MG Rover-News

[Angus]

"MG Herbstpräsentation"

Eine Präsentation mit herbstlichem Hintergrund fand jüngst in China statt. Zu sehen waren die MG-Modelle, dargebracht von NAC-Mitarbeiterinnen.
Genaueres ist der chinesischen Schrift leider nur schwer zu entnehmen... 



Man beachte den Streetwise mit MG-Emblem!  ;)

[Angus]

Bringing MG back to America via the People's Republic of China

By Michelle Krebs, Contributor Email

Duke T. Hale is the newly appointed president and chief executive officer of MG Cars North America/Europe, Inc. With more than 30 years in the U.S. auto industry, working for domestic as well as European and Asian brands, Hale is well-known in the business. Now living in Georgia, Hale started his auto career in 1973 with Ford after his graduation from Ball State University in Indiana. He also worked for Chrysler. In the 1980s he went to Volvo, after which he worked at Mazda and Isuzu. Most recently, Hale headed Lotus Cars and Lotus Engineering, two separate U.S. companies.

In July, China's Nanjing Automobile announced Hale's appointment, along with the formation of MG Cars North America/Europe, Inc., and plans to bring back the famed British marque and its sports cars. MG began selling cars in the 1920s, hit its stride with its popular sports cars in the 1940s and 1950s, but left the U.S. market in 1980. MG continued to produce cars in Europe until 2005 when MG Rover went bankrupt and Nanjing bought its assets.

Nanjing's plans call for MG vehicles to be built in Nanjing, China, Nanjing's hometown; at MG Rover Group's Longbridge factory near Birmingham, England; and at a new U.S. assembly plant to be built in Ardmore, Oklahoma.

Duke was interviewed by Inside Line columnist Michelle Krebs by phone shortly after the announcement.


Nanjing Automotive's Chinese executives were quoted in the British press as saying plans to build a plant in Oklahoma were merely an idea. Is the Oklahoma plant and research and development center going to happen?
Absolutely. It's a lot more than an idea. I'm not saying Nanjing executives were misquoted but I'm not sure they understood the question. In all fairness, Mr. Yu [Nanjing President Yu Jianwei] doesn't know the West. In fact, his trip to Oklahoma was his first visit to the U.S. in his lifetime. He stood beside me in Oklahoma when we made the announcement.

Then it is a done deal?
There is a lot of work to do and there are some uncertainties, such as the precise location in Ardmore [Oklahoma] and other specifics. But it's not an issue about whether or not we're going to do it.

What products will each plant produce?
Right now, Nanjing is looking to build three sedans in China. For lack of another description, they'll be small, medium and large. In the U.K., we will build a modified version of the MG TF roadster. In Ardmore, Oklahoma, we will produce a coupe variant of the roadster. Those will be the products initially.

What is the rollout schedule of those models?
We're working through which products we will begin selling in 2007. The roadster will launch first in the U.K. and the rest of Europe in the second or third quarter of 2007. The coupe won't be built until 2008. The U.S. will have nothing to sell until May-June of 2008, when the roadster will be here also.

Will you sell the sedans, like those made in China, in the U.S. and Europe?
They will all be sold in Europe. We haven't decided what will be sold in the U.S.: maybe one or two products initially, with others coming behind them.

What is your sense — and do you have any data to support — if MG has any brand equity left, particularly after being out of the U.S. since 1980? And if it has any, who is that equity with? Mostly older people?
I have looked at research done by a European-based firm that definitely indicates there is positive equity in North America with the 40-plus crowd. It certainly has more positive equity in Europe, where MGs were sold up until about 10 months ago in the range of 120,000 cars a year. It's been 25-plus years since the MG was sold in North America so people as young as in their late 30s and early 40s still remember the brand. Younger than that, they don't. But look at the Mini Cooper. That was never as strong a brand as MG. I hardly remember the Mini Cooper. But look at what they've done, selling 200,000-plus a year. I think we can learn from Mini on how to not only appeal to the 40-plus crowd, but also how to tap into the 22-40 crowd. We'll tear a page out of Mini's playbook.

