Fancy a drive of the new LE500 MG TF before anyone else? You can do thanks to a new auction setup in aid of the Chinese earthquake victims.

Leading motor industry companies have got together to raise money for the relief effort supporting victims of the Sichuan earthquake which killed 50,000 but left millions more vulnerable.

Led by Paul Stowe, Project Director at Shanghai LTI (a Joint Venture between London taxi maker LTI and Chinese motor group Geely), and Ashley Sutcliffe, the man behind the highly-regarded China Car Times web site, the initiative involves a charity auction conducted over the Ebay web site.

At 09.30 yesterday the auction went live with participants being asked to bid for a series of ‘priceless prizes’. “The Chinese car companies and Joint Ventures have been extremely generous to the cause – but by pooling our resources, we have managed to squeeze a little bit more out of them, and are offering the chance to bid on some truly ‘once in a lifetime opportunities’ to give even more than they already have to the Sichuan earthquake appeal”, says Paul Stowe.

On offer are the following items:

•    Two exclusive 1:18 scale models of Lifan cars (Lifan is a fast emerging car maker with its roots in one of the world’s largest motorcycle makers) – the models cannot be bought and have fully functioning features, including opening doors and working suspension

•    A month’s free advertising on China Car Times (the space normally costs $1,000) from July to August. CCT receives over 1.6 million page views a week from all over the world and is the premier English-language web site monitoring the growing Chinese automotive manufacturing sector.

•    An exclusive visit to the LTI plant in Coventry UK, home of the iconic London taxi. The offer includes a private tour of the factory, lunch, a drive in one of the latest Iconic ‘Black Cabs’ and some special merchandise.

•    Courtesy of NAC MG, a once in a lifetime opportunity to visit Longbridge, Birmingham, as it re-launches the MG brand into Europe, along with the heavily revamped MGTF sports car. Included in this offer is a drive in one of the first MG TF LE500 vehicles to be built at the newly re-opened MG factory.

•    A visit to the Lotus sports car plant in Hethel, Norfolk, UK, with a rare chance to try a range of the latest products from the world-renowned brand on the company’s own test track.

“Thanks to the generosity of three great British car companies – Lotus, MG and LTI – we are offering prizes that money cannot buy”, says Paul Stowe. “This shows that not only is British motoring alive and well in the UK, but also that the industry recognizes that its social responsibility is global – all the companies are intrinsically linked in China having either wholly owned or Joint Venture companies established there. All companies employ Chinese people and have been deeply moved by the events in Sichuan, and each has individually contributed to the Charity causes supporting the people and the families affected”.

The Chinese charity auction concludes at 09.30 am on 24 June.

Further details about the individual work done by the Chinese automotive industry are at http://www.chinacartimes.com/2008/05/19/automotive-donation-updates/ and at Paul Stowe’s own website: www.carryoncabby.blogspot.com

The relevant Ebay links for the auction are:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330244883964
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330244891023
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330244893429
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330244897166
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330244899250

MG has announced that production of the TF LE500 sportscar will commence at their Longbridge plant in Birmingham at the beginning of August, with the first cars delivered to showrooms in September.

Chairman for NAC MG UK Ltd, Mr He, Xiao Qing, said; “I am delighted to be in a position to talk about a launch date for the TF LE500 following a process of planning, re-organisation, active quality improvements and parts optimisation that we recognise resulted in frustration for our stakeholders.  We are now fully focussed on bringing our hard work to fruition.”

The new car is expected to appeal to a wide range of car buyers looking for the authentic sportscar driving experience, as well as existing small sportscar owners looking to upgrade, current owners and the large band of MG enthusiasts.

Gary Hagen, Director of Sales & Marketing continued, “The open top sportscar is an iconic image of British motoring and forms the basis of the MG marque’s long pedigree.  The launch of the TF LE500 signals our determination to keep this class of car at the heart of the brand as we take it forward.”

 

As part of their drive to deliver great value servicing and repairs to MG and Rover cars and to help you maximise both your enjoyment and peace of mind in your car, Sterling Automotive have developed this very special offer.

They fit the modified multi-layer steel head gasket, stretch bolts and more substantial lower engine oil rail which were first used in the Land Rover Freelander, wherever possible.

They believe that this repair provides substantially improved resistance to any future gasket failure and where a coolant level sensor is also fitted, early warning can ensure that the driver attends to any minor coolant leaks before it leads to overheating and a more expensive repair bill.

This not only gives you real confidence in the future reliability of your car but also leaves you knowing that your car will be maintained by an enthusiastic and knowledgeable specialist that wants to help you relax and get the most out of your car in the future.

Both SAIC and Yuejin Motor, the parent company of Nanjing Automobile Corporation (NAC) have confirmed the integrated cooperation between each other after five months’ delicate planning.

On 26th December 2007 Mr. Hu Maoyuan, Chairman of SAIC and Mr. Wang Haoliang, Chairman of Yuejin signed a cooperation agreement at the People’s Congress Hall in Beijing. Also present were Mr. Zeng peiyan, China’s Vice Prime Minister, leaders from the National Development & Reform Commission, Shanghai municipal government, Jiangsu province and Nanjing municipal government as well as the top management teams of SAIC and NAC and principals from China’s leading automakers.

