Blog : MG6 is not doing the business… 7 sold in November

Keith Adams reckons the latest installment of the eternal soap opera is turning into a nightmare.

MG6 saloon is a smart looking proposition for the money.
MG6 saloon is a smart looking proposition for the money.

It’s that time of the month again. The moment that MG Motor UK executives must absolutely dread: yes, it’s SMMT sales day. And if you thought October’s total of 15 sales for MG looked bad, it’s been an absolute disaster in November with 7 (yes, seven) registrations for the company (of which three are said to be TF pre-regs by car supermarket, Motorpoint). The MG6 looks like it is crashing and burning on the market, and we at AROnline – or at least I – find this news saddening, depressing and absolutely infuriating.

Compare that with the 4411 MINIs and 3162 Land Rovers sold in the same period, and it’s even more disturbing to see. I’ve already said that I think the MG6 is a perfectly good car, and that its main let-down – a lack of diesel model – is proving damaging to sales, but I can’t even begin to imagine that this goes some way to explaining this appalling performance on the market place. Truth is, no one knows these cars exist, and someone high-up in sales and marketing needs a rocket – or at least access to some budget.

While I had the car for week or so, plenty of random people seemed impressed enough to come and ask questions about the thing. A bunch of moneyed enthusiasts I ran into while I had the car also seemed to like the thing… again, many making visual comparisons with far more prestigious cars. People out there clearly do still care about MG – but judging from their reactions, they simply need to be told the cars are actually out there on sale. Because right now, MG is humiliating itself in the UK itself far more than it ever did during the dark days of the 1970s, ’90s or MG Rover-era. Seriously.

Come on, SAIC! Decide what you want to do with MG in the UK and Europe. The car might be good, but it is already beginning to look like the British public’s voted with its feet – and the longer these appalling and embarrassing sales continue, the more remote the chances are that future model ranges are going to taken seriously at all in Europe. It’s already looking like a dark, dark day is about to happen upon Longbridge’s production facility…

Keith Adams
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288 Comments

  1. If you read the magazines avidly like I do, you know about this car, but if you don’t then it does’nt exist. Remember the TV ad…no, remember the ad’s in the magazines…no, remember the product placement on Emmerdale…no. No, because there either hasn’t been any or very little.

    Chinese car companies must realise that to sell in the UK and Europe Diesels are a must. Don’t launch anything without a diesel ( a TF replacement might be the exception there)

    • There’s a Chinese car company that begs to differ and has almost completed the elimination of Diesel engines from it ‘s European line up, they’re doing quite well actually, their name?…….Volvo.

  2. Just as you thought it couldn’t possible get worse…..it does.

    SAIC may have hoped that MG6 may break all kinds of sales records.
    Sadly, “The worst selling car in MG history” wasn’t one of them.

    It’s their own fault though.
    Incompetance on a Grand scale..

  3. Excuse my spoiling of the results, but didn’t Motorpoint registered a few unsold TFs in November? If I’m right, that means there were 4 MG6 registrations. Thats 1 per week if my maths are right.

  4. As I have said earlier with little or no adverting they wont get MG on the map. If nothing is done soon the brand will be dead. At least MGR had good TV ads, come on SAIC/Nangking get your act together. I did have a look on Autotrader seem to be again loads of secondhand model up for sale. Regards Mark

  5. It makes you wonder whether they would have been better waiting until the full range of models and engines were available before launching MG, as anyone considering buying one at the moment is likely to hold back and wait to see what happens to the company (that’s assuming that anyone actually knows that they exists).

    What on earth are the marketing team playing at?

  6. I really didn’t think it could get worse but it has. I repeat my call from last month for someone from MG to make a statement on this matter and explain what’s going on and why they feel that they have what it takes to make things happen.

    Proton – 30
    Perodua – 31
    Ssangyong – 72

    These are hardly dynamic heavy advertising manufacturers

    That’s of course assuming they still have a job after this epic failure.

    I’m genuinely lost for words.

  7. Very concerning news, how sad the MG brand has become so unloved and forgotten. I heard the news today about the fall in UK car sales from the SMMT figures and had a hunch it would be bad for those of us who still have an affection for the MG marque.

    If things dont pick up soon, I fear for the future of MG UK’s operation.

  8. Whilst I do think SAIC/MG are only taking their first tentative steps into the UK market, they are making the most almighty cock-up of it. Despite the moans of negativity from many on here and elsewhere, the MG6 is a good car but it is being let down by truly hopeless marketing. If SAIC thought that one ad and one model would do the trick then they were very much mistaken. The good news, however, is that the great British public are blissfully unaware of MG’s return, so a properly advertised and promoted relaunch (with a diesel in the line-up and a price drop too) could yet make the MG6 the decent seller it deserves to be.

  9. Thing is, if they do go for a relaunch with the diesel, but want to charge a premium over the petrol price for it (is that still par for the course?), it will be way too expensive. Same story as now, only worse.

    To relaunch successfully i think they need to get realistic about their position in the market, price accordingly, warranty it for 7years and advertise the hell out of it. But it’s all been said before, hasn’t it?

    That’s assuming there are any dealers left by then, anyway.

    Not good, and very sad.

  10. Disturbing, pathetic and sadly, none to suprising either. And a fekking damn shame too, as the MG6 is not at all rubbish.

    Get on the phone to Perkins, MG, there must surely be a pallet of Prima’s going spare 🙂

  11. “I repeat my call from last month for someone from MG to make a statement on this matter and explain what’s going on and why they feel that they have what it takes to make things happen.”

    The fact is though they have no reason to make such a statement. I doubt you’ll find many companies that will publish all the details of their business plan on a website. Add that to the fact the Chinese aren’t know for their openness.

  12. If you’re launching a new company (and effectively this is largely a new company) you need to promote heavily to let everyone know you’re around, and that you’re here to stay.

    If I read MG had sold 7 cars in November, would I buy an MG in December? No, because I’d worry that they’d pull out of the UK, and leave me with a rapidly depreciating car that will be a nightmare to sell on.

  13. My offer to MG from last month still stands.

    It’s all good and well spending out on a big sign on a walkway at Birmingham International, but that’s hardly the best place to advertise is it? While I’m sure those in and around Brum may know MG is back, what about the wider population? If they had a gantry at Heathrow then fine, but it needs to be backed up by countrywide advertising, billboards, ads in local free papers as well as local rags, splash out on radio advertising, magazines, billboards on back of trucks and vans anything to actually advertise!

    Once you do that, don’t hack the dealer network off, what with the above one in Northern Ireland going, the local one here getting shot of the marque, how long will it be before others throw the franchises back if they can’t even get one sale a month let alone a week or even a day?

    The more this drags on the more I think MG just can’t be arsed in the UK.

  14. just seen a MG6 saloon while working in kendal toaday and it looked good,anyway has anyone asked SAIC for an explanation?

  15. Lets be honest, the management of SAIC are not stupid. Their presence in the UK market at the moment is nothing more than a gesture and I doubt poor sales of the MG6 in the UK is anywhere near the top of their priority list to discuss at their management meetings. SAIC are developing fast in their home market and strategic “new” markets. The MG brand is a great asset in that context. SAIC are not ready to “conquer” Europe but I have no doubt that time will come, whether in three years,ten years or whatever. Then you will see lots of MGs – but it wont be the MG6 and I doubt it will be assembled at Longbridge.

  16. So the question is what do mg do now?
    I think they are doing nothing but treading water until a proper range of cars including diesel and mg3 or 5 are launched next year.

    However they still need to sort their marketing out sharpish as has Benin suggested here including longer warranties and stronger finance packages.

    Tbh mg’s whole strategy has been wrong, however it’s to late to turn the clock back just a real need for mg to pull their finger out.

    I suspect that until mg are ready with new offerings there won’t be much of a response.

    Sadly mg enthusiasts are partly to blame, anyone considering a mg6 will have most likely done a bit of research, the knee jerk negative reaction by some enthusiasts who haven’t seen let alone driven the car is bound to have put some people off..

    The core problem however lies with mg, trying to launch a car so unsuited to the marketplace in the current climate without must have one marketing and finance.

  17. Just think, in a few years these will be cheaper than City Rover’s are now. That will be a lot of car for the money!

  18. Sadly not surprising! I work for an XPart / MG Rover spare parts business and when we are talking to die hard MG Rover owners, they are almost entirely unaware that MG have a new car out there! I know of a good few of the MGZT / Rover 75 brigade who have owned various models for many years would be trading up right now in their retirement years if they only knew the MG6 existed!
    We have looked at a dealership in Cumbria where the traditional MG Rover park is traditionally bouyant but because of a lack of support with regards to marketing and vehicle availability it currently isn’t a viable business opportunity.
    It’s a crying shame as the MG6 really is a decent drive and a great looking car even though it represents a meger offering from a dealer point of view.
    Maybe get a few company car deals under their belt?
    Personally I havent seen a single one on the road…… I have only seen them at MG Live earlier in the year.

  19. Some people don’t know MG are back let alone they are making cars.
    If JLR where to bring rover back sales would be good (as long as the car was) because they always have good adverts and these adverts are well placed on TV to hit target markets.
    MG need to make a TV advert if they don’t want to die again.

  20. Very sad… I guess the end can’t be far away.

    I haven’t seen a single new MG be it NAC/SAIC on the road ever! I’ve been to the Bradford dealer and they said sales were dreadful and they gave me the impression they would call it a day soon. I can’t blame them.

    SAIC MG have failed big style in the UK but they have only themselves to blame… no advertising and unwanted K-series engine (yea yea its now called TCI-Tech).

  21. I’ve looked at the MG6 and its quite a good car but would I buy one? No simply because I doubt I could sell it on later at trade in time. The depreciation will be horrific

  22. weve had more coverage on the tv relating to the demolition of the famous designed barnes wallis flightshed. if only the bulldozers could go up the hill a bit further and knock the rest of longbridge down and lets put MG to rest where it should have gone a few years ago .

  23. Driving round the M25 last week an MG6 overtook me that was absolutely plastered in decals. Unfortunately couldn’t read them due to concentrating on driving.

    The car looks good in the flesh so it’s not a styling problem. But no-one here has commented on the size of the car and its inappropriateness for most private buyers. How many private buyers buy a comparably sized Mondeo, Insignia, Laguna or 508 ? Most of these get sold to leasing companies or laundered on to the secondhand market via the various hire companies. The MG6 will be of no interest to fleets so why not send them to hire companies then flog them out at £9k to undercut the new Geeleys ?

    What MG really needs is the 3. Look back at history and BL & Rover’s successes with small and small-ish cars.

  24. I live in a traditional MG Rover area; there’s still loads of 200s, 400s, 25s, 45s and 75s around here. The local dealer went in ’05 and is now a Harley Davidson dealership and I don’t know who the nearest ‘new MG’ dealer is; nothing in the paper, nothing to catch my attention, no MG6s on the road. I would have noticed one – I’m a BL/AR/whatever fan with a Mini 1000, Rover 200 and ancient Land Rover on the drive.

    I was in Birmingham last week spending a LOT of time on the roads and despite the mobile advertising hoardings dotted around, I didn’t see a single MG6. At Longbridge there’s a (fairly) obvious presence and there’s loads of cars lined up ready to leave the works… where to though? Are they building for stock or to order?

  25. I think they stack them up outside, then to make it look good, wheel them back onto the line to run through again. That or they’re waiting till they have enough to fill an airfield again…

  26. There are several people on here that obviously know about the car as you are all discussing it.

    Why are you not buying one ?

    Discuss.

  27. I think its all been said before this huge Company(SAIC)has been dithering from day1 as reguarding the marketing(or lack of it)/launching of this very average car almost 6 years after ther acquisition 7cars sold in november..Eh hem!! Lets just forget about it!

  28. Roverman, why would you buy a car from a company that obviously couldn’t give a fig for the UK market or customers… Why would they buy a car that could be obsolete and worthless after 3 years??? Also, I can’t afford a brand new car atm, can you?

  29. Its all about to crash putting these cars together at longbridge has just an atempt to soften the blow of the lift and shift back to china. The new car buyer’s in todays market are cautious over everything and rigthly so nobody wants a lemon and everyone wants good mpg, performance,reliabilty, cheap road tax, need I go on the MG6 a good car I’m sure however it fails to meet any of these and also has shaky foundations from a damaged reputation especially the way mgr went down.

  30. Wrong car, wrong country. SAIC should stick to selling this car in Chile, and Israel, etc. It is simply good enough for Europe, and does not meet western requirements or tastes.

    Hopefully, SAIC will quickly realise that the UK does not want substandard CKD cars, and enter into negotiation with GM / Vauxhall regarding the use of the MG name on some European, and British, cars.

    It is all very sad, but unfortunately the MG we knew has gone the way of Riley and Alvis.

    Goodbyeeee

  31. I meant ‘not’ good enough.

    Can’t stand the 6, never have done. It is an inferior car in every sense.

