[dragin]

a marque that endures

"Today Nanjing Automobile Group will announce that the company will build the MG TF Coupe at a factory in Ardmore.....

....Nanjing also is unique among the Chinese car companies in its plan to revive an established brand with a Western following. Mr. Hale called that a critical advantage the company held over its Chinese rivals. “I’ve got a brand name that still resonates,’’ he said........

The question of NAC keeping the MG name has been discussed a lot on this forum. I think the words of Hale show just how enduring the brand still is among folks in the U.S.. The name MG may mean nothing to the younger generation now, but when lofty words of reminiscence are uttered by the older generation, that is sure to change.

 

[dragin]

breadth of MG appeal

.........There are more MG enthusiasts today in the US likely to order one than ever there were Mini fans before the launch of MINI. .......

I agree MartinW.....Mini had a much narrower following in the US before its revival.

Brand brand brand....

Now it should be interesting to watch VW try to revive the Rabbit....

 

[dragin]

Just seems to me that it would be cheaper and a better, quicker deal to go ahead and use that plant that is already built then build a brand new one in a small town way down south.

rtz you make a lot of sense since this project is indeed a long shot for NAC. Case in point, Honda took the old failed Peugeot-Guanzhou Auto plant down in Guangzhou, and got it up and running successfully in a short time. Finding the right location for a greenfield plant and getting it going is an awesome task for a fledgling like NAC.

 

[dragin]

This ambitious project of flying CKD's in from China on a 747 transport plane seems to be dead in the water.
SAIC knows that it is not ready for such a serious step forward at this point in time.