MG's LeMans Plans

[Mal]

I just picked up this quote on http://www.autocarmagazine.com/
The article is part of an announcment of MG's plans to sell the SV in Britain and America.

'The SV faces an active competition career ahead of it: MGR hopes to enter the SV into several racing categories. The company’s ambition is to make a full GT challenge at Le Mans in 2005.'

Sportscar racing really does seem to be taking of especially for 2005

[Pilgrimage]

Good to hear more LM commitment, but we shall see if it actually happens... I can't see an MG assault like several years ago happening again.

[Tim Northcutt]

It has been no secret for at least two years that MG was ultimately interested in going back to North America to sell cars....

The original timetable they set when they revived the MG name was "by 2007"

MGs were enormously popular roadsters here in the USA...

I assumed that these announcements: "MG to Return to USA market" and the "MG to Race the MG-SV" were a question of "When" it would come about...there was no "If" to it....

You don't buy out Qvale to get the raw chassis elements of a strong GT or sports roadster, then ultimately create a state-of-the-art rocketship like the SV unless you plan to use it as your high-profile Flagship model to hit new or major markets...

and more important, to race it to draw evwn more attention to the make and the model itself on some of the biggest racing stages of the world for that class of car...Le Mans, Sebring, any of the four LMES circuits, PLM, etc....

Glad to see them making this move...I fully expected this announcement...I just wish it had been for 2004 instead of 2005...

[rdjones]

That is fantastic news, as Tim say's we have know about this for two years or so. I can not wait to see the MG and the MG girls back at Le Mans in 2005........

[Tim Northcutt]

Personally, If I were MG, I would have created a "Retro Roadster" as well (in addition to the SV) that was based on the body lines of the MG-A...

But put the small block V-8 or the supercharged in-line 6 or whatever with all of the 21st century EFI and such in it the same way that Ford did the revival of the T-Bird here in North America..

They could have sold those in the USA for $30,000 to $40,000 and made a killing!!!!

They could have even marketed the MG-V8 that they sold in the UK, Australia and ultimately Japan...thier timing was too far ahead of its time...

They sold those in the early 1990s...If they would have brought that same concept to the US in 1997 or 1998, they would have sold more cars than they could produce...

But back on Thread:

They will be a good-looking and fast addition to the GT class...no doubt about it...

[paulzinho]

I'd love to see them have another go at prototypes, IMO they have unfinished business!

But its great to see them continuing their involvement.

[rdjones]

Originally posted by paulzinho
I'd love to see them have another go at prototypes, IMO they have unfinished business!

I would agree with you there Paul, IMO had the works team continued and race at Le Mans in 2003, I belive they would have had a good chance of winning not just the class but the race overall, now that would have been something, Bentley v MG, for the Brits to cheer..........

[paulzinho]

YEp, its a shame they never managed to get to the finish in those 2 years.

[Pilgrimage]

Originally posted by paulzinho
YEp, its a shame they never managed to get to the finish in those 2 years.

Very true - the standard "rule" is 3 attempts to win at LM isn't it?
I really liked the MG proto...