  32. Putting to one side the MG fiasco, the SMMT figures are interesting in other respects. What the hell has happened at Renault – sales down nearly 30% again, as last year and the year before. They really do seem to have perfected the trick of replacing all those popular Clios and Scenics from a few years back with a complete range of duds, a range that is somehow both bland and offensively ugly at the same time.
    In these financially pressed times it is also interesting to see that the economic crisis has yet to hit the unimaginative badge snob demographic with the result that the, default choice, German “premium brands” continue their march across the highways and mock Georgian driveways of Britain unimpeded. More expensive, less well equiped and dynamically for the most part no better than the average Mondeo or Insignia, they nevertheless show your neighbours you are “charismatic and interesting” – probably. Sorry…..just went off on one…..

  33. Vauxhall will NEVER use the MG badge on any of their cars, again, they have the VXR badge for the performance models, they have no need for MG, just because SAIC and GM I really can’t see GM rushing for the MG badge to plonk on a few cars.

    Just how exactly is the 6 inferior? And to what? Hardly think most of the GM range is that good

  34. 40 – Thanks, yes I would be quite confident that Vauxhall will at some point adopt the MG badge for their warm and hot cars, an MG Monaro would be quite something! After all Ford dropped the XR designation, and Vauxhall the GTE designation prior to VXR. A designation is quite different to brand, and MG and Vauxhall is a match made in heaven. If and when they do link up, I will definitely buy one, and I am quite confident that many others will too.

    Regarding my use of the word inferior, perhaps I should qualify it:
    Inferior marketing – no one knows, no one cares
    Inferior design – if proton can’t sell similar looking cars, why did SAIC think they could
    Inferior engine – a K series in 2011! Why not go the whole hog and bring back the A series
    Inferior sales – 7 in November, shurely shome mistake! Oh yes, it’s actually 4!
    Inferior image – it’s not Rover is it? And it certainly isn’t as classy as a Vauxhall, Chevy or Proton

    Is that enough!

  35. Footnote:

    New definition of optimism – Royles Prestige are asking £20,000 for an 11 reg Magnette TSE with 3,000 miles on the clock.

  36. Why are MG’s masters in China buggering about so much? They are either playing some mysterious unknown and bizarre strategy or are totally incompetent with no idea of what the European mareket requires.

    Whilst not a bad car it appears completely forgettable and even as a very loyal MG fan I see no reason to buy one. Pity.

  37. 43, 44 – Agree, it is not a ‘bad’ car. I don’t think you can actually buy a bad new car these days, unlike the 80s when we had a massive selection of truly awful cars. It is however inferior to everything else on the market, and that is unforgivable.

  38. The K Series is not a major factor in this failure – everyone has said the marketing & awareness are non-existant and that is what is killing MG.

    If they were advertising the car and trying to achieve a higher profile and it was STILL not selling, then the K Series might be getting put forward as a reason. The problem is, we are getting NO feedback from anyone who might consider buying a new MG because they don’t know they exist….

  39. In the meantime, in Central London RR Evoques are everywhere!

    The half hearted launch suggests SAIC are going through the motions.

    Imagine they had launched the car with a fanfare, with production of say 100,000 in the 1st year, and proper production at Longbridge too (not the token current assembly line), there would have been masses of positive publicity, Cameron would have been there proclaiming a British success story, Labour politicians would have flocked to buy one (guilt over the closure of MGR) etc

    But they didn’t.

  40. 46 – The K series isn’t the reason for poor sales, it is just one of the factors that makes the MG Kenari an inferior car.

  41. I like the look of the MG6 but I am not in the market for that type of car, if I were I would expect a decent low deposit type finance deal, the type that so many other manufacturers have that are so attractive, it almost makes no sense to buy a used car!

    Are MG UK really that incompetent or is their main aim to sell in China only and to have this so called base in the UK perhaps helps sell the cars back home!

  42. Assume ‘MG6’ stands for the the projected sales per month? In which case they have exceeded their KPI!

  43. They stuck an MG badge on a Montego, but that didn’t make it an MG. The 6 isn’t an MG, just a car with an MG badge. The MG ZR, ZS and ZT were MG’s because they were engineered so that they could be distanced from the Rover versions.

    There’s nothing in the 6 that distances it from anything, and even the price seesm to be a handicap.

  44. @Ian Langfield

    You clearly seem to have lost your way from Pistonheads with your attack of schadenfreude at MG’s troubles.

    MG badges on Vauxhalls? Why? Seriously, why?

  45. How many people here would actually buy one though? It’s all well and good talking about picking one up in 4 years time when they’re worth nothing, but seriously, would you really go to all that trouble on such a nondescript car?

  46. This week’s news is that Geely are gearing up to sell an “Octavia-sized” 1.5 – 1.8 litre car in the UK for £10k, with a five year warranty. This seems a more realistic answer to the question “How much are UK buyers prepared to pay for an unfamiliar Chinese made car?”

    (Next question is “What will Motorpoint be asking for a delivery miles MG6 next spring?”)

    As for the SAIC / GM connection, I find myself wondering what became of the Pontiac Solstice / Saturn Sky tooling? A ready-made MGB for our times.

  47. 57 – Agree, and of course they know own Volvo, so presumably they will use that fact in their advertising. That price and warranty package is quite enticing, and if the Ncap is okay, could sell in reasonable numbers with good marketing.

  48. This all reminds me of the in-laws old dog. She got older, and smellier, and less able. Repeated trips to the vets; more pills, more metacam. Eventually that dog became a mere shadow of her former self so we persuaded the in-laws to let her go. No more pills, no more metacam.

  49. “What the hell has happened at Renault – sales down nearly 30% again, as last year and the year before. They really do seem to have perfected the trick of replacing all those popular Clios and Scenics from a few years back with a complete range of duds, a range that is somehow both bland and offensively ugly at the same time.”

    Looking forward to the next 30% drop! Less than MG is my target! Awful flimsy tat, always have been, just uglier than ever now but the cretins here still buy them over locally made cars. Why oh why? And as for Peugeot stuff…….

    “….unimaginative badge snob demographic with the result that the, default choice, German “premium brands” continue their march across the highways and mock Georgian driveways of Britain unimpeded. More expensive, less well equiped and dynamically for the most part no better than the average Mondeo or Insignia, they nevertheless show your neighbours you are “charismatic and interesting” – probably. Sorry…..just went off on one…..”

    Well said Andy, and who could blame you for going off on one, I often go off on one when I see mile upon mile of identical autobahn fodder. Why do they buy that dull characterless “Dull Auto” stuff when they could buy a Jag XF? I can’t work it out, when I ask them they just say “cos German is better init”. Have you ever owned a Jag, Rover 75 or MG ZT? “Nah, what would the neighbours think?”

    One VW pudding driver told me recently when I laughed at his identikit car the “it’s better than British cr*p”. What, do you mean better than an Austin Allegro, a Morris Marina or do you mean better than a Range Rover Evoke, Jag XF or a MaClaren MP4-12C? Do you always get your motoring advice from Jeremy Clarkson?

    However, MG’s apparent incompetence is bit of a own goal. I do so want them to succeed.

  50. in the current set up and the latest results you would have to be extremely round the hat rack to buy an MG6 .its ok offering this 5-4-3-2-1 omg what a deal but it seems the only mechanic or dealership available for service may well be a member of the crew of davy jones the flying dutchman.. no back up /no sales/no advertising /no SAIC [shame mg totally being slowly destroyed by these comics ] should have given mg to ALCHEMY,

  51. I usually don’t post, but avidly read the awesome website. But I feel really inclined to comment on this MG6 fiasco.

    I am 23 and earn good money, I want a new car, and I can afford a new car around the 20k-25k bracket, the MG6 is (most agree)is a great car for the money (and I’d have a bit of change). I however haven’t brought one, the enthusiast inside me wants me too (I have one Rover, one MG and a Suntor Marina already) but really REALLY if I’m going on MG’s effort to sell ME an MG6 then I’m not getting one. I’ve sat on the bench now waiting to see what happens with the company, but articles and figures like this aren’t helping me change that state of mind. I have to drive 30 out miles to a dealer for one, instead of the 5 miles where all the other dealers are (who are offering pretty awesome packages).

    I don’t know what to do, I buy a new car I’ve got that for 3 years. Do I go with my heart or my head?

    Come on MG why should I buy this car? Let me see some adverts, some passion, some product confidence.

    COME GET ME!!!!!!!

  52. It’s an anodyne design, looks too bland, the quality is not up to par and neither the performance or MPG are up to scratch. Oh, and there’s no diesel, no dealer network and no service or spares backup. Other than that, it’s fine.

    Personally, I think it looks like what it is, a cheap Chinese knock-off of what they think an MG ought to look like. The MG6 is sitting close to Perodua on my list of desirable cars.

    I’m not personally going to buy a Chinese MG as they have shown that they have no idea of the marque, its’ history, heritage or values (and little clue about styling). Now, if they’d brought out a credible MX5 competitor things might have been different.

    I have owned MGs in the past and I currently own a Land Rover and a Honda. I am currently looking to replace the Honda with a newer one (business car) and it won’t be an MG, in fact it has a good chance of being a Honda that is built in the UK.

    Incidentally, I think that a lot of the new Renaults look great, I just wouldn’t buy one because it will only break down.

  53. whats an MG6?? Sorry but thats what almost everyone would say if you asked the question. The car needs to be advertised to the public, if they dont know about it they are not going to buy it!

  54. Lets be honest, the management of SAIC are not stupid. Comment 19

    “Their presence in the UK market at the moment is nothing more than a gesture and I doubt poor sales of the MG6 in the UK is anywhere near the top of their priority list to discuss at their management meetings. SAIC are developing fast in their home market and strategic “new” markets. The MG brand is a great asset in that context. SAIC are not ready to “conquer” Europe but I have no doubt that time will come, whether in three years,ten years or whatever. Then you will see lots of MGs – but it wont be the MG6 and I doubt it will be assembled at Longbridge.”

    I think this comment (No 19) is spot on.

    SIAC probably realise the car is not ideal for the UK market at present but they need the kudos of the brand for the sales in their home market.

    I don’t think they want to be lumbered with a half hearted assembly in the UK when they can more economically produce the cars in China and export them anywhere in the world.

    I think SIAC have a game plan – string the UK operation along in the short term but don’t provide any funds for marketing. Then when its failed (as it now is) shut the UK operation introduce the new products produced in China only and have a big marketing push in the whole of Europe – and ultimatley the US.

    I would like to see MG succeed but the 6 despite apparantly being quite a good car in may respects is probably the wrong product at the wrong time.

    They started from virtually nothing- a couple of ancient Rovers and an engine with an inherant design problem – and do seem to be developing a range of cars at a rapid rate.

    In my opinion they aren’t going to dissappear. I suspect in a few years time they will be a strong player in the market a bit like Kia is now becoming.

  55. Here’s a British (OK, Indian) car manufacturer doing well;

    http://blog.wardsauto.com/emayne/

    Despite possible unresolved issues with reliability if the product and image is right it will sell. I think a lot of it is down to dealer confidence in the manufacturer and being given the correct support – I wonder if MG dealers have sufficient confidence to go out and sell product to customers..

  56. @61 Timbo – Exactly!

    The Germans have mastered the art of marketing, and the media. Most motoring magazines are clamouring over themselves to drive slightly tweaked versions of the A3, or exclusive “BEST EVER!!!!11” reviews based on a photo of a disguised facelift of the new 316i.

    Yet the ‘climbers’ lap it up and have bought into the brainwashed notion that German == best.
    I see it where I live, the street that Saxondale lived on with the Audi driver across the road wasn’t far off.
    Slight hill, and I had to laugh when the snow and ice fell earlier in the week, the only cars struggling where status symbol BMWs and Audi SUVs (4×4!!!), whereas cars such as a plucky little 106 just made short work of getting up the icy hill.

    Clarkson and his like in the German-controlled media were a huge part in the downfall of the mainstream UK car industry.

    Myself? I have a Honda, found it reliable and comfortable, and will probably replace with another Honda. Went to have a look at an MG6 but the dealer was already in receivership (as I have already documented on the Forum).

  57. @36 i think the chinese are more pragmatic about things,and im sure as they did the lift and shift,longbridge was still going to figure in the plans for the future.Business is business they could have shut the whole lot years ago without explanation they dont need to smooth the way to a gradual shutdown-shop shut see you later,they wont piss around dithering one word and its gone.As i keep saying this euro recession is going to be savage-everyones skint.Even this months cars sales figures are low-nine months running.which fleet will touch them if 2000 cars ckd have been earmarked for the uk?The firm i work for buys 25,000 mercs a year in one sitting never mind the fords and pugs.The days of being awash with money on say most peoples salary bracket are long gone job security etc so not many private buyers are going to take the plunge,apart from fleet sales every other car maker would be in shit street as well.

  58. is there a huge stockpile of MG6 in Birmingham at Longbridge then? Could someone get a photo so we can make our own adverts?

