MG Rover Group was the last domestically owned mass-production car manufacturer in the
British motor industry
The automotive industry in the United Kingdom is now best known for premium and sports car marques including Aston Martin, Bentley, Caterham Cars, Daimler, Jaguar, Lagonda, Land Rover, Lister Cars, Lotus, McLaren, MG, Mini, Morgan and Rolls-R ...
. The company was formed when
BMW sold the car-making and engine manufacturing assets of the original
Rover Group
The Rover Group plc was the British vehicle manufacturing conglomerate known as "BL plc" until 1986 (formerly British Leyland), which had been a state-owned company since 1975. It initially included the Austin Rover Group car business (comprisi ...
to the
Phoenix Consortium in 2000.
MG Rover went into administration in 2005 and its key assets were purchased by
Nanjing Automobile Group, with Nanjing restarting
MG sports car and sports saloon production in 2007. During that year Nanjing merged with
SAIC Motor (the largest vehicle manufacturer in China). During 2009 the UK subsidiary was renamed
MG Motor UK. The
MG TF was manufactured at the former MG Rover Longbridge plant and sold within the UK from 2008 to 2010. In 2011 the first all new MG for 16 years (the
MG 6
The MG6 is a compact car which has been produced by Chinese manufacturer SAIC Motor under the MG marque since 2010. It is slotted slightly above the compact sedan MG GT, and the compact hatchback MG 5.
First generation
The first-generation ...
) was launched in the UK (assembled at the Longbridge factory). During 2013 a supermini was added to the line up (the
MG 3
The MG3 is a small car produced by the Chinese automotive company SAIC. The first generation, marketed as the MG3 SW, is based on the British made Rover Streetwise, which itself was based on the Rover 25, while the second generation, introdu ...
), this went on to help MG Motor become the fastest growing car manufacturer within the UK in 2014.
The
Rover brand, which had been retained by BMW and licensed to MG Rover, was sold to
Ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
, which had bought
Land Rover
Land Rover is a British brand of predominantly four-wheel drive, off-road capable vehicles, owned by multinational car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), since 2008 a subsidiary of India's Tata Motors. JLR currently builds Land Rovers ...
from BMW in 2000. The rights to the dormant Rover brand were sold by Ford, along with the
Jaguar Cars and
Land Rover
Land Rover is a British brand of predominantly four-wheel drive, off-road capable vehicles, owned by multinational car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), since 2008 a subsidiary of India's Tata Motors. JLR currently builds Land Rovers ...
businesses, to
Tata Motors
Tata Motors Limited is an Indian multinational automotive manufacturing company, headquartered in Mumbai, India, which is part of the Tata Group. The company produces passenger cars, trucks, vans, coaches, buses.
Formerly known as Tata Eng ...
in 2008.
History
MG Rover was formed from the parts of the former
Rover Group
The Rover Group plc was the British vehicle manufacturing conglomerate known as "BL plc" until 1986 (formerly British Leyland), which had been a state-owned company since 1975. It initially included the Austin Rover Group car business (comprisi ...
volume car production business which BMW sold off in 2000
[
] due to constant losses and a declining market share.
[
] BMW had acquired the Rover Group from
British Aerospace
British Aerospace plc (BAe) was a British aircraft, munitions and defence-systems manufacturer. Its head office was at Warwick House in the Farnborough Aerospace Centre in Farnborough, Hampshire. Formed in 1977, in 1999 it purchased Marcon ...
in 1994 and had since sold the
Land Rover
Land Rover is a British brand of predominantly four-wheel drive, off-road capable vehicles, owned by multinational car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), since 2008 a subsidiary of India's Tata Motors. JLR currently builds Land Rovers ...
business to
Ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
, and split off the
MINI
The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...
business as a new BMW subsidiary based in
Cowley. MG Rover took control of the volume component of the former
Rover Group
The Rover Group plc was the British vehicle manufacturing conglomerate known as "BL plc" until 1986 (formerly British Leyland), which had been a state-owned company since 1975. It initially included the Austin Rover Group car business (comprisi ...
(itself the remaining rump of
British Leyland
British Leyland was an automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in the United Kingdom in 1968 as British Leyland Motor Corporation Ltd (BLMC), following the merger of Leyland Motors and British Motor Holdings. It was partl ...
