Older thread I know, but figured for the record I would agree with BB here. The paint and alloy plate on that machine dates the body manufacture from the SA factory from 1980 to August 1983 at the latest. It is generally accepted that the Brisbane Rover factory used a large number of hammertone painted body parts shipped from the closed SA factory for a time and then moved to the powder coating system Rover had in that Brisbane factory from around 84 to produce the Green Kermits.
If the engine is original it means that the Brisbane factory was still using SA manufactured hammertone painted components up to 1986. I don't think we have seen anything else to support that so it would be a revelation and indicate a massive stockpile of parts in SA that was shipped to Brisbane.
Given the excellent info elsewhere on this site, it is noted that there was a significant drought for a few years up to 83 that contributed to the Thebarton Factory closure. It is conceivable that they continued to produce mower parts at the same rate for some time even though sales were down, but still it's hard to believe they had 3 years of stockpile...
The other alternative is that perhaps contrary to current opinion the Brisbane factory actually used a hammertone finish for a time before the powder coating? I don't think that's likely though.
Or of course the most likely scenario is that the engine has been replaced a few years after purchase under warranty due to a fault with the original engine.
Last edited by Bonnar_Bloke; 25/02/21 12:44 PM.