  59. – Type certify Roewe 550
    – Badge as Austin
    – Less luxuries than the MG6
    – Sell for £10k
    – Profit
    – Use MG6 as halo sports model (as MG was used previously)

  60. “Regarding my use of the word inferior, perhaps I should qualify it:
    Inferior marketing – no one knows, no one cares
    Inferior design – if proton can’t sell similar looking cars, why did SAIC think they could
    Inferior engine – a K series in 2011! Why not go the whole hog and bring back the A series
    Inferior sales – 7 in November, shurely shome mistake! Oh yes, it’s actually 4!
    Inferior image – it’s not Rover is it? And it certainly isn’t as classy as a Vauxhall, Chevy or Proton”

    So very little of that actually relates to the car its self. You say Rover had a good image, sadly they didn’t they’re seen by the man in the street as old man’s cars. Many people have said it looks similar to the focus and astra, lots of those get sold. It’s not powered by a K-Series though is it, it’s an N-Series and while the N-Series is based on the K, it’s a more developed and engineered unit. It’s like saying the Ford endura-e engine was the same as the Kent engine used in the Anglia, they share a lineage and similarities but they’re very different beasts.

    Ian we all know by now you hate SAIC, the brand, the car and quite possibly the Chinese in general. And no matter how good they make the cars you’ll always hate them. In all your posts you seem to look for any far fetched excuse to slate the product. In one you even complained about the terrible smell, then back tracked and said actually it wasn’t bad.

    ” think the chinese are more pragmatic about things,and im sure as they did the lift and shift,longbridge was still going to figure in the plans for the future.Business is business they could have shut the whole lot years ago without explanation they dont need to smooth the way to a gradual shutdown-shop shut see you later,they wont piss around dithering one word and its gone.”

    I agree, and the same still applies, all the time the building is in their name and it has walls standing they have to pay rates on it. That’s a vast amount of money per year for a place the size of Longbridge, they’re not going to keep forking that out if they don’t have a plan for it. They didn’t have to keep the site on, they could have just closed the whole thing. They obviously still have plans to use it for production or PDI or what ever or else they could close it tomorrow. There’s no reason why they can’t just ship the 2000 car’s they’ve built to another RHD market, then relaunch the brand when we finally come out of recession. Although the lack of marketing isn’t going to sell cars, it also means as no one is aware of their existence that it would be easy to relaunch them at a later date.

  61. OK, let’s not panic. They can forget the next three months anyway. What is needed is a major push from the first week in March, pile ’em high, sell ’em cheap and win some traction ion the market before the diesel arrives. Will we get a major push? Hmmmm!

  62. @74 the k series design was years ahead of anything else and still is,apart from HGF (still a grey area in terms of preventative maintenance)the only let down was a re-scheme of the materials spec early on in its life -piston/liner spec to name one.

  63. “Clarkson and his like in the German-controlled media were a huge part in the downfall of the mainstream UK car industry.”

    It’s not the fauly of the German manufacturers that they sell desirable cars at a high price that people want to buy. The British volume car industry largely committed suicide, as shown on this website.

    Clarkson is a massive fan of the Range Rover, and Top Gear loved the RR Evoque.

  64. The new car sales for the year are fascinating, I wonder if they reflect the current economic climate, in that many higher earmers have been less affected by the downtown than poorer people, e.g.
    BMW and Audi are outselling Nissan and Peugeot, while Renault and Toyota are now outsold by Mercedes!

    It is extraordinary how well the German manufacturers are doing this year, VW (VW, Audi, Bentley, SEAT, Skoda), Mercedes (except SMART) and BMW (BMW and MINI) all are showing sizeable year on year sales increases.

  65. @75 im not being funny but that chef bores the arse off me with his 33 mile long paragraphs of bollocks before he mentions a car,ok he has an opinion as does clarkson(he dogs vauxhall just for the sake of it!)but id sooner find out for myself,if it doesnt tickle your pickle fine!id trust my own judgement before some slop jockey or “entertainer”-by the way i love clarkson to bits!

  66. I saw one at a show in lichfield in the summer. Nicer than i thought it would be, but not seen one on the roads since and I live in Birmingham (I’ve seen more Maybachs!!).

    Let’s be honest:

    -No advertising
    -No dealers
    -No automatic
    -No estate

    What else do you espect?

  67. we are all too impatient,we are the gimme gimme gimme generation,The chinese have the patience of a cat,and perhaps the ferocity of a lion!longbridge is hanging onto the shirt tails of a cash rich state owned company and maybe sometime in the future thing will get brighter,and if it does that will be a defining moment-the chinese teaching us lessons on running a cars company,because for the latter part of this century we’ve been no good.

  68. Mikey C is right on his comments re German cars.
    Clarkson & Co do like current British JLR products.
    It is true they didn’t like the MG6 on launch, but then Peugeot gets a lot of flak on TG which doesn’t seem to have harmed their sales.
    I think the point with the 6 is that it is almost invisible to the general public, and that if it remains so it will fail in the UK, regardless of how good it is, or whether it has a Diesel or not.
    Right now you’d have to be pretty brave to buy a new one unless you didn’t care about residuals or whether the company would still be there to support it next year or not. Probably more so than those considering buying a new Rover back in 2004.

  69. @80 My point in highlighting the review was that it featured very high in the rankings in Google and whilst you may or may not like his style or critique, it was a negative opinion based on an actual trial of the car which broke down twice in the week he had it. If someone knew that the MG badge was appearing on cars again, its not going to take more than 3 clicks to get that far.

    There was only the Autoexpress reviews and one solitary (paid?) link from MG Motors – no dealers feature anywhere so no wonder the merchandising is not succeeding. MG need to make a more positive web presence as well as in the real World

  70. i dont think the chinese need lessons on marketing,they must have a strategy which at some point will become clearer,patience!otherwise we will sound like them tossers on talksport!

  71. One of your contributors has already answered your questions.
    If you look on the Chinese websites the plan for MG is given. It is three tier, the first is to concentrate on China,the Middle East and South America, in all these markets MG are booming, look at SAIC’s production figures. The second phase will be Australia, New Zealand and emerging markets. The third phase will be UK, Europe and USA.I guess this won’t be much before 2015. When they are ready they will have a full range including MG7 with interior up to GM standards and the new sports car. Until then I think MG will remain low key, Steve Cropley from Autocar visited longbridge and was very impressed with the engineering going on and mentioned MG6 diesel prototypes under test, his final comments- in all,this struck me as a well run and ambitious place with thoroughly decent prospects. As for Vauxhall his report in Autocar stated with the departure of Nick Reilly and Klaus Franz could Vauxhall/Opel be up for sale again?

  72. @ Brian.
    Interesting – but what are the UK dealers supposed to do in the meantime? They may be motor traders but they’ve still gotta eat!
    😉

  73. If SAIC have a 3 tier plan, why didn’t they just say that from the very start?

    The feeble MG6 launch has only casued frustration and damage to their credibility and is not exactly strong prep for when they do get round to launching in UK, Europe and the US.

    Amateur behaviour

  74. Things could be better, no question about that, but I’d still bet on SAIC making a go of MG and establishing it again in western markets. The Six is a good car but it needs to be positioned better in the market and, of course, marketed properly. I don’t think future advertising should feature in any way, shape or form, previous MGs: MG lovers don’t need to be told about past glories, and newcomers to the marque should be told about what the Six or future MGs can offer them today.

    Yes, what’s happening at the moment is not great and I daresay it smacks of amateur behaviour, but you have to remember that the Chinese market doesn’t actually require a great deal of marketing at the moment. Demand there is such that they can sell pretty much anything they can make. Export markets (especially western ones) were always going to be more difficult.

    Longbridge will continue as it is. Why would SAIC close it when the very thing they need is more non-Chinese input into MG and other SAIC products? In the longer term there may be a brighter future for the factory with larger scale production returning there. The USA is beginning to see a slight reversal in the trend of manufacturers relocating to cheaper countries. Maybe that will happen here. Maybe that will happen with MG.

    On a more general point, all this blaming/criticising governments(past and present)for the demise of MGR, and believing that past Rover/MGR cars (the Z cars especially) are simply the best, does not help MG in 2011 and in no way offers any guide to what should happen next. The company’s collapse was down to the company in the end, and the cars (as much as we may like them) did not have sufficient appeal to be successful.

  75. there seems to be two camps here,(1)i want it all now.(2)lets wait and see.Brian @86 put it perfectly and sparkling clear.So lets wait and see.No matter what or how good the car is its gonna get dogged for being chinese-and people on here are going on about geely,value this and value that-no ones going to buy one of them lumps of turd on brand snobbery alone.The MG is a good product,and to our eternal shame through strikes,mergers,government and apathy we have reaped what we have sown.The chinese have a plan and bloody good luck to them.I remember the day when that place shut with thousands of workers exiting the gates for the last time and i cried my eyes out seeing the look on them lads faces,if it takes the chinese to 10 years to get that place up to speed then so be it-they are playing the long game.There are enough people on here with the negative dogma knocking the brand-why dont you give it an hand?if anyone is so miffed about marketing put a bloody picture of an MG6 on your facebook page or screensaver at work,show what people called your dunkirk spirit and do your bit instead of cheap shoting all the time.rant over!

  76. As we all (including me) have so much to say about the situation with MG and their “6”, perhaps they should read these blogs and take our opinions/suggestions on board? They know that aronline exists surely.

    There’s a lot of us who still have an interest and affection for MG cars.

  77. “They don’t give a toss about here for one reason only. RIGHT HAND DRIVE!”

    If that’s the case though, they wouldn’t be selling them in South Africa, Australia & NZ (all of which are RHD markets) Once you’ve built RHD models, made the tooling etc, which they clearly have then there is no difference between the two from a manufacturing stand point.

  78. “The feeble MG6 launch has only casued frustration and damage to their credibility”

    Not really, because hardly anyone knows about it. If no one knows about it, then it can’t have a negative (or positive) effect on their credibility.

  79. @92

    “if it takes the chinese to 10 years to get that place up to speed then so be it-they are playing the long game.”

    In the meantime the support of the final remaining dealers will have gone along with any potentially interested clientèle? We are now in the I-Pod/Pad/Phone generation and things move on (and up) at such a pace, if you aren’t in it quickly and clearly from the start, your’e dead in the water.

    “There are enough people on here with the negative dogma knocking the brand-why dont you give it an hand?”

    I haven’t seen one post from anybody who has actually bought one here, that’s true. But ask yourself why is that? Is the MG6:

    1) A quality match for all the competitors of a similar class and price?

    2) Offer residuals of comparable cars?

    3) Available with the all important diesel option?

    4) Stunningly priced or financed for the sector?

    5) Sufficiently different in design or capability?

    6) Has a solid history of reliability and after care service?

    I’m not knocking the SAIC MG6 as an idea (if I were in the market for that style of car) but if I was going to part with £16 to £20k of my hard-earned, would I consider all of the above and take a risk with it? – Because it is a risk and only 4 people committed last month amongst the thousands that bought competitor cars, so the answer is very clear.

    If the MG6 was the Dragons Den, they would all have been saying the same thing……

    I’m out!

  80. “there seems to be two camps here,(1)i want it all now.(2)lets wait and see.Brian @86 put it perfectly and sparkling clear.So lets wait and see.No matter what or how good the car is its gonna get dogged for being chinese-and people on here are going on about geely,value this and value that-no ones going to buy one of them lumps of turd on brand snobbery alone.The MG is a good product,and to our eternal shame through strikes,mergers,government and apathy we have reaped what we have sown.The chinese have a plan and bloody good luck to them.I remember the day when that place shut with thousands of workers exiting the gates for the last time and i cried my eyes out seeing the look on them lads faces,if it takes the chinese to 10 years to get that place up to speed then so be it-they are playing the long game.There are enough people on here with the negative dogma knocking the brand-why dont you give it an hand?if anyone is so miffed about marketing put a bloody picture of an MG6 on your facebook page or screensaver at work,show what people called your dunkirk spirit and do your bit instead of cheap shoting all the time.rant over!”

    Well put.

  81. Well. Here is a comment from someone who owns 1.The MG 6 is very good fun to drive as a propper Mg should be.It is very well equipped,agile,comfy.Someone said even die hard mg enthusiasts have not heard of them?? Not very die hard enthusiast are they.Safety fast and emg are always full of articles about the MG6.
    As for those who have not seen one,with 20 odd million cars on the road,even if MG sold 10,000.you still wouldn’t see one.by the way there are 8 others in my area all from a dealer 20 miles away,and i bought mine before any advertising because i knew it was about.So stop moaning and go and buy one and get some of these old rover off the road

  82. People have voted with their feet. MG is deader than the parrot in the famous Monty Python sketch. More & more dealers will be pulling the plug before the end of the financial year. The cars are simply too expensive for what they are, too thirsty, too expensive to tax, and have dubious second hand values for the private buyer to be tempted. We wont have any of this ‘wait & see’ nonsense, because no franchise can survive, when they simply aren’t shifting the stock. I know one dealer resorted to ebay and was trying to sell them at just about cost to get shut, and was still struggling. MG was dead when Longbridge closed first time round. It was too high a profile closure for the brand to be rescued from. If they had launched the cars as an entirely new brand, they ‘may’ have stood a better chance, but only if they had spent millions advertising the cars. This lot make the BL management of the 70s look like they knew what they were doing!

