1999 Apple 2000 Maestro - the Bulgarian Rover
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- čas přidán 6. 07. 2024
- As Austin Rover Maestro production ended in the UK it restarted in Bulgaria, but the short lived venture resulted in a few cars coming home, some through Ledbury and fewer, like this one, Apple 2000 - the rarest Maestro of all
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One of our family cars! The ride wasn't smooth but the Maestro tackled all the potholes on the Bulgarian roads with ease. Overall quite good car, few technical issues, cheap plastics but satisfactory build quality. It`s really nice you are reviewing one of these - it brings back so many great memories from my childhood.
Brings back memories of my first company car - a 1.3 Montego. Total poverty spec that I inherited from my predecessor in the job. Boy was I happy when I finally got my choice of car. 1.3 Cavalier L. Red with a sunroof, tinted windows and four speaker stereo radio/cassette. Loved that car 😍
The older I get, the more I love a maestro. As a kid, my friends mum had one and it was always really comfortable and felt huge inside. Say what you like about them, but they are fantastic cars 👌🏻
As a child I never really appreciated the Maestro but now I think it is a nice design and very practical.
My uncle had the Vanden Plas automatic Maestro and it was so comfortable and refined. Even though it was just a Maestro because it had the wooden trim, valour interior, automatic gearbox and I think it was the 1.6 efi so it was fairly quick as well as it was fuel injected, unlike the carb fed A series engine.. it was little thing like rear head rests, fold down arm rest with a inbuilt drinks holder and touch carpets made it feel very Jaguar or Rolls Royce type car. Then he sold it and brought the M.G Montego 2.0 Turbo and man alive was that quick. I don’t think it handled that great but on a strait went like the clappers. They nicknamed them the Exocet. Think it did 0 to 60 mph in 6 seconds which was in the Cosworth territory..
Wow, no idea such a thing existed as a Maestro but glad it does! Thanks for telling the story. That's a good car for the owner to bring back to life and full cosmetic health, and also such a glorious curiousity to own.
"Everything coming up Millhouse" A man of culture I see.
Shakespear, I believe
I bought a Maestro HLE back in '85 at 14 months old and 10k on the clock from the main dealer in Chatham. Keep it until late '93 when I p/x'ed it for a 3 month old Escort. Nice car to drive, well built and no rust anywhere even though it was kept outside 24/7 for the first 6 years of my ownership. I don't get the lack of love for these cars.
My uncle had a Maestro 1.6 efi Vanden Plas, and it said it was one of the best cars he ever had. Owned it for 5 years and never had any problems or let him down. And it was well posh inside. Electric windows front and rear Valour interior with thick carpets, rear head rests with fold down arm rest with drinks holder. Wooden trim digital clock, automatic gearbox in Metallic silver and you felt posh driving in it. One thing Rover did well was in their car interiors which we’re always more welcoming and typically British comfort, more so than Fords, Vauxhalls which felt really cheap and basic inside. Then he sold that and brought a M.G Montego 2.0 Turbo and it went like the clappers. Think it was down for 0 to 60mph in 6 seconds, that’s Cosworth territory..
I remember Arnold Clark selling brand new old stock Maestros in Glasgow in about 1995. I'm pretty sure they were going for £3000.
While I was picking up a '91 Mk Micra there was a guy in the office loudly complaining that he'd just pulled the door handle off the very first time he went to open his "new" car!
That dashboard is actually a late Montego spec. The bank of four switches where rear wash/wipe are was never fitted to Cowley-built Maestros, they always had the older version with the ashtray there. Heater controls were where you had your cigar lighter in that model.
What a fabulously basic and old school car. My grandad had a 1983 Maestro HLE 1.6 in an odd pinky/red colour and it had the infamous talking dash. He had a succession of Montegos after that as he worked for McAlpines and the main supplier of company cars was Austin Rover, especially at their office here by us in Chester. The A+ engine is just wonderful… Awesome video Matt.
I vaguely remember these being mentioned in the press at the time. The rarity of survivors must make them an interesting, if not necessarily financially valuable retro vee-hicle. Fascinating story. In a cock-eyed kind of way, I quite fancy owning one.