Which page will you tear from Mini's playbook?
They did a lot of public relations work. The vehicle has to be right and has to appeal to different folks. I think that will be there with MG. But we want to use PR as one of the mechanisms to build some power in the brand prior to launch as Mini did. We'll look at how to reach the younger crowd by more effective means than traditional marketing. I believe PR event marketing, sponsorships, the Internet and Web sites like MySpace.com are the way to reach them.

Why are you building the roadster in the U.K.?
One reason is that it's a British car. It's a core vehicle. You expect it to be British. It's what MG is known for. Second, we are also committed to the U.K. We're truly committed to jobs in manufacturing, sales, marketing and distribution in the U.K. and Europe. We need a stronghold in Europe of 100,000-130,000 vehicles a year. Lots of the major components will be sourced in China to help on price.

Why Oklahoma? General Motors recently closed the state's only assembly plant there.
The opportunity in Oklahoma is immense. The Ardmore Air Park, where we will build the coupe, is a 3000-acre parcel. Some of the land is sovereign Indian state. We are partnered with Mark Nuttle. [Editor's note: Nuttle is manager of the Oklahoma Sovereign Development LLC, which has a joint venture with the Chickasaw Nation to develop the land into an international trade and distribution center. Nanjing would benefit from tax advantages, including property tax exemptions, accelerated tax depreciation and employment tax credits if the tribe purchases 650 or more acres for the Ardmore Airpark and leases it to Nanjing.] Let imagination run and you can think of creative ways that allow the business to be more efficient and profitable to the point that one might be able to build vehicles in Oklahoma nearly as cheaply as China.

What is your plan for dealerships? How many dealers will you have?
About 300-350 in the U.S. In Europe, we'll use an assortment of importers and dealers. We won't ask our dealers to put millions of dollars to build drive-in theaters either. Likely we will have a dealership with an exclusive showroom for MG next to another brand, and they will share the back office, service and parts operations.

How and why did you become involved with MG?
This kind of opportunity has been a career-long dream. I did some consulting work for MG Rover through the previous chairman of Malaysia's Proton. He convinced me to take over the U.S. Lotus operations. I then transitioned the MG Rover work to a friend I'd met at church when I lived in California, Michael Davis of Davis Capital [one of the investment firms in the Oklahoma MG project]. When the purchase of MG Rover's assets by Shanghai Automotive Industries Corp. fell apart, Nanjing grabbed up Michael and me because we'd worked on the project.

What's your vision for this venture five years from now?
My vision — a vision I had long before this company — is to create a world-class company and world-class cars. What that means to me is this: I want the people that work for our company to view it as one of the top 100 places to work on their continent — North America or Europe. Second, when the National Automobile Dealers Association — and the equivalent in Europe — does a dealer attitude survey, I want our company to be in the top 10 in dealer attitudes. Third, I want our products to be in the top third of quality surveys. I genuinely believe we'll be successful if we have enthused employees and dealers who truly take care of the customer, and the customer thinks we build a pretty darned good-quality car and they feel the dealership and company truly takes care of them. They'll tell their neighbors and friends, and they'll buy again themselves.

edmunds.com, 08-14-2006




Aus dem Inhalt:
Duke T. Hale ist neuer Präsident und chief Executive Officer der "MG Cars North America / Europe Inc.".
Die ersten Fahrzeuge die demnächst gebaut werden sollen: ein Kleinwagen, ein mittlerer und ein großer in China, eine modifizierte Version des TF in Longbridge, ein Coupe des TF in Oklahoma.
Viele weitere interessante Sachen stehen genauer im Text -und der ist sehr lang... ;)

[baueran]

20 November 2006

Shanghai Auto delays export plans

Shanghai Automotive (SAIC) will focus on the local market before exporting its Rover-based cars to Europe and the US. The Financial Times quoted Phil Murtaugh, who runs SAIC's international operations, as saying the company would only export the cars after they are successful in the local market. "We have to get it right at home before we go outside of China," Murtaugh told the newspaper. "I do not know when we will start exporting." The move provides further indication that expansion into the US and European markets by Chinese automakers will be much slower than originally anticipated. Both Chery and Geely have also slowed down expansion plans. SAIC bought the rights to two Rover models before the UK carmaker collapsed last year.

