It’s Alive! First Chinese built MG’s roll off the production line

What a glorious day for all ya gearheads: Nanjing Automobile Corporation (NAC) announced that that first Chinese built MG’s have rolled off the production line!!! We hope you know what that means –seriously now, cause we’re kinda left speechless with all this excitement that the news brought us…

Well, I supposed I should say a thing or two about NAC MG. The latter obtain the rights to build MG models in 2005 while rival Chinese car maker SAIC, acquired the rights Rover models. So you don’t get confused, where talking about the same cars; apart from the TF, the MG nameplate was used for the sporty versions of Rovers. According to NAC, the MG range will include the MG7 sedan (Rover 75 based), the MG TF mid-engined roadster plus and a still unidentified, third model. NAC MG will develop two bases; one in Nanjing and the other in Longbridge, Birmingham, UK. The UK will be the centre for R&D and also the base for production of high-end value-adding products, while China will be the production centre and responsible for developing the domestic and overseas markets. -Continued: Click “Read More…” below to see the press release

PRESS RELEASE: NAC MG celebrates the birth of China’s first international car brand

• NAC MG inaugurates new state of the art production facility
• First cars roll off line

On 27 March 2007, after a period of huge anticipation, MG - China’s first international car brand - will reveal its strength to an eager public.

This day will symbolise a milestone in Chinese automobile manufacturing. NAC MG is inaugurating its state of the art production line while celebrating the launch of China’s first international car brand which inherits all the British traditions synonymous with MG.

The celebrations to mark the first car off the line have attracted leaders from the JiangSu provincial government, NanJing CCP committee and the NanJing municipal government, while British VIPs including a Member of Parliament will also attend the celebrations. Nearly 1,000 visitors will attend, including MG’s global suppliers, distributors, partners, Chinese and non-Chinese consultants and the world’s media. All have gathered together to enjoy this significant moment which will witness the first Chinese built MG roll off the production line.

The MG plant is the world’s largest single power assembly line making the world’s widest range of associated products. The Chinese built, fully automated welding and assembly line guarantees the simultaneous production of multiple models and also incorporates modern production equipment brought over from the UK. Three new Chinese built MG models will be seen for the first time at the event, witnessed by nearly one thousand guests.

The new MG models include the MG7 series and the MG TF sports car. The luxurious and elegant MG7 series will appeal to China’s middle and high-end car market sectors, while the first Chinese made sports car - the MG TF - incorporates many high technology features. A true sports car, the TF is a high performance model with outstanding handling characteristics and dynamic good looks, very much in keeping with its British sports car heritage. The new MG cars demonstrate world class levels of construction, quality and technology.

The official ‘off the line’ celebration of NAC MG car production not only symbolises the full launch of this new international Chinese brand but also marks a new age of development for the Chinese automobile industry. Chairman HaoLiang Wang says of the event: “The purpose of the MG project is to create a brand-new self-dependent Chinese brand which has the advantage of already being recognised as an internationally well respected brand. From the outset, this was an advanced project that has delivered competitive and technologically advanced products. The project is hugely different from the traditional joint ventures and the purely domestic products of the Chinese automobile industry. NAC has adopted the third development model which in essence brings a truly international brand to the market led by a Chinese enterprise. This is a true innovation. The brand’s core competence is to incorporate international standards of development, production and quality control with world class marketing and know-how.”

In recent years, the Chinese automobile industry has made great improvements and has become the third largest car manufacturing and consumer market in the world. However, compared with world’s top level automobile manufacturers, the Chinese auto industry lacks certain competitive advantages. The auto industry has become the fifth largest industry in China and huge emphasis is now being focused on how the country can further improve its competitiveness and become a major power in the world’s automotive industry.

During “the 11th Five-Year Plan” period, CCP implemented a plan to enhance creativity as one of the key strategies for developing Chinese society and industry. The key strategic decision of “going out” was a change from the established macro economic development of the country. The “third development model” of the Chinese automotive industry, adopted by NAC-MG, clearly demonstrates the proactive implementation of these two great strategies. According to NAC-MG Chairman, Mr Jian Wei Yu, to accomplish this strategic concept, MG will develop two bases; one in Nanjing and the other in Longbridge, Birmingham, UK. The UK will be the centre for R&D and also the base for production of high-end value-adding products, while China will be the production centre and responsible for developing the domestic and overseas markets. In China, NAC MG will focus on achieving cost control and developing core competences for sustainable growth.

