Marques

Iconic and now wholly Chinese-owned car maker MG is the fastest-growing British brand in the UK, according to official industry data. Figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders reveal MG sales grew by 117 per cent in 2012, boosted by the opening of eight new dealerships. The famous MG octagon enjoyed its best sales year in the UK since 2006, with more cars sold last year than in 2010 and 2011 combined. That success was mirrored in China where SAIC Motor, MG’s parent company, sold over 200,000 units across its MG and (China-only) Roewe brands – a 23 per cent increase over 2011 – representing the biggest growth within the SAIC group’s automotive divisions. Worldwide growth for the brand is equally encouraging with MG growing at a faster rate than any time in the marque’s 89-year history. […]

MINI has won the 2013 Dakar Rally, a gruelling off-road rally raid race held this year over a 5,300-mile route between Lima, Peru and Santiago, Chile. Stéphane Peterhansel and co-driver / navigator Jean-Paul Cottret drove the winning MINI Countryman-based ‘ALL4 Racing’ competition vehicle run by the X-raid Team, with the French pairing retaining their 2012 crown. Their overall time of 38 hours 32 minutes and 39 seconds secured a 42 minute 22 second lead over their next closest competitors, cementing the British marque’s victory. Senior Vice President MINI Brand Management, Dr Kay Segler: “This is a magnificent triumph and I would like to offer our congratulations on behalf of MINI not only to Stéphane Peterhansel and Jean-Paul Cottret, but also to Sven Quandt’s entire X-raid Team. “The victory of the MINI ALL4 Racing last year was without doubt a surprise […]

International icon and British car manufacturer Aston Martin turned 100th anniversary Tuesday, 16 January,  in Chelsea’s Henniker Mews the original home of the company. Founded on 15 January 1913, Aston Martin designs and manufactures around 3,500 exclusive sports cars at its Gaydon headquarters in Warwickshire every year. “I am proud to be celebrating 100 years of heritage and the best of British craftsmanship,” said Aston Martin CEO Dr Ulrich Bez. Dr Bez described Aston Martin as “the coolest luxury car brand on the planet,” an argument heightened by its connection to the James Bond film franchise, featuring in the latest blockbuster Skyfall. The event in London marks the start of a year-long celebration with events taking place across the world, including a week-long Aston Martin festival in July where enthusiasts will be able to see how the car is made at […]

The Telegraph has an excellent review of the new car with the old name – the Aston Martin Vanquish. But really, can any Aston Martin be bad? Check out the Telegraph’s full review.

Jaguar revealed the F-TYPE, an all-new convertible sports car at an event in Paris late last month. The new Jaguar F-TYPE represents a return to the company’s heartland: a two-seat, convertible sports car focused on delivering performance, agility and maximum driver engagement. The F-TYPE is a continuation of a sporting bloodline that stretches back more than 75 years and encompasses a heritage of beautiful, thrilling and desirable cars. The car was revealed in front of the dramatic setting of the 18th century Musee Rodin. Following the reveal, singer Lana Del Rey took to the stage and performed a new track ‘Burning Desire,’ that she has written as part of her collaboration with Jaguar for the launch of the F-TYPE. The track is confirmed to be the soundtrack to a short film that is being produced in association with Ridley Scott […]

MG has launched a new deal where almost any old banger attracts a trade-in value of £3,000. The company claims the deal is probably the most generous on the market at the moment, with any roadworthy car with at least 14 days’ MOT remaining qualifying for the generous valuation. The offer, which evokes memories of the ’scrappage’ incentive scheme of several years ago, is redeemable against either of the two MG6 models in the range; the Magnette and the GT fastback. Meanwhile, another offer on the two cars entices buyers with a fuel card pre-loaded to the value of £2,400 and usable at Tesco and Morrisons’ supermarket filling stations. This is a separate deal that cannot be taken in conjunction with the £3,000 used-car valuation. Clint Cordle, MG Motor UK’s marketing manager, says: “These are both exceptionally good deals on […]