Quelle: China Economic Review

Link zum Artikel: http://www.chinaeconomicreview.com/subscriber/newsdetail.php?id=8176

Quick and dirty translation ;-) - das Wichtigste aus dem Artikel auf deutsch:

SAIC konzentriert sich für die auf Rover basierenden Autos vorerst auf den lokalen (chinesischen Markt), bevor diese nach Europa und in die USA exportiert werden. Die Autos werden erst exportiert, wenn sie im heimischen Markt erfolgreich sind. Phil Murtaugh von SAIC: "Ich weiß nicht, wann wir mit dem Export beginnen." Offenbar drängen die chinesischen Autobauer wesentlich langsamer in die USA und nach Europa, als zunächst angenommen. Auch Chery und Geely haben ihre Expansionspläne zurückgeschraubt. SAIC erwarb die Rechte an zwei Rover-Modellen, bevor der britische Autohersteller im letzten Jahr zusammenbrach.

[Angus]

Das ist harter Stoff für alle Enthusiasten:

Secret Rover car uncovered

Rover RDX60: the lowdown

The car charged with saving MG Rover has been uncovered deep within Longbridge. Codenamed RDX60, this is an early model of the five-seat hatchback designed to replace the Rover 45, and do battle with the Focus and Golf.

Languishing in the corner of Longbridge's flight shed, the aero test model now looks dusty and unloved, but this top-secret prototype once formed the centrepiece of MG Rover's future model plans – and with it, the prosperity of the ailing carmaker.

Based on the Rover 75 platform, the Golf rival was co-developed with consultants TWR in Worthing. Underneath the ungainly bodyshell, which dates back to 2002, beats the heart of a Rover 75. MG Rover originally planned to get the car into production in 2004, but delays and a lack of cash eventually meant RDX60 was stillborn.

Managers at war

One look at this styling buck and you're probably thankful that the RDX60 never saw the light of day. This model has heavily chiselled flanks, and a bulky, truck-like front. While practicality may have been impressive, it was far from good-looking.

Rover sources claim that MG Rover boss Kevin Howe over-ruled design chief Peter Stevens, who designed the McLaren F1, urging him to develop this theme. 'Howe chose the final design over some much more stylish options,' said an RDX60 engineer, adding: 'When styling departments present their design themes to the directors, they usually already know which one they want, and present a couple of lame ducks as alternatives. To me, it looked like Howe had gone for the lame duck.'

Under the skin

Although the RDX60 was more compact than the Rover 75, its wheelbase remained the same. This enabled the retention of its bulkhead and scuttle, keeping things simple and cheap. The suspension was changed, with BMW's expensive and patented Z-axle set-up dropped from the RDX60 in favour of a beam axle.

The engines were the K-Series units used in the 75/ZT tweaked for Euro4 emissions, and the diesel was a heavily revised common-rail version of the existing L-Series power unit developed with help from Siemens. Plans to use the Fiat JTD unit in 1.9-litre form were investigated and quietly dropped.

Trouble at TWR

Engineering consultancy, TWR, was contracted to assist MG Rover with the RDX60. In January 2002, the group was called in to help push the car more rapidly towards production, using some of the industry's most advanced computer aided modelling.

