100 Years of MG

Over a hundred years ago, the Oxford Isis newspaper featured an ad for a new car called The Super Sports Morris.

Boasting “Real Speed, Real Comfort, Distinguished Appearance, Beautiful Proportions, and Superlative Paintwork” for £350, it also showcased the debut of the simple yet memorable octagonal 'MG' logo. Cecil Kimber, manager of Morris Garages in Queen Street, Oxford, had recently gotten the green light from William Morris to transform practical family cars into sporty models. This ad was the first announcement of the new MGs to the world—or at least to Oxfordshire.

MG’s first model, the Super Sports Morris, was officially registered in August 1923, with six cars assembled in Queen Street. Two years later, MG ventured into motorsports with Old Number One, a custom build on a Morris Cowley chassis. Kimber won a gold medal in the Light Car Class of the Land’s End Trial, establishing MG’s reputation for reliability. By 1927, MG had moved to a new factory in Oxford, and in 1928, the MG Car Company was officially registered.

In 1930, MG gained its first American fan: Edsel Ford, who imported a yellow M-Type Midget. Over three years, Ford reportedly drove it 27,000 miles around Grosse Pointe, Michigan, before adding the little car to the company’s museum. In 1935, Morris noticed MG's success and bought the sports car company. By the time the factory's output was shifted to support the war effort in 1939, MG had produced 18,664 cars.

The joy of peace was marred by the tragic death of MG's founder, Cecil Kimber, in a London train crash. However, good news soon followed. In 1946, 20 MG TCs were officially imported to the United States. One of these cars caught the eye of California Jeep dealer Kjell Qvale, who secured the distribution rights for the entire West Coast. In 1947, only 243 MGs were sold in America, but thanks to Qvale, this number quickly grew, making the U.S. MG's biggest market. This marked the beginning of America's ongoing love affair with British sports cars.

After sticking with mostly pre-war designs, MG launched its first truly new model in nearly 20 years in 1955: the charming MGA. It was an instant hit, with 13,000 units produced in the first year. A year later, MG's total production hit the 100,000 mark, thanks largely to strong demand from America.

By now, MG was part of the British Motor Corporation, the same company that made the Mini. This connection gave MG access to Austin Healey’s Sprite platform. In 1961, MG launched the Midget, and in 1962, they introduced its bigger sibling, the MGB. Initially available as a roadster, a stylish GT hardtop coupé designed by Pininfarina was added in 1965. The MGB quickly became one of the world's favourite British sports cars for the next 20 years.

By the late 1960s, MG had been merged into the nationalised British Leyland, alongside brands like Austin, Morris, Triumph, Jaguar, and Land Rover. MG production picked up speed, with the MGB hitting 250,000 units by 1971, and the brand's one millionth car rolling off the assembly line in 1975. Even the Midget surpassed 220,000 units before it was discontinued in 1979.

After the boom of the 1970s, the 1980s slowed for MG. The last MGB was built in 1980, with the final car given to Henry Ford II to join his father’s Midget in the company museum. Back in the UK, MG was reduced to badge engineering, with its iconic octagonal logo appearing on souped-up hatchbacks and family sedans from Austin-Rover. There was one notable exception: the Group B rally MG Metro 6R4. Unfortunately, it was unreliable and arrived too late to make a significant impact in the World Championship before Group B rally cars were banned.

Resurrection and redemption defined MG in the 1990s. As part of the Rover Group, MG released nearly 2000 MGB V8s with Land Rover engines, sparking renewed interest in the brand. The real revival came in 1995 with the launch of the MG F. This mid-engined roadster was fun to drive and quickly became Britain’s best-selling sports car.

BMW quickly lost interest in the Rover Group and sold it to the British-backed Phoenix consortium. The MG badge continued to appear on sportier Rover models, and the MG F got a facelift. However, the good times didn't last, and the company went bankrupt in 2005. China's Nanjing Automobile Corporation stepped in, bought what was left of MG and Rover, and moved the assembly lines to China.

MG changed hands again in 2007 when state-owned SAIC acquired Nanjing. In 2011, MG launched its first new model since 1995, the MG 6 sedan. This was followed by the MG 3 hatchback, marking the start of a new era of budget-friendly MG cars.

SAIC's strategy has led to an impressive turnaround for MG. By 2021, the company sold half a million cars worldwide, with MGs making it into the top ten sales charts in 20 countries. This success has driven significant investment in electrification, with the MG4 winning numerous awards for its affordable pricing and decent range. The most exciting news, however, is that the surge in sales and tech investment means a new MG roadster, the Cyberster, will hit the market in 2024.