I’ve owned the Rover for just over a week, and a trip to south England has allowed me to clock up 531 miles in two days. That’s a total of about 12 hours at the wheel – more than enough time to get a feel for what is the first 21st century car that I’ve ever bought.

Not a bad place to be, which is fortunate!

Generally, impressions are really rather good. They should be. With BMW’s money behind it, Rover engineers had the funds to do a decent job – something they’d not really enjoyed since the Rover P6 was launched over 30 years before the 75. Sure, there are one or two annoying rattles, but wafting along in the Rover is pretty close to bliss. It’s quiet, smooth and with the engine chugging along at a mere 2300rpm at motorway speeds, incredibly relaxing. Economy is good too – despite much time spent at an actual 70mph, and a bout of city driving in Croydon, the Rover returned 49mpg overall. That’s really not bad for such a large car – I can expect the BX to deliver that, and the 2CV if I’m gentle, but they’re much, much lighter and far noisier…

One feature I’m already enjoying is the automatic wipers. A positive boon for someone who lives in Wales and sure enough, our trip involved pretty much every strength of rain from drizzle to monsoon. Being able to adjust the heater output temperature separately for each side of the car has its advantages too…

In terms of handling, the Rover is very much a car that is competent but not corner-focussed. I was able to chuck it around a bit on some Welsh roads on the way back home – after I’d had plenty of time at the wheel to get a feel for the thing – but it doesn’t enjoy being driven quickly like that, and I didn’t really enjoy pushing it. That’s ok – the 2CV delivers plenty of cornering thrills! The ride comfort really is rather good though, and the seats are good too.

There are some issues to be resolved, one of the worst of which is badly juddering brakes. I shall look to replace the discs as soon as possible. This may have proved hairy for passengers as I was reluctant to brake too hard for bends. Sadly, crunchy third gear synchromesh meant my usual high standards of chauffer-ship were somewhat lacking as I attempted to operate all three pedals at once! By the return trip, I’d got the knack of double-declutching about right. Bye bye crunching!

I have discovered a hugely enthusiastic following for the 75 though, and this makes ownership much more bearable. It’s incredible just how much people do on their own 75s – the hype about electronics stopping DIY work is a definite myth!