TWR used virtual prototyping on the RDX60, to accelerate the project. With so much modelling being done on computer, time was shaved from the programme – enough for MG Rover to confidently tell suppliers that the new car would be on sale in early 2004. However, when TWR went into administration in early 2003, the project data was with-held from MGR for at least six months, a massive setback for the programme.

The end for RDX60

Delayed and overweight, MG Rover needed a partner in order to share the cost of getting the RDX60 into production. After a failed alliance with China Brilliance, MGR planned to form a joint venture with the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) in 2004. The Chinese weren't keen on RDX60's styling, and began demanding changes.

Deadlines to finally sign the joint venture came and went, as did facelift proposals for the ugly Golf rival. In the end, SAIC wouldn't commit, terrified of MG R's heavy losses and fearing it might be liable if Longbridge went under. Sure enough, in April 2005 MG Rover died, taking the RDX60 with it to its grave.

carmagazine.co.uk, 21 November 2006







Kurz aus dem Inhalt:
Es geht um das Geheimprojekt RDX60, das jüngst in einer stillen Ecke gut versteckt im Longbridgewerk gefunden wurde. Der Wagen sollte 2004 in Serie gehen und den Rover 45 ersetzen, aufgrund fehlender finanzieller Mittel wurde daraus nichts. Er basiert auf dem Rover 75 und sollte Golf, Focus und Co aufmischen...

[Angus]

Rover's 'Phoenix Four' £16 million ricer after clawing back a fortune in tax

Former MG Rover boss John Towers and the three other members of the controversial 'Phoenix Four' are set to share in a new multi-million pound windfall.

This latest money will come from the firm's car financing arm, MGR Capital, which lent cash on hire purchase terms to customers wanting to buy MG and Rover cars.

News of the extra cash emerged from records at Companies House in Cardiff. Accounts filed for MGR Capital show that it clawed back £16.2 million from the taxman in 2005 - the same year that the car company went bust with the loss of more than 6,000 jobs.

The money was won back in VAT following a change in the rules covering cars purchased by car financing and leasing companies at the end of their agreements.

It provided a huge boost to MGR Capital's profits and has left a £22million pot to be divvied up when it is wound up. Mr Towers and the other 'Phoenix Four' directors Peter Beale, Nick Stephenson and John Edwards own 49 per cent of MGR Capital. The other 51 per cent is controlled by the bank HBOS.

Industry experts estimate the Phoenix Four could be in line for around £2.5 million each, although any outstanding creditors will also have to be paid off from the pot.

It would be yet another lucrative bonus for the four. They have already made £40 million for themselves between buying the loss-making Longbridge carmaker in Birmingham - with assets worth in excess of £1billion - six years ago for just £10 from former owners BMW and its collapse last April.

The Transport and General Workers Union branded the Phoenix Four's latest windfall as "yet another kick in the teeth" for former MG Rover workers.

And Birmingham historian Dr Carl Chinn, a trustee of the charity trust fund set up to help former MG Rover workers, said: "This can only add to the anger and unhappiness of the many people who suffered as a result of MG Rover's collapse.

"I'm disgusted and appalled to hear the Phoenix Four could be the beneficiaries of yet more money, especially when there is now only a measly £1,000 in the trust fund. The Phoenix Four keep telling us that money from sales of assets can't be used for legal reasons until the DTI investigation is over.

"They are obviously clever men, but it's pity they didn't put that it into making it a successful business. Once again they seem to be walking away with the benefits while the workers who did everything they could to keep the business going are left with nothing."

MGR Capital was 'ring-fenced' from the main Rover business in 2001 when it was put into a separate business, controlled by the Phoenix Four's Phoenix Venture Holdings, so none of its proceeds were able to help MG Rover.

The accounts show that the money clawed back from the taxman boosted MGR Capital's pre-tax profits to £17.3 million for the 12 months to December 31, compared with £546,000 in 2004. It had retained profits (the total accumulated over a number of years) of £22m at the end of 2005.