  83. I don’t think that many are knocking the car as such, I really can’t comment good or bad as I still haven’t seen one, let alone sat in or driven one, however I like the saloon, and if I were in the market for a new car I would give it consideration. What people are bemoaning here is the apparent lack of interest shown by MG UK in actually marketing and selling the cars, currently one TV advert that I think lasted a week, a page on Facebook, and some posters and a gantry and Birmingham Airport, hardly a multi million pound advertising campaign that other manufacturers would run for the launch of a new car, just look at how Land Rover marketed the Evoque then look at how quick that is flying out the showrooms.

    Questioned on the lack of marketing on Facebook, I quote

    “We have made significant investments into a range of activities in the last few weeks that will result in more sales and more vehicles being seen on the roads from December. / Keith”

    I can only imagine they’ve sponsored the roundabout on Lickey Road and having a couple of West Midlands buses wear the same poster as seen as Brum International…

  84. Can we please ban anyone who speaks negatively about the MG6. Other forums have taken this positive approach to help the brand sell more cars

  85. Read in Autocar that Longbridge in it’s current form can build 40,000 cars per annum (Don’t know if this referrs to scratch-building or CKD’s), and apparently MG are willing to use this capacity in the future. Not sure how true this is however. Did anyone else read it? Maybe MG are a bit more dedicated than we think. They’ll have to start showing it though!

  86. @103 i heard from a industrial services engineer whom worked ther recently and he said the place as it is can make 150,000 cars a year (with infrastructure in place)some may say that is not viable but if it serves the domestic market and bits of EU then why not?this plant does after all hang onto the shirt tails of a cash rich state owned company,some say longbridge should be shut due to its history-what does that have to do with buying and selling cars?never stopped the cowley oh sorry plant oxford from staying open and thats got new owners.

  87. This is realty serious. No one invests in a new production facility, however limited, to sell four cars in a month. However reluctant they may be, commercial reality will dicate that SAIC either pour in big investments for marketing or they pull out. Given the size of company, and their obvious global ambitions, I’d bet on the former, perhaps when the 3 and 5 come on stream, but they clearly won’t have bottomless funds. The ineptitude of the UK marketing operation is astounding.

  88. 102: johnos1984:

    ” Can we please ban anyone who speaks negatively about the MG6. Other forums have taken this positive approach to help the brand sell more cars ”

    A very Chinese way of looking at descent, how ironic!!

    By the way, please can people stop referring to this as a “CKD operation?

    Think of a CKD operation as assembling and painting an item of flat packed furniture; what we have here is more like taking a television out of its box and putting the plug on it!

  89. @106 I hope you meant putting the plug in the socket. I’ve wired plugs before and it’s really fiddly having to cut each cable loose. But anyway, 150,000 cars. Longbridge. Not even MG Rover managed that from a factory that wasn’t half demolished and had all the machinery! Although I don’t think that MG will produce and sell that many cars any time soon, I think that Longbridge (or at least an MG owned British operation) will expand rather than contract given the feedback from other aspects of the motoring press. I mean, companies like SsangYong and Infiniti sold less than MG last year, and they wish to persist in our market. However, there are worrles about the Chinese owned manufacturers and their lack of penetration into their home market, let alone ours. Biggest potential hinderance?

  90. 102: jonos1984:

    “Can we please ban anyone who speaks negatively about the MG6. Other forums have taken this positive approach to help the brand sell more cars”

    By the same token, can we have those who think they’re right, banned?

    It’s called having an opinion, and there’s two sides to every story.

    I’m not knocking the car, never have. It’s the way it’s (not) been marketed that’s the problem.

    I’ve considered, the 6, but sorry to say the windscreen figures did not add up for me and I walked away.

  91. The charity test drive campaign donated £1000 apparently, so at £5 a test 200 people must have tried the 6 in Sept and Oct. But these test drives converted to less than 20 sales. A conversion rate of 1 sale per 10 test drives is terrible. A present there seems to ne no USP for the product, no ‘must have’ feature that can clinch a deal. This will not be addressed by more marketing. Somebody somewhere in MG has got to give the 6 a WOW FACTOR…

  92. Like John Cooper you mean? Yes that could do it – especially if he put something decent under the bonnet as well..

  93. ok truth time!

    there is more than one reason why this is turning into the balls up that it is.
    the main one is of course the fact that no one knows the car exsists. if it wasnt so frustrating it would be laughable. the advertising on this car is just a joke! there is no other way of putting it. who relaunches and doesnt advertise? its utter madness.
    the other fact of the matter is one of the product itself. no diesel is just plain stupid. also the fact the the company is chiniese owned means they will always be fighting with one hand behind there back in europe. like it or not chiniese cars are crap! and if the MG 6 is seen as being chinies then people will think it is also crap. and it doesnt help that while it isnt ugly at all, it certainly has a few far east design influences, which will do MG no favours in trying to convince people its a british car, add to the fact that its surpose to be british designed and engineered but it still manages to go on sale in china ages before it does in europe all adds up to the fact that it is not truly an MG in peoples minds. giving hem yet another reason not to consider one.
    and as for the rest of the car. i have never seen or driven one, but keith says its a perfectly good car and i have no reason to doubt that.
    but being a good car just isnt good enough. it may be good to drive but the ford focus is great to drive, it might look good but the alfa gulieta looks great and very european. and the quality may be ok now but the quality of a golf is so much better. people have no reason to consider buying this car at all when there are so many more known quanities out there.
    the MG 6 will not sucseed because its unknown, so being as good as everyone else is not going to cut it. it needs to look spot on, drive like its on rails, and have quality like no other mid range car before and be a real cut above in every single way. add a diesl and an add campain to rivel the 2012 olympics and only then will it stand a chance. until then, im sorry but i just dont see a happy ending. and it frustraites me no end! its not surpose to be like this!

  94. Wow, what a fantastic and heartfelt response from all AR enthusiast readers of this website in just 24 hours!
    I do sincerely hope and expect Guy Jones and the MG management/SAIC to sit up and take note and act accordingly.
    They have to be genuine in their plans, having invested so much elsewhere in the brand already, they need to preserve the UK link to ensure an ever increasing international presence, which is evidently the plan. The Chinese Prime Minister only visited Longbridge last summer, the loss of face if they pull out now would be immeasurable.
    I think they always said it would be a low key return at this stage to the UK as they slowly build up models, dealers and a srategic presence, but clearly a lot of work needs to be done on marketing and dealer support.
    In China MG is marketed more fully as Morris Garages. That should happen here. MG is/was a strong brand but is limited in the public perception to sports and sporting cars and it is a complete folly for SAIC to delude themselves into thinking the brand can be ‘stretched’ further. Sporting cars simply aren’t ‘cool’ right now.
    They need Morris to attract the wider market and successfully expand the range. Austin would do, but they have to make a choice as Austin and Morris are vitually synonomous. Sure, they are based at the old Austin plant and Austin was a world leader in small cars for virtually sixty years but having both would recreate BL confusion. Morris is part of the MG brand name, so the choice appears to have been made already. Morris, thanks to the Minor seems to enjoy an eco-friendly image and would be an ideal brand to put on tomorrows hybrid cars. It is also perfect for light commercials (I think SAIC have a stake in the old LDV Maxus). Thanks to Top Gear the Marina has risen way up in public consciousness and frankly whatever one’s views are of the original car, the Roewe 550 (less sporty MG 6) would make an ideal modern Morris Marina. It is sitting plonk right in the old Marina’s stamping ground asking to be marketed here with a memorable household name. It is the
    perfect fit provided the price is dropped by about £4000 and it is given a 5 year guarantee. Sold to leasehire companies and firms at a bulk discount with diesels it would sell well.
    There needs to be a nice Morris badge, probably in the shape of the Rover one (as Roewe) but with an Oxford blue background, an abstract of a red bull crossing the river, and MORRIS emblazoned across the top.
    In due course thet should recreate the Minor on a moden platform (as with the Mini, VW Beetle, Fiat 500) and all the derivatives that went with it. There seems still to be a lot of affection for that car and it is right for the times. SAIC can and should tap into this and perhaps make a new Minor the first fully manufactured car at Longbridge since 2005.
    In the meantime MG must avoid cocking up the MG3 launch and stick a Morris badge on it with a trendy modern product name, sensible price and 5 year guarantee. There is no other way. Think back and compare the sales ratio of Austin/Morris 1100s and Farinas, Metros, Maestros and Montegos to the MG equivalents. SAIC, ignore this at your peril!

  95. MG. I have the solution for you, but you will need to ask China for a few quid first. Listening?

    £399 a month for 12 months lease hire and hand back, no deposit – a new 6 taxed AND insured, anyone 18+

    Nationwide, enthusiast backed coverage….

  96. Why don’t some of the people who like the car but moan about the low sales actually go out and buy one (I’m sort of including myself in that)?

  97. It seems to be a lack of forsight on saic behalf,to penatrate the uk and the european market head on with television advertising, newspaper and magazine advertising is the way to go. No afence to the chinese this is totally alien to them as they clearly not done their reserch. Selling a brand in china is one thing, selling an old british named brand under chinese ownership in the uk and europe is somthing very different.Consider the challenge against the well established european competion. I love the old british mg’s, the mg6 is a real looker, no matter how good this car is, you have to ask the question how credible is the chinese backup, if they cant be bothered to do their homework regards to advertisment, i dont think their service and backup will be up to scratch. The rover group ran their empire on a miniscule budget, you cant do that today, it shows, and people will see it, and the buying public dont like it. I think saic will have to do market reserch and rethink its strategy 15 sales in october and 4 in november is not the way to go…….

  98. People WONT buy one simply because of cars like the Golf, Focus, Skoda Octavia et al which have a massive dealer network behind them, reasonable residuals, and they are all vastly superior products, with a good range of tax busting engines. If I was in a position to be able to afford a car in that class, I would use my brain and completely ignore the 6,especially when for the same money I could get a nice diesel powered car that will do over 50 mpg, and cost nearly sod all a year in road tax, and be in a much lower insurance bracket. The same goes for the fleet buyers. That is why people won’t touch the 6, they are unbelievably huge flaws in what COULD have been a good car. They had one chance and blew it BIG TIME. Petrol has been more or less dead in that sector for well over 2 years now. If, during development, they had spoken kindly to GM, they may have had a diesel lump from day 1, but no, the Chinese know best! The Chinese clearly don’t realise at how well publicised the closure of Longbridge was when MGR went belly up. It doesn’t matter one jot in China (they are still used to aged VW designs), but here it certainly does. The general public see MG deader than the dodo, and due to the lack of any publicity whatsoever, still feel this way. I’ve always said they should have used the Roewe name here, and not MG. MG is remembered by most people as the maker of the asthmatic, bouncy castle Sherpa coupe/cabrio (MGB), and 1990’s Rovers in Halfords bodykits, sat at the side of the road with blown head gaskets. Not a good image really. Just look at Skoda..Large display at the NEC, complete with the world record holding Octavia vRS, right on MG’s doorstep. Skoda dealers are currently beating off customers with big sticks, and have waiting lists now of almost a year on some variations! Why in the name of all that is holy aren’t MG trying to pinch the punters who are waiting? Answer…NO DIESEL, and won’t be until allegedly late 2012. Whoops!

  99. Have a look at the new video on you tube. Made at Birmingham
    airport.With the cars going down the runway.impressive.

  100. the only way that production of 40000 vehicles at longbridge will become a reality is not from base metal but ckd,the tracks have been dismantled and shipped out and the facilities for 75 apart from slings and back tracks are the only things remaining..ive criticised mg on this site as many others have but still it sends no waves of desperation thru to the heirarchy which tells you they must have a long term plan even if most people on here dont agree and for anyone to pay a !M a month in wages in the uk operation they must feel long term it will be recovered..so i suppose as in most things we have to believe things will only get better, forever the optomist

  101. @Bruce Goodwin

    ” Morris, thanks to the Minor seems to enjoy an eco-friendly image and would be an ideal brand to put on tomorrows hybrid cars. It is also perfect for light commercials (I think SAIC have a stake in the old LDV Maxus).”

    Perhaps they could sell it as a Freight-Roewe?

    I’ll get me coat…

  102. “I’ve always said they should have used the Roewe name here, and not MG. MG is remembered by most people as the maker of the asthmatic, bouncy castle Sherpa coupe/cabrio (MGB), and 1990′s Rovers in Halfords bodykits, sat at the side of the road with blown head gaskets. Not a good image really. Just look at Skoda..Large display at the NEC, complete with the world record holding Octavia vRS, right on MG’s doorstep.”

    As you say though just look at Skoda, they were known for asthmatic rear engined bargain basement bangers. Look at the now. There’s no reason why a brand’s image can’t change, although not without marketing.

  103. @ 123. Dennis

    “There’s no reason why a brand’s image can’t change, although not without marketing.”

    Indeed. 70 years ago BMW and Merc were producing the engines for planes that were carpet bombing UK cities.

    50 years ago BMW were creating bubble cars, Audi were a msinstream rebadging of NSU and VW products.

    40 years ago Honda, Toyota et al. were a laughing stock.

