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:''This article is about the UK car. For the US car called Montego, see Mercury Montego''.
The 'Austin Montego' is a British mid-size saloon car that was produced by the Austin Rover subsidiary of British Leyland (BL), and its successors, from 1984 until 1994. The car was the replacement for the much maligned Morris Ital, to give British Leyland a modern competitor for the Ford Sierra and Vauxhall Cavalier.
The ''Montego'' started life as a four-door notchback variant of project LC10. The Austin Maestro emerged as the five-door hatchback variant. When the designs diverged the ''Montego'' became project LM11 (the ''Maestro'' being LM10), and remained based on a lengthened version of the LC10 floorpan. The Montego received very different front and rear styling following the replacement of designer David Bache with Roy Axe. It also featured body-coloured bumpers (as did the ''Maestro''), and front wipers which hid themselves under the bonnet when parked.[1]
The Montego offered many improvements over the Maestro, many of which were later incorporated into the Maestro, such as a new SOHC engine (the S-Series), and a more robust dashboard. As with the ''Maestro'', there was a high-performance MG version which again used the solid-state instrument cluster, trip computer, and the synthesised voice of Nicolette MacKenzie for the information and warning system. The dashboard fitted to the Montego was superior to that originally designed for the Maestro and featured a rally-style tachometer, a service indicator and a representation of the car showing open doors, lights left on, etc.
An estate variant, with larger luggage capacity that its competitors,[2] two additional rear-facing child seats and self-levelling suspension, also styled by Roy Axe, followed shortly and received instant acclaim, winning the company a Design Council award.[3]
The ''Montego'' was launched on 25 April 1984. The estate variant was launched at the 1984 British International Motor Show in October. The 150 bhp MG turbocharged variant took the market by storm in early 1985 as the fastest production MG ever with a 0-60 mph time of 7.3 seconds, and a top speed of 203 km/h (126 mph).
Like the related Austin Maestro, the Montego suffered from its overly long development phase, which had been begun in 1975 and which was hampered throughout by the industrial turmoil that plagued both British Leyland and Austin Rover Group during this period. In some ways, the technology was ahead of its time, notably the solid-state instrumentation, however early examples suffered from build quality and reliability issues. The talking dashboard fitted to high-end models (and initially used to promote the car as an advanced high-tech offering) was prone to irritating faults and came to be regarded as something of an embarrassment by BL and the British press. That feature was discontinued after a short period. It is unknown how many, if any, MG Montego EFi models featuring the LED dashboard remain.
However, despite all this, the Montego matured into a really competent car. A minor facelift for 1989 enhanced its appeal, which was buoyed up by both the Perkins-engined diesel version, and the seven-seater version of the "Countryman" estate. The diesel saloon even won a 'Car' magazine 'giant test' against the Citroën BX (1.7 XUDT), the then new Peugeot 405 (1.7 XUDT) and Audi 80 (1.6) turbo diesels in that year. They rated the 405 the best car followed by the BX, then the Montego. The Audi came last. 'But if people buy diesels, and turbo diesel for their economy, the winner has to be the Montego. ...its engine is - even when roundly thrashed - more than 10% more economical than the rest.' 'For those isolated moments when cost control is not of the essence, the Montego is a car you can enjoy too.' 'The steering and driving position are quite excellent.' They described the suspension as 'impressively refined. It is silent over rough bumps, poised and well damped.'
The turbo diesel became a favourite of the RAF for officer transport. Car Mechanics magazine ran an RAF officer transport demobbed Montego bought from a Ministry of Defence auction in 1996.
The facelift also saw the phasing out of the Austin name. These late-1980s models had a badge resembling the Rover Viking longship, but it was not identical, nor did the word "Rover" ever appear on the cars.
By the early 1990s, the car was terminally aged, and production effectively ceased when the replacement car, the Rover 600, was launched in 1993, (special fleet orders were almost handbuilt until 1994, estates continued until 1995). In its final year, What Car? magazine said "(Austin) Rover's once 'great white hope', Montego matured into a very decent car — but nobody noticed". The chassis development for the Montego and Maestro rear suspension was used as a basis for later Rover cars, and well regarded.
Montegos continued to be built in small numbers in CKD form at the Cowley plant until 1994, when production finally ended. The last car was signed by all those that worked on it, and is now on display at the British Heritage Motor Centre in Gaydon, Warwickshire, UK. 546,000 Austin Montegos and 23,000 MG Montegos were produced.
436,000 Montegos were sold in the UK between 1984 and 1995. In August 2006, a survey by Auto Express magazine revealed that the Montego was Britain's eighth most scrapped car, with just 8,988 still in working order. Contributing to this, areas of the bodywork that were to be covered by plastic trim (such as door rubbing stips) were left unpainted and thus unprotected. In addition, pre-1989 models cannot run on unleaded petrol without the cylinder head being converted or the use of one of the many, FHBVC (Federation of Historic British Vehicle Clubs), tested and approved lead replacement fuel additives, that work out at only a couple of pence a litre.
