Shanghai show: MG set to show E-motion

CHINA’S MG is set to wheel out an all-electric Tesla competitor in concept form at next week’s Shanghai motor show.

MG’s parent company, SAIC Motor, has released three teaser images of the E-motion, a two-door 2+2 coupe that it says is capable of the zero to 100km/h dash in less than four seconds and can cover up to 500km on a full battery charge.

The vehicle could mark a return to sports-oriented vehicles at the one-time British sportscar brand which has eschewed such vehicles since the demise of the MG F, favouring mass-market hatchbacks, sedans and SUVs instead.

The E-motion is built on SAIC’s new electric modular architecture that will underpin other models in SAIC’s home-brand line-ups, including Roewe.

The design – most likely done at MG’s studio in Britain – is said to have a European flavour. The grille is made up of LEDs in what is described as a “star matrix design”, while the headlamps are said to mimic the London Eye.

Vertical tail-lamps are said to mix a classic look with a “sense of the future”.

And, of course, MG has promised high levels of connectivity to appeal to younger drivers.

In Australia, MG has been relaunched this year with three models – the ageing MG6, small MG5 and, most recently, the MG GS small SUV. Later this year, another SUV, the ZS, is scheduled to be added to the line-up.

MG ended up in SAIC’s group of brands when it merged with another Chinese company, Nanjing Automotive, that bought both MG and Rover from British owners after the brands got in to financial difficulty.

SAIC has maintained MG’s design and engineering centre in the UK, but moved manufacturing to China.