Jaguar has launched an all-wheel-drive version of its XF and XJ models in North America in the hope that the extreme weather conditions characteristic of the region’s “snow states” will drive demand. The luxury carmaker, part of the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) group, chose the Meatpacking District in Manhattan, New York, to put the AWD ehicles on display to the public yesterday. “The cars will be perfectly set up for the extremes of weather that can hit this part of the world,” said Andy Goss, the President of Jaguar Land Rover in North America. “When it snows here it snows. We need to have products that are technically capable of coping with extreme weather conditions.” Read further details on The Telegraph

Amid the music and medals taking centre stage in last night’s Olympics Closing Ceremony in London, three Rolls-Royce Phantoms had their own fleeting but spectacular moment in the spotlight. The specially-made Phantom Series II Drophead Coupés traversed the Olympic Stadium in east London, each displaying newly-designed Rolls-Royce badges, the first time the badges have been revamped in the iconic British car-maker’s 108-year history. As they crossed the auditorium during the ceremony’s ‘A Symphony of British Music’ section, one the cars dropped its retractable roof to reveal British singer Jessie J, who proceeded to entertain the crowd with a live performance from the back of the car as it circled the stadium. Sunday’s closing ceremony opened the stage to multi-cultural motors, rather than just The Ultimate Marketing Machine, BMW, who were sponsors of the sports spectacular. Swathed in newspaper there was […]

Stepping into the Morgan factory in Malvern is like stepping back in time. There is a wonderful article on the Moss Motoring site about a tour through the factory that has been producing Morgans since 1919. To understand the circuitous path that a Morgan car travels, from Malvern Link to your driveway, we were lucky enough to have a docent to shepherd us through the process. Dixon is the embodiment of an English gentleman. He has been part of Morgan for many years and he led our group through the Morgan manufacturing process. Be sure to check out the list of 10 Morgan facts you didn’t know!

The Peachtree MG Registry of Atlanta completed their hosting of the North American MGB Register (NAMGBR) National Convention this past Sunday in Dillard, GA at the Dillard House Inn & Resort (www.dillardhouse.com). The event showed a record attendance with nearly 300 cars registered and over 230 cars making it to the show field on Saturday. Both numbers are records for NAMGBR National Convention shows. In addition to the Saturday car show, attendees were also treated to multiple events throughout the week. Tech sessions were held at the Dillard House Convention Center on multiple topics Wednesday through Saturday, including a “rolling tech session” by John Twist of University Motors in Michigan. Event participants could roll their car through a tech station and have any problems with their cars diagnosed. MG 2012 also featured touring events to The Tail of the Dragon […]

The MG Icon has been awarded the ‘Best Concept’ title at the Beijing Motor Show, following its world debut in China. The MG Icon beat the Lamborghini Urus, Mercedes-Benz Concept Style Coupe and Honda Concept C in scooping the award. The MG Icon is the first SUV concept car from the company and was created by the MG global design team headed by British director Anthony Williams-Kenny. The designers are said by the company to have taken inspiration from some of the brand’s most famous sports cars including the MGA and MGB GT. Williams-Kenny said: “The MG brand has a unique set of values and heritage and allows us to offer individual design values to our products. The MG Icon represents our vision of a modern MG and we feel that the small SUV canvas demonstrates MG’s capacity for progressive […]

Even though Lotus and Mansory have two compete different approach to making cars – the former likes light and agile cars with no excess, while the former prefers big, ostentatious cars with lots of garnish – they decided to join forces. Lotus officially announced Mansory as their customization studio. Their differences will complement each other, probably. Mansory has already had a go at the Lotus Evora, and contributed on the Evora GTE and Swiss Beatz Red Evora projects, but the first outcome of this alliance will be shown at the 2012 Paris Motor Show. Lotus does not reveal any details on it, they just say it’s very exciting. For Lotus Mansory will be providing bodywork, trim and special finishes for the Elise, Exige and Evora. As the Official Customisation Studio, Mansory is working closely with Lotus’ engineers and designers to […]