A spokesman for the Phoenix Four said the shareholders intended to put MGR Capital into liquidation when the final leases ran out, probably some time next year.

Any cash would be distributed among the creditors and shareholders, he said. This would include repaying the £500,000 that each director originally invested in MGR Capital.

The news came as the Department of Trade and Industry admitted that its investigation into the collapse of MG Rover will drag on into 2007 and that it has cost nearly £7million so far.

thisislondon.co.uk, London, Wednesday 29.11.06

[Angus]

China's Nanjing Auto does not own MG rights in Europe

BEIJING (XFN-ASIA) - Nanjing Auto does not control the rights to the MG brand in continental Europe, the Financial Times reported in its online edition, citing the defunct UK automaker MG Rover's Dutch administrator. Nanjing Auto's purchase last year covered only British assets of MG Rover, including the MG name and a plant in Birmingham, the report said.

Anthony Terng, administrator of MG Rover Nederland, was quoted as saying that the insolvent company still owns several MG trademarks in continental Europe, which Nanjing would need to secure before selling cars there.
The report said he will be discussing a possible sale of the trademarks to Nanjing Auto but declined to give an estimate of their value.
Terng said he has been approached by other parties for the MG trademarks.

forbes.com, 10.12.06


Aus dem Inhalt:
Forbes berichtet, dass NAC die MG-Markenrechte noch nicht für Europa erworben hätte, lediglich für GB. Die insolvente MG-Tochter "MG Rover Nederland" hält noch immer die Rechte, die NAC braucht um Autos im restlichen Europa verkaufen zu können. Ein möglicher Verkauf  an NAC sei zur Diskussion gestellt, über einen möglichen Erfolg könne man aber noch nichts sagen. Mehrere andere Interessenten seien ebenfalls bereits an die Administratoren herangetreten.

[baueran]

Einem Bericht von Automotive World zufolge, verkauft SAIC Roewe an das Tochterunternehmen Shanghai Automotive Company:


SAIC is selling its General Motors and Volkswagen joint venture stakes, as well as its Roewe division, to listed subsidiary Shanghai Automotive Company for Yuan 19.1bn (US$2.4bn), according to China Knowledge.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) has approved the transaction. Shanghai Automotive Company will pay for its acquisition by issuing 3.28 billion shares at Yuan 5.82 (US$0.74) per share to SAIC.

SAIC's stake in Shanghai Automotive will thus rise to 83.8% from 67.6%. As per the terms of the contract, the company is obliged to hold the shares for at least three years.

Shanghai Automotive will take over SAIC's 30% stake in Shanghai General Motors, which builds Buick Excelle cars in the country. With the 20% stake it already owns, Shanghai Automotive will become the largest investor in the venture.


Zum Bericht:

SAIC to sell GM and Volkswagen stakes plus Roewe to subsidiary

[Angus]

Ergänzung zum Artikel China's Nanjing Auto does not own MG rights in Europe :

Autoblog schreibt heute, dass die Gespräche des vollständigen Verkaufs der MG-Rechte nun trotz einiger anderer Interessenten vorrangig mit Nanjing geführt werden.

(www.es.autoblog.com)

[Angus]

MG venture to spur 'crash course'

By Paul Monies
Business Writer

A three-continent partnership to bring MG sports cars back to market could provide Oklahoma with a "crash course" in how the Chinese do business, an author and China expert said Wednesday.

Oklahoma grabbed worldwide headlines last summer when Nanjing Automobile Group Corp. said it will join with Oklahoma Global Motors LLC to bring the British sports car brand MG back to life. The companies picked a location next to the Ardmore Airpark for one of two factories to assemble the cars.

Ted Fishman, the author of "China Inc.," said Nanjing's MG deal to establish manufacturing in the United States was interesting because it chose a site away from traditional manufacturing and automobile hubs in the upper Midwest.