    20 years ago Rover were on a high, especially with the fantastic R8. Hyundai, Kia et al. were a laughing stock.

    10 years ago Saabs future looked secure.

  104. I THINK THE PROBLEM IS THE CAR IS ONLY ASSEMBELD HERE AND PEOPLE WANT A PROPER BRITISH BUILT CAR.SAIC SHOULD INVEST SOME SERIES MONEY AND BUILD A BODY AND ENGING PLANT.I AM A BIG MG AND ROVER FAN BUT WOULD NOT TOUCH ONE OF THESE UNTIL THEY WERE MADE IN LONGBRIDGE AND NOT JUST ASSEMBELD PEOPLE LOOK AT THEM AS CHINESE JUNK.COME ON JAGUAR LAND ROVER BRING BACK ROVER THEN WE WILL SEE A QUALITY ROVER AGAIN.
    MG RIP.

  105. @Brian, 86: “If you look on the Chinese websites the plan for MG is given. It is three tier, the first is to concentrate on China,the Middle East and South America, in all these markets MG are booming, look at SAIC’s production figures.”

    MG is booming nowhere.

    Sales in China are mediocre and far below their own plan. The competition runs circles around MG and Roewe.

    Sales in other markets are so tiny that they are not even worth mentioning.

    High production figures are from all the GM and VW models they build in Joint Ventures. At least they can now happily waste the money they earn from those with their own attempts.

  106. “I THINK THE PROBLEM IS THE CAR IS ONLY ASSEMBELD HERE AND PEOPLE WANT A PROPER BRITISH BUILT CAR.”

    Really? Ford, VW, Vauxhall etc etc all sell vast amounts of cars in the UK, few of them are actually built here.

  107. ““I THINK THE PROBLEM IS THE CAR IS ONLY ASSEMBELD HERE AND PEOPLE WANT A PROPER BRITISH BUILT CAR.”

    Really? Ford, VW, Vauxhall etc etc all sell vast amounts of cars in the UK, few of them are actually built here.”

    Indeed, BMW, Audi are as anti-British as you can get, yet sell in bucketloads!!

  108. @Bruce Goodwin – Nice idea, sadly anything that links the MG range with the ‘iconic’ Marina and Ital is going to be a dead duck before launch……

  109. @ Will M

    Let me add too, that the old Auto Union/AUDI factory in Sachsenring produced the Trabant!

    When you consider that fact, the Isetta saving BMW’s skin and the fact that the VW Beetle was made during British ownership of the VW factory in Wolfsburg after WW2, then there is not really that much the German car owners can crow about in terms of history, heritage and prestige!!

  110. Always good to read so many leading “industry experts” contributing on here,probably whiling the day away instead of doing the job they are paid to do,spouting bollocks.you would have fitted in well at BL in the 70’s!europe is broke.china will be ok no matter whatthats the worlds biggest market and exporter-audi and bmw havnt got it all to themselves either.

  111. 130. @Paul T

    Indeed, good points there.

    I enjoy winding VW owners up about their KDF-wagens.

    Ironic that the Beetle and van ended up part of 60s the hippy peace movement.

    Until the 70s, VW were still pumping out water cooled rear engined cars. In fact, the grilleless early 90s Passat was something of a homage to those!

  112. Sorry to burst your bubble Mr Brett but some of us are whiling away our own time not someone else’s. We may talk bollocks in your opinion, but at least we were obviously educated sufficiently to be able to use proper grammar and punctuation.

    If the state of Britain worries you so much, perhaps you could apply your angst to politics or some other pursuit that will change the situation? Me, I’m quite happy although admit things could be better but not so much that I’m tying myself in knots over it

  113. @112 – “and an ad campain to rivel the 2012 Olympics”

    Isn’t that the biggest free advertising opportunity lost for next year? The biggest sporting event in this country for decades, a car park In Longbridge filling with unsold cars and MG could have lent the organisers those vehicles to ferry athletes around with shed loads of advertising for next to nothing and then a load of cars with low mileage to sell on afterwards with Olympic status? (they could even have special editoned them!!)

    For goodness sake MG, I bet most of the contributors to this debate are not skilled marketing types, but we have given you tons of hints as to how to raise the profile of your product – are you really so strapped for cash you can’t even lend a few measly motors to get Worldwide coverage?

    Whatever the car is like, the ‘driver’ behind it is out of petrol……

  114. So punctuation and grammer are a mark of someones intelligence? Well if you say so paul t,always ammuses me when people like yourself resort to infantile sniping such as yours when you are incapable of cogent dialogue.I havnt singled out one person on here,maybe a collective,I care about MG but most people knock it.people like yourself need not concern yourself with my education as I’m confident I can hold my own in any given situation.

  115. @134 Sorry BMW are sponsoring the Olympics so no opportunity for MG there i’m afraid. BMW’s plan is credible too as it’s focusing it’s efforts on marketing low emmission vehicles for use by the games as that is part of the games remit. I don’t imagine this comes cheap either.

    Definately time to go back to the drawing board and look again at MG’s value proposition, lower the price to meet perceived expectation and try and do something to build some residual values.

  116. i think they should drop the mg name as the 6 is not fit to carry it. Make something with a diesel engine and looks that kill orjust bring out a mad hot hatch to set the world a blaze really a 5 speed 1.8 turbo thats gutless just aint ganna make any impact. When i was told mg were coming back i was exited now im just gutted they even did because they are distroying the MG brand

  117. This is rather off the cuff , but I would love to see JLR buy the MG name and bring back MGR in a similar way like before, as it was a good company really the boss’s taking £42m each out was a big problem and the stocking air fields full instead of making to order , but that’s just my random thought of an opinion.

    Also people righting about the K-series, It is a spectacular engine, that was down for some really big improvements for sep 05 also MGR had an idea for “camless” engines hidden away as the next step for VVC.
    Treat the k-series right and she will go well , with the update HG and oil rail , don’t thrash at low revs check water level regularly (as it is technically a weekly check on all cars).

    As for the mention of German cars, I have a mate who’s old VW golf mrk 4 1.4 had more problems than an airfield full of rovers. Also they weigh as much as a small semi detached.

    Chinese MG , either get a rocket up there arse or die simple really.

    (for the record I drive a R25 k16 1.4)

  118. “Sorry to burst your bubble Mr Brett but some of us are whiling away our own time not someone else’s. We may talk bollocks in your opinion, but at least we were obviously educated sufficiently to be able to use proper grammar and punctuation.”

    Of course there are some who suffer with problems such as dyslexia, so i don’t think it’s fair to comment on someones ability to use grammar and punctuation.

    “Also people righting about the K-series, It is a spectacular engine, that was down for some really big improvements for sep 05 ”

    Indeed, and these improvements and others are what has formed the basis for the current N-Series unit.

  119. Dan, I think there is little chance of that happening. JLR are doing fantastically and the only real option for Tata allowing JLR to resurrect Rover, let alone buy MG, is to either allow JLR to grow massively (I mean, about 600-700,000 per annum) and reduce their stake in the company so that JLR was left independent with Tata holding a small share, which would allow them a freer Market once Rover (and MG, as you propose) would have a larger Market, or put the brand(s) further downmarket with an overlap in the 3-series sector. However, as much as I can see this in Rover’s future I cannot see this in MG’s. SAIC may build up later but the facts are these: THE CHINESE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY IS IN CRISIS! You can see this in the MG6. The car, however cheap and spacious (more than a 3-series saloon I might add) is underdeveloped and poorly made (no offence intended for the Longbridge guys, lots of offence intended for the Nanjing guys). This is typical of all Chinese cars. The Chinese are buying large amounts of foreign cars, leaving the domestic manufacturers in a spot of trouble. There should be a time when the Chinese step up to the plate, but that time is not now.

  120. H.Jones , I know it is not going to happen it was just a top of the head idea I wouldn’t mind seeing but it is totally unrealistic I know, sorry if I didn’t make it clear.
    I think Tata could use Rover name as a good tool in euro market , and with Tata and JLR having such a good working relationship they would make it work far better than what SAIC are with MG. For such a big nation and rich one at that china really don’t know what cars are wanted in EU one engine spec what a joke , also they have not addressed MPG , parkers say its 35mpg , k16 1.8 did better that that all well and good chucking new tech to make “n-series” but they didn’t address MPG, MGR where planning on.
    I’d rather have not seen mg back for another 5 years than it being dropped into a recession with a car that can’t over come that. (this is opinion no offence ment)

  121. @ Dennis

    Dyslexia is word blindness, I have friends who suffer from it, and usually affects spelling rather than punctuation. Francis Brett’s spelling was absolutely correct.

    I found his comments offensive and condescending and felt I had to respond. If any dyslexica were offended I sincerely apologise as it was not intended.

  122. @140 in what terms is it underdeveloped? after all it was designed here as was electrical architecture(MG are rather proud of this)it has favourable reviews in ride and handling and NVH.Of course at this end of the market £16k+ nothing is going to be perfect but all in all a good package.As for the chinese motor industry in crisis im not so sure,controlled capitalism is the name of the game in china at the moment-this is a communist state as no one needs reminding and thier taste is all european but this is a colossal market and all the joint ventures are on the chinese own terms.Only time will tell i guess.

  123. By way of a small glimmer of hope from the south west, our local rag (Western Gazette) has a full page on MG in it’s motoring section this week with a really very complemntary test drive report on a 6 magnette by the local hack and the other half page with a full colour ad for the 6 and 54321 deal promoting the new local dealer in Yeovil. I did a bit of my own market tesing showing the ad around at work and comments were pretty positive and impressed with the deal before going off on stories of Rovers/MG’s past. It seemed to pull the heart strings if not the purse strings. Hopefully similar ads are appearing accross the country. OK not the impact of 30 seconds before News at 10, but I think there are still alot of people who will go to the weekly motoring pages of their local paper when looking for their next car as borne out by the number of garages that still seem to place ads in these sections..

  124. @142 why not grow a pair? i havnt been barraged off a site full of people about my comments you insulted me fair and square and you got my response,another commentator perhaps felt you stepped a bit too far below the belt. In my comments earlier i didnt single you out-i was generalising so for you to take offence just amazes me just because i may not get my your vs you’re, wear vs were vs where, their vs there and too vs to vs two correct is of no consequence oh and sometimes spellcheck helps me out.That never stopped me becoming a consultant automotive engineer either.I visit this site because its the best car site and only site ive joined and derive great pleasure from it, be it somewhat heated or opinionated(often me)the opines are as always polarising and always interesting.NUFF SAID.

  125. @145

    NUFF INDEED!! It’s done, I’ve apologised but you’re not getting my pound of flesh. If you’re going to make abrasive remarks, expect a response.

  126. Well – I actually saw TWO MG’s yesterday in Plymouth – seems we now have an MG Dealer, and they were displaying their wares outside Drakes Circus – I wonder if they were pre-reg’s for December?

  127. China still has a long way to go to create well made and solid brand name products. They can buy a western brand, but by the time they do, it has long gone downmarket as has happened with certain China made and owned TV brands here in the USA. Recall how long it took Hyundai to become a major international carmaker, one with it’s own designs and engineering and quality made cars.

    Cars are such an investment, that many may choose to buy a used but better quality and more established brand car like maybe a Ford, Toyota, Mazda, even a Hyundai rather than take a risk with a ‘new’ brand.

  128. dress em up as much as you like people will not buy chinese cars made in china.and i no that other makes are built abroad butn they bhave a brand name that carries quality.in the dying days of mg rover the mgtf was still as popular as it was yesteryear and SAIC should have pushed forward tO reinvest into a new sports car. the mg6 does not appeal to the buying public and sadly never will they need to push the medium range vehicles into the forefront asap. if they can launch the new MGS IN CHINA why not here .employees say no production next week accrued too many hours selling cars in shopping and gardening centres so at home for the week .

  129. The MG6 is the epitome of chinese car design, sadly whilst it is a good effort (funny smell apart), it is vastly inferior to everything else on the UK market at this point in time.

    The MG3 is a horrible looking design, with a very nasty interior, and an odd (for a supermini) engine size – 1.5. Unless it is heavily discounted with deals on VED and insurance, it has no chanceof matching Myvi sales.

    The MG5 is a red herring, the Roewe 550 has been on sales in china for ages, as well as placez like Chile. It hasn’t got what it takes, and is certainly no Acclaim.

    If these are the core products supporting the three phase strategy, then it is game over.

  130. When companies like Ssangyong and Perodua outsell MG, you have to think. Both these brands are the Lidl of the motoring world, and neither advertise very much, and their products use cast off technology. Daihatsu have announced they are quitting Europe due to poor sales, I doubt Proton will last much longer here too, so in reality MG don’t really have a hope, especially as the recession is getting much, much worse.

    MG was bought for one reason only. The technology. They saw it as a cheap way of getting a range of cars, with very little development costs. Chinese are using us, to try and develop a car industry, but unfortunately, they got the motoring equivalent of a 15 year old Labrador with a gammy leg & weak bladder.