On April 22, this year’s Drive It Day to promote use of classic and interesting cars, Vauxhall is opening its Heritage Centre containing about 70 historic cars from all eras. There is free entry between 10am and 4pm, during which any classic car owners can partake of light refreshments and the opportunity to see one of the largest manufacturer’s heritage collections in the UK. Vauxhall’s Heritage Centre can be found on Park Street, Luton LU1 3HG, behind the main Griffin House headquarters on Osborne Road, where there is ample parking. The annual Drive It Day, which is organized by the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs, encourages owners and enthusiasts to take their own classic out on the road to celebrate motoring heritage at its finest. It was launched to celebrate the Thousand Mile Trial in 1900 in which 64 cars set […]

Having opened a new facility in Goldhawk Road, West London this week, Nicholas Mee & Co says it is the first ever high-street, officially endorsed, Aston Martin Heritage showroom. The company was established 21 years ago and held a party to celebrate the opening, with guests including Aston Martin CEO Dr Ulrich Bez and Director of Works Service and Parts Operations, Kingsley Riding-Felce. Riding-Felce said: “Aston Martin takes its heritage very seriously, and it is crucial that current and prospective owners of our Heritage models are able to receive the kind of levels of service and specialist knowledge that is expected of the Aston Martin brand. “Up until now our heritage network has not had such prominence in London and it is wonderful to see Nicholas and his team investing so heavily in the future of Aston Martin’s Heritage business.” […]

Exciting new material about the filming of ‘The Persuaders’ TV series has been uncovered in the Archives of the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust (based at the Heritage Motor Centre in Gaydon, near Warwick) during a major re-cataloguing project. ‘The Persuaders’ celebrates its 40th Anniversary having debuted on British TV in September 1971. The stars of the show were Sir Roger Moore and the late Tony Curtis, who drove an Aston Martin DBS and a Ferrari Dino 246 GT respectively. Sir Roger Moore was re-united with the actual Aston Martin DBS used at a recent event, to commemorate the anniversary and the release of the series on Blu-ray DVD. Photographs, film production records and correspondence relating to this classic Seventies TV series have come to light in the personal collection of the late Roger Stowers. Roger Stowers worked at Aston […]

Despite its unprecedented success and staggering popularity the world over, Apple’s iPhone is no longer Britain’s coolest brand, having been knocked off the top spot of the ‘Cool Brands index’ by Aston Martin. The influential survey is made up of 2,000 consumers and a panel of 35 designers, style magazine editors, and website executives, who have deemed Aston Martin vehicles as Britain’s most desirable product — pushing the iPhone into second place. The desire to own an Aston Martin vehicle is believed to have been fueled by James Bond, who can be seen driving a whole host of the company’s vehicles in the films. Despite being nearly 100 years old, the car manufacturer still maintains its appeal, according to the survey, while cutting edge technology — such as the iPhone — struggles to keep up. For the full story, read […]

Michael Caine is set to live a life long dream at Rockingham on Sunday after agreeing a deal which will see him compete in the final three rounds of this year’s British Touring Car Championship (BTCC). Having held talks with manager of the Airwaves Motorbase team Dave Bartrum last month, a package was agreed between the pair earlier this month to run a third car in the team for the 42 year old from Newmarket in the closing three rounds. It will not be the first time that car salesman Caine has taken to the track in one of the team’s Ford Focus cars having jumped into one at Snetterton last month, when competing against the world’s fastest ice cream van. “It is something that I have always wanted to do ever since I became involved in motor racing,” said […]

The revival of the IPO market, when it comes, will give James Bond fans a chance to own a slice of British luxury car maker Aston Martin and could generate enough funds for the group to revive its famous Lagonda brand. “It’s clear that at some point investors holding equity in an independent company need to devise an exit, and this exit is an IPO that we will do when the time is right,” Chief Executive Ulrich Bez told Reuters on Tuesday. “Aston Martin is working on achieving a valuation comparable to a luxury goods maker.” Ford Motor Co (F.N) sold Aston Martin for 479 million pounds ($756 million) in March 2007, to a consortium led by David Richards — former Formula 1 Benetton and BAR racing boss — as well as two Kuwaiti funds. In an interview at the […]