Send to a friendPaul In Jersey February 5th, 2008 9:52 AM Link
“If we launch the product on the UK market and don’t have sufficient quality to meet customers’ expectations, we damage the brand.”
Gee, that never stopped Alfa-Romeo, Fiat, MG or Triumph in the past.
MG’s Chinese Owners Preparing to Relaunch the TF
Written By: Seyth Miersma
New owners of the MG nameplate and its former factory in Longbridge, UK, China’s Shanghai Automotive (SAIC), are looking to resume production of the MG TF roadster in both China and Great Britain.
SAIC would like to begin producing the MG as soon as this May in its Nanjing facility, but has already admitted that to be a best case scenario. The Chinese automaker has thus far struggled with quality issues, as well as rebuilding old MG tooling that came with the purchase of the former MG Rover last December.
(Click through the jump to read on.)
While the TF had a relatively loyal following in the UK, SAIC knows that launching a sub-standard product onto the European market could irrevocably damage its credibility with buyers.
Said Chen Hong, SIAC’s president, “If we launch the product on the UK market and don’t have sufficient quality to meet customers’ expectations, we damage the brand.”
The new MG is also said to be considering a lineup of at least three new models, with a hopeful production date of 2010. Among the new cars would be a replacement for the TF.
+ Financial Times: MG roadster poised to return
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10 Comments
Bob February 5th, 2008 9:58 AM Link
Reliability is exactly what everyone thinks of when they think about old English sports cars.
I’d think more people would be upset that it doesn’t carry over any of the distinct styling of the old tf. they’d be better calling it the MGC at least after the MGB fans would except the more generic small roadster design
Russ Bellinis February 5th, 2008 11:46 AM Link
Wasn’t the car originally marketed by MG as the MGF? I’ve never seen one since they never imported them to the US, but I remember reading about them in a British mag at a Borders news stand and found it interresting that there was an article in the mag about how nice the car was and then a letter to the editor in the back of the same issue complaining the this owner’s car was an evil handling beast, mainly because the suspension had not been adjusted correctly (set up) from the factory. The letter writer’s frustration was with the fact that he was unable to find a MG dealer in the UKat the time of writing who had a clue about how to set up the car’s suspension. Sounds like nothing had changed in the British car industry even after BMW took over the brand!
Corco16446 February 5th, 2008 11:51 AM Link
All hail the old Qvale Mangusta! Good to have it back
Corco16446 February 5th, 2008 11:52 AM Link
I failed
Winding Road » Archive » Karmann Looks to China for Fiscal Salvation February 8th, 2008 1:02 PM Link
[…] the owner of the assets from two European manufacturers (MG and Rover), the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) may be in talks to help save […]
Winding Road » Archive » Karmann Looks to China for Fiscal Salvation February 8th, 2008 1:02 PM Link
[…] the owner of the assets from two European manufacturers (MG and Rover), the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) may be in talks to help save […]
Winding Road » Archive » Karmann Looks to China for Fiscal Salvation February 8th, 2008 1:02 PM Link
[…] the owner of the assets from two European manufacturers (MG and Rover), the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) may be in talks to help save […]
Winding Road » Archive » Karmann Looks to China for Fiscal Salvation February 8th, 2008 1:02 PM Link
[…] the owner of the assets from two European manufacturers (MG and Rover), the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) may be in talks to help save […]
Winding Road » Archive » Shanghai Turns Out an Astounishing Death to Accident Ratio February 27th, 2008 12:30 PM Link
[…] not sure if this is a condemnation of Chinese car quality, but 9,132 accidents were reported in Shanghai last year, resulting in a horrifying 1,699 […]
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