Designed to be a step beyond pure functional excellence, exhibiting superb engineering and build quality, the Rover 75 is the result of a 700 million pound (AUS$2.85 billion) investment that includes a brand new factory in Oxford, England.

"Rover 75 is an all-new luxurious British saloon car engineered with style and substance, and is a car of character and individuality," said John Shingleton, managing director of Rover Group Australia.

"It represents a significant moment in the history of the Rover brand—it’s the first Rover to be designed wholly ‘in-house’ for over two decades, and is the first to emerge as a result of BMW’s ownership of the Rover Group."

"Rover Group is currently planning the retum of Rover cars to the Australian market, but we do not anticipate seeing the luxurious Rover 75 in Australia before mid-2000," he said.

Rover has combined the creative spirit of its own new design and development teams at Gaydon, England, with the unmatched technological resource of the BMW Group to produce a decidedly British luxury saloon.

The design has been created to achieve timeless appeal while the extremely rigid body ensures that it is a joy to drive.

"This is the car we had to make. For us, life will never be the same again. We hope that the Rover 75 will change how people see us—and re-establish Rover’s reputation for pure motoring pleasure," said Nick Stephenson, Rover Group's director of design and engineering.

The Rover 75 combines modern aesthetics and technology within classic proportions. Its elegance recalls Rovers of the past.

The motto ‘One of Britain’s Fine Cars’ was used by the Rover Company from the 1930’s to the 1950’s, and it is equally appropriate for Rover 75 today.

Careful design detailing and elegant styling, both inside and out, are hallmarks of this great British brand.

Examples on the Rover 75 include the use of chrome on the door mirrors, bumpers, bodyside inserts and the sill finisher, along with the rear number plate surround.

Inside, materials such as chrome, soft leather and real wood are used as an integral part of the design.

"In Rover 75, I believe Rover’s instinctive understanding of the spirit of motoring pleasure has reached its ultimate expression," said John Shingleton.