JustBritish

The Midlands automotive sector has received a second major shot in the arm with the news that MG owner Shanghai Automotive has told UK dealers it expects to produce 600 of the new TF LE500 models between the start of production in August and the end of the year. That came as the new boss of Jaguar told Birmingham executives yesterday that the company is staging a fight back against its rivals. He spoke out just 24 hours after Jaguar Land Rover revealed plans to launch a recruitment drive to find up to 600 new employees, less than a month after a £1.15 billion takeover by Tata Motors of India was completed.

SAIC’s UK dealers says first of the new sports cars are expected to be in UK showrooms in September and price details are expected to be released in the next few weeks. Nanjing Automotive, which had previously owned the Longbridge brand, appointed 50 UK dealers last summer ready for the scheduled launch of the model in September last year. Following its merger with SAIC at the start of this year there had been concerns that the dealership arrangements could change. However, one dealer has now confirmed that the original supply agreement is being upheld and the first cars will be rolling off the production lines at Longbridge very shortly.
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Popularity: unranked [?]

Trevor Wilkinson, the founder of TVR, the small British carmaker known for nimble little sports cars that early owners often assembled from a kit, died Wednesday in Minorca, Spain. He was 85.

His death was confirmed by Marshall Moore, president of the TVR Car Club of North America.

The soft-spoken Mr. Wilkinson built his first car in 1947 as a race special and incorporated TVR Engineering (later simply TVR) the next year. The company name was a shortened version of his first name.
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Popularity: 13% [?]

It’s a strange time for the British sports car industry. With MG’s future still in doubt, TVR in a perennial state of flux, the briefly resurgent Marcos now in administration and formerly quaint Morgan embracing BMW tech, many of the great British names have either perished or changed out of all recognition.

One manufacturer staying true to its roots is Ginetta, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. With a reputation built on its highly successful sports racing cars (and road cars) of the 1950s and ’60s, Ginetta has always held a special place in the hearts of discerning sports car fans of a certain age. While the marque’s more recent history has been defined by slow decline and on-going financial strife, it survived, and is now enjoying a renaissance in the hands of entrepreneur and successful racer Lawrence Tomlinson.

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Popularity: 51% [?]

Breckland’s dual-fuel, 300kW V8 Beira roadster will be launched at the Motorexpo at London’s Canary Wharf on June 9, 2008.

Visitors will be the first members of the public to see a brand-new, British-built sports car in the UK. The Beira is being assembled by Norfolk-based Breckland Technology and will be on sale from November 2008.

Breckland started with General Motors’ Kappa platform, the basis of the American Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky models. This allowed the company (which specializes in producing low-volume cars and prototypes for clients) to keep development time and price to a minimum. The car has taken a year to develop and is expected to retail for about £55 000.

For that, buyers will get a car based on proven GM technology but with unique styling and a six-litre V8 engine (also from GM, normally used in Corvettes) tuned to produce almost 300kW.

That, says the company, is enough to fire the car to 100km/h in less than five seconds and on to a governed 250km/h. However, unlike the standard engine, the version in the Beira has been engineered to run on LPG as well as unleaded petrol to reduce running costs and CO2 emissions. It will also give it a potential range of more than 1100km from its two tanks.

Breckland’s designers have remodeled the front and rear of the car but they have retained GM’s doors for their good seal and side-impact protection.

The interior, on the other hand, is custom-built and includes crash bags, air conditioning and satellite navigation but the company says the cabin can tailored to any customer’s needs in terms of material and equipment.

It’s a car unashamedly aimed at driving enthusiasts and Breckland director Mike Rawlings said: “The Beira carries on from where Marcos and TVR left off in terms of providing maximum performance and real individuality for money spent.”

Source – Reuters

Popularity: 26% [?]