Unbeknownst to them, a matchup between two steam-powered carriages over an eight mile-route in Manchester, England would result in the first-ever race. Who won that race in 1867 doesn’t matter, but what does is that it cemented the United Kingdom as the birthplace of racing and motorsport. For as long as people have been building cars, they’ve been racing them too. This need for speed, you could say, is human nature and it’s the one that drives carmakers to make ever faster cars.
It's found at the core of MG which started out making modified versions of the Morris Oxford in 1924 as a sales promotional sideline by general manager Cecil Kimber. Kimber produced no less than four versions of these “Morris Garages” specials. By 1928, it led to MG becoming large enough to warrant an identity separate from the original Morris Garages.
Kimber, a self-taught businessman and engineer, always felt that motorsport was key to build MG’s awareness and desire. To that end, he would build customized, lighter-bodied racing versions of his cars and entered them in any contest he could. This included pushing the envelope with land speed record attempts.
For his cars, Kimber only had one desire: to design and produce sporting automobiles that could be purchased at an affordable price point. But his worldview wasn’t just limited to his British compatriots. In fact, he profusely praised an Alfa Romeo and used it as his benchmark calling it, “the most wonderful thing I had ever handled to that time…that experience spurred me on in a way nothing else could have done.”
Sadly, as Kimber didn’t have majority share in his company, MG was soon swallowed by Morris Motors. Eventually, it became part of the British Motor Corporation, then British Leyland, and the Rover Group. By the time the MG name returned to prominence as MG Rover, it was the last British owned mass-market car manufacturer. By then, MG was already part of an uncompetitive British auto industry, where the failure to innovate—be it through products or production—was endemic.
Nonetheless, it wasn’t all doom-and-gloom. During the 1960s, MG managed to produce the MG B which became the best-selling British sportscar of all time. In its 18-year run, it sold over half a million units and up to today, it remains an iconic symbol of British engineering and a constant favorite at historic events such as the Goodwood Revival.
The Goodwood Revival itself is a nostalgic celebration of the British auto industry at its peak. Held at the Goodwood Circuit in West Sussex, it relives what would have been the circuit’s heyday between 1948 to 1966. In fact, the 3.8-kilometer circuit itself is unchanged from its 1952 layout and no modern vehicle is ever allowed on the circuit itself except for modern fire and rescue vehicles.
MGs were almost ever-present at the circuit. And even the founder of the Goodwood Festival of Speed and Goodwood Revival, the Duke of Richmond remembers his grandfather who ran in the MG team in the 1930s, winning the Double-Twelve Hour Race at Brooklands in 1931. He praised MGs for their lightweight, simplicity, and clever engineering. It was his grandfather’s very own MG C that he drove to open the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2024.
The Duke’s personal connection with MGs helped in creating an all-MG B race in 2022 for the Revival—this was after staging all Ferrari, Alfa Romeo, and Ford GT40 races in the past.
As for British car brands, it took the likes of BMW, Volkswagen, Ford (and later, Mahindra), and SAIC Motor to come to the British car industry’s rescue. Brand such as Mini, Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Jaguar, Land Rover, Rover, and MG all owe their continued existence thanks to these global automakers.
SAIC Motor never gets credit, but they hung on for as long as they could to keep MG’s British manufacturing alive. It kept large scale production running until the Brexit vote forced them to centralize its global production in Shanghai. Still, SAIC kept its presence at the site of the Longbridge plant in Birmingham, England as its European Technical Centre.
Ever since SAIC’s stewardship of the MG brand, it became the largest single-brand car export from China for five consecutive years.
In 2024 alone, deliveries of SAIC Motor hit 1.082 million units—a 2.6 percent year-on-year increase, ranking it among the highest in the automotive industry. Specifically, MG made inroads in the ultra-competitive hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) segment in Europe with its sales surpassing 240,000 units.
As of the first half of 2025, deliveries already reached 2.207 million units thanks to a streak of consistent monthly sales growth. Its electrified vehicle sales hit 646,000—a 40.2 percent year-on-year increase. Closer to home, MG Philippines recorded 4,632 units sold from January to June 2025—a strong year-on-year sales growth of 17.9 percent. This also meant that it has managed to increase its market share from 1.7 to 2 percent.
Despite not having any manufacturing base left in the United Kingdom, SAIC Motor continues to invest in European talent. In 2020, they established the SAIC Advanced Design Studio along Marylebone Road in London. This creative space is where MG’s new designs come to life and where it shapes the brand’s future design direction in all aspects. This is where designs such as the MG 4, MG GT, and most recently, the MG ZS and MG HS all came to life.
Its most recent design philosophy, “Emotional Dynamism,” fuses personal values with the sporting 100-year-old MG DNA. The result are cars that aren’t cookie-cutter in appearance, but rather something with flowing lines, bold shapes, and a sense of energy.
Its boldest design yet is no doubt the MG EXE181. This concept car pays tribute to the original EX181 ‘roaring raindrop MG’ land speed record car which flew across the famous Bonneville Salt Flats in the late 1950s and was piloted by men like the British racing legend Sir Stirling Moss who reached 395.8 km/h (246mph) in 1957. Two years later, America’s Phil Hill would improve the record by achieving 413.6 km/h (257mph).
The team at the SAIC Advanced Design Studio imagined a potential MG land speed record challenger of the future, propelled by kilowatts and rotors rather than fossil fuels and pistons, whilst skillfully retaining many of the signature design features of the first MG.
The result is an iF award winner which received a commendation for its study of style, innovation, and efficiency, while also acting as an ambassador for the next chapter of MG.
One hundred years ago, MG pioneered the creation of affordable sports cars, turning the sporting dreams into reality for enthusiasts around the world. Today, as the paradigm shifts from horseless to hybrids to purely electric mobility, MG continues to deliver on that vision, producing accessible and innovative vehicles whatever the power source.
Pushing the British narrative without having manufacturing in the UK is hypocrisy. You know MG crash wouldn't sell if you take away the MG brand and replace it with Saic.
ReplyDeleteProduct lineup of MG are mostly real MG vehicles now and less Roewe nor Maxus ones.
DeleteMG made a lot of money selling ZS and HS SUVs worldwide and their best selling sedan is the very affordable MG5 which is popular in Asian and Latin American countries.
Yes, they bought MG for the name and the history, this is no secret.
DeletePeople buy Levi's jeans made in Bangladesh but it's always been marketed with its American history.
You can call the marketing of these global brands as 'inauthentic' but hypocritical is the wrong word since they do have basis to claim their connection. At least, they are still using locals to design the cars in order to maintain their 'identity.'
Seems like sales of MG vehicles in the country has been dwindling lately.
ReplyDeleteMaking cars BEV isn't a sign or point of innovation. Imagine if BEVs were the first to arrive then automakers switching them to gas now, that can also be Co sidsred as innovation.
ReplyDeleteIt's literally the fastest developing car technology and your hypothetical reversed situation is complete fantasy (what if we go further and 'innovate' by going back to steam engines? Lol)
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