Since NAC’s successful acquisition of the assets of MG Rover and Powertrain in July 2005, NAC-MG has mastered MG’s core technologies within only one year and has made a range of accomplishments including the export of the first batch of parts to Europe, production of the first N4 engine as well as the first MG7 and MG TF cars. Following the beginning of the project, NAC MG took an unprecedented and innovative route, creating twelve “firsts” in China: from owning the first ‘world renowned’ car brand to being the first Chinese car company recognised by the international automotive industry. NAC MG is also the first Chinese car manufacturer to introduce European environmental standards, the first enterprise to simultaneously establish production bases domestically and overseas and the first Chinese enterprise to get world class core technologies.

The first MG model ‘off the line’ not only demonstrates the successful implementation of the MG project - renowned as the number one industrial project for NanJing city, but also symbolises a key transformation point for the Chinese automobile industry. Through the brand strength, the assurance of quality and the use of technology and world class manufacturing techniques, MG is entering the international top league and will create the drive for Chinese automobile products to speed up their pace in the international market. NAC MG has created a true high-end international car brand led by the Chinese and will lead the way for the establishment of the truly international automotive firms.

About Nanjing Automobile (Group) Corporation (NAC)
In July 2005, NAC successfully purchased parts of MG as part of an international strategy and also established two companies in the UK, Nanjing Automobile Corporation (UK) Limited and NAC MG Limited. After its successful acquisition of MG assets in 2005, NAC has gained a higher status in the automotive industry, and support from Chinese government, the Jiangsu provincial government as well as Nanjing civic government.

NAC’s mission is to “revive, maintain and develop MG” for the benefit of both Chinese and global consumers, and plans to produce and sell MG cars in the UK as well as in China. NAC has undertaken to “carve out, innovate, strive to be the best and create an iconic brand” with MG.

MG Timeline of Events

• 22 July 2005: NAC acquired the assets of the MG Rover Group and Powertrain Ltd.
• 10 March 2006: NAC-MG project was approved by China’s National
• Development and Reform Commission.
• 27 March 2006: NAC-MG Project’s grand foundation stone was laid in Nanjing Pukou New & High Technology Industry Development Zone.
• 6 June 2006: NAC-MG Project’s first batch of car parts was exported to Europe.
• 22 June 2006: The NAC Institute of Automobile Engineering was established.
• 23 July 2006: NAC MG UK joined the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders Ltd (SMMT), and became the first Chinese member in their one hundred year history.
• 17 July 2006: NAC held a media event in London UK to announce MG cars’ global strategy.
• 15 August 2006: MG’s first dealer recruitment event was launched in China.
• In August 2006, MG’s second batch of parts was exported to Europe.
• 22 August 2006: NAC was recognised as one of China’s first car exportation bases by Ministry of Commerce of People’s Republic of China and National Development and Reform Commission.
• In August 2006, MG was appraised by Boston Consulting Group as one of the 100 potential companies to be trans-national groups and was granted the title of “New Global Challenger”.
• 13 September 2006: NAC and the Export-Import Bank of China signed the framework in London for the loan agreement for the NAC MG UK Project, so as to support the growth of MG’s UK business and the implementation of its global strategy.
• 26 September 2006: MG Powertrain was established, using the same name of the internationally recognised brand established by MG Rover
• 13 October 2006: NAC-MG project signed a supply agreement with renowned British car parts supplier Stadco. The implementation of a global sourcing plan for MG’s overseas projects, and optimised resource portfolio strategy began to accelerate.
• 8 December 2006: The Export-Import Bank of China endorsed a 500 million RMB loan to support the MG project. The MG project gained significant support from Chinese government.
• 28 December 2006: The first MG K V6 2.5L aluminium engines came off the production line at the production facilities in Pukou, Nanjing. The first test was successful and results showed that these engines were superior to those of all the V6 engines made in China. MG now produced world class engines for mid and high grade cars.
• 8 January 2007: In a¡¡meeting of MG’s suppliers, MG declared that it would produce MG cars to the highest international standards.
• 26 January 2007: MG Rover signed a contract with NEC, one of the world’s top 500 companies. They will collaborate in building BCS production information control systems, thereby introducing the concepts of production facilitation and cost control.
• 30 January 2007: MG held a brand event named “Heartbeat from England” to disclose the new MG brand proposition and the brand new slogan “raise your heartbeat”.
• 12 Febuary 2007:, The British Ambassador to the People's Republic of China (Sir William Ehrman, and British Consul General Shanghai, Carma Elliot OBE, visited NAC-MG’s production base located in the Nanjing New & High Technology Industry Development Zone.
• 27 March 2007: First MG cars to roll off the production line at the Nanjing Pukou production facility. This signals the important development of the first international car brand in China.

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