145 FLK

herts2000

herts2000

Active Member
hi does anyone know any history on this car? I have seen it at a couple of shows and its grey but looking in my brooklands book about the 2000+2200 it looks red? Is it the same car?
 
Short answer is yes - 145FLK is one of two 'FLK's' owned by Paul Smith, former Chairman of the P6ROC, from Dartford, Kent.

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Amazingly he discovered it within a couple of miles of his home in a derelict condition in the very early 1980's, and restored it from there.

Registered by Rover via the depot at Seagrave Road, Fulham, it's part of the batch of 40 cars or so which were sent to the press and used in most of the original publicity photos. She's chassis number 80, built 27th August 1963. Base unit number M 000063!

Supplied to 'Rover Publicity, Solihull'.

She is, and has always been, City Grey with a red leather interior.

These are really pre-production cars, they have hand-stamped chassis numbers and small detail differences to the proper production 2000's, which didn't really start to be produced in quantity until early 1964.

Paul also has 148FLK (I think), another one of the fleet, which he restored in the Noughties. She is identical apart from having a biscuit interior IIRC.
 
Hiya Nick,
Pauls other car is 149 FLK, which he bought from my stepdad in approx 2005? It was a lovely car to ride in, very light & airy with it's grey interior. I last travelled in it in 1984!
Roly.
 
Roly said:
Hiya Nick,
Pauls other car is 149 FLK, which he bought from my stepdad in approx 2005? It was a lovely car to ride in, very light & airy with it's grey interior. I last travelled in it in 1984!
Roly.
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It is, well done Roly. I've just found some some photos of the paperwork for that car from when I visited Paul as well. 149FLK is chassis number 76, with the same build date as 145, in theory, and you're right, it has a grey interior.
 
How many FLKs are still around? I remember seeing pictures of some in old P6 news'. I think 148, 143 and maybe 138 were still around?
 
KiwiRover said:
How many FLKs are still around? I remember seeing pictures of some in old P6 news'. I think 148, 143 and maybe 138 were still around?
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If I remember correctly FLK138 (a Wedgwood Blue car) is still extant, but in need of complete restoration. Paul Smith has a photo of both his cars with it at the lock-up where it's stood for many years some time ago.

Matters are made complicated by lax book keeping at DVLA in the early 1980's which allowed a couple of FLK number plates to be issued again (e.g. 151FLK, which when I last saw it was on a Three Thousand Five, which had no connection with the original car).
 
What's the oldest known P6 still in existence then (ignoring of course the Talago V8 with it's twice replaced base unit)?

Michael
 
redrover said:
What's the oldest known P6 still in existence then (ignoring of course the Talago V8 with it's twice replaced base unit)?

Michael
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T4 is out on her own really. She's the Mummy of them all (1961 build).

In terms of 'normal' (e.g. non-gas turbine) P6's. I think it's the two grey FLK's. I'm not sure what the build date for 138 is, but I suspect it's a slightly later build.

After that it's probably the gold car (40000100A), built in October, that's the next oldest survivor.

I stand to be corrected though!
 
I had a customer a few years back (Chris I think) who had a wedgewood 2000 and an FLK. Not sure if he kept it :|
 
Nick bought it to the Pagent on the Sunday Dave, so you missed out see pics on other threads :)
 
Roly said:
I think it was possibly Chris Horton who had 138 FLK. But I am useless with names.
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That's the Chris I had in mind. He had a Wedgwood car too I did some stuff on :)
 
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