, which in turn had its roots in the even older
British Motor Corporation, formerly
Austin and
Morris
Morris may refer to:
Places
Australia
*St Morris, South Australia, place in South Australia
Canada
* Morris Township, Ontario, now part of the municipality of Morris-Turnberry
* Rural Municipality of Morris, Manitoba
** Morris, Manitob ...
), which by now consisted solely of the
Longbridge plant in
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
. Of the Rover Group's other two major plants;
Solihull
Solihull (, or ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in West Midlands County, England. The town had a population of 126,577 at the 2021 Census. Solihull is situated on the River Blyth ...
had already been divested as part of the sale of Land Rover to Ford, whilst the
Cowley and
Swindon plants were retained by BMW for the production of the new MINI family of vehicles. As part of these changes, all remaining Rover volume production at Cowley (essentially now just the
Rover 75
The Rover 75 is an executive car manufactured initially by the Rover Group and later by MG Rover, under the Rover marque and available over a single generation with front-wheel drive in either saloon/sedan or station wagon/estate configura ...
as the Rover 600/800 ranges had already been discontinued by this point), was moved to Longbridge, whilst MG Rover would be allowed to continue manufacturing the original
Mini
The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...
at Longbridge until the new MINI was launched by BMW a year later.
Phoenix Consortium ownership
When BMW sold off its interests, MG Rover was bought for a nominal £10 in May 2000 by a specially assembled group of businessmen known as the
Phoenix Consortium.
The consortium was headed by ex-Rover Chief Executive
John Towers.
When
Phoenix Consortium took over, their first loss for the last eight months of 2000 were reported to be around £400m. By 2004, the company had reduced the losses to around £80m but never made a profit.
MG Rover's best year for car sales was their first full year of business, in 2001 – when they sold over 170,000 cars. In 2004 their sales had declined to around 120,000.
The company ceased trading on 8 April 2005, with debts of over £1.4 billion, after a proposed alliance with
SAIC collapsed.
In relation to this, accounting firm
Deloitte
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (), commonly referred to as Deloitte, is an international professional services network headquartered in London, England. Deloitte is the largest professional services network by revenue and number of professio ...
was fined £14 million (US$22 million) in September 2013 for failing to manage conflicts of interest. Deloitte had acted as corporate finance advisers to firms involved with MG Rover and the Phoenix Consortium, including tax advice while Deloitte audited MG Rover. An independent tribunal refused to grant the right to appeal a finding that Deloitte failed to consider public interest, as of November 2013.
Aborted deal with SAIC of China
In June 2004, it was learned that
Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation
SAIC Motor Corp., Ltd. (formerly Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation) is a Chinese state-owned automobile manufacturer headquartered in Anting, Shanghai. Founded in 1955, it is currently the largest of the " Big Four" state-owned car manu ...
had signed a joint venture partnership to develop new models and technologies with MG Rover. This led to much speculation among the British media suggesting the Chinese company was poised to launch a takeover. Later that year, in November, news broke of an agreement between the two companies to create a joint venture company to produce up to a million cars a year, with the production shared between MG Rover's Longbridge site and locations in China. SAIC were to have a 70% stake in this company in return for a £1 billion investment, with MG Rover owning the remaining 30%. However, this agreement had to be ratified by the Chinese government, specifically its
National Development and Reform Commission
The National Development and Reform Commission of the People's Republic of China (NDRC), formerly State Planning Commission and State Development Planning Commission, is a macroeconomic management agency under the State Council, which has b ...
(NDRC). The Commission held the opinion that if BMW could not make a success of Rover, then it would be hard for SAIC to do so.
On 8 December 2004,
Tata of India, which had cooperated over the export of the
Tata Indica
The Tata Indica is a supermini car launched by the Indian manufacturer Tata Motors in 1998. It was the first Indian hatchback with a diesel engine. It was the first passenger hatchback from Tata Motors, with previous models being station wagons an ...
as the
CityRover, threatened to cease its agreement with MG Rover if the SAIC tie-up went ahead, according to the Indian press. Tata claimed the report was inaccurate two days later.
In January 2005, it was revealed that British Prime Minister
Tony Blair
Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...
had intervened to support the alliance between MG Rover and SAIC. MG Rover could not give a date on which the agreement would be finalized.
In April 2005 it was reported that the partnership deal with SAIC was in trouble because the British Government had decided to withdraw its offer of a £120 million loan to keep the deal going. On 7 April 2005 the company announced that it was suspending production because of component shortages. Later in the day, it was announced by
Patricia Hewitt
Patricia Hope Hewitt (born 2 December 1948) is an Australian-born British government adviser and former politician who served as Secretary of State for Health from 2005 to 2007. A member of the Labour Party, she previously served as Secretar ...
, the
Secretary of State for Trade and Industry
The secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The incumbent is a memb ...
