Rover Fetches A Long Way Offshore
Sydney Morning Herald
Friday July 18, 2003
Struggling British car maker MG Rover has launched two unlikely models at once: an Indian-built mini car, and an "off-roader" intended entirely for on-road use - not least because it sends power only to the front wheels.
The latter, known as the Streetwise and based on the long-running Honda-based Rover 25, could come here early next year.
"The idea of a car with the look of a 4WD but without the complexity makes perfect rational sense," says MG Rover Australia marketing chief Ross Meyer, citing the "almost non-existent" use of such vehicles on unsealed roads.
"But to make it viable we'd need to sell it for less than $30,000."
The problem with such a price goes beyond the power of the pound. Because the Streetwise is front-wheel-drive it is classified as a passenger vehicle and incurs three times the duty of a so-called commercial vehicle such as the Holden Cruze or Honda CR-V.
The Streetwise clearly takes inspiration from the Audi A6 Allroad, using a higher ride height, distinctive grey body mouldings and roof bars. The tight budget did not extend to changing the mechanical aspects, however.
Inside, the 25 interior has been given a makeover and buyers can specify two individual rear seats instead of the conventional bench seat. Meyer says Australia would consider a 1.8-litre powerplant.
The other new car, known as the CityRover, is "highly unlikely" for Australia, according to Meyer, but it is the car MG Rover is relying on to save it in Europe. Described by the independent car maker as "an attractive, modern, city sector small car", it is little more than a mildly reworked version of the Indica, a conventional small hatch built and partly engineered in India by the massive Tata conglomerate.
Although just 30,000 to 40,000 will be sold in Europe each year, the CityRover's main task will be to provide hard-pressed dealers with a profitable model that will be bought by private buyers who will then return to the dealer for servicing.
It is powered by an Indian-built fuel-injected 1.4-litre alloy engine (based on a Peugeot unit) good for 62kW.
MG Rover's dire situation has barely improved three years after being abandoned by BMW (sales are still sliding and the company is a long way short of profitable), and it desperately needs to re-enter Europe's huge "supermini" market, despite not having the resources to develop its own vehicle. Hence the Indian takeaway.
Although prices range from #6500 ($16,250) to #8500, industry rumours suggest that the landed price of the CityRover is many thousands less, allowing a very healthy profit margin.
Its launch inspired top-selling weekly car magazine Autocar to run the line "Are they mad?" on the cover.
The main problem, however, is that MG Rover's crucial new Golf-sized medium car has been put back to the end of 2005, and some are now querying whether the company can survive beyond next year's 100th anniversary.
© 2003 Sydney Morning Herald
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