No, it's not a wind up apparently
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6312917.stm
Cheers
DP
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The company collapsed because no one wanted their cars. So what's changed, almost two years later?
Why do the new owners think we will want them now?
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There's still unsold MG's kicking around here...
Also I don'u understand how it will start when it was reported that the machines were taken to China.
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Also I don'u understand how it will start when it was reported that the machines were taken to China.
I belive it was the Rover 75 (and maybe others?) that were destined to be assembled in China. Looks like assembly tooling for the MGF is still at Longbridge, although I wonder how many parts will be shipped in from China?
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IIRC, the MG-F / TF was always profitable.
Alchemy, the venture capitalists who were up against the Phoenix consortium in trying to buy it from BMW back in 2000 were going to essentially ditch the bread and butter stuff, rename the company as the "MG Car Company", and concentrate solely on building MG sportscars. I read several articles in the financial press suggesting they had a very good business case, but it was ultimately scuppered by uproar over the number of job losses.
The definition of irony, really, but I suppose hindsight is a wonderful thing!
Cheers
DP
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Building sports cars can be profitable.
Story goes that Mazda business case for the MX5 was that it cost 1/3rd less to build than equivalent dimension saloon and can sell for 1/3 more - Hence the Mazda MX-5 - one of the few Mazdas taht reached a worldwide audience and makes YYYYs by the million.
For a Longbridge Sports car to make money they would need to build in something completely new to Longbridge - QUALITY.
I bought a new MGB GT (Abingdon) in 1972 and it was problematic from day one - it broke down after 5 miles and was towed away.
What do I own now? a Honda & a Mazda - I always bought UK cars since my first car in1966 but for the last 12 years it has been Japanese (both UK Japanese and Japanese Japanese)
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Building sports cars can be profitable.Story goes that Mazda business case for the MX5 was that it cost 1/3rd less to build than equivalent dimension saloon and can sell for 1/3 more - Hence the Mazda MX-5 - one of the few Mazdas taht reached a worldwide audience and makes YYYYs by the million. For a Longbridge Sports car to make money they would need to build in something completely new to Longbridge - QUALITY. I bought a new MGB GT (Abingdon) in 1972 and it was problematic from day one - it broke down after 5 miles and was towed away. What do I own now? a Honda & a Mazda - I always bought UK cars since my first car in1966 but for the last 12 years it has been Japanese (both UK Japanese and Japanese Japanese)
The MGF/TF was one of the top selling small sportscars of its time and the later cars were not especially unreliable if built properly, but once the writing was on the wall, quality dipped noticeably.
Its a good design and with a new company behind it, it may well have a chance as a stand alone model. Lets not judge it until its launched.
Comparing the MG TF to a 1972 MGB is quite simply ridiculous. My dad has Cortinas in the 70's which he said spent more time off the road than on - on such fool hardy logic as displayed, should we assume that the Focus has the same issues as the Cortina?
MG DID have build quality issues for sure, but it was as much to do with management as anything else - the Chinese seem to be very driven in business and never strike me as the type to throw money away, so Im sure they know what they are doing and will improve the car where required.
Atleast give it a chance.
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it may well have a chance as a stand alone model. Lets not judge it until its launched.
Nah, that's boring. Let's judge now, more fun!
Comparing the MG TF to a 1972 MGB is quite simply ridiculous. My dad has Cortinas in the 70's which he said spent more time off the road than on - on such fool hardy logic as displayed, should we assume that the Focus has the same issues as the Cortina?
Must have been dodgy Cortinas then, as they were always very simple and reliable, so you shouldn't compare them to the Focus.
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Alchemy, the venture capitalists who were up against the Phoenix consortium in trying to buy it from BMW back in 2000 were going to essentially ditch the bread and butter stuff, rename the company as the "MG Car Company", and concentrate solely on building MG sportscars. I read several articles in the financial press suggesting they had a very good business case, but it was ultimately scuppered by uproar over the number of job losses.
Or could it be because they would be competing with BMW?
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"In the spring..."
A very precise date that... nearly Spring now; [OK; it's officially 21st March, but that's without the "Global Warming" all these new MG's will cause.]