In my days as a biased and proud owner of a "don't breathe or something will fall off it" Alfasud 1.5 ti, I was lent a 1.3 Austin Maestro while the Alfa was having yet another visit to the repair centre. A lovely comfy car. 0 to 60 in about 3 weeks, compared to the Alfa, but still a fairly competent performer.
The Tickford Turbo Maestros were a tad nippy. Definitely quicker to 60 than three weeks..... 😉 I still clearly remember Motoring Magazine adverts for them with words on the lines of "Faster than a Ferrari" ,,, The NASP MG Maestros had another clever worded advertisement. "The Golf GTi will be along in a second." Actually a shade more than that. A German MG Maestro 2.0i owner correspondent back in the day told me he was puzzled that so many Brits put the ordinary Golf GTi on so high a pedestal ... "along in a second".
My first car is 1991 was a 1.6HLS in Clove Brown. Registration was A501XWB. That had the famous modular rattle dash. Interior was brown!! All my mates had XR-3’s, Astra’s, but I preferred my car. The engine was the R series, mated with a five speed VW gearbox. Eventually after many scrap yard visits, the interior was swapped out for the grey MG type, with red carpets and seatbelts. Exterior had all the MG spoilers and lips. I even fitted the digital dash, though getting the electronic speedo sender working was a pig!!I loved this car, and still maintain today that it was one of the best cars I’ve owned. Sadly it got rear ended by a Golf Clipper, but fear not, back down the scrap yard, I bought a B reg silver 1.3, and literally swapped everything over, and back on the road in a week!! Made me chuckle Matt when you slammed the bonnet. You think that was bad! My A reg had no sound proofing in the roof. Slamming the door sounded like being in a cave. Eventually I’d had enough, and lined it with bitumen sheets.
I worked there 1995-96 ,I think .I remember, there were also vans and diesel engine cars,2.0 perkins .The bodies came finished in red , black , blue and white .Nice memories from another world.
I had never heard of these, thank you for the history lesson Matt. I know these were built for Bulgarian roads but that ride height and 14" wheels would come in handy today with Lincolnshire's pot holes.
When I was a kid our neighbour had an ex Telecom Maesteo van in yellow. It got a bit scabby so rather than get it resprayed, he got some colour matched paint from a diy store and roller brushed the entire thing on his driveway. I distinctly remember the very textured finish 😆 Great vid of a rare car for sure 👍
That was a blast from the past! 😳 I used to work for Apple 2000 in Culford in 1998/99. These all arrived from Bulgaria in Red, White and black as a left hand drive. I used to remove the storage wax from these, then steam clean and mop the paintwork, ready for the forecourt/showroom. Some were converted in house as right hand drive (as per your example) dash and pedals, but things like mirrors, headlights were forgotten about and when a customer complained that they couldn't see in their mirrors, or cars kept flashing them, it was my job to go to the breakers find Maestro RHD mirrors and headlights, clean them up like new, then fit them. You will probably notice that the wipers go the wrong way and the mat is stitched in the passenger side. O miles on a N plate, however the last handful were sold on an X plate as they had a cat fitted. I would actually love to drive one of these once again, been a good 22 years since! My first car was a horrible clove brown Maestro, for £40! But to see these in 98 in mint condition was something! Apple 2000 had some rare beasts on offer including the Kia Rocksta, brand new classic minis with a/c, pas and a rover 1.4 engine and a Perodua Nippa. Great vid, interesting! 👍👍
When I got rid of my South African Escort pickup Wor lass was pregnant so needed a 4 door , bought a 1300 Maestro cracking car quick in all I was told it used the 1275 GT motor to compensate for the extra weight , bought it from a dealer as trade in £300 took it to a mate who said don't drive it's a death trap , put new struts on , put new rear wheel arches and sills for an MOT , ran it for a couple of years sold it to a mate for £150 , I was thinking of sticking a Montego front end on it but needed the scuttle panel replace , figured to much work LOL .
It's a bit like 1950s farm trucks in N. America. They were not engineered for motorway speeds, And the gear ratios had to be updated. The steering Boxes redone , and brought up to modern spec/ Then, they were Bullet proof,As long as the truck didn't rust away. What an interesting story.
Excellent review as always Matt, had heard about the Ledbury Maestros but knew not a lot about the apple ones, so great to hear the story behind it.
