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Being part of British Leyland meant MG had access to a wider range of engines, this included the 3.5 litre Rover V8 engine. Tuner Ken Costello had begun converting the regular MGB and GT to V8 power in the early 1970s. The factory-built car launched in 1973 to popular reviews.
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The 1970s were not a successful decade for British Leyland, with poor selling vehicles and continual issues with trade unions. MG production at Abingdon remained largely unaffected by this, thanks to a loyal, committed and passionate workforce. However by the late 1970s, British Leyland had been nationalized and needed to save money.
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Despite Abingdon’s closure, the MG marque proved too popular to disappear. In May 1982, the MG Metro 1300 launched. It was one of the first ‘hot hatches’ and would lead the way to a faster version, the MG Metro Turbo a year later. The MG Metro proved to be a huge success and demonstrated the demand, and love, for MG motor cars.
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With supercar performance and superstar drivers, the 1980s saw rallying reach a peak in popularity, with manufacturers such as Audi and Peugeot enjoying huge publicity with their rally cars. Austin Rover, the then owners of MG, wanted a piece of the action and so unveiled the MG Metro 6R4. The car featured a 3.0, V6 engine in the rear and developed over 410bhp.
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By the mid 1980s the memory of MG sports cars was beginning to fade and so Austin Rover unveiled the MG EXE Concept, designed to remind everyone of MG’s sportscar heritage. Designed by Roy Axe, the car bore a noticeable similarity to Honda’s NSX.
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After almost 20 years in exile, 1990 saw the MG Car Club return to it’s spiritual home, to open its headquarters, named in honour of MG’s founder, Cecil Kimber. Kimber House stands in the shadow of the original factory works, on the very road that all MGs were driven on following production.
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The MGF was the first all-new MG sportscar since 1962 and there was huge excitement ahead of the car’s release. It was innovative, too, with a mid- engine and gas suspension. It quickly became a best-seller across much of the world. Rover Group by this time, was under the ownership of BMW and not wanting the MG to compete with its Z sports cars, the MGF never made it to the USA.
/Year
Through the 1980s the popularity of the MGB and classic cars in general began to grow and there was a tangible demand for sportscars once again. By this time MG was part of what was known as Rover Group – with the company’s portfolio slimmed down to just Rover cars.