I suppose you just unlock the factory; switch the lights on; start the line and complete MG's fall off the other end.... No lead-in time [or vast taxpayer subsidy?] needed at all.
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> MG's fall off the other end....
How apt - I doubt many will be well built enough to drive off.
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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It may well be as simple as just turning it all on again. According to the latest Topgear (who have visited the plant) the paint shop has been ticking over for the last 18 months so that the paint doesnt "set" in the pipes.
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"I remember reading about Admiral Nelson and his message about England expects every man to do his duty," said James Lin, Nanjing's operations director.
"We have restored production at Longbridge and now we want people to help us. If they love the MG brand or history, it is their country's car industry and history as well.
"Now we want the British people to support us."
It would take more than anything James Lin could say to get me to buy a Rover.
--
L\'escargot.
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Let's not get too excited about all this. I know an ex-Rover worker whose mates are trying to persuade him to give up the perfectly reasonable job he struggled to find after Rover shut down, and join the "new" MG TF production line. Sensibly, he said no.
All they're doing at Longbridge is assembling RHD cars from kits. The real production line was ripped out long ago. Indeed, most of the old parts of the factory have already been demolished, with much of the bits left standing advertised as to let.
All the LHD models will be made elsewhere. How many TFs do you think they can sell to the UK market now?
Compare the elderly MG TF to the current crop of Coupe Convertibles and there's no way that production will last more than 1-2 years before Nanjing will give up, shrug their shoulders and walk away. Leaving the poor workers in the lurch, again.
The only thing I don't understand is why Nanjing are even bothering. Maybe they just don't understand the western car market very well? Or perhaps the resurrected TF will be so cheap (< £10k) they might just find a niche market for it. Always Ifs, Buts and Maybes where Longbridge is concerned...
How many people would actually risk their cash on this car? Where will the dealerships be? Can it still pass the latest safety and environmental legislation? Will the parts suppliers want to get involved in this risky business and get their fingers burnt, again?
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I would sooner have my toe nails pulled out with red hot pliers than buy one of these things.
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They're aiming to sel them between £15K and £22K according to an article that I read :-)
Blue
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They're aiming to sel them between £15K and £22K according to an article that I read :-)
MX-5 money.
Oh dear.
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Oh dear. Meet the new boss, same as the old boss...
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So if they're just going to be nailing together RHD full CKD kits shipped in from China; who's making the K-series engines - the Chinese??
[Could they be any less reliable than a Rover-made one? Is that even physically possible?]
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I was rather hoping that it might have a Chinese engine in it.
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Same employees?
that rules it out for me then, I still remember the two 6 inch *stripes* of chassis wax sprayed full length under my new Maestro, which no doubt should have gone elsewhere. Also how the passenger door window just fell into the bottom of the door at the other end of the country, in the rain, first time lowered to ask directions.
Pity they can`t bring in workers from China as well.
Sorry for sounding bitter, but there were other *production line issues* and it took me five years to pay for it.
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Are you really comparing a Maestro to a TF?
Why is it that everyone cannot see past the 70's when it comes to Longbridge? Even with MG that wasnt even built there then!!
Most 70's and 80's cars had problems, they all rusted and were not terriably reliable, its just unfortunate that at the time BL had a massive market share and therefore more people owned one. Can someone name a car of that era that didnt rust, needed maintenance and didnt like the winter? Probably not, but because most people didnt run them means they are forgiven today.
For goodness sake, NAC MG have NOTHING to do with BL and a Maestro!!
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"Why is it that everyone cannot see past the 70's when it comes to Longbridge? Even with MG that wasnt even built there then!!"
Wrong, My Maestro was made in 1991 by Rover workers, the buck stops there.
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This is an early eighties car, made by an entirely different company to what we have now however you are still comparing like for like.
Would it be fair to say that Talbot built at Ryton is a reflection of a late Pug 206?
Different cars, different management, different manufacturing processes, different quality control, different design. Oh and its a Maestro with the same problems from 20 years previous
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Same workers, that was my point. I am not refering to car comparisons. The *production line faults* were not the fault of the car, but the Rover workers........
I say again :) Built by Rover in 1991 :) They (Rover)were responsible for the build quality *at that time* in 1991.