"This will give Oklahoma a crash course in many of the facets of the Chinese economy because Nanjing has been embroiled in a lot of trials and tribulations in China," Fishman said. "This will be a one-stop shop for many of the important issues facing Chinese companies, including intellectual property issues and political issues within China that will be out of the control of Oklahoma leaders involved in the venture."

Nanjing plans to start production in Ardmore in 2008. Fishman said if the factory does get built, it will be watched closely to see whether Chinese manufacturing can perform to world-class standards within a complex production system such as auto manufacturing.

"It will be a big challenge for them," Fishman said. "Maybe they can lean on the high-level, technical expertise that exists here in Oklahoma with aerospace."

Murky financial reporting and the lack of a strong system to enforce contracts remain obstacles for U.S. companies doing business in China, he said.

"Chinese companies are frugal in all things except the number of books they keep," quipped Fishman, referring to a common Chinese practice of keeping different sets of financial statements.

More companies are turning to "wholly owned foreign enterprises" than establishing joint ventures with Chinese companies so they have more control over finances, Fishman said. Still, networking in China remains paramount, and local partners are needed for supply chain operations.

Fishman spoke to The Oklahoman before his address Wednesday to the annual meeting of the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce at the Cox Convention Center. Outgoing Chairman Fred Jones Hall passed the gavel to Larry Nichols, chairman and chief executive officer of Devon Energy Corp.

Hall pointed to accomplishments such as saving Tinker Air Force Base from Pentagon cuts, supporting the NBA Hornets and attracting companies such as Dell Inc. as among the highlights of his tenure. He urged members to embrace regionalism so Oklahoma City could "take full advantage of the wind behind our back."

Nichols said lawsuit reform and economic development incentives will be among the chamber's legislative priorities in 2007. Continuing downtown redevelopment and enhancing Oklahoma City's standing as a desirable place to live and visit also will be priorities during the state's centennial celebrations. The chamber will begin a study to evaluate the city as a destination, he said.

"Oklahoma City is truly coming into its own and arriving on the national stage," Nichols said. "This momentum will only continue with strong leadership."

In his keynote speech to the chamber, Fishman chronicled the rapid pace of migration in China from rural farms to ever-growing cities. The poorest farmers in China make about $75 a year, but young factory workers in urban areas can make 65 cents a day, or more than $200 a year.

"In the last 10 years, 150 million people moved from the farms to the cities," Fishman said. "You look at the skyline of Shanghai and it looks like something out of 'Futurama,' but the streets are full of villagers with weather-beaten faces."

Many of the new transplants are sending money back to the families they left behind in rural areas, but that won't last forever, he said. The population shift also is causing a huge boom in entrepreneurial activity, with more than 85 million businesses started in the last 20 years.

The challenge, Fishman said, will be how U.S. companies deal with China's "cauldron of competitiveness" when localized markets across China start to consolidate.

NewsOK.com, Thu December 14, 2006


Gibt's auch was aus dem Inhalt?
Der Artikel ist recht groß und eher informativ als bedeutend, deshalb nur in aller kürze:
Nanjing plant ab 2008 in Oklahoma MGs zu produzieren, die Verantwortlichen dort bereiten sich so gut es geht auf diese neue Aufgabe -von der man sich regional große Bedeutung verspricht- so gut es geht vor.

[Angus]

CHINA: SAIC starts building ex-Rover V6

Following an intensive programme of production engineering, localisation of component supply and commissioning of its brand new GBP15m Baoshan engine manufacturing plant near Shanghai, SAIC Motor has announced the start of production of the MG Rover-designed KV6 petrol engine which will power its Roewe brand products.

18 December 2006, just-auto.com

Aus dem Inhalt:
SAIC kündigt an, ab demnächst das KV6 Benzintriebwerk von Rover nachzubauen, um damit seine "Roewe"-Fahrzeuge auszustatten. Ein neues Motorenwerk wurde dazu bereits bei Shanghai gebaut.
Na viel Spass...

