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| Road Test: Rover 25 (2000-2005) |
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| Superminis |
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| COMFORT AND EQUIPMENT RATING: |
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It's fine for just nipping around in, but for regular high mileages and extended motorway work it's tiresome. All the engines are noisy - especially the vibratory diesel - and the ride is stiff and unforgiving, with a tendency to lurch in and out of potholes and rattle over broken surfaces. It's not easy to find an ideal driving position, especially if you're tall (try getting the seat position/steering wheel height/access to the pedals all right...) and the seats are none too supportive either. It's reasonably spacious in the front, though the longer-armed will notice a lack of elbowroom, and the low roof can be claustrophobic. The roof's even lower when a sunroof is fitted, but at least you can slide back a sunblind to let a bit more light in. Rear room is only adequate, with access difficult in three-door models; the boot is reasonably-sized, but has a narrow aperture and an awkward locking/unlocking mechanism (no remote release). The 25 also lacks the oddments storage space and clever folding/sliding seats of many more modern rivals. Pretty poor. Even the higher-spec models, with a CD player, have a cheap head unit with horrid little fiddly buttons and less than intuitive controls. Sound quality is dismal, amplification is weedy and even radio reception is poor - even though few 25 buyers will be desiring high bass output for booming jungle, it would be nice to get The Archers loud and clear. No sat nav as standard (it's an expensive option on some models), and the RDS traffic info system is worse than useless.
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Introduction The Rover 25, formerly known as the 200, was updated in 2000 but compa... |
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