China Car Times

GM are are the undoubted masters of badge engineering, what may well be a Chevrolet in one market is a Buick in another, or a Vauxhall, or an Opel for that matter. It seems that SAIC may have taken some lessons in badge engineering from the masters themselves when it came to showing off the  MG series in Chile. The ‘MG’ cars on show in Chile were actually Roewe’s with MG badges on the hood and rear, giving the rest of the world a bit of a let down.  Much of the motoring world was expecting the MG5 to be as great looking as the MG ZT, which was the sports version of the grandfather like Rover 75 (now the MG7/Roewe 750), the MG5 was supposed to be the sports version of the Roewe 550, CCT was expecting flaired grills, lower ride height, bigger wheels, low profile tyres, sports seats, and more importantly - a bit more performance

It could be that SAIC were unaware of the Chilean distributors  efforts to turn the 550 into the MG5, or it could have been that SAIC were willing to stick the MG badge onto the 550 to give the 550 some credibility in a land where Roewe is most certainly unknown, or it could be a combination of the above factors.Either way, if this is the MG5 thats going to hit Europe, MG purists in the EU are going to be in for a let down. You can check out the rest of the pictures of Roewe’s wearing MG clothing on this Spanish language website, we like the MG badge in place of the Roewe’s badge, a nice smooth fit. 

Obviously, NAC MG have hit the nail on the head with the latest incarnation of the back to front Metro with a leakyroof:

MG is back in business with the TF LE500, a revised version of what used to be Britain’s most popular sports car. But can it and the now Chinese-owned brand succeed in the modern world? Peter Hall reports

Do you recall the story of Rip Van Winkle? Lovable but lazy bloke falls into dubious company, gets drunk and sleeps for several years. Returns to find the world much changed, his friends long gone. Resumes a life of idleness and eventually dies of old age.

 We can only hope that the fate of Britain’s most popular sports car is more inspirational. Thirteen years have passed since the car you see here made its debut as the MGF, the first genuinely new model from the venerable MG marque since the demise of the MGB GT in 1980, although it was another seven years before the MGF was transformed into a sports car worthy of the brand’s sporting heritage. Sadly the revised TF lived only three years before the collapse of MG Rover, the rump of a once-great industry abused by British governments, trade unions and management, picked up and discarded by BMW and preyed upon by vulture capitalists before the bones were thrown to the Nanjing Automobile Company (NAC) and the Shanghai Automobile Industry Corporation (SAIC).

Read more from The Telegraph newspaper.

On another note, we saw a red MGTF in traffic today, and it looked fantastic for its age. Reports of a foreign gentleman wafting about Qingdao in a black MGTF are also coming into CCT. Looks like the MGTF might actually be a small, but lucrative market for MG!

MG have finally seen the light and decided to launch their automatic offering in the MG7 sedan. Previously, the MG7 was only available with manual transmission, which may have hampered sales in a marketplace where automatic transmissions are the norm.

The MG7 1.8 AT model will start from 180,000rmb, and dealers are currently accepting deposits on the vehicles.

We hope that with the introduction of the MG7 AT, sales will begin to take off, and give the revered MG brand the lift it deserves.

The Sun is a British tabloid who managed to get one of the first test drives of the new MGTF LE500, a model which will be sold only in the UK for now:

DRIVING the new MG TF was like meeting an old friend for the first time in years – who had not aged at all.

In fact you have to scrutinise the car to see the subtle exterior changes, which include tweaks to the headlights and a double-honeycomb mesh grille, plus small LE500 badges on the front wings.

The good news is that, despite its age, the MG TF still looks good. It has sharp, crisp styling and is perfectly proportioned for a sports car.

nlike many of the modern coupé/cabriolets, it looks just as good with the canvas roof up or down.

On the inside you get modern piano-black trim to the centre console and door inserts, together with full-leather seats and LE500 chrome kickplates plus a couple of small badges in the snug-fit cabin.

But the switchgear and stalks for the indicators and wipers are straight from the past, still functioning but looking dated.

The manual canvas hood is easy to operate but not as quick as a power one when it suddenly pours down – as I found out.

 You should check out the rest of the review by clicking here, but be warned, The Sun has some mildly adult content that your office internet filter may frown upon.

Mr McGeachy was the winning bidder on the tour of MG UK’s factory, Longbridge. Mr McGeachy finally got the chance to visit Longbridge, and his report (and photos!) are as follows:

This report was originally posted on the MG-Rover fan website, MG-Rover.org.

Continue reading ‘CCT Charity Auction Winner Tells Us about Longbridge, and MGTF LE500′