MG: owner, models, markets and what the name means
Facts checked United States status as of 4 September 2026
- State-owned
- Shanghai Stock Exchange 600104
MG began in Oxford in 1924, when Cecil Kimber, who ran William Morris's dealership Morris Garages, started building sportier bodies and tuned engines on Morris cars. The octagonal badge was registered as a trademark on 1 May 1924. From 1929 the cars were built at Abingdon-on-Thames in Oxfordshire, which remained MG's home until production there ended in 1980.
The brand passed through the mergers that produced British Leyland and then Rover Group. BMW bought Rover in 1994 and broke it up in 2000, leaving MG Rover Group at Longbridge in Birmingham as the last independent British owner. MG Rover went into administration in April 2005. SAIC had already bought the rights to the Rover 25, the Rover 75 and the K-series engine in 2004; the physical assets and the MG name went in July 2005 to a different Chinese bidder, Nanjing Automobile, for about £53 million. The two Chinese state companies were merged on 26 December 2007, and MG has been an SAIC brand ever since.
Under SAIC, MG stopped being a sports-car marque and became the group's export badge. Cars are engineered mainly in Shanghai, with a European office in Birmingham, and built in China, Thailand, India and Indonesia. In India the business was restructured in 2023 with the JSW Group as a local partner and renamed JSW MG Motor India.
The brand now sells across most of Europe, in Australia and New Zealand, and in Mexico, Thailand, India and other Asian markets. SAIC reported MG sales above 300,000 in Europe in 2025, 70,000 in India and 29,000 in Thailand. MG is not sold in the United States; MG sports cars were last offered there under British Leyland in 1980.
British marque founded in 1924, owned by SAIC Motor since December 2007. SAIC did not buy MG directly: Nanjing Automobile bought the assets of the collapsed MG Rover Group in July 2005, and SAIC absorbed Nanjing Automobile two and a half years later.
Key facts
| Chinese name | 名爵 “MING-jweh” 名 'famous, renowned' + 爵 'a noble rank, peerage' — chosen to sound roughly like the letters M-G while reading as 'renowned nobility' |
|---|---|
| Also written | MG Motor, Morris Garages and MG Motor UK |
| Owner | SAIC Motor |
| Founded | 1924 |
| Headquarters | Shanghai, China |
| Origin | United Kingdom |
| First car | MG 14/28 Super Sports, 1924 |
| Vehicles | Cars |
| Segment | Mass market |
| United States | Not sold in the United States — No MG vehicles are sold in the United States and SAIC has announced no US entry. MG sports cars were sold there for decades and were withdrawn in 1980, when the Abingdon factory closed; that was three owners and 27 years before SAIC acquired the brand. |
| Official site | www.mgmotor.eu/ |
| Founded | 1924, Oxford; the octagon badge was registered as a trademark on 1 May 1924 |
| Bought by Nanjing Automobile | July 2005, for about £53 million, from the administrators of MG Rover Group |
| Came under SAIC | 26 December 2007, when SAIC merged with Nanjing Automobile |
| 2025 sales, Europe | more than 300,000 vehicles, up nearly 30% on 2024 |
| 2025 sales, India and Thailand | 70,000 in India (up 17.8%) and 29,000 in Thailand (up 13.3%) |
| European markets | MG's own European site lists 36 countries in its market selector, from Iceland to North Macedonia |
Who owns MG?
Shanghai Municipal State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission controls SAIC Motor since 1995.
The Shanghai municipal state-assets commission is SAIC Motor's ultimate controller, holding its shares through the wholly state-owned parent Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (Group). Published figures for the parent's holding in the listed company cluster between about 63% and 68%; no figure carrying its own date could be confirmed from an SAIC filing, so the stake is left null.
SAIC Motor owns MG at 100% since 26 December 2007.
SAIC has owned MG since it merged with Nanjing Automobile on 26 December 2007. It did not buy the brand directly: Nanjing had bought MG Rover's assets in 2005, while SAIC had separately bought the Rover 75 and 25 designs and the K-series engine in 2004.
Former owners
Holdings that have ended. They are here because the story needs them and are never part of the current tree.
Nanjing Automobile (Group) Corporation formerly held MG at 100% from July 2005 until 26 December 2007.
Nanjing Automobile bought the MG marque and MG Rover's plant assets from the administrators in July 2005 for about £53 million, outbidding SAIC. It held the brand for two and a half years until SAIC absorbed the company.
MG Rover Group Limited formerly held MG at 100% from 2000 until July 2005.
MG Rover Group at Longbridge was the last British owner of the marque, created when BMW broke up Rover Group in 2000. It went into administration in April 2005 and its assets were sold that July.
The full ownership page for MG · Is MG Chinese?