[Uwe]

http://news.sky.com/shared/videoasx/0,,mg_p15279-31200-bb,00.asx


Es geht voran

[Angus]

£50 million of Rover fund unused

Almost a quarter of the £176.5 million set aside to support workers affected by the collapse of MG Rover has not been needed, the government has revealed.

In a written House of Commons answer, industry minister Margaret Hodge said that about £50 million had not been used.

More than 5,000 jobs were lost when the Birmingham-based carmaker disintegrated in April 2005, with the government creating the fund to help direct employers and supply staff.

"In the event, the impact on MG Rover's suppliers and their workforce was not as severe as had been feared and the full amount set aside was not required," Ms Hodge wrote.

Official estimates have revealed that £55 million has so far been spent on redundancy pay and £33 million for MG Rover suppliers.

Ms Hodge also revealed that the ongoing probe into the firm's collapse had so far cost £7 million.

inthenews.co.uk, 21 December 2006

[Angus]

NEBENBEI:


AUTO BILD 51/2006

AC Ace SuperSports

Ich war mal Smart

Reinkarnation des Smart roadster: Im Herbst 2007 will die britische Traditionsschmiede "AC" die Baureihe weiterführen – mit neuer Optik.

Das britische Projekt Kimber will den neugestalteten Smart roadster im Herbst 2007 auf den Markt bringen. Der Wagen wird bereits im Frühjahr auf dem Genfer Autosalon vorgestellt und soll unter dem Namen der Traditionsmarke AC als "AC Ace SuperSports" verkauft werden. Absatzziel: 7000 Fahrzeuge pro Jahr.

Der Smart roadster lief in Deutschland rund 35.000-mal vom Band. Im Zuge der Smart-Sanierung durch Konzernmutter DaimlerChrysler war das weitgehend in Handarbeit gefertigte Modell 2005 wegen Unretabilität eingestellt worden. Anfang 2006 schließlich hatte eine britische Investorengruppe mit dem Project Kimber eine Absichtserklärung (Memorandum of Understanding) unterschrieben und eine Weiterfertigung bzw. Überarbeitung angekündigt.




edit by Spacecake: Habe noch zwei Bilder gefunden:
http://217.110.64.253/d/135143/d_ams_fotoshow_detail?skip=1
http://217.110.64.253/d/135143/d_ams_fotoshow_detail?skip=2


Anmerkung: Project Kimber wollte für diesen Wagen die MG-Rechte erwerben, was ja dann nicht gelang.

[Angus]

Übersetzung aus dem Chinesischen, deshalb etwas "umständlich":

South Steam announced won the MG Property ownership

December 13, 2006, http://news.sohu.com/20061213/n246996869.shtml

South Steam won the FAW announced MG Property ownership www.thebeijingnews.com 2006-12-13 7 : Source : 03:58 Xin Jing Bao not defer to enter the European market

(Reporter Hu Wei Wei), the Netherlands trademark challenge against MG on the market. Nanjing yesterday were Lord (MG) car persons said to reporters. 647 MG trademark ownership of the world all belongs completely to Southern steam, including the Netherlands.
Currently, MG in the United Kingdom, France and Germany have been designated for the renewal procedures and Trademark resumed, will continue for the remaining places.

Recently, the bankruptcy liquidator Anthony Teenge external MGRover Netherlands, The company still has a number of European trademark ownership of the MG. In this regard, under the name South automobile motor-related Lord who said to reporters, Under EU law will have all Southern steam MG trademark, including the Netherlands, is the need for a follow procedures, South Automobile not delay the time to enter the European market.

According to the plan, South steam MGTF roadster will be introduced in Britain first, South automobile joint ventures in the United States recently has entered the final stage. South steam in July last year spent 53 million pounds acquisition of the British MG Rover company's remaining assets, including the MG brand. Prior to SAIC and MG Rover Group has acquired an important intellectual property and slipped in September to buy Rover trademark no choice but to delay the time to enter the European market.


