Topic

Since the MX5 replacement has been announced for 2015 - it's about time TF fans put their Yes votes down for a TF replacement - designed and engineered in England and inevitably made in China. What advice can we offer to MG UK so that they beat the new MX5 and return MG to the top? Let's put together an ideal spec for MG fans and the rest so the TF replacement will be a winner - what is our Top Ten points for the Chinese owners to bear in mind as they design the new MG sports car?

Not the first time this has been discussed, the last information anyone heard was this article published in July, and even in this they are talking about 2020:

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/mg/87705/confirmed-mg-is-building-a-new-roadster

I have just spent the last 18 minutes trying to find that link.

Front engined

The sole reason I own my F is because the engine is in the right place..

The new Alfa 4C manages to get this right.. Why can't SIAC?

Personally, I'd like to see a MG sports car that focuses on 'old' core MG values of 'affordable fun'. It needs to handle well, go well (enough) and look good but please don't load it with gizmos or try to chase the MX5 which is getting bigger, more expensive and yet more boring. So keep it simple and give the kids (as well as the BOFs) an alternative to hot hatches.

Richard

1st* and foremost, NO front wheel drive rubbish!
Mid engine/ rear drive or front engine/ rear drive only.

2nd* It must NOT be a soft slushy boulevarder like the yanks are so fond of.
It should be fun, sure footed, nimble and quick on a mountain pass.

3rd* It should have a dash of style, it must look like a sportscar. Not a bloody shopping trolley, hatchback, noddycar that's had the roof hacked off with a can opener. And it should have no unnessacary plastic geegaws or other pointless styling tat stuck on it.

4th* I should have enough power to hose off most of the automotive white goods cluttering the roads. There is no point in a sportscar that gets left behind by a cardigan wearing pensioner on their way to bingo in their beige Toyota Yaris!
5th* It should be affordable.

A bit more room inside would be nice, i have an F and being 6ft 2" i do find it a bit cosy to say the least.

I am still very uneasy about anything manufactured in China (apart from rice) especially expensive high end products, you can have the product designed, engineered, tested and proven with even the press tools and other manufacturing equipment finished to the highest standard but Chinese quality control is very poor.

The Japanese had the same poor reputation for quality control in the late 60's early 70's with their car manufacturing and asked American car giants to come over and help implement systems to increase quality and reliability. It's not just the physical mechanics of the quality control but the employees have to become an integral part of the process and form a partnership in the system and fully buy into it.

Now the Japanese have designed, engineered and implemented extremely robust quality control systems like Kaisan and Six Sigma which are now replicated back to the American car industry and used in many manufacturing companies across the globe plus here in the UK.

It took a many years for the Japanese product to gain the confidence of the rest of the world regarding the quality and reliability of their exported products and now they are at the top of the game.

It would take a few more years yet for the Chinese to build a reputation of high end quality before I had a Chinese car parked on my drive.

why not returning to the old badge engineering thing?

Cooperate with another manufacturer, redesign the outer panels a little and rebadge as MG...

New MX5 could be a nice base.

Badger wrote: wrote:

Now the Japanese have designed, engineered and implemented extremely robust quality control systems like Kaisan and Six Sigma which are now replicated back to the American car industry and used in many manufacturing companies across the globe plus here in the UK.

It took a many years for the Japanese product to gain the confidence of the rest of the world regarding the quality and reliability of their exported products and now they are at the top of the game.

It would take a few more years yet for the Chinese to build a reputation of high end quality before I had a Chinese car parked on my drive.

The downside of this is that the Japanese cheap cars are now the same price, if not more than the other mainstream cars available. The same would happen to Chinese cars, as did Seats, Skoda etc.

Badger wrote: wrote:

I am still very uneasy about anything manufactured in China (apart from rice) especially expensive high end products, you can have the product designed, engineered, tested and proven with even the press tools and other manufacturing equipment finished to the highest standard but Chinese quality control is very poor.

The Japanese had the same poor reputation for quality control in the late 60's early 70's with their car manufacturing and asked American car giants to come over and help implement systems to increase quality and reliability. It's not just the physical mechanics of the quality control but the employees have to become an integral part of the process and form a partnership in the system and fully buy into it.

Now the Japanese have designed, engineered and implemented extremely robust quality control systems like Kaisan and Six Sigma which are now replicated back to the American car industry and used in many manufacturing companies across the globe plus here in the UK.

It took a many years for the Japanese product to gain the confidence of the rest of the world regarding the quality and reliability of their exported products and now they are at the top of the game.

It would take a few more years yet for the Chinese to build a reputation of high end quality before I had a Chinese car parked on my drive.

Some excellent points, but as a pedant, I have to point out that Six Sigma is an American system, developed by Motorola, Illinois and registered in the US.

Back on topic, I was reminded the other day of what an excellent package the Fiat X1/9 was. Mid engined, rear wheel drive, dedicated engine cover not requiring 14 bolts to un do, boots front & back, a clever targa roof that stowed in the front and gave a proper roll bar doing away with the need for a separate hard top, wind break or hood renovater, spare wheel stowed behind the driver's seat etc etc. I'd love to see an MG with that packaging, some British styling and a modern powerplant.

Richard