MG ZR 160

About This Competition

The MG ZR 160… the underdog.

We love an underdog here at EP-COMPS. Let’s face it, we are an underdog in the comps world, so it seems only fitting that we keep finding cars that are just as overlooked as we are! And when it comes to MG Rover products, we absolutely love them. In fact, we know you guys do too, because almost every week someone is asking us to bring another MG Rover product to EP-COMPS.

We always try to deliver, but finding them is getting harder and harder — especially when you’re looking for something as cool as this.

Because this isn’t just any MG ZR… this is the ZR 160.

160bhp. Just over 1,000kg. Front-wheel drive. And sitting in the front is that glorious high-revving 1.8 K-Series VVC, an engine that absolutely begs you to ignore sensible driving and keep your foot in until you’re right at the top of the rev counter.

And when that K-Series starts screaming, you can understand why the same basic engine found its way into cars such as the Lotus Elise. Yes, really. A little MG hatchback that, on paper, shares some of its mechanical DNA with a Lotus. We think that’s rather brilliant.

The ZR 160 is one of those cars that doesn’t need huge power figures or an enormous turbocharger to be entertaining. It’s light, it’s revvy, it’s agile and it feels properly alive on a good back road. It’s the sort of car where you find yourself taking the long way home for absolutely no reason other than you’ve suddenly remembered how enjoyable driving can be.

And that’s exactly why good ZR 160s are becoming increasingly difficult to find. These cars have gone from “old MG Rover nobody wanted” to genuine modern classics, with good examples becoming increasingly sought after. The underdog is finally getting its moment.

And this one certainly looks the part.

Finished in the absolutely fantastic Ignition Blue, paired with the silver wheels, red calipers and black grilles, this ZR really pops. We think the blue suits the Mk2 cars incredibly well and gives it that perfect combination of understated and “yes, this is definitely the slightly mental one.”

It also benefits from a better-branded head gasket, a recent clutch change, new tyres and an extensive history file to back it all up. So while it might be an MG Rover from an era when people were still making jokes about MG Rover reliability, this one has had plenty of attention where it matters.

So, if you’ve ever fancied owning one of these increasingly rare little hot hatches, now might be the time.

A lightweight, high-revving, 160bhp MG with Lotus-associated K-Series goodness, fantastic looks and proper back-road entertainment — and it’s a low-odds EP-COMPS car.

The underdog deserves a chance.

Fancy giving it a home? You know what to do!