MG

British carmaker since 1924

1924More than 100 years of history

The brand’s story See MG models Book a test drive

MG is a British marque founded in 1924 in Oxford. Over a century it has won races, set speed records and built some of the best-selling roadsters in the world. It now belongs to SAIC Motor and builds petrol, hybrid and electric cars.

Origin: United Kingdom, 1924
Group: SAIC Motor
Line-up: City cars, saloons, SUVs, roadster
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The MG story

1924
Born in Oxford
MG comes from Morris Garages, William Morris’s garage in Oxford. Its general manager, Cecil Kimber, turned standard Morris cars into faster, sportier machines. The first MG, the 14/28 Super Sports, was a Morris Oxford with a two-seat body.
1931
Breaking 100 mph
The EX120 “Magic Midget” becomes the first 750 cc car to exceed 100 mph. Production has moved to Abingdon, where MG will build its cars for the next fifty years.
1933
Mille Miglia victory
A supercharged K3 Magnette wins its class at the Mille Miglia in Italy. MG becomes the first non-Italian marque to take the race’s team prize.
1945
The MG TC and the post-war years
After the war, MG launches the TC roadster. Taken home in large numbers by American servicemen, it starts America’s craze for British sports cars.
1955
The MGA and America
The MGA is launched. More than 100,000 are built, almost 95,000 of them exported, mostly to the United States, which had become MG’s biggest market. The same year Ken Miles races an MG at Le Mans.
1956
The Magnette ZB
The Magnette ZB saloon surprises at first with its styling, then wins buyers over with its performance and equipment.
1959
The fastest MG
On the Bonneville salt flats, the EX181 reaches 245.64 mph with Stirling Moss in 1957, then 254.91 mph with Phil Hill in 1959. It remains the fastest MG ever built.
1962
The MGB, the marque’s best-seller
The MGB roadster is the best-selling MG of all time and the first with monocoque construction. It stays in production until 1980.
1982
MG Metro and rallying
The MG Metro 1300 is one of the first hot hatches. It leads to the Metro 6R4 rally car with a 410 bhp 3.0 V6.
1983
The Maestro
The MG Maestro, a five-door hatchback known for its handling, follows the Metro. A Maestro Turbo version follows.
1995
The roadster returns
The mid-engined MGF, with gas suspension, is MG’s first all-new sports car since 1962 and becomes a best-seller in much of the world.
2000
A new line-up
MG enters the new millennium with the TF roadster, an evolution of the MGF, followed by the ZR hot hatch and the ZS and ZT sports saloons.
2007
Joining SAIC Motor
MG becomes part of SAIC Motor, China’s largest carmaker, which turns it into an international brand sold on every continent.
2024
Centenary and Cyberster
MG turns 100. The Cyberster, a fully electric two-seat roadster with scissor doors, takes its styling cues from the MGB. The MG4 EV compact had already led the move to electric.
2025
Semi-solid-state battery
MG becomes the world’s first carmaker to mass-produce a semi-solid-state battery, safer and faster to charge. Its parent’s automotive operations pass 100 million customers worldwide.