, that the company was being placed in receivership. Her statement was based on a conversation with MG Rover chairman,
John Towers. It was later denied by MG Rover Group, although the company admitted that it had engaged
PricewaterhouseCoopers
PricewaterhouseCoopers is an international professional services brand of firms, operating as partnerships under the PwC brand. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is considered one of the Big Four accounti ...
, the
accountancy
Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the measurement, processing, and communication of financial and non financial information about economic entities such as businesses and corporations. Accounting, which has been called the "langua ...
firm, to advise on its current financial situation. In the event, MG Rover placed itself in
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...
on 8 April 2005, a different status from
receivership
In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver—a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights"—especially in c ...
under British law.
On 8 April 2005, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in Tony B ...
, the
Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Richard Burden, Labour M.P. for Birmingham Northfield visited Tony Woodley at the offices of the
Transport and General Workers' Union
The Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU or T&G) was one of the largest general trade unions in the United Kingdom and Ireland – where it was known as the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union (ATGWU) to differentiate its ...
in
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
and stated that there might be some hope for the future of the company, although not the original deal agreed with SAIC. In the media, any news about MG Rover was overshadowed by the
Pope's funeral and the problems of the register office
marriage of the Prince of Wales and his bride.
On 10 April 2005, MG Rover announced that they had received a £6.5M loan from the British Government. This would cover workers' wages for one week while buy-out proposals were made to SAIC. The same week, SAIC denied it had ever made an offer to buy MG Rover and threatened to sue anyone who attempted to make the 25 and 75 models. SAIC purchased the technical rights to manufacture Rover's 25 and 75 models, and for the
Powertrain Ltd business, for £67M. It did not acquire the Rover name, which was still owned by BMW at the time (See 'Brands' below).
Financial ruin
On 15 April 2005, it was announced that SAIC had once again rejected pleas to buy out the company. With no other rescue deal in the pipeline, the administrators were not in a position to seek further funding from the government and announced that redundancy notices to Longbridge staff (who numbered more than 6,000) would be issued.
As well as the job losses at Longbridge, the months which followed the collapse of MG Rover resulted in many job losses in the supply chain, as well as jobs in MG Rover dealerships, as these businesses either went bankrupt, were faced with having to make job cuts, or in the case of some dealerships switched to different brands.
By the end of April 2005, Sir
Richard Branson had reportedly expressed an interest in buying the remaining assets of the company for the purpose of reviving the marque in order to enter the hybrid automobile market, and several other parties were also rumoured as wishing to buy the remnants. These included two Russian businessmen, although one of them denied any interest in buying the company's assets. The Iranian state-owned car manufacturer,
SAIPA
SAIPA ( fa, سایپا, ''SAIPA'') is an Iranian automaker headquartered in Tehran. The SAIPAC (an acronym for the French ''Société anonyme iranienne de production des automobiles Citroën'') was established in 1965 as with 75% Iranian ownersh ...
who had worked with MG Rover installing the K series engine in a car for the Iranian market that was based on the old
Mazda 121
The Mazda 121 name has been used on a variety of Mazda automobiles for various export markets from 1975 until 2002:
* 1975–1981 — Piston engined variants of the second generation Mazda Cosmo sports car
* 1986–1991 — First ...
and
Kia Pride The Kia Pride is a subcompact car sold by the South Korean automobile manufacturer Kia Motors between March 1987 and January 2000, and again since September 2011. Between April 2005 and September 2011 the Kia New Pride had been sold.
Original mode ...
, were also rumoured to be potential buyers.
SAIC had claimed that it had already acquired
Intellectual Property
Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...
Rights in some Rover product for £67 million in the autumn of 2004, including the
Rover 25
The Rover 200 Series, and later the Rover 25, are a series of small family cars that were produced by British manufacturer Rover from 1984 until 2005.
There have been three distinct generations of the Rover 200. The first generation was a four ...
, the
Rover 75
The Rover 75 is an executive car manufactured initially by the Rover Group and later by MG Rover, under the Rover marque and available over a single generation with front-wheel drive in either saloon/sedan or station wagon/estate configura ...
and the Rover Powertrain
K-series engine, but the Administrators advised that there was still interest in saving some other parts of the company, including MG, and 13 May 2005 was set as the deadline for bids from potential investors.
