ROVER will not be exhibiting at this autumn's British International Motor Show in a bid to save money. The company, sold by BMW to Phoenix - confirmed it had pulled out of October's British show in Birmingham, with other shows, including Turin and Paris, likely to be affected.

A spokesman for Rover said: 'We want to put the money we would have spent at the show to better use at a time when we need to be resourceful. Only time will tell if it is a short or long-term strategy but I would not rule out the possibility of us attending the Geneva Show.'

He added that Rover's new range of products, including the 75 estate, were not ready to be launched yet.