In New Zealand, the Austin Montego was launched in 1984 in manual 2.0-litre form wagon (estate car) form only by then importer New Zealand Motor Corporation to supplement the locally-produced Honda Accord hatchback and sedan models.
The only models offered were 2.0 HLS and 2.0 Mayfair estate car versions: a sedan was not offered in New Zealand due to concerns that it would compete directly with the Honda Accord.
These early carburettor Montegos developed a reputation for catching fire as a fuel hose would dislodge and spray petrol over the hot exhaust manifold — a trait the Austin shared with some older Ford Cortina models.
Later – from about 1989 – a wider range of models were imported by a new company, Rover New Zealand; this included sedan versions for the first time. Also new were the MG 2.0 range (identical to the MG Montego sold in the United Kingdom), and all wore the official MG badge. This was the first MG estate car. The main Auckland dealer developed an air conditioning system as an option for these cars in conjunction with local specialists. However, the estate version was never sold in the UK with the MG badging on it.
The Montego was sold in India as the Rover Montego in collaboration with Sipani Motors - (the company that tried and failed to market the Reliant Kitten, a version of the Robin with 4 wheels and Triumph inspired front suspension, as the Sipani Dolphin). The car flopped badly and sold in limited numbers before being discontinued.
A version of the Austin Maestro with a Montego front end is built in China under the Etsong Lande nameplate.
★ 1984–1989 - 1275 cc ''A-Plus'' I4, 68 hp (51 kW) at 5600 rpm and 75 ft·lbf (102 Nm) at 3500 rpm
★ 1988–1994 - 1994 cc Austin/Rover MDi - Perkins Prima TD I4, 81 hp and 116 ft·lbf
On one of his video specials, ''Top Gear'' co-host Jeremy Clarkson destroyed a Montego by having a semi-tractor truck broadside it. Note that the Montego was pre-cut by the B-pillar and was filled with explosives prior to its destruction.
★ The Unofficial Austin Rover Web Resource
★ Maestro and Montego Owners Club
★ MG 'M' Group (Owner's Club)
★ Triple M (Maestro, Montego and Metro enthusiasts group including all Austin and MG models)
The AA Montego Review PDFs
★ ROVER MONTEGO 2.0L DLX TURBO
★ AUSTIN ROVER MONTEGO 2.0L
1. The MG Montego & Maestro Neil Turner
2. Family Cars: Car Facts table, , , , Which?, 1986
3. Story of the Montego
The 'Austin Montego' is a British mid-size saloon car that was produced by the Austin Rover subsidiary of British Leyland (BL), and its successors, from 1984 until 1994. The car was the replacement for the much maligned Morris Ital, to give British Leyland a modern competitor for the Ford Sierra and Vauxhall Cavalier.
| Contents |
| Design and development |
| To market |
| Later developments |
| International Markets |
| New Zealand |
| India |
| China |
| Engines |
| Media Appearances |
| References |
| External links |
| Notes |
Design and development
The ''Montego'' started life as a four-door notchback variant of project LC10. The Austin Maestro emerged as the five-door hatchback variant. When the designs diverged the ''Montego'' became project LM11 (the ''Maestro'' being LM10), and remained based on a lengthened version of the LC10 floorpan. The Montego received very different front and rear styling following the replacement of designer David Bache with Roy Axe. It also featured body-coloured bumpers (as did the ''Maestro''), and front wipers which hid themselves under the bonnet when parked.[1]
The Montego offered many improvements over the Maestro, many of which were later incorporated into the Maestro, such as a new SOHC engine (the S-Series), and a more robust dashboard. As with the ''Maestro'', there was a high-performance MG version which again used the solid-state instrument cluster, trip computer, and the synthesised voice of Nicolette MacKenzie for the information and warning system. The dashboard fitted to the Montego was superior to that originally designed for the Maestro and featured a rally-style tachometer, a service indicator and a representation of the car showing open doors, lights left on, etc.
An estate variant, with larger luggage capacity that its competitors,[2] two additional rear-facing child seats and self-levelling suspension, also styled by Roy Axe, followed shortly and received instant acclaim, winning the company a Design Council award.[3]
To market
The estate version was competitively priced and achieved useful sales volumes in the UK and, perhaps more surprisingly, in France
The ''Montego'' was launched on 25 April 1984. The estate variant was launched at the 1984 British International Motor Show in October. The 150 bhp MG turbocharged variant took the market by storm in early 1985 as the fastest production MG ever with a 0-60 mph time of 7.3 seconds, and a top speed of 203 km/h (126 mph).
Like the related Austin Maestro, the Montego suffered from its overly long development phase, which had been begun in 1975 and which was hampered throughout by the industrial turmoil that plagued both British Leyland and Austin Rover Group during this period. In some ways, the technology was ahead of its time, notably the solid-state instrumentation, however early examples suffered from build quality and reliability issues. The talking dashboard fitted to high-end models (and initially used to promote the car as an advanced high-tech offering) was prone to irritating faults and came to be regarded as something of an embarrassment by BL and the British press. That feature was discontinued after a short period. It is unknown how many, if any, MG Montego EFi models featuring the LED dashboard remain.