On 20 May 2005, the Administrators announced that, after considering numerous proposals, they had entered talks with two unnamed "overseas companies" with a view to restarting one or more of the Longbridge production lines. Nevertheless, the following week they informed
creditors that they by then expected the company to proceed instead to a creditors' voluntary
liquidation, setting the date for a preliminary Creditors' Meeting to be held in
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
on 10 June 2005. At that meeting, creditors learned that so little of value was left in the company that there would probably be negligible or even no repayment of its outstanding debt and that, although three bidders were then still negotiating to acquire the company intact as a going concern, the Administrators had instructed their
agents to prepare for the piecemeal sale of the very few remaining
asset
In financial accounting, an asset is any resource owned or controlled by a business or an economic entity. It is anything (tangible or intangible) that can be used to produce positive economic value. Assets represent value of ownership that can ...
s in the event that satisfactory negotiations for the sale of the entire business were not concluded.
On 14 July 2005, it was reported that Magma Holdings, a financial group including former
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...
and
General Motors executives, working in conjunction with SAIC, would be making an offer for the assets of both MG Rover and engine maker Rover Powertrain which, if successful, would see at least some production being restarted at Longbridge, and that talks with the other two interested parties – China's
Nanjing Automobile Group and Project Kimber (a
consortium of Birmingham businessmen led by
David James) – were still in progress.
More than 6,000 workers at MG Rover lost their jobs when the company went into liquidation. As many as 25,000 jobs were reported to have been lost in related supply industries, meaning that the total number of job losses brought on by MG Rover's collapse was somewhere in the region of 30,000.
Nanjing
On 18 July, Magma Holdings and SAIC formalized their bid with a reported offer of £60M, with a number of additional conditions. However, that offer was not well received, and on 22 July, the Administrators announced that the principal remaining assets of the group had been sold to the Nanjing Automobile Group for around £53M, with a deposit of around $5M. Nanjing Automobile Group indicating that their preliminary plans involved relocating the Powertrain engine plant to China and splitting car production into Rover lines in China and MG lines in the
West Midlands
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...
(though not necessarily at Longbridge), where a UK
R&D and technical facility would also be developed. But on 27 August, ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was f ...
'' reported that the balance of around £47M, due on 22 August had not been paid. Citing confidentiality, the Administrators declined to comment.
Because the
Rover 45
The Rover 400 Series, and later the Rover 45, are a series of small family cars that were produced by the British manufacturer Rover from 1990 to 2005. The cars were co-developed as part of Rover's collaboration with Honda. The first-generation ...
range produced at Longbridge had still had significant Honda content, originating from the companies' legacy partnership with Rover and British Leyland, Honda executives moved quickly to terminate the licensing agreement and removed tooling and assembly equipment for the car from Longbridge.
Nanjing Automobile started shipping equipment from Longbridge to China on 15 September and, according to a report in ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...
'' on Saturday, 17 September, were close to a deal with SAIC under which they would manufacture the Rover 25 and Powertrain engines while SAIC would produce a stretched Rover 75. Nanjing Automobile Group was reported to be in exclusive negotiations with GB Sports Cars, a venture by former Rover managers, to re-establish MG production at Longbridge.
In late October, key ex-workers received letters from Nanjing Automobile Corp offering 10 months' work dismantling plant at Longbridge for reassembly in China while talks with GB Sports Cars continued. However, after announcing that the UK government had not offered any substantial assistance in either grants or loans, Nanjing Automobile was also reported to have begun negotiations with at least two other potential partners, including "a wealthy San Francisco family", and, in early November, Nanjing committed to making every effort "to resume production
t Longbridgeat the beginning of 2007".
In August 2008, more than three years after the facility had closed due to MG Rover's bankruptcy, assembly at Longbridge of a lightly revised
MG TF roadster for the European market, from Chinese-built
semi-knocked-down (SKD) kits, restarted.
SAIC Motor merged with Nanjing Automobile in 2007, whilst nearly three-quarters of the massive Longbridge factory had been demolished and its land sold off - the old South Works is the only part of the plant which has survived. By 2011 MG Motor UK as it is now known started production of the first all new MG in 16 years, the MG6. In 2013 a new super-mini was added to the line up, the MG3. This was launched in summer 2013 and during 2014 helped in making MG Motor the fastest growing vehicle manufacturer within the UK. During the spring of 2015 a new MG6 was launched and plans for a new SUV were unveiled for the following year.
Official reports
The UK Government commissioned reports into the collapse of the company. The
National Audit Office reported in March 2006 on the financial support provided to the company. It commended the DTI's contingency planning in 2004, but questioned whether the loan made in April 2005 achieved value for money.
The DTI commissioned accountants
BDO Stoy Hayward to report on the collapse of the company; this took four years to complete at a cost of £14.8 million.