Aus dem Inhalt:
Nanjing gibt bekannt, nun 647 globale MG-Markenrechte zu besitzen, darunter jene für die Niederlande!
Die Erneuerungspläne der Marke MG betreffen nun zunächst Großbritannien, Frankreich und Deutschland, die übrigen (europäischen) Märkte sollen folgen.

[Angus]

SAIC and NAC-MG now producing their own versions of the KV6 engine


NAC-MG's engine plant is now producing NV6 engines for its upcoming 7Z saloon...

NAC-MG and SAIC (Roewe) remain locked in the tough task of getting their own versions of the Rover 75/MG ZT into production - and although it was Shanghai's car that was shown first to the public (the Roewe 750 at the recent Beijing Motor Show), Nanjing's car isn't far behind, with pre-production cars already been shaken down. So, although many believed that SAIC was considerably ahead of NAC in introducing its new cars, the closeness of the companies' first engines off the line would indicate that the gap is closing fast.

On the 18th December last year, SAIC Motor announced the start of production of the KV6 engine following an intensive programme of production engineering, localisation of component supply and commissioning of its brand new £15m Baoshan engine manufacturing plant near Shanghai, ably assisted by Ricardo2010. The new 188bhp engine was part of the package of IPR purchased by SAIC in 2004 from MG Rover - and unlike NAC-MG did not include the provision of any manufacturing tooling or background expertise.

The team from Ricardo 2010 supporting SAIC Motor on the manufacturing launch of the KV6, engine included key engineering staff whose role involved the detailed specification of the production equipment required for the new plant, as well as its installation and commissioning ready for pilot production. In parallel with this, a team of ten engineers were based in Shanghai for the purposes of localisation of component supply, including supplier selection and development to internationally competitive standards. As a result of this work by the joint Ricardo2010 and SAIC Motor team, this powerful, Euro 4 compliant engine has been localised for almost total Chinese content and commissioned for manufacture in less than 14 months from the initial project specification.

Ten days later, NAC-MG's first NV6 engine rolled off the line. The first NAC-produced NV6 engine was greeted with a great deal of fanfare - with the Group's chairman Wang Haoliang, general manager, Yu Jianwei, and NV6 project director Zhang Xin in attendance. Using Powertrain tooling removed from Longbridge last summer, NAC-MG has shown impressive speed in getting the production re-started, and whereas it was thought that the company was about six months behind SAIC in getting its cars onto the market, the gap now appears to be considerably less.

Given that SAIC has expressed a preference to stay out of the European market until 2009 with the Roewe 750, we'll be seeing the Chinese MGs first over here - and the question remains to be answered: will there be parts commonality between the Chinese and British cars in order to help maintain a supply of parts for the Rovers and MGs already on the road?


...but local rivals SAIC managed to get the KV6 into production several weeks earlier. Here, Ricardo's manufacturing engineering manager, Steve Pitt, poses alongside principal engineer, Eddie Harris...


http://www.austin-rover.co.uk/, 02.01.2007


Aus dem Inhalt:
SAIC und NAC-MG produzieren nun das KV6-Triebwerk.
Nachdem SAIC mit der Einführung seines Rover-Nachbaus einen Vorsprung vor NAC-MG hatte, wird letztere Firma jedoch schon bald die neuen MGs in Europa vermarkten -SAIC folgt erst 2009. Beide Unternehmen bauen nun das von MGR entwickelte KV6-Triebwerk her -NAC-MG nennt es als Weiterentwicklung NV6. Damit hat NAC-MG erneut gezeigt, wie effizient und schnell es handlungsfähig ist. Der bisherige Vorsprung von SAIC schmilzt weiter dahin, spätestens mit der neuen Belieferung des europäischen Marktes mit MG-Fahrzeugen demnächst wäre SAIC erstmal abgehängt...