MG models
| Model | Name in China | Body | Powertrain | Range | Price in China |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MG3 | not offered | Hatchback | Offered with more than one powertrain | not published | not published |
| 木兰MG4 | MG Mulan (木兰) | Hatchback | Battery-electric | 437 km CLTC | CNY 68,800 as of |
| 名爵5MG5 | MG5 (名爵5) | Saloon | Offered with more than one powertrain | 320 km WLTP | CNY 67,900 as of |
| 名爵7MG7 | MG7 (名爵7) | Saloon | Petrol or diesel | not published | CNY 125,900 as of |
| MG Cyberster | MG Cyberster | Coupé | Battery-electric | 507 km WLTP | CNY 319,800 as of |
| 名爵HSMG HS | MG HS / MG Linghang (领航) | SUV | Offered with more than one powertrain | 135 km NEDC | not published |
| 名爵ES5MG S5 EV | MG ES5 | SUV | Battery-electric | 450 km WLTP | not published |
| 名爵ZSMG ZS | MG ZS | Crossover | Offered with more than one powertrain | 263 km WLTP | not published |
Where MG is sold
Recorded in 49 market s: CN, United Kingdom, IE, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, PT, Netherlands, BE, LU, AT, CH, DK, Norway, Sweden, FI, IS, PL, CZ, SK, HU, RO, BG, GR, HR, SI, RS, BA, ME, MK, AL, MT, CY, EE, LV, LT, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, India, Mexico, Philippines, SG, Indonesia, Pakistan, United Arab Emirates, MA and Russia. Where a company publishes only its principal markets, that is a floor and not a complete list.
| Country | Code | Market page |
|---|---|---|
| China | CN | no page yet |
| United Kingdom | GB | Chinese cars in the United Kingdom |
| Ireland | IE | no page yet |
| France | FR | Chinese cars in France |
| Germany | DE | Chinese cars in Germany |
| Italy | IT | Chinese cars in Italy |
| Spain | ES | Chinese cars in Spain |
| Portugal | PT | no page yet |
| Netherlands | NL | Chinese cars in the Netherlands |
| Belgium | BE | no page yet |
| Luxembourg | LU | no page yet |
| Austria | AT | no page yet |
| Switzerland | CH | no page yet |
| Denmark | DK | no page yet |
| Norway | NO | Chinese cars in Norway |
| Sweden | SE | Chinese cars in Sweden |
| Finland | FI | no page yet |
| Iceland | IS | no page yet |
| Poland | PL | no page yet |
| Czechia | CZ | no page yet |
| Slovakia | SK | no page yet |
| Hungary | HU | no page yet |
| Romania | RO | no page yet |
| Bulgaria | BG | no page yet |
| Greece | GR | no page yet |
| Croatia | HR | no page yet |
| Slovenia | SI | no page yet |
| Serbia | RS | no page yet |
| Bosnia & Herzegovina | BA | no page yet |
| Montenegro | ME | no page yet |
| North Macedonia | MK | no page yet |
| Albania | AL | no page yet |
| Malta | MT | no page yet |
| Cyprus | CY | no page yet |
| Estonia | EE | no page yet |
| Latvia | LV | no page yet |
| Lithuania | LT | no page yet |
| Australia | AU | Chinese cars in Australia |
| New Zealand | NZ | Chinese cars in New Zealand |
| Thailand | TH | Chinese cars in Thailand |
| India | IN | Chinese cars in India |
| Mexico | MX | Chinese cars in Mexico |
| Philippines | PH | Chinese cars in the Philippines |
| Singapore | SG | no page yet |
| Indonesia | ID | Chinese cars in Indonesia |
| Pakistan | PK | Chinese cars in Pakistan |
| United Arab Emirates | AE | Chinese cars in the United Arab Emirates |
| Morocco | MA | no page yet |
| Russia | RU | Chinese cars in Russia |
MG: questions people ask
- Who owns MG?
- SAIC Motor, the vehicle group owned by the city of Shanghai. It has held the brand since 26 December 2007, when it merged with Nanjing Automobile, which had bought MG's assets out of administration in 2005.
- Is MG still British?
- The marque is British in origin and still has a design and engineering office in Birmingham, but the company is Chinese-owned and the cars are built in China, Thailand, India and Indonesia. Volume production at the last British plant, Longbridge, ended in 2005.
- What does MG stand for?
- Morris Garages, the Oxford dealership that Cecil Kimber managed for William Morris and where the first MGs were built in 1924.
- Is MG sold in the United States?
- No. MG has no US sales operation and none has been announced. The badge was last sold in America in 1980, under British Leyland.
- What is MG called in China?
- 名爵 (Míngjué, roughly 'MING-jweh'), characters chosen to echo the English initials while reading as 'renowned nobility'.
Related
Sources for MG
- MG Motor Middle East, MG Heritage & History. Read . MG's own heritage timeline: 1924 founding at Morris Garages, Cecil Kimber, the move to Abingdon.
- NBC News, MG Rover sold to Chinese automaker. Read . July 2005: Nanjing Automobile's purchase of the MG Rover assets.
- Wikipedia, MG Motor. Read . Finding aid for the 26 December 2007 SAIC–NAC merger, the Chinese name 名爵 (Míngjué), the plants and the JSW arrangement in India.
- SAIC Motor, SAIC Motor reports record sales in 2025. Read . Published 7 January 2026; MG's 2025 volumes in Europe, India and Thailand.
- MG Motor Europe, MG Motor Europe. Read . Country selector, used for the European market list.
- Eurofound (European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions), Uncertainty continues following sale of MG Rover to Nanjing Automobile Corporation. Read . The 2005 collapse and sale from a European public body's account.