Longbridge's Future

I keep dragging topics into strange areas so I'm starting a new one!

The MG3 is to undergo final assembly at Longbridge like the MG6. If the MG5 comes here, presumably the same would happen, but how long can they keep that up for? Guy Jones indicates that MG is heading for a broad range of cars from hot hatches to SUVs, including a roadster at some point in the future - can they ALL be put through Longbridge for final assembly? Surely there just aren't enough tracks?

SAIC seem keen to have the 'made in the UK too' label applied to their Chinese offerings - could they be forced to expand to another site (one where they owned the freehold and therefore didn't have to pay rent to a Landlord cf. St Modwen)?

If MG becomes the success it has the potential to be and Europe demonstrates a thirst for the whole range, they will either have to fall back on importing whole, completed cars from China or building new lines somewhere in the UK/EU.

Morris Motors wrote:I keep dragging topics into strange areas so I'm starting a new one!

The MG3 is to undergo final assembly at Longbridge like the MG6. If the MG5 comes here, presumably the same would happen, but how long can they keep that up for? Guy Jones indicates that MG is heading for a broad range of cars from hot hatches to SUVs, including a roadster at some point in the future - can they ALL be put through Longbridge for final assembly? Surely there just aren't enough tracks?

SAIC seem keen to have the 'made in the UK too' label applied to their Chinese offerings - could they be forced to expand to another site (one where they owned the freehold and therefore didn't have to pay rent to a Landlord cf. St Modwen)?

If MG becomes the success it has the potential to be and Europe demonstrates a thirst for the whole range, they will either have to fall back on importing whole, completed cars from China or building new lines somewhere in the UK/EU.

If they sell in sufficient numbers then they will want to make the bodies in Longbridge too, and they have got a paint shop etc so that can be done.

I think it all depends on numbers, most of those models will all run down the same assembly lines so space isn't actually a problem, it just a question of throughput. Eventually they will need a second European factory but we are a long way off that at present. The space they have at Longbridge may be less than MGR had but MGR didn't use most of their available space and I'm sure the modern computerised technology centre is far more compact than the old flight shed as will be the assembly lines, plus a lot of the design and development is done in China now.

Oh MGR was overstaffed, full of old tech and surrounded by almost derelict buildings; totally sensible to downsize.

But by the time they get to a stage where sales volumes make it feasible to make bodies in the UK too, that paint shop will have been put of commission for years; I doubt that facility will come back on stream without a lot of work and even then it would probably be outdated.

They seem proud of their Chinese links, but terrified of importing a whole complete car at the moment. They'll have to at some point.

I believe that the paintshop is still ''online''

One of the reasons for final assembly here is to save on import duty.

They actually have quite a bit of space remaining at Longridge suitable for assembly.



Are you UK based Morris Motors or from elsewhere?

How long can a paint shop remain 'online' without ever actually being used? By the time they do need one it certainly won't be 'state of the art' anymore!

Yes I am UK based - driven Morris/MG/Austin etc since I learned to drive )