[SFO backs off from MG Rover probe]
, Accountancy Age, 11 August 2009. Retrieved 11 August 2009 The firm issued its report to business minister
Peter Mandelson
Peter Benjamin Mandelson, Baron Mandelson (born 21 October 1953) is a British Labour Party politician who served as First Secretary of State from 2009 to 2010. He was President of the Board of Trade in 1998 and from 2008 to 2010. He is the ...
in July 2009, and it was published on 11 September 2009. The report revealed that five executives took £42m in pay and pensions from the troubled firm as it collapsed. This was possible as Techtronic, the company that held the 427 million pound loan from BMW and was owned by the Phoenix Four, charged MG Rover interest and therefore made a profit. The report focused its criticism on the
Phoenix Four
Phoenix Venture Holdings (PVH), also known as the Phoenix Consortium, was an English company formed by four businessmen ( John Towers, Peter Beale, Nick Stephenson and John Edwards). Following BMW's break-up of the Rover Group a financially com ...
and chief executive Kevin Howe who oversaw its collapse.
Other findings included evidence of a personal relationship between Nick Stephenson and a consultant who he paid more than £1.6m in the 15-month period up to April 2005. Meanwhile, "Evidence Eliminator" software installed by Mr Beale deleted documents which were likely to have been relevant to the investigation. The investigators further accused Mr Beale of giving "untruthful" evidence during interviews.
Conservative business spokesman Kenneth Clarke said it was right the report criticised the Phoenix Four, whose behaviour was "disgraceful". Lord Mandelson said the Phoenix group had not shown an "ounce of humility" about the firm's demise and they owed an apology to the firm's employees and creditors. The
Serious Fraud Office declined to mount an investigation, but Mandelson instructed lawyers to prepare a case to disqualify the key figures at
Phoenix
Phoenix most often refers to:
* Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore
* Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States
Phoenix may also refer to:
Mythology
Greek mythological figures
* Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...
from future company directorships.
Sales
The MG Rover range initially consisted of five cars: the
Mini
The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...
,
Rover 25
The Rover 200 Series, and later the Rover 25, are a series of small family cars that were produced by British manufacturer Rover from 1984 until 2005.
There have been three distinct generations of the Rover 200. The first generation was a four ...
,
Rover 45
The Rover 400 Series, and later the Rover 45, are a series of small family cars that were produced by the British manufacturer Rover from 1990 to 2005. The cars were co-developed as part of Rover's collaboration with Honda. The first-generation ...
,
Rover 75
The Rover 75 is an executive car manufactured initially by the Rover Group and later by MG Rover, under the Rover marque and available over a single generation with front-wheel drive in either saloon/sedan or station wagon/estate configura ...
and
MG F
The MG F and MG TF are mid-engined, rear wheel drive roadster cars that were sold under the MG marque by three manufacturers between 1995 and 2011.
The MG F was the first new model designed as an MG since the MGB that was produced from 196 ...
along with car-derived van derivatives of the 25. The Mini was only built under temporary licence during the first five months of MG Rover's existence, and since the 1980s had only been built in limited numbers. After production finished, previous owner BMW regained the rights to use the brand, and did so on an all-new car that was launched in 2001:
MINI
The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...
.
The Rover 25 and Rover 45 were recently facelifted versions of visibly ageing mid-1990s designs, but production figures had been slightly decreased due to a fall in demand, even though the Rover 25 had been Britain's best-selling car of the month in April 2000. Both cars still had significant Honda content within their design (for example, the 25 still used underpinnings based on the 1989
Honda Concerto
The Honda Concerto is a mid-sized luxury sedan produced from 1988 to 1994. The Concerto was designed for European tastes and jointly developed by Honda and the Austin Rover Group and was introduced in Japan on 15 June 1988, and in European marke ...
and the related Series II
Rover 200
The Rover 200 Series, and later the Rover 25, are a series of small family cars that were produced by British manufacturer Rover from 1984 until 2005.
There have been three distinct generations of the Rover 200. The first generation was a four ...
, whilst the 45 was essentially a rebadged
Honda Civic/Domani outfitted with a K-series engine) - a legacy from Rover's one time partnership with Honda, which necessitated paying the Japanese company significant royalties on every car sold which further dented the profitability of those models.
The acclaimed Rover 75 was little over a year old, and after a slow start sales were rising. An estate version was launched following the shift of production from
Cowley to
Longbridge. The replacement for the MG F, the
MG TF sports car was, inevitably, a relatively low-volume product, but it had consistently been the most popular car in its sector since its 1995 launch.
