Chinese Company Intends to Build MG’s in Oklahoma

The New York Times ^ | July 12, 2006 | By NICK BUNKLEY

[aculeus]

DETROIT, July 11 — Can the mystique of a British sports car be recreated by a Chinese company in America’s heartland?

That’s the bet by Nanjing Automobile Group, which plans to resurrect the fabled MG marque in a tricontinental demonstration of how truly global the automotive industry has become.

Nanjing, which purchased the assets of the bankrupt MG Rover Group last year, aims to be the first Chinese carmaker to open a factory in the United States. The company has scheduled a news conference for Wednesday in Oklahoma to announce plans to build a newly designed MG TF Coupe there, starting in 2008. It said the coupe would compete with cars like the Mazda Miata, which sells for $20,000 to $25,000.

It also will assemble a convertible TF Roadster version at MG’s now-shuttered factory in Longbridge, England, and three sedan models in China. American and European operations for MG Motors will be based in Oklahoma City, 90 miles north of the new factory in Ardmore, Okla.

MG’s rebirth under Nanjing, which said it had $2 billion in financing for the endeavor, comes as several Chinese companies are setting their sights on the United States, the world’s largest car market.

Several Chinese carmakers have said they are two to three years away from exporting vehicles to the United States. One, Geely Automobile, displayed a $10,000 sedan at this year’s Detroit auto show, although the car fell short of American safety and emissions standards.

Geely and Chery Automobile, a state-owned company that has sparred with General Motors over the similarity of its name to the Chevy nickname for the Chevrolet brand, plan to sell cars in the United States in 2008. Nanjing, said it intends to build vehicles outside China, where it will face higher labor costs than in its home country.

[RayChuang88]

I wish them lotsa luck because the Mazda MX-5 is a very reliable car and has a cult following today that is just as big as the old MG's.

Besides, it wouldn't take much for Honda to build convertible sports car based on the next-generation Honda Fit due in 18-24 months.

[ExSES]

I used to have a Sunbeam Tiger. Man, I wish I still had that car.

I used to have a Sunbeam Alpine and I'm damn glad I was able to get rid of it!

[Thermalseeker]

Well, at least it probably won't have 'Lighting by Lucifer'

Don't you mean "Lucas, the Prince of darkness"?

[Eric in the Ozarks]

A Jag mechanic I knew in Des Moines had developed a nearly 100 percent cure for the Lucas disease. It consisted of a Cadillac Delcotron alternator, a Pontiac voltage regulator backed up with a Mallory dual point distributor and a big Diehard battery. Mallory made a drop in replacement distributor for the 3.8/4.2 engine and the GM alternator was ten times better than anything Lucas ever made. Best of all, the changes were not obvious.

[Lexington Green]

Support North Korea - Buy Chinese

[dc27]

My knuckles do not miss having a Sunbeam Tiger. Stuffing a 289 into an Alpine engine-well did not leave much room to work. To change the 8th plug, you had to go through the firewall from under the dash to get at it. The car was damn fast.

[Dog Gone]

The Chinese public should be outraged at the outsourcing of Chinese jobs to America!

[Eric in the Ozarks]

There were several English made cars with 260/289 Ford engines in that era. Sunbeam, AC Cars and Griffin or Griffith (can't remember)...

[Disturbin]

Exactly. I figured anyone who has ever owned a Mini, Morris Minor, MG, Healey etc would know I exactly what I meant.

[SmoothTalker]

Really ugly and outdated. No wonder they had to sell.

[nascarnation]

re: illegal aliens

You don't think the Chinese are gonna sign up the laid off UAW folks from the closed OKC TrailBlazer plant, do you?

[mewzilla]

Drool.

[rahbert]

not unless they want to move to Ardmore.

But then there are plenty of local folk who need the work.

[goldstategop]

The Chinese are not still there but give em time. No one thought much of Korean cars when they first came here but the Koreans learned what Americans wanted and paid attention to quality issues. Today Hyundai and Kia make great cars with style and tough build.

(The Palestinian terrorist regime is the crisis and Israel's fist is the answer.)

[goldstategop]

Not made in China - all American made British roadster. Americans can outdo the Brits. Just don't tell em that on the other side of the pond! ;-)

(The Palestinian terrorist regime is the crisis and Israel's fist is the answer.)

[brownsfan]

"You don't think the Chinese are gonna sign up the laid off UAW folks from the closed OKC TrailBlazer plant, do you?"

Gee, then, it sounds like you can sleep well tonight. You have the COMMUNIST Chinese making a product in America with illegal Mexican labor. That will produce one heck of a robust economy, and help your fellow Americans in a big way, right?
Or, would it be more accurate to say you could care less, as long as you have yours?

[epaul]

Dang, you guys are fast. I just read the article this morning in the Daily Oklahoman. I've got mixed feelings about this but you have admit it will be good for the Oklahoma economy.

[MarkL]

When I was 17, I learned that I could not get into an MG Midget with the top up.

Mark

[MarkL]

yawn...another suppository on four wheels. So what if it has the old octogonal badge, it ain't and won't be an MG.

"Modern cars... They all look like electric shavers"

Mark

[aculeus]

You have the COMMUNIST Chinese making a product in America with illegal Mexican labor.

Like 'em or not the Chinese are not stupid. Only stupid people would staff a large foreign-owned manufacturing facility in the USA-- one bound to attract loads of media attention -- with illegal aliens. Not gonna happen.