I remember a number of these kits being available at a very cheap price in the nineties . They were advertised as build your own new car . It did go onto say that before they were road legal you would have to have them assessed and passed etc . Never took up the offer but interesting take on a " kit" car
I was fortunate enough to own a 1986 Meastro Mayfair in late 80s and a VP in early 90s,They were miles away from this one Matt! Lots of soundproofing ,bit of chrome on door handles,grill,plush box velvet upholstery,Walnut veneered doorcaps roomy interior,etc,etc.Lots of room,a decent ride and performance.I liked them a lot.Thanx for interesting and imformative video..
Interesting story, well told. Thanks Matt.
Regarding the NXXX DRP registration.... Though they were sold as 'new' in 1999, because they were built as new 'Rover' Maestros presumably from 1995/96, they would have got an age-related plate, so were registered on an N-plate. The 'DRP' waa the area they were registered in. The number was just sequential.
The 'Ledbury' Maestros were all 'RXXX RVJ', the 'RVJ' part being the Herefordshire registration area.
Interesting video
yes, they would have been age related. The Ledburies came on a range of year plates, some apparently totally unrelated
Presuming both companies block reserved the registrations for the number of vehicles they bought, hence the consecutive numbers, the same as main dealers do. The DVLA knows how many vehicles will be registered for each year before they are actually sold and registered. The date on the documents will be the date of actual registration but may be the previous period registration plate. Dealers often apply them to vehicles they want to shift before a model update, often at a discounted price with included dealer fit optional extras. Any registrations they don't use get returned to DVLA for use as age related or sold as cherished numbers if the combination is worthy. They and dealers don't like doing that as all the sales/registration figures have to be altered.
i am sure i’ve seen some ledbury maestros with worcester number plates so UY NP AB series
I think I remember seeing 1 registered X*** JNH years ago.
@@Andy-eo3mq probably a Ledbury as they had quite a range
I love no-frills cars. What you don't have can't break.
Matt the red fluffy dice are probably more rare than the car and love the red matching sticky tape 😂 pure perfection and Bulgarian families are big so definitely had to be a 7 or more Tea cup shelf minimum.
I had a very fast drive from London to Hertford in an MG Maestro - 30+ years ago - still remembered
Well this was certainly interesting. I knew that various British models were built elsewhere, but the Bulgarian connection was a new one to me. Thanks as always!
I still miss my old 1985 VDP Maestro with that famous talking dash and green digital display that was light years ahead of its time lol
Enjoyed this. Was aware of the Apples but had no idea of all the history behind them and the difference between and Apple and a Ledbury. Great video as always
I was once forced to drive a Maestro, as a company car. I was 22, and was diagnosed with the rare condition of PCCCSD (post crappy company car stress disorder)
I managed to get out of therapy 2 years later 1988, after an intense course of Vauxhall Cavalier SRi 130. Although it was an automatic it did have the, uncommon at the time, aircon upgrade. My woes remained in remission until my company changed over to Ford Sierras. I had to change jobs to avoid a relapse.
My father had a Ledbury maestro, they were far better built than Austin/Rover models since they were all hand built and certainly better rust proofed
😂😂
Sounds like it wasn’t actually a bad car then.
@@matty6848 I think it was really a good car. Not bad looking, spacious, comfortable, well equipped in the VP models. The problem was, that Austin/Rover bouilt the so poorly. So everyone just assumes it's trash even though it's not the original one. Even though I'm from Czech Republic, dunno how, but ever since I was a kid I had a leaflet book on the 80's Austin/Rover (my uncle used to work in West Germany, so he probably brought it here from some car show, because it's in German) and I really liked these cars ever since. The Metro, Maestro, the Montego and the SD1. I was so amazed that the Montego Estate could even be a seven seater. It just shows, especially after seeing Quentin's bit on the Metro on Top Gear, that these cars not neccessarily have been badly thought out, they were just so badly put together thanks to the sooo bad working morale. I mean even though the UK is widely regarded as the most "western democracy" state together with the USA, the Austin/Rover company succumbed to all the problems that we, in Central and Eastern Europe had everyday under the Soviet Union rule. Only with one exception - our so laughed at car industry made it out and survived to be thriving so well now (though the polished shit policy of the "technology" and electric cars makes it a joke now again, but that goes for the whole VW group cars), the British industry went bust.