The Rover 25 and Rover 45 endured disappointing sales throughout MG Rover's existence, though their
MG ZR
The MG ZR is an MG branded "hot hatch" version of the Rover 25 supermini class car, produced by MG Rover at their Longbridge plant in Birmingham from 2001 to 2005. Compared to the Rover 25, the ZR featured a number of styling modifications an ...
and
MG ZS The MG ZS is an automobile nameplate of MG used for two different vehicles:
* MG ZS (2001), a small family car manufactured between 2001 and 2005 by MG Rover
* MG ZS (crossover), a subcompact crossover manufactured since 2017 by MG Motor, a subsi ...
sports variants proved popular from their launch in 2001. The Rover 75 and its
MG ZT
The MG ZT is a car which was produced by MG Rover from 2001 to 2005. It was offered in saloon and estate versions, the latter designated as the MG ZT-T. Styling is similar to the Rover 75, upon which it was based, although various modifications, ...
sports variant enjoyed more popularity.
The range further expanded in 2003 with the launch of the smallest model, the Indian-built
CityRover, built as part of a venture with
Tata, and a flagship model, the
MG XPower SV
The MG SV Xpower is a sports car that was produced by British automobile manufacturer MG Rover. Manufactured in Modena, Italy and finished at Longbridge, United Kingdom, it was based on the platform of the Qvale Mangusta, formerly the De Toma ...
, based on the
Qvale Mangusta. Both cars, however, failed to achieve the sales figures that MG Rover had hoped for.
Vehicles
MG Rover made the following vehicles during its lifetime:
Timeline
* May 2000: MG Rover was formed as the part of the former Rover Group's mass-market car business which BMW sold to the
Phoenix Consortium for a nominal £10. BMW retains the right to produce the new
Mini
The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...
and the
Land Rover
Land Rover is a British brand of predominantly four-wheel drive, off-road capable vehicles, owned by multinational car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), since 2008 a subsidiary of India's Tata Motors. JLR currently builds Land Rovers ...
arm of the company is sold to
Ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
. Production of the
Rover 75
The Rover 75 is an executive car manufactured initially by the Rover Group and later by MG Rover, under the Rover marque and available over a single generation with front-wheel drive in either saloon/sedan or station wagon/estate configura ...
is switched from
Cowley to
Longbridge following BMW's decision to retain the Cowley plant.
* 2001: MG Rover buy the factory and the rights to the platform of the
Mangusta car from
Qvale of Italy for an estimated £10 million.
* 2001: The Rover 75 Tourer is launched.
* 2001: The
MG ZR
The MG ZR is an MG branded "hot hatch" version of the Rover 25 supermini class car, produced by MG Rover at their Longbridge plant in Birmingham from 2001 to 2005. Compared to the Rover 25, the ZR featured a number of styling modifications an ...
,
MG ZS The MG ZS is an automobile nameplate of MG used for two different vehicles:
* MG ZS (2001), a small family car manufactured between 2001 and 2005 by MG Rover
* MG ZS (crossover), a subcompact crossover manufactured since 2017 by MG Motor, a subsi ...
and
MG ZT
The MG ZT is a car which was produced by MG Rover from 2001 to 2005. It was offered in saloon and estate versions, the latter designated as the MG ZT-T. Styling is similar to the Rover 75, upon which it was based, although various modifications, ...
(based on the
Rover 25
The Rover 200 Series, and later the Rover 25, are a series of small family cars that were produced by British manufacturer Rover from 1984 until 2005.
There have been three distinct generations of the Rover 200. The first generation was a four ...
,
Rover 45
The Rover 400 Series, and later the Rover 45, are a series of small family cars that were produced by the British manufacturer Rover from 1990 to 2005. The cars were co-developed as part of Rover's collaboration with Honda. The first-generation ...
and
Rover 75
The Rover 75 is an executive car manufactured initially by the Rover Group and later by MG Rover, under the Rover marque and available over a single generation with front-wheel drive in either saloon/sedan or station wagon/estate configura ...
respectively) are launched as sporting alternatives to the standard Rover models.
* 2002: A revised version of the MG F is launched as the
MG TF.
* 2002: MG Rover agrees to collaborate with
Tata of India, with the intention of importing the
Tata Indica
The Tata Indica is a supermini car launched by the Indian manufacturer Tata Motors in 1998. It was the first Indian hatchback with a diesel engine. It was the first passenger hatchback from Tata Motors, with previous models being station wagons an ...
to Europe from next year under the Rover brand.
