First MG-7 Sold in China

The first MG has been sold in China by Nanjing Automobile Corporation as the firm's takeover by Shanghai Automotive gathers pace.


The car, a MG 7 - Nanjing's version of the Rover 75 - was sold at a dealership at the coastal city of Qingdao.

The dealership is one of 47 which have been signed up across China by Nanjing as it gears up to launch the TF later this year.

Prices for the MG 7 start at 170,000 yuan (£11,292) for a basic 1.8 turbo engine, going up to 300,280 yuan (£19,946) for the top-ofthe-range 2.5 V6 flagship edition MG7.

This version is the stretched edition and is 100mm longer than the regular MG7s.
The figures compare with an original list price for the 1.8 Turbo Contemporary Rover 75, which commanded £22,490 before the​

Longbridge crash. Prices and dates for the reintroduction of the car to the UK have yet to be determined.​

The prices significantly undercut the rival Roewe 750 models, the Rover 75 derived car produced by Shanghai Automotive which are selling for 200,000 yuan (£13,285).​

Meanwhile, talks between Nanjing (NAC) and Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) are said to be progressing well. The negotiations were revealed by The Birmingham Post in June, with both firms saying there was more likely to be a joint venture than an outright takeover by SAIC of its smaller domestic rival.​

An industry source said: "I think we are looking at more of a buy-out than a link-up, although nobody in China will admit to that."​

As part of the takeover, SAIC could start producing the Roewe at the Pukou factory established by NAC on the outskirts of Nanjing.​

The factory, which was officially opened in March this year, has capacity for 200,000 vehicles and 250,000 engines. This would replace the Yizheng factory which is being used by SAIC on the outskirts of Shanghai.​

The site is more than 40 years old and has been used to build the Volkswagen Santana under licence as well as the Roewe 750.​

The source said: "Shanghai's factory is very, very old and its transport links are not good.​

"NAC got the Powertrain technology from Longbridge and has been using that to make engines, but I have heard they have been building engines by hand at Yizheng, which means they cannot get the same quality or quantity."​