400 W Reg.

I think it'll be the Rover T-series engine fitted - the original design of these dates back to the eighties so you won't get fantastic economy from them but at least they're well known and bits are plentiful. Most of those engine weep oil from the corner of the rocker cover (front RH as you look at the engine with the bonnet open). I think the manual gearbox is the PG1 which is not overly strong (mine has just eaten it's bearings), but again, it's an old design and they're easy to come by - just beware of gearbox noises when you test drive it.

Darren

For a 2litre it'll either be a diesel or a 1.8 K-series (don't think they ever fitted the 2.0 KV6) - unless its a very late 400 Tourer.

For £1200 more you could probably get a 2000 X-reg with circa 15k on the clock... and from a main Rover dealer at that.

One thing to look for on these is sticking valves. If it misfires a bit when cold, or feels hesitant and gutless especially at lower revs then it could be this. If it has been run on supermarket petrol and/or done a lot of short journeys it may exhibit this fault even after only 50k. Solved this problem when I acquired mine with lots of Redex (ie. whole bottle at a time) added to the fuel and some good runs. Mine had 79k when I got it.

Another factor is frequency of oil changes. The recommended 12k is in my opinion inadequate - it needs to be done at least every 6k or 6 months regardless of driving patterns.

As another poster said, oil leaks are common. Places are rocker cover as mentioned, as well as head gasket because the oilways run close to the edge. But they're often non-severe and a "feature" of these engines, although you should still look for usual signs of more serious problems.

T-series is a heavy engine and it doesn't feel as light at the front as one with a K. Steering feels quite heavy on mine, although the wider tyres on the alloys on my GSi might be part of this.

On the plus side I find the engine quieter and smoother than the K-series, the gearing is taller meaning lower revs at motorway speeds. Nice torquey engine (if and only if it's running right), fuel economy isn't so bad if you're light with your foot (I've had up to 38mpg average driving, but usual average is 33mpg including queuing in traffic on a daily basis). Equipment is good - mine has cruise, CD-changer, air-con and I'm sure an end-of-line W would have the same.

Believe it or not, these engines actually run better on a 'thin' oil such as

5W/30 or even 0W/30 - cured the problem I had with my auto Sterling which ran very roughly when first started on a cold morning (and would often stall when revved) - despite Rover recommending 10W/40!

Darren