for about 2 days till it broke down.

Called a recovery truck which came had a look at it and told me i had basically bought a lemon, the car was very sick and i should go back to the dealer straight away.

Rang the dealer explained what had happened and got the car towed back to Tallaght where I bought as I'm in Carlow at my expense.

The dealer had a look at the car and rings me to say it needs a new head gasket, fan motor, water pump and while he's at it he'l do the timing belt for a rough price of €400-500 euro.

I was quite suprised at the low figure, I had it in my head to shoot him down with my consumer rights and small claims court threats.

Now that he has offered a reasonable deal I feel I should take it as if i threatened legal proceedings and the rest he would just throw the car back together.

I'd be so greatful with any advice on what someone would do in my situation.

Thanks for reading

Foundry

Head over to mg-rover forums and post a thread there.They will be able to give you very good advice over there,as 1 in 3 MG K series based engines blow head gaskets.Besides blowing head gaskets and other little niggles they are suppose to be fine cars, brillant to drive and plenty of power from that 1.4.

Price is very good to replace all listed, when they replace it, ask them to fit the modified gaskets made by Land Rover, which is suppose to solve the problem.

In the future keep an eye on the water level all the time and touch wood it shouldn't again.Also dotn drive it hard from the cold, let the engine warm up before you thrash it.The K series is a good engine, but is has one problem, head gasket failure!Get it fixed properly and you have a nice little motor.

EPM

thats a very cheap quote. Make sure they are actually changing all those parts! If they do, they are cutting you a very fair deal considering it was bought without a warranty

4dice

hi im in need of sum sound advice....ive just bought a mg zs + 1.8 03 reg was driving down the road today and my alternator/air con belt snapped and the car cut out, im trying to debate why the car cut out as i dnt think it shud of just cut out cos its only the belt that snapped...(i am hoping the alternator belt hasnt took the cam belt out) one other thing is that the charge indicator on the battery sugested a recharge an when trying to turn it over battery pretty much flat, to simplify this for you i am basically trying to work out why the car engine cut out when the alt belt snapped ...either because it had taken the cambelt out or (hopefully) it was just the battery being so low what are my chances? apreciate any info n advice thans

mcwhirter

4dice wrote: »

hi im in need of sum sound advice....ive just bought a mg zs + 1.8 03 reg was driving down the road today and my alternator/air con belt snapped and the car cut out, im trying to debate why the car cut out as i dnt think it shud of just cut out cos its only the belt that snapped...(i am hoping the alternator belt hasnt took the cam belt out) one other thing is that the charge indicator on the battery sugested a recharge an when trying to turn it over battery pretty much flat, to simplify this for you i am basically trying to work out why the car engine cut out when the alt belt snapped ...either because it had taken the cambelt out or (hopefully) it was just the battery being so low what are my chances? apreciate any info n advice thans

Try asking the question on this mg site.
http://forums.mg-rover.org/

gavt18

im going to collect my mg zr during the week .its 04 they really look nice cant wait to get it. only 51000miles on it getting it for a nice price too. one question how much wud a head gasket in euros its a mg zr 1.4

djeclips

Looking through the boards about E600 all in for a good job done. As said make sure the uprated gasket is used.The ZR handles great, just watch out for the under steer if you get carried away. As with any car check all the switches and make sure they all work. If it is a + model open the sunroof and check for rust, noisy central locking, Make sure no white "Mayo" on the inside of the oil cap (As would mean water is mixing with the oil and gasket is on the way out) Personally I wouldn't be bothered if any of the above were apparent as repairs can be factored into the purchase price and then you know it's 100% Rather than the motor that appeared to be top notch and paying price accordingly only a while later, your stuck with an unexpected bill. That's my opinion anyway! The internet is your bible when purchasing a car. Do a bit of research and you won't go far wrong. For Mg's and rovers as already stated http://www.mg-rover.org and www.xpowerforums.com will see you right.


I've had three MG's and loved each one, Zr 105+ (1.4k engine) three years and 60k on the clock , Zs 120, just over one year and 30k on the clock (1.8k engine) and Zs 180 (2.5Kv6 engine) two years and 30k on the clock. Only problems ever were Rusty sunroof in the Zr and Coil pack went in the 120 a few weeks after I bought it. Out from that faultless! They're a total underdog of a car in peoples minds but very capable for what you pay for them. Just don't expect to buy a car and never look under the bonnet from one month to the next.

gavt18

they are a gorgeous car .ive had a look at this car already tat im buyin just waiting for nct to be put on it den happy days .my bro has checked under the oil cap tats the first thing he done (hes a mechanic). i love the look of the mg i have a micra at the mo and got cash to buy a car my bro said get an mg zr i was like ah dono but wen i seen it :D give me tat lol

richardsheil

gavt18 wrote: »

they are a gorgeous car .ive had a look at this car already tat im buyin just waiting for nct to be put on it den happy days .my bro has checked under the oil cap tats the first thing he done (hes a mechanic). i love the look of the mg i have a micra at the mo and got cash to buy a car my bro said get an mg zr i was like ah dono but wen i seen it :D give me tat lol

What? English?

Webmonkey

I've being obsessed with MGs and Rovers for few years now and I'm sick to death receiving rover/mg bashing from people that havn't even sat into an MG.

I've a 05 MG ZS+, the uprated one and it's a beautiful car. The handling is unreal! However one day, coolant crept into the oil so I changed it immediately myself. To be honest changing the head gasket is a right easy job provided you haven't left it over heat and left the coolant / oil mix.

I've being a member of the mg-rover.org forums for ages and there are some very nice guys on there that are extremely help.

A lot of these MGs/Rovers being sold with the head gasket's already going so that's why people get so unlucky. You have to look out for signs of HG before purchasing.

Oh and about parts being scarce - a complete myth. Parts are no problem to get, however body parts such as wings can be difficult on the new cars, but they do show up on Ebay a lot.

Really the only problem I've had with any of these cars was the head gasket, and the actual job is not that bad. Get a Haynes book and away with you, it is actually bit of fun!

legendarylegend

Bloody MG enthusiasts! I own a Hyundai and I don't try to tell everyone its the best car in the world, and it has hardened suspension too

Webmonkey

legendarylegend wrote: »

Bloody MG enthusiasts! I own a Hyundai and I don't try to tell everyone its the best car in the world, and it has hardened suspension too

Yeah because it isn't and neither is an MG :rolleyes:

EPM

legendarylegend wrote: »

Bloody MG enthusiasts! I own a Hyundai and I don't try to tell everyone its the best car in the world, and it has hardened suspension too

Well it is a thread about MG's:P

Webmonkey wrote: »

Yeah because it isn't and neither is an MG :rolleyes:

LOL:D

shakencat

ill sell mine to any of you mg lovers!:)

Eoin

shakencat wrote: »

ill sell mine to any of you mg lovers!:)

You can put it up on www.adverts.ie so. Please don't bump old threads to try and sell your car.