And they are seemingly proposing to employ former Rover workers..........
Oh dear....
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Same workers, that was my point. I am not refering to car comparisons. The *production line faults* were not the fault of the car, but the Rover workers........
No way were the Rover workers responsible for poor quality. How can you say that? Your window fell into the door because of poor components and dodgy quality control, hardly the fault of the workers.
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>> Same workers, that was my point. I am not refering >> to car comparisons. The *production line faults* were not the fault >> of the car, but the Rover workers........ No way were the Rover workers responsible for poor quality. How can you say that? Your window fell into the door because of poor components and dodgy quality control, hardly the fault of the workers.
Hmmmmm. Nothing changes then, does it? I believe windows on many recent models of VW Golfs and related cars kept on disappearing from their original position i.e. ended up at the bottom of the doors.
Plus ca change. Plus ca méme chose? (or something like that).
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>>No way were the Rover workers responsible for poor quality.
Well who was then ? They built the damn things ?
>>because of ..........dodgy quality control
Oh I seeeee.
I think your sentiments are entirely representative of many of Leyland/Rover/Whoever's problems over the years.
"how dare a customer think that just because his car falls apart its our fault!!!"
Yes I seem to recall so many comments in recent years of how the various owners couldn;t have done it without the workers. I guess that, at least, is true.
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ISTR Maestro was made at Cowley rather than Longbridge.
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Fair enough Alastair
I have no more to say on the matter, other than the term `Rover` brought back bad memories........... :)
Regards
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Indded, the bodies for these, Montegos, and, oddly enough, Rolls-Royce, were built in the old Pressed Steel Fisher plant on the Eastern side of Oxford's Eastern bypass at Cowley, Maestro and Montego bodies were painted in the paint-shops which were renewed prior to making the Triumph Acclaim, and the painted bodies were shipped across the dual carriageway by a bridge, into the assembly halls on the Western side of the by-pass.
The Rolls-Royce bodies were not painted on-site, but they did recieve quite a lot of lead-loading to deal with surface imperfections before being shipped out by truck.
The other car being built by Austin Rover at Cowley at the time was the 800 - this was before Just in Time techniques were adopted, and there were row upon row of the V6 engines and transmissions stacked in various warehouses around the Cowley complex, ready for assembly.
My (self-made) toolbox is a fetching shade of metallic grey/silver, which is shared with Maestro/Montego, painted by clipping it to the production line in the paint-shop!
Number_Cruncher
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Seeing that they cannot use the MG name I wonder what they will call them probably a 37 with fried rice.
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The other car being built by Austin Rover at Cowley at the time was the 800 - this was before Just in Time techniques were adopted, and there were row upon row of the V6 engines and transmissions stacked in various warehouses around the Cowley complex, ready for assembly.
I remember when Rover first tried JIT (Just In Time) manufacturing, they seemed to do a lot of JTL (Just Too Late) unfortunately
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And according to our local rag, only 6,000 a year too. That's assuming they can find 6,000 buyers in this country, nobody here seems to be putting their deposit on just yet. ;)
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Don't get too excited. Only RHD (whatever name) MGTFs are going to be finally assembled at Longbridge from components produced in China. HJ
I don't think anyone was excited HJ!
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Hmm, at that time, late 80's, the only Austin Rover car which wasn't available to employees at huge discounts was the Rover 213.
Number_Cruncher
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> ...the only Austin Rover car which wasn't available to employees at huge discounts was the Rover 213.
You mean they had to come up with the full dozen sets of professional golf clubs? One of the stranger advertising claims of recent(ish) years. I wonder how much business the likes of Ping and Titleist lost to people who decided to blow the budget for their next 168 clubs on a little Rover saloon.
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I wonder if assembling them is to overcome some sort of import duty or other restriction?
Maybe they will be 95% made in the proper Chinese factory.
Like when they slice foreign ham here and call it British.
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The problem is I can't see it competing with an MX5, but the StreetKa seems to sell well despite being based on a 1989 Fiesta, so I don't think the fact this MG is based in part on the Metro's chasis is a major problem.
It does have to be cheaper than an MX5 though. Its quite ironic that we are now assembling chineese kit cars, didn't it always used to be the other way round?
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