    I may be wrong on this, but I have a very nasty feeling the R&D centre at Longbridge is a poorly disguised training centre for the Chinese, where they simply steal ideas for back home, and once they get what they want, its bye bye. Chinese industry works like that. Get as much as you can, preferably by copying, then hide behind the weak Chinese copyright law. I have a feeling Volvo will suffer the same fate too under Geely control.

  131. ian, we get it. You don’t like the MG6. But with respect, Sir, to call it vastly inferior to everything else is… well, it’s bollocks. In terms of chassis dynamics, it’s up there with the best in that price range. Ergonomics aren’t bad, and performance and refinement are more than acceptable. Again for the price.

    You clearly have an agenda, and until you drive it, and up against rivals, I am going to completely discount your views as unfounded opinion based on personal bias…

  132. “Daihatsu have announced they are quitting Europe due to poor sales”

    Also probably due to them being in-house competition for Toyota.

    “I have a feeling Volvo will suffer the same fate too under Geely control.”
    Well as someone pointed out the other day, Ford did rather well out of Volvo in terms of what they gained in style and tech. I think Geely could do quite well if they let Volvo take the lead. I think Geely’s purchase just shows the chinese aren’t stupid. I mean they got a lot of flak for their cars being severely lacking in safety, so they buy Volvo. While Volvo aren’t as far ahead of the competition in terms of safety as they used to be, they do have probably the most comprehensive crash test facility anywhere in the world.

    “ian, we get it. You don’t like the MG6. But with respect, Sir, to call it vastly inferior to everything else is… well, it’s bollocks.”
    “You clearly have an agenda”

    Pretty much sums up what i was thinking.

  133. Keith, unfortunately, you just put your remaining good foot right in it! How can we now take you seriously if someone’s opinion causes you to start swearing? You have just admitted that the car isn’t class leading, with only ‘resonable’ ergonomics.
    I and I have a feeling many others believe you are letting your judgement be clouded by the ‘freebie’ you have at the moment, and if it was your own money that you had parted with for the car, and were having to pay for the below average for the class fuel economy, high road tax, and no doubt ‘Steinway off a cliff’ depreciation, plus the chance that your dealer might vanish, so any problems could mean a hundred mile drive, your views may be a lot different.

  134. Marty,

    What freebie?

    I don’t have a freebie…

    My point was this – it is a perfectly good car, and reasonably good value for money. I told the chaps at LB that once the diesel’s slotted in AND if they can assemble a good lease package AND guarantee residuals, I’d be more than happy to have one on my drive. Shame is they’re not listening.

    My point was more about the silly comments being flung at it by Langfield. It is not the worst thing on the market. Not by a long chalk. And to say stuff like that just proves these comments are driven by personal bias and not informed circumstance.

    Shame you think I’m being coloured by the press car they lent me. I’ve driven a LOT of press cars in the past few years, and I hope that I don’t let each loan affect my judgment.

  135. @150 I don’t think the chinese bought it to access the technology,they could buy that anywhere as did VW when it employed ignacio lopez(poached) from GM along with the industrial secrets forming the basis of future platforms etc.Thankfully it ended up with VW being fined and having to buy 1 billion quids worth of parts off GM at the moment nothing is really selling on the private market-the fleet is were its at.

  136. The Volvo purchase worked out well for Geely, who like MG and the Jag XF got 4 stars on the recent EuroNCAP.

    No more excuses of “whaaa but I saw the Brilliance crash video”

  137. 150 – The amount of advanced technology left in MGR by the time the Chinese bought it was pretty minimal, enough to build a perfectly decent car for the Chinese market, but hardly comparable to the design resources of the giant manufacturers.

    There is a market for cheap and cheerful products, think of the Eastern Bloc products of the 70s, or the early Korean cars, but the MG6 does rather fall between 2 stools, not cheap enough to smash a hole in the market, not distinctive enough to command a premium price (in the way JLR can do).

    There’s nothing wrong with it, but then there’s nothing much wrong with a lot of poor selling cars on the market, as general competency isn’t enough nowadays.

  138. @158 I wouldn’t underestimate the talent that was at MGR,it. Was world class-the only canstraint was money and cashflow the k series,the derv engine being developed rated better than BMW’s,the VVC system all quite ingenious given the smll resources-the pot must have been full of ideas.

  139. It’s the engineers I feel sorry for – working their whatevers off, only to be squandered by the marketing team.

  140. I would say the MG tuning of the Rover range, the RWD re-engineering of the 75 platform, the fitting of the Ford V8, the MG XPower SV were all innovations made on a shoestring.

    If MGR had an unlimited budget, the engineering talent would have produced some absolute worldbeating crackers!

  141. REF TO WILL M.
    YES MGR HAD A SHOESTRING BUDGET AND THATS WHY THERE IS A FANTASTIC OPPERTUNITY FOR JAGUAR LAND ROVER TO BRING BACK THE ROVER MARQUE IT WILL BE PROPERLY FUNDED AND I AM SURE THE QUALITY WOULD BE THERE TO RESTORE ROVER BACK TO WHAT IT SHOULD OF BEEN TO SIT UNDER JAGUAR AND COMPLAMENT LAND ROVER MODELS.AS FOR MG I JUST DO NOT TRUST SAIC.

  142. @152

    “Shame is they’re not listening”

    Keith why are they not listening? You know these guys at MG, I have never met them. I guess you’ve told them about the immense passion in these threads about seeing the MG name pull itself out of the current sinking sand?

    One or two of them must have glanced in here to see what the fuss is about and maybe one or two have sat back on their big marketing chairs and said “I don’t know, maybe we could do this or that”

    Currently the marketing has been akin to a 5th form school project – although I’ve seen many school magazines or wall collages with more effort and thought gone into them than the current ‘campaign’ (sorry, bad choice of words for the dribble of advertising currently produced).

    Are they skint, not up to the job or just under strict orders from China to keep a lid on things? Or do their new masters not understand anything at all about selling into the UK market and have the Longbridge team tied up in the back of the flight shed somewhere?

  143. “I would say the MG tuning of the Rover range, the RWD re-engineering of the 75 platform, the fitting of the Ford V8, the MG XPower SV were all innovations made on a shoestring.
    If MGR had an unlimited budget, the engineering talent would have produced some absolute worldbeating crackers!”

    Agreed, without a shadow of a doubt – the MGF, for example, was class-leading when introduced back in 1995, and the entire car was probably developed for the same amount of money that VW would spend developing yet another pointless damped grabhandle. With real cash behind it, MGR could have been world leaders with the engineering talent they had (and still have). Look at how good they made the MGZS from the less than inspiring base of the Rover 400.

  144. 159″ I wouldn’t underestimate the talent that was at MGR,it. Was world class-the only canstraint was money and cashflow the k series,the derv engine being developed rated better than BMW’s,the VVC system all quite ingenious given the smll resources-the pot must have been full of ideas.”

    But how much of that Rover Group talent went to MGR? Land Rover kept Gaydon and presumably most of the engineering resource. Many of the people who developed the L series diesel probably went on to work on the JLR/Ford/PSA V6 and V8 diesels.

    Further, when MGR went under I imagine many people were quickly snapped by by Jaguar Land Rover, Ford, Nissan, F1 teams etc

  145. Indeed, look how good they made the 400 (especially the saloon) from the even-less inspiring base of the Honda Domani!

  146. Sad, but not surprising. The Chinese, despite all the talk of them being “market-driven Communists” and all, don’t know what it takes to sell in a consumer, free society. And said free society inherently doesn’t trust newcomers, especially when they feel their products somehow lack “authenticity.”
    The MG6 (stupid name) isn’t hampered by the car it is, but by the car that it is not. It is not a “true” MG in the public’s mind. It is inherently unsafe because it’s Chinese. It’s cheap for the same reason, and on and on.
    Before sales started, the MG marketing and communications folks needed to prep the market for the arrival of this car, and the reinstatement of the MG brand. They didn’t, for whatever reason. (Probably no money form their masters.) Now they have to reap the consequences of being so shortsighted.
    This is a case where well-aimed humor designed to allay fears would have been very helpful. Where top-notch crash numbers were absolutely crucial. And where guerrilla marketing would have been very helpful in getting people talking about MG.
    They can pull it out, but every month that sales are poor, customer’s biases are reinforced. To them, this is proof the MG6 is a bad car.

  147. @160
    i dont feel sorry for the engineers at all they still get paid ,you need to feel sorry for the manufacturing associates that have been working there asses off at weekends in garden centres and shopping centres to sell cars what the marketing people should be doing for no extra pay just accrued hrs and are now laid off next week so another week without production shameful.

  148. hi all went on a memory lane drive today to see the longbridge plant ,what a shame so much has disappeared and made a point to see the knocking down of the once famous flightshed which i believed but obviously mistaken was to be listed.driving past Q gate it was noticeable the mg 6 s were all covered up on the multi storey car park what used to be , there was a big MG sign engineered in uk and built in britian should have read 80% in china and an engine refit in uk and a few bits ,sadly the amount of land that has been given up and the buildings that remain if people out there think volume production is going to return there then i would beg to differ. a once mighty manufacturing base reduced to a chinese playground .the new housing estates being built will surely love the idea of big mg signs and mg6 banners being visible from there kitchen windows .the whole set up just dont read write hopefully im wrong but go look yourself and tell me different if you can . SHAME

  149. @167 this consumer,free(do you really believe that)society is now reaping the whirlwind of recession due to suicidal borrowing and the chinese know it,just be careful,one day all any of us could afford will be a chinese car!

  150. @doodle

    Those houses sound like the type that are built by developers with addresses in the Cayman islands, to house employees who work for US multinationals, drive German cars, drink Belgian beer and sit on Swedish furniture.

    Says it all about UK manufacturing unfortunately!

  151. @170

    There’s a mock Hyundai advert on sniffpetrol.com that pretty much concurs with what you are saying there….

  152. Good God!! I’m almost lost for words…almost.

    A lack of diesel option or other derivatives does not explain a monthly sales figure of only seven cars. The limited dealer network and total lack of advertising (apart from the short lived TV commercial) is the reason sales are so incredibly low. How can you possibly expect to sell something to people, expect them to want something, if they don’t actually know it exists??
    There have been many dubious strategies, management decisions in the past but SAIC/MG UK have entered a different league, one of mind blowing failure, seeming incompetence!!
    Just why oh why can nobody get it right?

  153. Post 128 Will M:

    ” Indeed, BMW…..are as anti-British as you can get… ”

    Sorry, but the “cobblers filter” picked this one up!

    The number of people employed by BMW building MINI’s in Cowley, body pressings in Swindon, engines (for both BMW’s and MINI’s) in Hamms Hall, along with Rolls Royce’s in Goodwood, completely dwarfs the gesture effort to complete final assembly of SAIC built cars in Longbridge!

    A lot of people say that the failure is down to lack of publicity. But what would the publicity have to say? That this is a slightly dated car, with a irrelevant engine (by modern standards), with highly dubious resale and service support, from a Chinese manufacturer with an odd choice of badge- one that has been used to resurrect many uncompetitive and aging models since the 1970’s (Z cars aside)? All this for a bargain price of… hang on a minute, it isn’t even cheap enough to compete with the likes of Skoda, let alone it’s more natural competition at Kia and Hydundai.

  154. Thinking back to summer when I visited Graham Walker in Chester. I had quite a chat in the showroom. I was told something like 300 orders had been placed which seemed odd given my zero sightings. Also, as I left his parting comment was “spread the word”. Basically he was saying ” Help! I’m getting no promotional support.”

    I subsequently made two enquiries to Graham Walker about working, being involved in, the MG re-launch. No bloody wonder I never got a reply!!!

  155. Post 15 Marty B:

    ” MG was bought for one reason only. The technology. They saw it as a cheap way of getting a range of cars, with very little development costs. Chinese are using us, to try and develop a car industry, but unfortunately, they got the motoring equivalent of a 15 year old Labrador with a gammy leg & weak bladder.

    I may be wrong on this, but I have a very nasty feeling the R&D centre at Longbridge is a poorly disguised training centre for the Chinese, where they simply steal ideas for back home, and once they get what they want, its bye bye. Chinese industry works like that. Get as much as you can, preferably by copying, then hide behind the weak Chinese copyright law. I have a feeling Volvo will suffer the same fate too under Geely control. ”

    How true!

    Once they have bled the skills that they need, why would they want a relatively expensive and remote R&D facility in Europe?

    It reminds me of a quote from Honda, long after the fruitful partnerships of the 80’s and early 90’s when, I believe, they told a struggling Rover (looking for further co-operation) that “there was nothing that you can now teach us about building cars”.

  156. True. Nobody has been interested in re-building the company, forming an independent, successful car maker. They’ve all just taken what they wanted and left…..

  157. 151 – Apologies if I have upset anyone on this website. I will admit I do not like the MG6, and no I have not driven one although I have sat in one and was not impressed. I do not think it is a bad car per se, it is just inferior when viewed against the competition in the same price bracket. As such my view is that it will struggle to sell regardless of the marketing strategy. Drop the price by £2,000, chuck in a diesel, give it a big advertising campaign, and I am sure it will give the Cee’d a run for it’s money.

    I am sorry if this view is offensive, but if I was in a minority surely this car would be flying out of the showroom.