According to the cooperation agreement, automotive businesses of NAC will be fully integrated into SAIC. Within the business units of NAC, complete vehicle and first-tied parts business will be integrated into SAIC Motor, a public listed company largely held by SAIC, and other business, related to components, service and trading will be within a newly established joint venture, Donghua Company.

After the merger of the two companies, business planning, R&D, sales and marketing, manufacturing and supply chain management will be fully integrated, contributing towards synergy and better performance throughout home and overseas markets. The long term objective of the cooperation is to build SAIC into China's largest automaker with global competitiveness while NAC into a leading manufacturing base in China.

The comprehensive co-operation sets up a benchmark for the optimization and restructuring of Chinese automotive industry. It will improve industrial concentration and benefit the utilization of industrial resources. It will also accelerate the development of independent R&D and innovation capability as well as international competitiveness of Chinese auto industry.

The cooperation is fully supported by China's central government and the respective local governments of Shanghai, Jiangsu province and City of Nanjing.

The cooperation will strengthen the functions of R&D, sales and marketing and manufacturing at Longbridge. The UK business is vital for SAIC to enhance its multinational operations competence.

Following the integration there will be a further input of resources into Longbridge. With the TF being the first product launched, it will be followed by other new MG products.

Its that time of the year again and we're decending on the Waterman pub just out side Warwick. 

 

Full details in this thread here: Waterman 2nd December XMas Meet 

 

Look forward to seeing you there! 

On 27th July, 2007, Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation and Yuejin Motor Corperation had signed the letter of intent, showing both sides are willing to cooperate together and poll resource and assets to avoid competition. (NAC is a subsidiary of Yuejin Motor Corporation, similar to the way MG Rover was under Phoenix Consortium.)

According to the letter of intent, SAIC and Yuejin Motor will the adhere to the principle of a comprehensive cooperation, establishing a joint task force to investigate possible programmes and cooperation in the fields of vehicles, car parts, car sales and services, and the task of reorganising the relevant assets, to bring about the integration between SAIC and NAC.

This act is supported by the provincial governments of the respective companies.

Source: http://www.nanqi.com.cn/docc/news/ne...p?auto_id=1994

English Source: http://www.china.org.cn/english/business/218894.htm
 

NAC MG (UK) has announced that it has appointed Luffield Cars and the Merritts Motor Group as the UK’s first official MG franchise dealers since NAC bought the company two years ago. This represents a significant step towards the commercial re-launch of the historic brand and it is anticipated that the MG retail network will expand to around 80 dealers nationwide.

The new MG TF 2-seater sportscar which recently made its public debut, will be sold from the Luffield Cars premises in Loughborough, Leicestershire, and two of the Merritts Motor Group’s Buckinghamshire-based premises in Amersham and Aylesbury. Each will have dedicated showroom space adhering to the MG’s new corporate identity guidelines which will house MG sales personnel, and a service technician.

Delighted at the unveiling of the new MG franchise dealers, Stephen Cox, Sales and Franchising Manager for NAC MG (UK) explains: “We are very pleased to welcome two very highly-experienced and well-renowned retail groups to the MG network. This is another indication of the very bright future that the brand can look forward to.”

David Wood, General Manager for Luffield Cars, which was previously a recognised MG X-Power specialist and still a popular MG service centre in the UK comments: “We feel very privileged to have been chosen as one of the founding retailers of the new MG franchise network. We are fully committed towards the development of the business and we consider the future of MG cars to be extremely exciting. We look forward to continuing to provide customers with the highest quality service, products and after-care.”

Kevin Badrick, General Manager for Merritts, a former MG Rover retailer for 10 years, states: “We are very excited to once again be associated with an iconic name which boasts such a rich heritage, and to be the one of the first confirmed franchised dealers is very special. I’m sure that the strength of the MG marque, its fantastic new products and our commitment and experience with the brand and to our customers, will prove to be an offer too good to refuse.

Nanjing Automobile (Group) Corporation and Healey Automobile Consultants Limited, in conjunction with HFI Automotive Ltd, are delighted to announce their intention to collaborate with each other on the future development of the Healey and Austin Healey brands and sports cars bearing their name.

The agreement puts an end to long standing issues about ownership of the brands and trade marks and expands opportunities for joint trade between the companies.

Nanjing Automobile (Group) Corporation is the Chinese parent company of Nanjing Automobile Corporation (UK) Ltd which acquired the assets of MG Rover in July 2005. It is engaged in the manufacture and sale of automobiles worldwide and have recently re-inaugurated production of one of Britain’s favourite sports cars, the MG TF, at its Longbridge plant.

HFI Ltd is engaged in the design, development, manufacturing and sale, worldwide, of sports cars and are the automotive partner of the owners of the Healey brand (Healey Automobile Consultants (HAC)), providing automotive design, engineering, manufacturing, logistics, sales and marketing and consultancy services to HAC.

Yes, the day many feared would never happen finally arrived today, MGs finally rolled off the production line at Longbridge, just over 2 years since the same lines fell silent. 

 

A lot has changed the last 2 years, you only need to have a look at the demolition work on parts of the old Longbridge site to realise that. However, its a time of regeneration and reinvention.