What an interesting story about this incredibly rare car. Really fascinating, thank you.
Always had a soft spot for these things, in spite of all the negative press the Maestro got. I remember getting a lift a couple of times in one with the 2.0 diesel - Massey Ferguson levels of noise, as I recall all too well, and our local council used to run a fleet of increasingly ratty Maestro vans with that engine for years. Seeing that dashboard reminds me strongly of Dad's old Montego. Nice to see such an odd survivor.
That dash reminds me of the Montego I had in the early 90s as a company car, even down to the steering wheel, in fact it's identical I'm sure
after 1985 the maestro dashboard which originally was a multi piece item which was subject of lots of complaints on the early cars
it was replaced with the one piece moulded montego dash and steering wheel so the two cars had identical dashboards then
when the change happened the voice activated onboard computer was deleted
Interesting it's a later white-needled binnacle with an earlier yellow-needled speedo fitted. Obvs they just literally bought the speedometer module to swap out the original km/h dial rather than buy a whole replacement binnacle and didn't care about matching the parts up.
Myself and a fellow taxi driver bought one new between us to run double shifts in Manchester from Alex Mead, a 1988 F Reg with the Perkins Prima diesel, can’t remember if it was a turbo or not. I recall all the squeaks and rattles, steel bumpers, after 3 years out with the stone chip to cover the bottom of car every six months, that car worked hard for its keep.
After 7 years and nearly 400,000 miles we part exchanged for a new shiny Mk 1 Mondeo.
Just seen this Maestro in Sudbury, Suffolk
Liking the red tape, post factory, optional water holding rust encapsulation treatment. 👍
Great little video - I have an Apple 2000, a very late one, registered on a "Y" plate, in 2001. My wipers are the "correct" way round for RHD too. Plus mine has a catalytic converter - more of an oddity than this one :-)
This was super interesting, never knew anything about this! Proper enjoyed it, thanks Matt.
My first car was a Maestro. I couldn't keep it though as the insurance was too high. I honestly thought it was great, big inside and drove well. A genuinely underrated car, in my opinion.
Love the styling. Just amazing car. 😊
This car seems like a Hubnut special. Very interesting backstory and incredibly rare but unexceptional. Just the kind of car I'd be interested in if I lived in the UK.
My uncle bought a brand new maestro in the late 80s by the time it was 3 years old the wheel arches were rusting 😆.
Interesting video
Really interesting video Matt! I only knew about the Ledbury Maestros, never even knew the Apple 2000 ones existed!
Stranger than fiction. Incredible story.
"Even cruder than Birmingham..." your pushing it there Matt😂I've learnt something new today I did not know these existed, a suspect down to single figures based on it being one of 300ish!
I actually have never heard of either of these companies, so a big thanks for educating us on them Matt. I think if it were my car I'd look for full bumpers and some better wheels.
Very interesting, thanks. Good to know there are some of these left. Hopefully this one continues getting fixed up by it's enthusuastic owner and sees many more miles.
I live in Bury St Edmunds so great to hear a mention! Never knew about this so was really interesting to hear this happened just down the road. I do like the Maestro. It's like an updated Allegro style wise and I love Allegros! Cool fluffy dice too 😄 😎
Dice????
Absolutely fascinating. Watching after spotting a LHD Apple 2000 around the corner from my house. It’s in immaculate condition, would love to talk to the owner.
In July '95 (whilst on work experience at a Rover dealership) I swear you could still buy Cowley-built Maestro diesels, so there can't have been much gap between UK & Bulgarian production
James you are correct, 2.0 Clubman D.
yes I remember the diesels on an "M" plate
The slow death of the British car industry personified. I love it.
This explains why there are so many Maestros in Bulgaria.
I remember these being heavily advertized in the media in early 90's Bulgaria, then the ads suddenly disappeared. The economic and banking crisis of 1995-1997 could have also played a role, but wouldn't explain why they hadn't restarted production of the same or a new vehicle from 1998 onwards. Nice to hear it wasn't for the lack of skill in Bulgarian workers, because that has been my assumption ever since. Either way, from what I see, this automobile is no match for the Favorit, let alone the Felicia.
