MG US boss outlines plans, three MG saloons

[Yeo]

The CEO of the newly-created MG Cars North America/Europe Inc has given more details on the plans to reintroduce the MG brand.

Duke T Hale - an industry veteran who has worked at Lotus Cars USA, Lotus Engineering, Isuzu, Mazda, Volvo, Chrysler and Ford - has reiterated that MG's new owner, Nanjing Automotive, intends to manufacture a coupe version of the MG TF in Oklahoma and to relaunch the TF roadster (assembled from Chinese-built kits at Longbridge) - and he has also said that Nanjing is working on three different saloon models to be sold under the MG brand-name.

Hale told Edmunds.com: 'Right now, Nanjing is looking to build three sedans [saloons] in China. For lack of another description, they'll be small, medium and large. In the UK, we will build a modified version of the MG TF roadster. In Ardmore, Oklahoma, we will produce a coupe variant of the roadster. Those will be the products initially& The roadster will launch first in the UK and the rest of Europe in the second or third quarter of 2007. The coupe won't be built until 2008. The US will have nothing to sell until May-June of 2008, when the roadster will be here also.'

He added that exports to Europe of all the Chinese-built saloons (one of which will be a version of the ZT/Rover 75) are planned, but US sales of these have not yet been decided.

Hale countered the recent comments by Nanjing's president Yu Jianwei, who said at a London press conference last month that production in the US 'is only a thought... we have only signed a memorandum of understanding.'

'It's a lot more than an idea,' Hale said. 'I'm not saying Nanjing executives were misquoted, but I'm not sure they understood the question. In all fairness, Mr Yu doesn't know the West. In fact, his trip to Oklahoma was his first visit to the US in his lifetime& There is a lot to do and there are some uncertainties, such as the precise location in Ardmore and other specifics. But it's not an issue about whether or not we're going to do it.'

MG sports cars were last sold in North America in 1980, but Hale reckons that people - or those in their late 30s or older, at least - still remember the brand and he thinks that it is better-known than Mini had been. Learning from the success of BMW's launch of the new Mini, Hale plans to market the reborn MGs to a young buyer demographic using the internet and appropriate sponsorship deals rather than traditional advertising methods.

Hale went on to say that assembling the TF at Longbridge was an important part of the plan: 'You expect it to be British. It's what MG is known for. Second, we are also committed to the UK. We're truly committed to jobs in manufacturing, sales, marketing and distribution in the UK and Europe. We need a stronghold in Europe of 100,000-130,000 vehicles a year.'

However, the US base is also important; Hale is targeting the setting-up of up to 350 dealerships and said: 'You can think of creative ways that allow the business to be more efficient and profitable to the point that one might be able to build vehicles in Oklahoma nearly as cheaply as China.'

Edmunds.com points out that Hale has partnered with a company that has a joint venture with the Chickasaw Nation to build business parks and trade centres on Indian territory - and thus access to tax exemptions and incentives under state and federal initiatives to develop Native American businesses.

Meanwhile, the Birmingham Evening Post has reported that the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation - which has bought the rights to produce the former Rover 25, 45 and 75 - has now secured the purchase of the Rover brand-name from BMW. It claims that SAIC has paid $21.7m for the trademark and that the company aims to have Rover-branded models in production (in China) by late 2007 or early 2008.

http://www.channel4.com/4car/news/news-story.jsp?news_id=15058
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