MG Production at Longbridge Delayed

February 17, 2008 Staff Comments Off

Concerns over the quality of the cars being built by Shanghai Automotive (SAIC) at the Birmingham-based Longbridge factory have caused further delays. The MG TF is due to be the first model launched by the Chinese firm in the UK and production began back in May 2007, but it was stopped not long after. Since then, NAC (the Chinese firm that bought the MG brand following the collapse of MG Rover) has been bought out by rival Shanghai Automotive and the delays have been further extended. NAC originally claimed that it would have the MG TF on sale in early 2007 and provide more than 1000 jobs. So far, the car’s launch is more than a year overdue and only 140 jobs have been created. President of SAIC, Chen Hong, claimed that “if we launch the product on the UK […]

Test the New Lola MG EX265

February 9, 2008 Staff Comments Off

RML AD Group’s new MG Lola EX265 completed a faultless first shakedown test at the Silverstone circuit yesterday, Friday 8th February. The morning run left Brazilian driver Thomas Erdos thrilled by the responsiveness of the new XP-21 engine, and looking forward to the prospects of defending the LMP2 title in this season’s Le Mans Series. Thomas Erdos and co-driver Mike Newton took the series title last year with RML’s MG Lola EX264, having won the LMP2 class in the Le Mans 24 Hours in 2005 and 2006. Since then the EX264, itself a derivative of the EX257 that wowed the crowds at Le Mans as an MG works entry in 2001, has undergone significant further development. Arising from fresh links with Shanghai Automotive, MG’s new owners in China, the car has been re-homologated as the MG EX265. Most significant amongst […]

MG Roadster Poised to Return

February 5, 2008 Staff Comments Off

From today’s “Financial Times Limited” come another story about the hopeful return of MG to the market. China’s Shanghai Automotive (SAIC) hopes to begin producing the MG TF roadster in Nanjing in May and at its plant in Longbridge, UK, within three months of that date, a senior executive said yesterday. But SAIC admitted the car’s long-awaited relaunch could be delayed again as it grapples with quality issues and rebuilds tooling bought in 2005 from bankrupt MG Rover and shipped to China by Nanjing Automobile (NAC), with which SAIC merged in December. “We want to begin production of cars at Longbridge as soon as possible, but the first priority for us is the quality of the product,” Chen Hong, SAIC’s president, told the Financial Times yesterday. “If we launch the product on the UK market and don’t have sufficient quality […]

Earls Court 1962 – London Motor Show

January 31, 2008 Staff 1

I was searching the web tonight and ended up on YouTube. Amazingly I found footage from the Earls Court motor show in 1962. Take a look at this and you will see some really amazing vintage metal. From the MG 1100 to the Ford Zephyr. Watching this is like a time machine. If only you could go back and grab a few of these to store away. But isn’t that always the dream? So tell me, which one of these would you drive off with? And most importantly, why?

Friends come together to restore soldier’s MG

January 27, 2008 Staff Comments Off

If your name is Sgt. Ted Golec and a copy of this article has made it into your hands in Iraq, please stop reading now. Golec’s friends in the Knox and Blount County area are planning something big for him when he returns from his second tour in the Middle East this spring and they would really hate to ruin the surprise. You see, Golec told his wife Emily to go ahead and sell his beloved 1964 MG Midget — a sweet little green British sports car that’s been sitting in his mother’s basement for the past 20 years — while he was serving in the Army overseas. The car hasn’t been driven in forever, and to get it back in running order would be a gargantuan task, both financially and logistically. But when his friend Elmer Grimes, a car […]

SAIC to Launch 1st MG Car after Marrying Nanjing Automobile

January 23, 2008 Staff Comments Off

Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. (Group) (SAIC) is scheduled to launch SW, a model in MG 3 Series, after the Chinese Spring Festival in February. The model will be the first new product the Chinese auto giant releases after marrying Nanjing Automobile (Group) Corp. It indicates that the MG brand will grow rapidly since the marriage began. SW has been in the spotlight after it debut at the Guangzhou auto show in November 2007. “We will bring out 1.4- and 1.8-liter products shortly after this Spring Festival,” a MG executive showed great confidence. MG 3 Series, priced between CNY 80,000 and CNY 120,000, will be a major force in the MG family, related people disclosed at the show. The SW is predicted to reach the ceiling of the brand’s price range and compete head-to-head with medium- and high-grade small-sized two-compartment products […]

Passed On – Brian Griffin

January 21, 2008 Staff Comments Off

It is with regret we have to inform you of the sad passing of Brian Griffin. Brian passed away in Cheltenham Hospital during the early hours of Sunday 5th January after a short illness. Over the years Brian’s contribution to the British Car Industry, especially the MG marque, has been truly enormous. Starting in1960 with the British Motor Corporation where he served a five-year apprenticeship at Longbridge he remained with the company in all it’s guises until the closure of MG Rover, and MG Sport and Racing, After this Brian remained active around the MG scene and with his wife Marion, ran their own business, X Power Products. He always had a smile on his face and time to talk. So many times Brian has made the seemingly impossible happen for MG and he will be greatly missed by all […]