    Sorry about my MG vauxhall comments as well, I thought it was quite a good idea but obviously this has also caused offence.

  158. “I will admit I do not like the MG6”

    I think one or two of us have noticed that 🙂

    “Sorry about my MG vauxhall comments as well, I thought it was quite a good idea but obviously this has also caused offence.”

    I’m not sure it’s really caused offence. Personally i can’t see it ever happening or any reason for Vauxhall (aka GM) to use the brand.

    I think chassis dynamics are a big factor here. I mean in 1959 BMC launched a car which leaked so badly your trousers wicked up the water, it had odd ball styling, a bizarre engine installation and a terrible driving position. Handled better than anything else on the road though, the things flew out of the showrooms with a bit of publicity.

    Thing with the MG6, it might actually be worth knocking them out cheap as a loss leader, just to get them visible and out on the road.

  159. 180 – I agree, price is a key issue here. I can accept that the MG6 may be nothing more than a bridgehead, until the next generation of GM platform based cars are ready, but SAIC need to be realistic about how they pitch the car. Whilst the 6 may have good dynamics (have not driven so I cannot comment), it is not a BMW competitor yet. Rather, SAIC, should compete with Hyundai and Kia until they have reestablished the brand in the UK.

    Keener prices, better publicity, and most importantly a diesel engine would I believe (and this is only my opinion) help to turn sales around. There is quite a bit that they could learn from VWs management of yhe Skoda brand. As VW started with improving the quality of the Favorit, before launching the more competent but still keenly priced Felicia and Octavia. And of course it also takes time to rebuild the brand, as Skoda is now.synomous with value and quality, and is no longer the butt of jokes.

  160. just had a thought about my trip down memory lane yesterday.i wouldnt be surprised if the chinese by these houses around longbridge for there own workforce JUST A THOUGHT

  161. If this car were an ailment, it would be a mouth ulcer. Hard to shift, unpleasant to encounter and worse to look at. The glorification of Communist tat such as this on this website is truly puzzling.

  162. 183 Hugh – even I think your assessment is a little harsh. The GT6 is not ‘unpleasant to look at’, it has quite reasonable proportions and in the right colour it looks almost germanic. It’s biggest problem is the competition is.very strong, and it is further hindered by it’s price, lack of diesel engine and minimal advertising.

    Neither do I think this website glorifies the car, Keith and team present a balanced and impartial view, and without this site and their input we would not know anything about MG or it’s new product range. China is the major force in manufacturing, and I am pretty certain you would have used a chinese product to submit your comments. This webpage demonstrates democracy in action, as there are those who like the 6 (imcluding Keith), and a number who hold similar views to mine, i.e. that the 6 is the wrong car for the UK.

    Long may this website continue to provide such well written articles, and stimulatr.such vigourous debate.

  163. Hugh 183 – Needlessly and excessively harsh. Even if you don’t personally like the MG6 it is hardly unpleasant. In fact, PLEASANT, is the least complimentary description I can think of. The Communist tat comment fails to see the bigger picture.

    Ian Langfield 185 – Well replied, sir!!

  164. “I am pretty certain you would have used a chinese product to submit your comments.”

    Indeed, my Panasonic Laptop is in the minority having “Made in Japan” on the bottom of it, but i expect most of the guts are sourced from China then just assembled in Japan. Actually i’m surprised the car industry hasn’t done that sooner!

  165. @168 – Excalibur: Can you tell us a bit more about the situation for the assembly bods please? I know they were being used to punt the car outside TK Maxx and the like but how long have they been laid off for? When were the last cars actually built?

    Merry F**cking Xmas, eh?

  166. Well well well as a Mg6 owner some of these comments are offensive, inacurate, misguided and simply wrong. Ive done 4500 miles in mine and its reliable , well made, superb value, great to drive and the comments from people who have seen it have all been very positive especially regarding the front end styling. It does 35 mpg round town and for a car of its size I think thats very good. My advice to you lot is not to comment on something you dont know about why do you not ask the owners?
    Next year when the Mg6 diesel comes out and the Mg3 Im sure it will be a different story and if their future products are as good as the Mg6 Mg motor and SAIC have a very bright future in front of them.
    As for this hatred some of you have against the chinese I find that very worrying you must remember the British had their chance at running Mg (and Rover) and made a complete mess of it!

  167. Again, not many are having a pop at the car, it’s the apathy coming from MG themselves to actually selling the thing that stinks. When did you last see a TV advert for it? Hell even mention in the press? Sorry but a few posters and a walkway at Birmingham International Airport do not count as an effective marketing strategy.

    OK they may have 8000 ‘fans’ on the Facebook page, but how many of those 8000 have taken an interest let alone posted anything on there? A very small proportion, and most of the recent comments have been about lack of advertising!

    MG UK need to pull their socks up and actually do their job. Sitting on Facebook all day trying to flog a few cars must be a cushy number is sales and marketing these days…

  168. @168 Excalibur: Are you on the line at Longbridge? I’m interested in what you said there about the lay-offs. First i’ve heard. Can you tell us any more – have there been lay-offs before? When where cars last produced there?

  169. @ Rob b not sure why your worried about what it will be worth after 3 years if you havent even got one? whatever it will be worth I’ve all ready saved £8000 by NOT buying the more expencive Golf, Focus or Astra.

  170. “@ Rob b not sure why your worried about what it will be worth after 3 years if you havent even got one? ”

    A lot of people buy cars when they’re 3 years old and the bulk of the depreciation has been used up. Frankly not everyone can afford a brand new car.

  171. Why do people keep blowing off about residuals?as soon as you buy it its lost money swallow it,if its a company car the firm takes the pill- so what? if its your own private money -then spin the wheel take the deal,what are you moaning about?residuals is a non argument at this price bracket-ive said before a £27k insignia elite fully loaded bought for just 8k after three years if that was my car i was selling id be hurt,never mind anyone else.The car is cheap and a good one at that ok its no audi and some of them with nothing in them cost this much and it will be no A4 either.

  172. i have requsted many times on mg website for a brochure
    and still waiting.if this is how they look after potentional buyers whats the point.its as if they dont want to sell cars

  173. @194
    the manufacturing associates who build the cars have worked weekends to sell the mg 6 at various places of which they have had to bank there hours.As sales are slow this gives saic the opportunity to repay the guys the hrs.i do not work at longbridge but i speak to current employees who do and at this time they say they arent building at this time

  174. Why do people keep asking about residuals? Maybe because they don’t want to loose so much money they may as well just burn it! OK Evans saved £8000 over buying a Focus or an Astra, will he still save that £8000 when he comes to sell when lets say after 3 years he’s offered £2000 for it in PX where mr Focus owner would be offered £10,000 for his 3 year old car, that £8000 saving is right out of the window.

    Yes cars take a hit as soon as your name is on the logbook, but some take a bigger hit than others, but this is still an unknown for the 6. Is it going to keep its value like the VW, Ford or Vauxhall, or is it going to follow the Lada, Yugo and Skoda Estelle where it’ll be worth a packet of crisps after 24 months? Nobody is going to know for sure for a couple more years, but I suppose those that keep a tight hold of the purse strings may not be willing to take that risk just yet.

  175. Residuals will be shocking for this car. Historically, MG Rover values have always been rocky. If there’s no demand for it new, used values will be set accordingly.

    I have a brochure for the MG6 Magnette. A dreary affair.

  176. 203 – Good luck to you, sir. It is good to hear from an owner at last, and I am pleased to hear that you are happy with your choice of vehicle. It would be interesting to have regular updates on your experience, particularly in relation to servicing and maintenance.

  177. Thank you Ian 204 I try not to read these forums due to the lies some people spread I just felt as an owner I should say something.

  178. Hi Evans,

    Would be interested to keep in touch and see how you get on running the car. I’m keen that the car gets a fair ride in the media – so some first hand real world experiences are always valued 🙂

    Regards
    Keith

  179. @175 John:
    ‘Post 128 Will M:

    ” Indeed, BMW…..are as anti-British as you can get… ”

    Sorry, but the “cobblers filter” picked this one up!

    The number of people employed by BMW building MINI’s in Cowley, body pressings in Swindon, engines (for both BMW’s and MINI’s) in Hamms Hall, along with Rolls Royce’s in Goodwood, completely dwarfs the gesture effort to complete final assembly of SAIC built cars in Longbridge!’

    A couple of offshoot companies they picked up the naming rights for, but where are the 116i/316i/X5s that pollute the suburbs developed and built?

    The company that ran the indigenous mainstream car manufacturing base of the UK into the ground?
    (Something they have form for, cf. Goggomobil, SauberF1)

    Using your argument, having a Wuling Xingwang is the same as buying an MG6. They’re part of the same parent company.

  180. @210 Rob B

    Good point.
    Like the last supper of a condemned man.

    Similar to GM developing the 9-5 for Saab, then leaving them out to dry.
    I can see GM products becoming very unfashionable in some Scandinavian countries.

  181. If ever the chinese ever take some of the above comments as a snapshot of british attitudes,I wouldn’t blame them if they said balls to these people let’s shut shop-all they do is moan.Its liking bemoaning rover while buying a BMW it must be a british desease.

  182. @ 212
    if the chinese took away the majority of these comments they may well be pleasantly surprised just how many people like the mg6 but are totally against there ideas or ways of promoting the product , if they shut up shop it will be on there own head not what mere minions like us say on this website and to be fair with there current attempt at the MG brand they might just as well INSTEAD OF TAKING THE WOTEVER

  183. When the mg b was launched,did people say not another sports car,we want a saloon like a magnette,oh and it hasn’t got a diesel!!
    I think diesel is on the way out,look at the price !!!.
    I traded a 75 diesel for the MG 6,saved a fortune in fuel costs.10p cheaper a litre petrol is now.

  184. People think diesel is the be all and end all-ok if you dispose of yor car after 3years of motorway work,then when the DPF clogs up(over 45g of soot its finished)and injectors fail etc. The petrol engine is far easier to keep clean and maintain by a country mile.

  185. Will M 209:

    ” A couple of offshoot companies they picked up the naming rights for, but where are the 116i/316i/X5s that pollute the suburbs developed and built?

    The company that ran the indigenous mainstream car manufacturing base of the UK into the ground?
    (Something they have form for, cf. Goggomobil, SauberF1)

    Using your argument, having a Wuling Xingwang is the same as buying an MG6. They’re part of the same parent company. ”

    Unfortunately, I can’t understand most of what you’ve written. However, you may be interested to know that the engines for the 116i and the 316i’s will have been built at Hamms Hall, in Birmingham. Meanwhile, the MG6’s engine is entirely Chinese in origin. In fact, the 116i and the 316i are likely to have a much larger British content than the MG!

    Don’t ask me to justify the X5 though!

  186. Infact, while we’re at it, here’ some more information about Hamms Hall:

    * It is a £400 million engine plant.
    * It employs around 1000 staff.
    * It is the centre for all 4 cylinder petrol engine production for BMW Group worldwide.
    * 372,000 engines produced in 2008.
    * Supplier of engines for BMW 1 Series, 3 Series, 5 series, Z4 Roadster and X3 model ranges and supplies engines to MINI Plant Oxford.

    And that’s just one plant. BMW’s total pay roll in the UK is 8,000 staff, excluding the 11,000 in their dealer network.

    Why, on a site dedicated to British built cars, do we hear so much about MG branded SAIC cars? Heck, not even the badges are made here!

  187. Hams Hall was partially designed as a replacement for the Longbridge engine plant, and the engine (used in the 1, 3 etc) is the replacement for the K series, which presumably BMW weren’t happy with, though it doesn’t explain why the HGF problems weren’t resolved properly in the meantime.

    Did Rover have any input into this design, which would have been used in R30 and presumably the 75?

  188. Really pleased to hear about the extra investment and production at Hamms Hall, especially that their diesels will be coming from there too.

    I couldn’t imagine BMW willingly allowing their engines to be placed in SAIC products and I can’t imagine SAIC paying the price of a modern, high quality, UK built engine either. Now, if they could pick up a cast off diesel design, complete with a used production line from a bankrupt European company very cheaply, then ship it all back to China for low cost manufacture and assembly…

  189. 207 – great idea, Keith. This will provide some context to the ongoing discussion, and may help persuade those of us who are a little sceptical.

  190. Dennis:

    ” Rover badges were made in France. ”

    Amusing, although much of what it was attached to was made in the UK!

    As a matter of interest, can anyone tell me of just one single component of the MG6 that’s made in the UK?

  191. @ 228 I’m not sure about that, I think that they may arrive already fitted to the wheels with air in them. The loo roll in the worker’s toilet might (possibly) be from the UK….

  192. SAIC have diesel engines ready for the MG6, Autocar hve reported MG6 diesels under test at Longbridge, the Maxus van will get new diesels as well.

    According to stats 1,944 MG 6 were sold in China in Nov making a total of 24,130 for year so far, interestingly 2189 MG3 were sold in Nov making 20,043 so far wich isn’t bad for a car recently launched.

    The pro MG websites state thast the problem with UK stats is that the MG6 is being registered under different names ie MG, MG Motor, Magnette amongst others.