The Bulgarian workers certainly could not have been worst than the British.
The British had been building vehicles for a century and still couldn't build them well for a majority of their manufacturers.
The Maestro would have been a class leader in the late 70s. Sadly they launched it 5 years later.
At the right price it was as good as a Skoda Favorit or Felicia. I owned two Favorits and two Felicias from 1990 to 2014 ( plus five other Skodas since). The Maestro was roomier, handled just as well and was fairly robust. The 1.3 A plus engine is perfectly OK, if dated. If Skoda were given import duty advantages to Bulgaria and were backed by the might of VW, then those factors alone would have killed off the Maestro quickly enough. Shame about the van gearing which rather spoils it for the UK. Maestro was not that bad a car overall, though nowhere near VW Golf standards, but then neither was anything else on sale at the time.
Wow I I remember Maestro and Montego cars very well I live about a mile from the old Longbridge Austin Rover works most households in my area had one
A very interesting video, Matt. Neat car indeed.
I love it…back to basics
Colour coordinated Furry dice makes it so much better 🙂
I had an A reg Austin Maestro 1.3 for about 3 years and it had an Austin badge at the front and at the back.
love it i have a lhd one its registered as a TET rover maestro has 40.000 kms from new the original owner had it at holiday house in portugal then gave it to me when they left .i tried to matriculate it but they didnt like the vin plate i used it quite often up to the transition period ended then had to stop driving it as i now have portuguese license it only has one rust hole in right door it would drive back to uk no probs just needs rear exhaust and cv boot is perished i use it as mobile tool box on my land
I had a Ledbury Maestro 1.3 that I got for 200 quid. Mine had Rover badges on it for some reason. I had a lot of fun with it. It was surprisingly big inside, bigger than the Fiesta I learned to drive in. I put decent headrests in it and a good stereo, aside from that the only other change was a K&N filter.
Since I was a kid always liked the Maestro.
We had a neighbour that had one in a very clear green but sadly nowadays can't see a single one in here, Portugal, and ended up with a 309 Graffic as a classic car myself.
Lol the Alfa on the back of a truck!!
I'm surprised there's any left at all. Interesting story, I'd forgotten about it. Cool.
I was interested in your comment about the difference in the mirror designs for passenger and driver. I had never thought of that.
Weird automotive oddities like this are my absolute favorite to watch on CZcams. I would absolutely freak if either you or Hubnut somehow got your hands on a Sao Penza.
Crikey, I'd forgotten about those!
... or what about a Lonsdale?
@@andrewmarshall9340 OMG yes!!!
The flock lined cubby hole beneath the lighter was exactly the right size for a pack of 20 cigarettes. It made total sense.
Driving an early Maestro would turn most drivers into hardened smokers. Where did they stash the bottle of Scotch though? 😆
Liking the side exit exhaust
I was waiting for someone to clock that! I fitted it because the original back box was in poor shape and would fall off a lot because when the car was fully loaded it would catch the rear axle.
I’m going to have a proper one fabricated in the correct location in the future but this will do for now and sounds great lol.
Re the quality of the cars coming out of the new factory in Bulgaria vs in the home market: does that say more for the quality of those cars, or the quality of those being built in England?
Imagine that! Bulgaria could've been the Slovakia car manufacturer of the day. In fact, Land Rover would've had a head start into Eastern Europe and Russia where go-anywhere premium 4x4s were starting to gain prominence.
Really enjoyed maestro mg 2.0 efi I had in 1991
Every day's a school day. Didnae know these existed. i wid be dotting about in my Toyota Corolla 1.3.(the one wae the bug eyes). Good vid. thanks for that. This would be down there with the Allegro/Fso and the Riva..🤓
Great show
19/8 22 Had a Talking 'MG' 1.6 back in the day - was very roomy compared to Ford & GM competition. Front side light fell out when driving home from the Dealer. Had to go back under warranty - it was perpetually stalling, BL loaned me a Montego for a month or so whilst they 'remedied' it. Remember a pinta bottle could easily fit in the door bin. The 1.6 'MG' was increased to 2.0 on subsequent face-lifted models.
