[ash]

Nanjing Auto appoints first MG franchise dealers

Jul 4 2007
Nanjing Automobile has appointed its first official MG franchise dealers since it bought MG Rover two years ago - ahead of the MGTF's relaunch later this year.

Luffield Cars and the Merritts Motor Group are the first two outlets to agree to stock the remodelled sports car which will go on sale in the autumn.

The new MG TF 2-seater sportscar, which recently made its public debut, will be sold from Luffield Cars' dealership in Loughborough, Leicestershire, and from two of the Merritts Motor Group's Buckinghamshire-based premises in Amersham and Aylesbury, it added.

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.

NAC (UK) is owned by the Chinese company Nanjing Automobile Corporation, which acquired the assets of MG Rover for £53 million in July 2005.

It recently restarted production of the MG TF sports car at Longbridge in Birmingham.

The company ultimately hopes to have 80 dealerships around the country, while it is also exploring the possibility of showrooms in Europe and South Africa.

 

[ash]

Here’s the first glimpse of the ‘new’ TF sports car, which has been freshened up by its Chinese owner, Nanjing Automobile Corporation (NAC).

Going on sale in 2008, the up-dated TF LE 500 – as the car will
be badged – gets a restyled front end with a sporty lower grille featuring integral spotlights, revised twin upper air intakes, new headlights and a fresh bonnet.

Revealed for the first time in public in this country at the 57th annual MG Car Club celebration at Silverstone race circuit, the car has “undergone extensive re-engineering”, according to NAC. Competing with the likes of Mazda’s MX-5, the revised TF is re-entering a tough market, and NAC is promising it will deliver “value for money”. The car will go into production at Rover’s former Midlands home, Longbridge, later this year and be followed by new versions of the ZR, ZS, and ZT

 

[Mega]

.....................and Metro door mirrors!
Why didn't they do something about that!
Mega

 

[BringIt]

Don't know what car Metro is, but I'm not too fond of those mirrors either.

Mirrors like those attached to the door and not the edge of the window looks so much better on a sports car, esp a convertable.

 

[Windy]

Don't know what car Metro is...

The MG Metro - the car that was banned from rallying for being "simply too fast"!


"Autocar magazine meanwhile strapped their timing gear to the Clubman (250bhp) and International (410bhp) versions of the MG Metro 6R4 and produced some simply awesome acceleration figures (The figures for the International version are quoted):

0-30mph 1.2s
0-40mph 1.7s
0-50mph 2.4s
0-60mph 3.2s
0-70mph 4.0s
0-80mph 5.2s
0-90mph 6.5s
0-100mph 8.2s
0-110mph 10.0s

Obviously the magazine came away impressed (who wouldn't after turning in those figures), and it was John Davenport who, when asked by Autocar whether the MG Metro 6R4 would win rallies, summed up the company's optimism about the car's chances: "Yes. I see no reason why it shouldn't. I think the car is quite capable of doing it, and I think my drivers are more than up to the job".

Sadly, it was not to be: Henri Toivinen was involved in a fatal collision, when his car went over a cliff in the Corsican rally. The FISA immediately ruled that Group B rally cars were simply too fast, and therefore dangerous to drive, and as a result, banned them from competition effective from the end of that season. The international career of these Group B cars was now over – and the book on the promising 6R4 was closed prematurely."

http://www.6r4.net/6r4/history.html


http://tv.mofile.com/JEMCJU3P/

 

[Seamaster]

.....................and Metro door mirrors!

So good they had to keep making them!

That's HERITAGE, that is. :lol:

 

[hello]

what is MG metro? never heard of it..what it look like?

 

[RCtennis3811]

Still looks British; still looks great! Good job Nanjing!

 

[Windy]

what is MG metro? never heard of it..what it look like?

The history of the MG metro, from the

MG Metro 1300 (1.3L engine)

to the MG Metro 6R4 (3L V6 engine - One car which realy flew!)

Video : http://tv.mofile.com/JEMCJU3P/


History Link - Click here

 

[Variodical]

The door mirrors are so tiny!

 

[fightingtorque]

The MG Metro - the car that was banned from rallying for being "simply too fast"!

Well, it as well as the Pug 205T16, Lancia Delta S4, Audi Sport Quattro, Ford RS200.

Don't get me wrong, my wife's first car was an MG Metro, because at the time it was almost as much fun to drive as a mini cooper but worth a small fraction of the price of a secondhand cooper. But let's be realistic, they looked pretty crap and no serious car enthusiast is going to try to claim that having metro parts on your sportscar is some kind of positive association. I know you are an MG Rover fan windy, but sometimes you have to call it a day!

My current esprit lacks the Morris Marina door handles and switchgear of the original, does that mean it lacks motorsport heritage............ the Marina, you mean the car that had the same engine as an MGB........

You know I'm only having fun!

Cheers,

FT

 

[Windy]

I know you are an MG Rover fan windy, but sometimes you have to call it a day!

You know I'm only having fun!

I am just compensating for Mega's negativity! :lol:

Good to see you placing the MG Metro alongside the legendary Audi Quatro, but didn't the Audi become a ledgend through it's rallying, only being banned after the MG arrived on the scene?

 

[fightingtorque]

I'm not an expert on my rally history, but I think the Audi had been on the scene for a little while. But as far as I know, there was no one car that was banned, rather the entire group B formula was dropped. The manufacturers were upset because they had invested a lot into it, and were working on the next thing which would have been group S and even more extreme.

Of the bunch, the two that were most successful in the final years were, I believe, the Lancia and the Peugeot. The Ford had only come out quite recently.

The metro had a relatively large, normally aspirated engine, whereas the others all had smaller capacity turbocharged engines.

 

[juanelo242]

"MG TF LE 500"?, looks more than a serial number than a name

 

[CCF mod]

MG TF LE 500 is a special version of TF for British market only, hence the name LE - limited edition.

TF LE 500


- First public display of TF model built by NAC MG (UK) at Longbridge
- 2 door soft top convertible
- Mid engine, rear wheel drive
- Limited to 500 in the UK
- Unique LE500 badging, graphics and trim items.
- Revised instrumentation
- Revised body styling
- Body colour hardtop as standard
- Black leather seats
- Piano black interior finish
- 1.8 16v EU4 petrol engine, 136PS
- Anti-lock brakes with EBD
- Individually numbered with vehicle specific interior badging
- Windstop
- Front disc brakes with 4-pot calipers in red, rear disc brakes
- 16" 11 spoke alloy wheels
- CD Tuner with MP3 compatibility, six speakers
- Perimetric / volumetric anti-theft alarm
- Rear parking sensors
- 3 year / 60,000 mile warranty
- 3 year European roadside assistance