China: Nanjing Auto says MG 5 sedan under development on new platform
By: Glenn Brooks, Wednesday, May 07, 2008, AutomotiveWorld.com
A report carried by China Car Times quoting a spokesman for Nanjing Auto (NAC), says the SAIC-controlled OEM has started work on a new vehicle platform for a future model to sit below the MG 7 sedan.
"We believe the MG 5 platform from Rover is too old fashioned to be launched into the modern 2008 market, thus we have begun to design and develop a new platform on which to build the MG 5," company spokesman Huang Ke Ji is quoted as saying.
The Chinese automotive news portal goes on to state that the future MG 5 will be powered by a new range of 1.5- and 1.6-litre I4 turbo engines.
Until now, it had been thought that NAC would derive its challenger for the Tianjin Toyota Corolla and FAW Volkswagen Bora from the outdated architecture used by the former MG ZS sedan and hatchback series. These latter cars, which went out of production with the collapse of the former MG Rover, were derived from the early 1990s Honda Domani.
Reports in the Chinese press have also begun to suggest that the Roewe 550, recently unveiled at the Beijing motor show, will be modified by SAIC and NAC to become another new model, the MG 6. No timeframe for this model's introduction has been suggested as yet.
In other news, the much delayed MG 3 is expected to go on sale later this month, while a new automatic transmission option for the MG 7 sedan is expected in December, China Car Times states.
"We believe the MG 5 platform from Rover is too old fashioned to be launched into the modern 2008 market, thus we have begun to design and develop a new platform on which to build the MG 5," company spokesman Huang Ke Ji is quoted as saying.
The Chinese automotive news portal goes on to state that the future MG 5 will be powered by a new range of 1.5- and 1.6-litre I4 turbo engines.
Until now, it had been thought that NAC would derive its challenger for the Tianjin Toyota Corolla and FAW Volkswagen Bora from the outdated architecture used by the former MG ZS sedan and hatchback series. These latter cars, which went out of production with the collapse of the former MG Rover, were derived from the early 1990s Honda Domani.
Reports in the Chinese press have also begun to suggest that the Roewe 550, recently unveiled at the Beijing motor show, will be modified by SAIC and NAC to become another new model, the MG 6. No timeframe for this model's introduction has been suggested as yet.
In other news, the much delayed MG 3 is expected to go on sale later this month, while a new automatic transmission option for the MG 7 sedan is expected in December, China Car Times states.
Published on Wednesday, May 07, 2008
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