MG Maestro EFi

Posted on 28/07/2010 by Sam Skelton

The Golf GTi will be along in a second... When I was young, a friend of my father's had an MG Maestro EFi. My father thought little of it, spouting his anti-Leyland guff at me in the Rover 800. "Rattly, poorly made, didn't feel THAT quick" and so on and so forth. But I'd read good things of them, and Kevin's Targa Red EFi made a powerful impression. Later in life, through the Maestro and Montego Owners' Club, I encountered many individuals who love their cars, and I was getting itchy feet Read more [...]

Rover 220GTi Turbo

Posted on 27/07/2010 by Sam Skelton

It's R8, this Rover... The R8-series Rover is starting to be appreciated, like the Maestro before it, as more than just a banger. The earliest and mintiest cars are finding cherished homes, and there's even an owners' club. Probably the rarest and hairiest variant is the 220GTi Turbo - soon replaced by the GSi Sport due to excessive insurance premiums. As an introduction to the R8 range then, it seems like probably the one to choose. And as it happens, I know someone who owns one. The Rover Read more [...]

Austin Maestro 1.6 Mayfair

Posted on 26/07/2010 by Sam Skelton

More than a Mayfair... Simon Heap is my kind of chap. He doesn't always like his cars to be the way they left the factory, but the way he chooses to improve them is to make any addition look like a factory fit. Rear head restraints, for a kickoff - never fitted to a Maestro yet his 272000 mile Mayfair has them. Ditto a CD player - made by the same company as the standard radio, and subtle enough to not look out of place. Power steering - a genuine factory option - is another retro-fit to the Read more [...]

Austin Maestro 1.3L

Posted on 25/07/2010 by Sam Skelton

Bread and butter motoring, 1980s style... In bread-and-butter form the Maestro is an oft-derided car. I may as well admit it here, despite the fact I like Maestros and Montegos I'm a bit of a snob with it. Don't laugh and say that you can't be snobby about Maestros, you can. What I mean is that in general I'd rather have a 1.6 Mayfair, Vanden Plas, or MG to any base models, Ls, HLs, HLSs or any of the 1.3 cars. a 1.3 with a 4 speed gearbox is definitely out on the lower end of the snob scale. But Read more [...]

Which MG is the Maestro?

Posted on 24/07/2010 by Sam Skelton

Sam Skelton decides to settle the raging debate amongst Maestro fans; Which of the MGs is best? Words: Sam Skelton. Images: Sam Skelton unless credited Group Test: MG1600 vs MG Maestro EFi vs MG Maestro Turbo Introduction As with so many of the best things, the MG Maestro wasn't planned. It just... happened. The several incarnations through which it went are all admired and revered by enthusiasts, but there have been debates since the dawn of time as to which of the MG Maestros was Read more [...]