Russian legal entity Mir-Distributor LLC from Yekaterinburg announced It was stated that MG brand cars, owned by the Chinese concern SAIC, will begin to be sold in the Russian market. Already this spring, three models of this brand will be available: the ZS and HS crossovers, as well as the MG6 liftback.
MG’s Yekaterinburg distributor plans to increase the number of models available on the Russian market to ten this year alone. The liftback and two SUVs will be followed by the RX5, RX9 and HS PHEV crossovers, as well as the MG7 liftback.
Three more new products will be announced later.
They will come first
The size of the MG6 liftback is comparable to the Skoda Octavia and Toyota Corolla. However, its size is lower than the Kia Optima.
The length of the MG6 is 4659 mm and is equipped with a 168 horsepower 1.5 turbo engine and a seven-speed robotic transmission. Equipment includes electrically adjustable sports seats, a media system with an eight-inch screen and 18-inch wheels. The current MG6 generation has been in production since 2016 and was redesigned in 2021.
The compact crossover ZS can be compared with the Hyundai Creta, which left the Russian market, or the Chinese Haval Jolion, produced at a factory in the Tula region. A version with a 1.5 gasoline engine with 114 hp is intended for the Russian market. and a modifier. The vehicle is front wheel drive.
Basic equipment includes front airbags (side airbags are available on higher trim levels), LED headlights, 17-inch wheels and faux leather seats. There are five USB ports scattered throughout the cabin, and there are rear parking sensors and a rearview camera.
The larger HS is a classmate of the Hyundai Tucson and Volkswagen Tiguan.
Two turbo engine options are available: front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive. The front-wheel drive crossover is equipped with a 148-horsepower 1.5 engine and a seven-speed “robot”, while the all-wheel drive crossover has a 200-horsepower 2.0 engine. and a six-speed “robot”.
The basic version already has a stabilization system, front and side airbags and an audio system with six speakers. Prices of MG cars for the Russian market have not been announced yet.
Why are other Chinese auto companies afraid of them?
Founded in 1924, the British MG brand came under Chinese control in the mid-2000s: the MG Rover Group factory in Longbridge was closed in 2005 following bankruptcy. It was later purchased by Nanjing for $100 million.
Since 2009, the legacy of the British brands Rover and MG (Morris Garage) has belonged to the Chinese state concern SAIC, the largest automaker in China, which has held first place in sales for 18 years. According to its reports, SAIC in 2023 Sold 5.02 million cars. More than 55% of these (2.78 million cars) are the company’s own brand. These include Hongyang, Wuling, Baojun, Roewe, Maxus, MG.
SAIC’s most important advantage is that it has joint ventures with the world’s leading automobile giants Volkswagen and General Motors.
It also has foreign production facilities in Thailand, India and Indonesia. The company is actively developing foreign markets: at the end of 2021, about 700 thousand cars were sold outside China out of a total sales volume of 5.46 million.MG cars are sold all over the world, including Europe, Asia, Latin America and Middle Eastern countries.
The MG brand is also present in neighboring countries: 675 new cars of this brand were sold in Ukraine in 2023. Mir-Distributor company registered in Yekaterinburg, which plans to sell MG cars in 30 car dealerships in 18 cities of Russia, is not officially associated with the Chinese automaker but is owned by Russian citizens. The legal entity itself is of Kazakh origin; In 2017, among its founders was the SaryArkaAvtoprom factory in Kostanay.
For Chinese auto companies that have already entered Russia, MG’s entry could be a serious problem.
The fact is that the products of this brand are already successfully competing with European brands in the European Union, which proves the competitiveness of its products. Thus, in the UK, MG ranks second after Tesla in electric vehicle sales. In Spain, the MG ZS hatchback became the sales leader in its segment, surpassing European bestsellers such as Renault Clio and Dacia Sandero. MG cars are successfully sold in emerging markets: India and the African continent.
hopes
Experts believe that the launch of the MG brand in the Russian market can be successful with adequate price positioning and marketing.
“This brand has an image and it’s not bad. There are even those who remember that this is a British brand with a centuries-old history. These cars sell very well all over the world. For example, last year I saw a lot of cars of this type in Israel,” Igor Morzharetto, partner of the analytical agency Autostat, told socialbites.ca.
If you are running a large-scale advertising campaign, The MG brand may gain a notable market share, but not a significant market share given that MG will not offer cheap cars, he adds.
Independent automotive industry consultant Sergei Burgazliev believes that SAIC’s strategy of acquiring the MG brand and keeping production partly in the UK, but developing the brand through the technological potential of China, is a good example of how to competently maintain the history of a recognizable brand.
“Russia is a good market for MG and this brand offers a good product. “If MG first comes as an importer and then organizes contract assembly, it can compete with Chinese brands already operating in Russia,” Burgazliev told socialbites.ca.
The introduction of new Chinese brands requires significant marketing investments. He adds that MG is at least known in Russia and it is much easier to generate interest in it.
“If MG’s pricing policy is not too different from Chery and Geely, its chances are quite high. To be successful here, the MG ZS crossover must cost the same as the Haval Jolion, in the range of 2.2-3 million rubles. C-Class sedans generally have few competitors; The most affordable price for MG6 is 2.3-2.6 million rubles,” Burgazliev believes.