The key to the Rover V8 engine’s success was its versatility; it could be fitted to high-performance sports cars and rugged Land Rovers alike and outperform most of its rivals in the process.

Part of the reason for this was that throughout its half-century of production and development, the Rover V8 went through several variations and developments, from the initial 3.5-litre model to the final 4.6-litre engine fitted to the Land Rover Discovery up until 2005.

However, one of the rarest and most unusual versions of the Rover V8 engine was a 4.4-litre version developed by Leyland of Australia purely for its domestic market and designed for one of the most infamous cars British Leyland ever produced.

The Leyland P76 was designed to compete with the Holden Kingswood and the Ford Falcon as an executive saloon, but it was a victim of perhaps the worst timing possible for a British car.

It was a huge car with what was then considered to be a large version of the Rover V8 engine, but launched in the wake of an oil crisis, with demand for the new car far exceeding the supply.

This caused Leyland to rush the car to release, and alongside some issues with industrial action meant that a lot of the cars that made it to dealerships were stricken with reliability and build quality issues.

It has, rather unfortunately, gone down in history as one of the worst Australian cars ever made, even though it won a Car of the Year award in 1973, and it has taken decades and the hard work of a dedicated owners’ club to rehabilitate its reputation.

This also meant that, outside of a single engine imported to the UK for assessment, the 4.4-litre Rover V8 was never used outside of Australia despite plans to export it. Once Leyland of Australia was closed in 1975 it was only ever used for the Leyland Terrier.