  193. If that were the case Brian, you would have thought MG would be quick to point this out when it’s banded about on their Facebook page, rather than just say matters are in hand. I’ll go with the SMMT figures still.

  194. “@225 ive got hand it to you dennis,you are a mine of information!”

    Yep, good at retaining useless information! Although i found it quite amusing when i bought a couple of badges for my tool box once and the the packets came with ‘made in France’ on them. When i mentioned it to the parts bloke, he confirmed they all had that on them.

  195. The major issues with the car are as I see it, it looks cheap, it’s over priced and is Chinese.

    What company is going to gamble that sort of money on a fleet car from an unproven manufacturer with a failed UK brand badge tacked to the front?
    There will be few private buyers willing to make the same commitment either.
    Being typically British were sentimental old duffers when we see an MG octagon, but it isn’t is it really? And that is where it fails. Were not falling for a cheap Chinese car with an MG badge on the front. Sorry.
    Cut me in half and it says British Leyland, but the joke is wearing thin now.

  196. 231 – Brian, I think those websites are pissing in the wind; I’ll stick with the SMMT figures.

    215 – Excalibur: So at least 7 weeks with no production? Have they been laid off with no / reduced pay? That’s dreadful if they have, especially at this time of year.

  197. @236
    i wouldnt be surprised in the new year with the time consuming intrduction of the diesel and poor sales of the 6 that the chinese dont refer to the way other car manufacturers do and reduce the workforce to a smaller core team and then make the rest temporary staff i hope not .

  198. 237. Ah right, well that’s not the worst news. How many hours do they have to put in at w/ends though?

    Do you know when they stopped production, Excalibur?

    238. How many people actually work on the line at LB now? Cn’t be that many.

  199. Hang on, they’re using production line staff to do sales? Due respect to the folk in question, but do they know how to sell? Or are they about as good at marketing as the their sales managers?

  200. @241 – The production line staff get to man the stand when MG dump a 6 festooned in balloons outside a shopping centre for the weekend. From what I can make out it’s in order to work their hours in lieu of making cars.

    It might be piss poor from a marketing standpoint but from the staffers point of view, it’s got to be better than being laid off especially right before Christmas.

  201. Although you’ve got to question the wisdom of MG trying to sell cars to punters who will no doubt be in those shopping centres spending their savings on Christmas gifts for their loved ones, not looking for a change of motor…

  202. Not even the useless marketing department at Longbridge would dare blame the production bods for their abject failure to publicise the car.

    The guys on the line are a victim of cirmcumstance and the failure to market the car in any effective way. It goes without saying that if nobody knows about the car, nobody will buy one and they won’t need to make any. I’m not sure that placing a few in Midlands shopping centres is really going to raise brand awareness.

    It reminds me, now I think of it, of when Kia were about to launch the C’eed. They had one in, I think, the Bullring. It was completely debadged down to the engine bay plastic mouldings, and they were asking people to guess what it was. You could climb in it, give it a good poke and feel. I had a chat with the guys running the promotion and the majority had said either Ford or Toyota. They gave a couple of cars away at the end of the promotion too.

    I wonder what answers the MG would get if you debadged it and asked the same question?

  203. The Mitsubishi Lancer has a 2.0 VW TDi engine.

    Perhaps if SAIC can licence it, it would give the MG6 the selling point that it needs, and fleets would jump for it!

  204. So far, I have never seen an MG6, but…..

    The latest edition of Professional Engineer magazine, the publication of the Institution of Machancial Engineers has an advert running by MG/SAIC.

    They are looking to recruit development engineers – body in white, transmission, engine, electronics, stress experts, testing, etc, etc and it appears they are looking for a lot of people. Posts to be based in Birmingham, so presumably this will be at the plant in the previously publisised new development unit.

    There might be life in the old dog yet.

  205. There are loads of apparent marketing experts reading this site. And they all seem to know the MG6 is a good car and a the marketing is a cockup. But I stopped reading them all. If only 2 percent of these ‘experts’ put their money where their mouth is, MG would at least double the sales of the MG6.
    Of course that’s a joke, but many of the above replies make me think of how Rover and all that went before it, took similar bashings, and we all know where that ended.

  206. You don’t have to be a marketing expert to know that not marketing a car isn’t going to go a long way to sell the cars…

  207. Mind you, I wouldn’t buy one as a) I can’t as they don’t sell them here, and b) I think the looks are way off the mark. My opinion only, but I don’t like the shape, the headlights look weird, in profile it’s too much metal and not enough glass, and the wheels look too small.

  208. @240
    @241
    they havent built for a few wks now and like mr carling i find it hard to believe they have enough knowledge to put a complete sales pitch to the public bearing in mind that 80% per cent of the vehicle is assembled in china and the majority of them were mgtf employees with no new model experience .

  209. my apologies to all on this website when it looks that all i write about is negativity. i have a distinct interest in mg . i worked there for 31yrs and as i said a lot of the people who work there are neighbours and friends and i believe they deserve an absolute standing ovation with what they have had to put up with .good luck lads and lasses

  210. From that Scotsman review

    “Today’s Magnette is sold with a fastback or saloon body. I tried the latter. The badge says MG6 which could make one think it had a six cylinder engine, but it is a 1.8 turbocharged four cylinder,”

    Magnette is the saloon, GT is the fastback.
    I bet he gets confused when he drives a 4 cylinder Audi A6 or a Mazda 6.
    He drives a Citroen C8 and thinks it’s very slow for a V8.

  211. @249 – I have written to a number of MG dealers to offer my services as a ‘marketing expert’ who just happens to love cars and MG’s. To date I have received not one reply or telephone call despite numerous attempts. This was despite my initial chat being free.

    Disappointing really as i’d hoped to get more involved.

  212. In defence of the production staff being used to sell, I took a test drive with one of them a few months ago, and he was VERY well informed (much more so than any salesman), knew all the details, and was friendly and un-pushy too. OK so i’m an enthusiast and like that kind of detail.
    In my opinion a 3 year interest free finance deal would go a long way to convincing me to buy as I run cars on a car allowance and don’t take too much notice of depreciation, all my cars do so many miles they are worth little after 3 years.

  213. 259 – Agree, Skoda offered a similar deal when they introduced the Felicia. It was enough to tempt me into a brand with a questionable image (much like MG), and from the numbers of Felicias that you saw in the late 90’s it obviously appealed to many others as well.

  214. I would wonder how much an interest free facility would cost SAIC.

    Banks would normally look for suffiecient residual value in the vehicle to offset losses should the buyer default. With extremely shaky and unpredictable used values, they would need to charge a high rate of interest to SAIC to make their risk worthwhile.

  215. 261 – Surely, this is all about risk management. SAIC can’t make am omlette without breaking some eggs.

    Maybe an egg custard for afters.

    If they took the risk, them their actioms may actually improve residuals.

  216. @Joe Strong – December 14, 2011

    In defence of the production staff being used to sell, I took a test drive with one of them a few months ago, and he was VERY well informed (much more so than any salesman), knew all the details, and was friendly and un-pushy too. OK so i’m an enthusiast and like that kind of detail.
    ————————————————————-
    You make an excellent point Joe.
    And once again, the marketing team fail to capitalise.
    ‘At Aston martin, the lead craftsman signs the engine, at MGUK,He’d like to meet you first’
    ‘Come and meet the man who’ll build the best car you’ll ever own at………….’

    It’s easy to put a positive spin on what MGUK will allow to become a negative event, an early 20s marketing graduate could do better than the ‘so called’ industry veterans at Longbridge.

    Take inspiration from the DDB VW Beetle campaigns from the sixties in the US, the guys tasked with ‘Selling a Nazi Car in a Jewish Town’, the ‘Think Small’ and ‘Ugly Is Only Skin Deep’ they were marketing masterpieces.

    What do we get from Longbridge?
    ‘Say Fuck All’s The Best’

    Press releases cost next to nothing at all and I can think of at least one motoring journalist associated with a ‘firm’ forum’ (NOT KEITH) who exemplifys the lazy ‘copy and paste’ school of journalism that seems to afflict the automotive sector.

    MGUK PR and Marketing, be damned to hell for destroying the last chance for the MG marque.

    Shit or get off the pot.

  217. True, looks like this blog is online for 300 responses. Surely, given this depth of feeling from enthusiasts, MGUK can’t afford to continue to ignore the need for a concerted advertising campaign.

  218. Having just read news today that Chinese car maker Geely are now targetting the UK with their new model also but starting price around £10k perhaps this is a better way into a market where there is not much money for Joe Bloggs to spend on ever more expensive new models from the likes of Hyundai and Kia, now almost similar to major players. MG I predicted would fail due to lack of marketing and dealer activity, indeed my local dealer in Stirling(30Miles) has a multi franchise site, but 1 MG sitting forelornely sitting outside, no price, no window banners no local paper adverts what do the chinese owners think they are doing? I am sure that they are good practical value for money cars but for market penetration they need to push on price and marketing. If not then the future model line up we hear off will fail before they have reached Europe. What they seriously should have done was to concentrate on the brand image, sports 2 seater, sports hatch and raceing, to quickly win back their fanbase, then once they start being seen on the streets they can react to customer wants. I want it to succeed but fear it wont. I will drive one around for free to help promote the brand if that helps???

  219. The geely elgrand is coming to the uk with a five year 100k warranty,Manganese bronze holding will have 40 dealers-they need not worry about honouring the warranties because the tight Fisted pensioner would probably died before its first service was due.

  220. The 5th gear web roadtest on you tube complained that the throttle was a little sharp. Is this not adjustable?

    Also, as it wasn’t a diesel and got less than 30mpg, they wouldn’t recommend it.

  221. Is this the ultimate twist in the cruel saga of our former national carmaker? Maybe if this car was advertised better, they got the former Rover dealers on board to sell it and there wasn’t such huge gaps in the dealer network, then the MG6 would do a lot better.
    However, introducing a car into the family market without a turbodiesel, giving it a name that would assume it had a six cylinder engine like an Audi A6, and having only one, rather thirsty engine option with a speed limiter was never going to be a great move. It’s not a bad car to look at, the pricing is reasonable and it drives well, but the MG6 is doomed unless it has a bigger range of engines and better promotion.

  222. Still think the MG Vauxhall concept is a good model. Maybe, SAIC could use this as a trojan horse to build up confidence in the MG name, until it’s new range of GM platform MGs is ready to launch in the UK. It may also make sense to use the already established Vauxhall network. Two great british car companies could come together to create something very special.

  223. November/December car sales in a Recession…..Of course it`s going to be bad! Especially so for Large Cars!
    Lets look forward and be positive!
    The New MG3 is where the future is!
    Its time to give Jeremy Clarkson the NEW MG3 now!
    In these difficult times people are demanding a New value for money,small,reliable efficient car with a bit of Wow and Feel Good Factor…….MG3…with lots of clever options and extras(as on the concept version)…Yes Please!
    If it`s as good as we all hope it is then MG Motor UK is gong to flourish!

  224. hi, guys,i am from China, and I’m own MG6. Maybe I don’t know why MG have 7 sold in Nov, but I just want to say:MG6 is good car, and I love MG, I know some history about MG brand.
    I’am not sense, I just konw:I like MG,so I like MG6

  225. Second in ARonline car of the year, 100 sold to Avis, maybe the tide is beginning to turn for the plucky little british firm.

    Here’s to 2012, and the beginning of the fight back.

  226. Once the diesel model is introduced the advertising campaign
    should take off. Good luck to all the British workers involved and thanks for producing such a nice car.

  227. I wonder if SIAC thought that MG had such a loyal following in the UK that they could just put it on sale and hoards of UK MG fans would buy them in droves..?

  228. it all went wrong when the police forces stopped having to buy british ,post ofice used to keep commer / morris in work ,children folloewd there parants into jobs . now anyone with money buy german cars ,and then cannot under stand why there are no jobs ,,if i had money to buy a car of the size of the [ M G ] i would buy one made in derby / sunderland / swindon , with more british imput ,

  229. I think that Saic have to do an agreement with another motor company for diesel engine: for th european market it’s an obligation get a diesel model, even the mercedes, the bmw and the Audi luxury model have got diesel

  230. @ Ianto, the Police in Tunbridge Wells use Skodas. Nothing wrong with Skodas per se, but imagine suggesting that even 15 years ago!

  231. It’s so sad to think that, when MG Rover was building largely British MG’s and Rovers, they collapsed when they were employing 6,500 people and building 10,000 cars a month. and that figure was substantially down on what was needed to make the factory pay.

  232. Sorry, I’m a bit late to this party.

    I’m a little disturbed that the advert shown in 195 used a song by Bjork called ‘Play Dead’…

    That just seems to sum up the attitude of the MG marketing department…

  233. The cars are merely sent over as kits from China where all we do is assemble them here in Blighty, and with the Chinese way for building down to a price (and a cheap ome at that), and keeping costs low with poor quality plastics fabrics and materials etc and along with indifferent performance that doesn’t appeal plus boring plain Jane interiors is it any wonder the public are voting with their feet in search of better cars from other manufacturers?

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