* 2002: MG Rover also goes into talks with
Brilliance China Auto
Huachen Automotive Group Holdings Co. Ltd., known for its brand name Brilliance Auto Group, was a Chinese multinational automobile manufacturer holding company headquartered in Shenyang. Its products include automobiles, microvans, and automotive ...
with plans to build MG Rovers in a plant in China
* 2003: MG Rover launches the new
MG XPower SV
The MG SV Xpower is a sports car that was produced by British automobile manufacturer MG Rover. Manufactured in Modena, Italy and finished at Longbridge, United Kingdom, it was based on the platform of the Qvale Mangusta, formerly the De Toma ...
and SV-R sportscars, prices start at around £65,000. The car is based on the Qvale Mangusta and uses the
Ford 4.6-litre V8 engine with two different power outputs.
* 2003: MG Rover launches the new
CityRover - a small 5-door hatchback city car, based on the
Tata Indica
The Tata Indica is a supermini car launched by the Indian manufacturer Tata Motors in 1998. It was the first Indian hatchback with a diesel engine. It was the first passenger hatchback from Tata Motors, with previous models being station wagons an ...
, the first product of the collaboration with
Tata Motors
Tata Motors Limited is an Indian multinational automotive manufacturing company, headquartered in Mumbai, India, which is part of the Tata Group. The company produces passenger cars, trucks, vans, coaches, buses.
Formerly known as Tata Eng ...
. The car is built in India.
* 2003: MG and Rover launches V8 variants of the Rover 75 and the MG ZT.
* 2003: MG Rover launch a restyled version of the Rover 25, the
Rover Streetwise
The Rover Streetwise is a compact British car made by MG Rover. It was based on the Rover 25, but had an increased ride height and chunkier bumpers. The car was marketed by Rover as an 'urban on-roader'. Production ended in April 2005, due to t ...
. Referred to as an "urban on-roader", it has
SUV
A sport utility vehicle (SUV) is a car classification that combines elements of road-going passenger cars with features from off-road vehicles, such as raised ground clearance and four-wheel drive.
There is no commonly agreed-upon definiti ...
-like styling.
* 2003/04: MG Rover sell the Longbridge factory to
St. Modwen Properties on a lease-back basis to raise funds.
* 2004: MG Rover launches facelifted versions of the Rover 25/45/75 and MG ZR/ZS/ZT with revised front and rear ends, with the intention of replacing these models with all-new replacements from 2006. Rover 25/45/Streetwise and MG ZR/ZS also get revised fascias.
* 2004: MG Rover enters in talks with
Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation
SAIC Motor Corp., Ltd. (formerly Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation) is a Chinese state-owned automobile manufacturer headquartered in Anting, Shanghai. Founded in 1955, it is currently the largest of the " Big Four" state-owned car manu ...
(SAIC) about a possible collaboration, following the collapse of a proposed venture with
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
n carmaker
Proton.
* 2004: MG Rover sell design rights to the Rover 25 and 75 to SAIC to raise money to help keep the business afloat in the face of falling sales.
* 2005: Negotiations on possible joint venture with SAIC stall, and MG Rover collapses. Price Waterhouse Coopers called in as
administrators
Administrator or admin may refer to:
Job roles Computing and internet
* Database administrator, a person who is responsible for the environmental aspects of a database
* Forum administrator, one who oversees discussions on an Internet forum
* ...
. MG Rover car production ends and the Longbridge plant closes with the loss of more than 6,000 jobs.
* 2005:
Nanjing Automobile Group acquires the entire assets of MG Rover.
* 2005/06: Nanjing Automobile Corporation announces plans to build cars at Longbridge after signing a deal to lease the site for 33 years.
* 2006: SAIC sets up a new brand called
Roewe after losing the right to buy the
Rover
Rover may refer to:
People
* Constance Rover (1910–2005), English historian
* Jolanda de Rover (born 1963), Dutch swimmer
* Rover Thomas (c. 1920–1998), Indigenous Australian artist
Places
* Rover, Arkansas, US
* Rover, Missouri, US
...
brand name, and later launches a model based on an extended
Rover 75
The Rover 75 is an executive car manufactured initially by the Rover Group and later by MG Rover, under the Rover marque and available over a single generation with front-wheel drive in either saloon/sedan or station wagon/estate configura ...
platform, called the
Roewe 750
The Roewe 750 is an executive saloon that was produced by Roewe in China between 2006 and 2016, based on the Rover 75.
Overview
Launched in October 2006, and codenamed ''SAC528'' during development, the wheelbase of the Roewe 750 is stretched by ...
.
* 2006: Ford buys the rights to the Rover marque, meaning that only the MG badge can be used on the new range of Nanjing-built cars.
* 2007: Nanjing Automobile Corporation restarts MG TF production in China.
* 2007: SAIC and Nanjing Automobile Corporation announce a tie-up and on the 26 December NAC becomes a part of SAIC.