Later developments
However, despite all this, the Montego matured into a really competent car. A minor facelift for 1989 enhanced its appeal, which was buoyed up by both the Perkins-engined diesel version, and the seven-seater version of the "Countryman" estate. The diesel saloon even won a 'Car' magazine 'giant test' against the Citroën BX (1.7 XUDT), the then new Peugeot 405 (1.7 XUDT) and Audi 80 (1.6) turbo diesels in that year. They rated the 405 the best car followed by the BX, then the Montego. The Audi came last. 'But if people buy diesels, and turbo diesel for their economy, the winner has to be the Montego. ...its engine is - even when roundly thrashed - more than 10% more economical than the rest.' 'For those isolated moments when cost control is not of the essence, the Montego is a car you can enjoy too.' 'The steering and driving position are quite excellent.' They described the suspension as 'impressively refined. It is silent over rough bumps, poised and well damped.'
The turbo diesel became a favourite of the RAF for officer transport. Car Mechanics magazine ran an RAF officer transport demobbed Montego bought from a Ministry of Defence auction in 1996.
The facelift also saw the phasing out of the Austin name. These late-1980s models had a badge resembling the Rover Viking longship, but it was not identical, nor did the word "Rover" ever appear on the cars.
By the early 1990s, the car was terminally aged, and production effectively ceased when the replacement car, the Rover 600, was launched in 1993, (special fleet orders were almost handbuilt until 1994, estates continued until 1995). In its final year, What Car? magazine said "(Austin) Rover's once 'great white hope', Montego matured into a very decent car — but nobody noticed". The chassis development for the Montego and Maestro rear suspension was used as a basis for later Rover cars, and well regarded.
Montegos continued to be built in small numbers in CKD form at the Cowley plant until 1994, when production finally ended. The last car was signed by all those that worked on it, and is now on display at the British Heritage Motor Centre in Gaydon, Warwickshire, UK. 546,000 Austin Montegos and 23,000 MG Montegos were produced.
436,000 Montegos were sold in the UK between 1984 and 1995. In August 2006, a survey by Auto Express magazine revealed that the Montego was Britain's eighth most scrapped car, with just 8,988 still in working order. Contributing to this, areas of the bodywork that were to be covered by plastic trim (such as door rubbing stips) were left unpainted and thus unprotected. In addition, pre-1989 models cannot run on unleaded petrol without the cylinder head being converted or the use of one of the many, FHBVC (Federation of Historic British Vehicle Clubs), tested and approved lead replacement fuel additives, that work out at only a couple of pence a litre.
International Markets
New Zealand
In New Zealand, the Austin Montego was launched in 1984 in manual 2.0-litre form wagon (estate car) form only by then importer New Zealand Motor Corporation to supplement the locally-produced Honda Accord hatchback and sedan models.
The only models offered were 2.0 HLS and 2.0 Mayfair estate car versions: a sedan was not offered in New Zealand due to concerns that it would compete directly with the Honda Accord.
These early carburettor Montegos developed a reputation for catching fire as a fuel hose would dislodge and spray petrol over the hot exhaust manifold — a trait the Austin shared with some older Ford Cortina models.
Later – from about 1989 – a wider range of models were imported by a new company, Rover New Zealand; this included sedan versions for the first time. Also new were the MG 2.0 range (identical to the MG Montego sold in the United Kingdom), and all wore the official MG badge. This was the first MG estate car. The main Auckland dealer developed an air conditioning system as an option for these cars in conjunction with local specialists. However, the estate version was never sold in the UK with the MG badging on it.
India
The Montego was sold in India as the Rover Montego in collaboration with Sipani Motors - (the company that tried and failed to market the Reliant Kitten, a version of the Robin with 4 wheels and Triumph inspired front suspension, as the Sipani Dolphin). The car flopped badly and sold in limited numbers before being discontinued.
China
A version of the Austin Maestro with a Montego front end is built in China under the Etsong Lande nameplate.
Engines
★ 1984–1989 - 1275 cc ''A-Plus'' I4, 68 hp (51 kW) at 5600 rpm and 75 ft·lbf (102 Nm) at 3500 rpm
★ 1988–1994 - 1994 cc Austin/Rover MDi - Perkins Prima TD I4, 81 hp and 116 ft·lbf
Media Appearances
On one of his video specials, ''Top Gear'' co-host Jeremy Clarkson destroyed a Montego by having a semi-tractor truck broadside it. Note that the Montego was pre-cut by the B-pillar and was filled with explosives prior to its destruction.
References
★ The Unofficial Austin Rover Web Resource
External links
★ Maestro and Montego Owners Club
★ MG 'M' Group (Owner's Club)
★ Triple M (Maestro, Montego and Metro enthusiasts group including all Austin and MG models)
The AA Montego Review PDFs
★ ROVER MONTEGO 2.0L DLX TURBO
★ AUSTIN ROVER MONTEGO 2.0L
Notes
1. The MG Montego & Maestro Neil Turner
2. Family Cars: Car Facts table, , , , Which?, 1986
3. Story of the Montego
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