Introduction

British sports car manufacturer MG Cars, known for its two-seater open sports cars, saloons and coupés, came into existence in 1924. MG is an acronym for Morris Garages, which was owned by William Morris, an Oxford-based car dealer. It is now a part of the Nanjing Automobile Group after the latter purchased the MG brand and the assets of the MG Rover Group in 2005.

The production location of MG cars changed a few times during the initial years of the company’s existence- from Alfred Lane in Oxford to a larger area in Bainton Road to a larger factory in Edmund Road, Cowley, Oxford. By the year 1928, the company’s expansion demanded a separate identity. This is when the MG Car Company Limited was formed. As the company increased production, it moved to Abingdon, Oxfordshire in 1929.

In 1935- a little over a decade after its formation- the company was sold to Morris Motors (part of the Nuffield Organisation). The merger of Nuffield Organisation and Austin Motor Company led to the creation of British Motor Corporation (BMC) in 1952. The competition department of the latter was responsible for creating several racing cars that have met the chequered flag first at many a championship.

MG Cars launched a sports car MGB in 1962 that was manufactured by British Motor Corporation (BMC) and then by its successors. The production of the car was unaffected even after the various transitions in the company - BMC became British Motor Holdings and then British Leyland Motor Corporation in 1968. The factory in Abingdon that produced the sports cars closed operations in 1980, resulting in the end of MGB production.

From 1982 to 1991, the MG marquee was revived on sportier models - Austin Rover's Metro, Maestro and Montego. Then an updated version of MGB Roadster was launched and named MG RV8. The car incorporated a Rover V8 engine but was manufactured in lower volumes.

After the company struggled with financial challenges for a long time, it eventually introduced a high volume MG F two-seater Roadster in 1995. This affordable two-seater paved the way for renewed success for the company.

In 2002, a revised version MG TF was launched. But as MG Rover went into administration in 2005, the production of this version had to stop.

In 2005, MG Rover was bought over by Chinese company Nanjing Automobile. In 2007, the company was taken over by SAIC. Since then, the MG TF roadster and MG 7 large sports saloon have been produced in China.