I had to replace THREE indicator units on a Montego in the space of two weeks. One was missing when I bought it and the MoT was coming up. One worked loose and fell out somewhere on a drive somewhere in deepest Dorset. A third one was stolen (!!) from a cinema car park, obviously from another driver plagued with the same issue.They were very easy to remove by just pulling them out and stretching the retaining spring. I assume Maestro indicators had the same rubbish design!
Some Austins are made in Yugoslavia,Slovenia…True!
I was a child at the time and I remember these were advertised in newspapers and magazines. I even think they were fleet cars for the first Bulgarian private telecom company. But I remember them by being not very well built. I can't imagine what the UK built cars were like. But "western" cars were already a thing when the maestro arrived so they were not only compared to ladas and moskvitches.
Is it available at Sussex Classics?😊😊
Glad you didn’t get the hump on the hump Matt
Definitely an interesting unusual car a Bulgarian built Apple Meastro keep them coming really enjoy your reviews or interesting cars
Would love to see a video on the Fiat Croma (first generation)
what about 3 or 4 lanes on each side? do you guys say "tri carriageway" ? or "quad carriageway" ?
The 'dual' bit is just lanes with a divider - in theory you sometimes get a dual carriageway with only one lane in either direction - for example on a mountainside one lane may be higher or lower than the other, with a barrier between them, or where a narrow country lane has mature trees down both sides they may choose to add a second single lane beside it, with trees down the middle, rather than widen the existing road and lose the trees
Very characterful indeed.
Was the Apple 2000 related to the magazine of the same name?
never heard of these Maestros. I dont even know if they ever sold it in italy :o
Nice review as always!
They were UK only, but some owners might have taken Left Hand Drive ones to Italy to leave at holiday homes
Don’t feel like you missed out. They were awful cars
@@furiousdriving yeah i heard that info in your video but i really never EVER saw one of those here.. maybe they are all hidden in tuscany were all brits come for holydays 😆
@@ianjenkins4641 every "awful" car has an history i think.. even some italians hates the 126, that has a big historic importance for Poland..
think about the Trabant: made from plastic and resin, 2 stroke 2 cilynder engine, 4 speed.. but its part of history and its rather cool in a "Nerdy" sort of way 😁
cheers
A Bulgarian Rover sounds like the most Matt car ever.
I have been trying to get hold of a pair of them iron curtains for ages. Now I have learnt that there was only one and it has fallen. Dang.
Wow what an interesting car ❤
How is it N reg?
Great review as always
I meant to say- did you know you got a mention on the Smith and sniff pod cast the other week with regards to your Crown vic?
Yes, I heard that - we spoke on Twitter about importing and driving it after they were talking about that stuff on there
@@furiousdriving really great to get the mention by two influential presenters and all your other connections, really enjoy your reviews and your attention to details and knowledge,Always feel well informed and often tell others my new found information
Keep up the fantastic work
1:13 939 Alfa Spider! 😍
Im hoping it was being delivered as it was so clean, not broken!
@@furiousdriving To me it had never even come to mind that it could have been broken.
Alfas don’t break they just want attention
Truly bizarre. I love it.
Was the red PVC tape standard?
dealer option
Maestro, wasn't it Austin? What a shame it stopped, handsome car!
until 1986 it was badged as austin maestro and then after then it was just maestro then later on rover maestro!
bought a second hand primera with both the electric door mirrors destroyed so priced up replacements from Nissan ,much too dear.Then located a pattern pair from a local spares shop but when fitted could not get them to adjust correctly.Then the realization struck, sat in the passenger seat voila perfect ! Of course they were for a left hand drive car ,who knew there was a difference .
Looking forward to the follow up episode where Furious Driving is in China to drive an (Off the top of my head, without looking it up) Etsong Lubao CA1610 😄
Have you seen the one for sale at KGF classics at the moment? 4,000 miles and like brand new
The perfect antidote to overcomplicated modern cars. Loved my Turbo diesel Maestro Clubman and the A series engine is brilliant. Would happily run one of these!
Please do a test of the Vauxhall Combo B 1.4 ☺
It's a right noisy heap.
The original Maestro was the death knell of Austin in Ireland. Even the Church of Ireland clientele had moved away by that point. And this yoke is even worse.