* 2008: Production of the limited edition MG TF LE500 commences at the Longbridge plant.
* 2009: Production of the standard MG TF 135 commences at Longbridge.
* 2010: Final assembly of the MG6 from Chinese kits starts at Longbridge
* 2010: MG TF production ends due to falling demand
* 2011: MG 6 Fastback production commences
* 2016: MG production at Longbridge ends
Sponsorship
MG Rover sponsored
Aston Villa Football Club
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park, ...
from 2002 to 2004, with Villa's home kit advertising Rovers and the away kit advertising MGs. Also, the company had sponsored the popular
ITV murder drama series ''
Midsomer Murders'', in which a range of MG Rover cars were presented.
Brands
All of the following brands were controlled by MG Rover, and were formerly the property of British Leyland.
* 1895
Wolseley
* 1905
Austin
* 1912
Morris
Morris may refer to:
Places
Australia
*St Morris, South Australia, place in South Australia
Canada
* Morris Township, Ontario, now part of the municipality of Morris-Turnberry
* Rural Municipality of Morris, Manitoba
** Morris, Manitob ...
* 1913
Vanden Plas
Vanden Plas is the name of coachbuilders who produced bodies for specialist and up-market automobile manufacturers. Latterly the name became a top-end luxury model designation for cars from subsidiaries of British Leyland and the Rover Group, ...
as a coachbuilder and as a car brand (outside the US & Canada)
* 1923
MG was created by
Cecil Kimber
Cecil Kimber (12 April 1888 – 4 February 1945) was a motor car designer, best known for his role in being the driving force behind The M.G. Car Company.
Biography
Kimber was born in London on 12 April 1888 to Henry Kimber, a printing engi ...
based on
Morris
Morris may refer to:
Places
Australia
*St Morris, South Australia, place in South Australia
Canada
* Morris Township, Ontario, now part of the municipality of Morris-Turnberry
* Rural Municipality of Morris, Manitoba
** Morris, Manitob ...
components
* 1930
American Austin a brand name created by
Austin for US market
* 1947
Princess
Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin '' princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince.
Princess as a subs ...
was created by
Vanden Plas
Vanden Plas is the name of coachbuilders who produced bodies for specialist and up-market automobile manufacturers. Latterly the name became a top-end luxury model designation for cars from subsidiaries of British Leyland and the Rover Group, ...
as a luxury car name
* 1987
Sterling created as a separate brand in the US by the Rover Group
The
Rover
Rover may refer to:
People
* Constance Rover (1910–2005), English historian
* Jolanda de Rover (born 1963), Dutch swimmer
* Rover Thomas (c. 1920–1998), Indigenous Australian artist
Places
* Rover, Arkansas, US
* Rover, Missouri, US
...
brand was used under licence from BMW, and was sold to Ford following the collapse of MG Rover; it was subsequently bought in 2008 by TATA.
The ''MG XPower'' brand was created by MG Rover for their
motorsport subsidiary, MG Sport and Racing Ltd. in 2001.
It was subsequently used for the
MG XPower SV
The MG SV Xpower is a sports car that was produced by British automobile manufacturer MG Rover. Manufactured in Modena, Italy and finished at Longbridge, United Kingdom, it was based on the platform of the Qvale Mangusta, formerly the De Toma ...
sportscar
A sports car is a car designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as handling, acceleration, top speed, the thrill of driving and racing capability. Sports cars originated in Europe in the early 1900s and are currently produced by ...
, a higher powered version of the Qvale Mangusta, in 2005. After the demise of MG Rover, assets of MG Sport and Racing relating to the XPower SV were acquired from
PWC
PricewaterhouseCoopers is an international professional services brand of firms, operating as partnerships under the PwC brand. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is considered one of the Big Four accounting ...
, the Administrators, by the newly formed
MG Sports and Racing Europe
MG Sports and Racing Europe Limited was a British automotive company based in Eardiston, Tenbury Wells in Worcestershire. The company was founded by William Riley, who acquired assets of the MG Sport and Racing subsidiary of MG Rover Group afte ...
Ltd. However this company's use of the "MG" trademark resulted in a legal dispute with
, which had also acquired assets of the defunct MG Rover Group.
[
] This case was won by Nanjing in February 2010.
[
]
References
External links
MG Rover Group(Archive)
Austin Memories
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mg Rover Group
Defunct companies based in Birmingham, West Midlands
Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of England
2000 establishments in England
2005 disestablishments in England
Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 2005
Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 2000
Companies formerly listed on the London Stock Exchange
British Royal Warrant holders