MIKE HUMBLE

 

I’ll be really truthful kids, I saw this coming a mile off, years ago in fact. What am I driving at you may be thinking, well it’s those two bloody letters again – MG and the recently announced news that they are looking for a European base to satisfy demand for their increasingly popular product range. It shouldn’t really bother me but it does when I think of the way the company has previously behaved, operated and treated British workers, and customers come to think of it. It literally is only a few years since the brand was pretty much a laughing stock within the industry – and believe me they were just that. Since the flourishing of electric vehicles popularity rightly or wrongly, the brand has gradually become known for making a range of cars that are now genuinely competitive with mainstream rivals and ooze value for money rather than being a ‘cheap car’ – there is a difference. So now they want a new plant closer to home once again?

I have driven the HS in petrol and hybrid flavours and the all new MG4 and can truthfully say they aren’t bad at all, pretty decent in fact. The HS has a hint of premium feel to it, the MG5 estate has a wonderful relaxing gait as it goes about its business – the ride comfort is oh so supple and the new MG4 is right on the nail for what current market trends are demanding. Of course none of this would have been possible had it not been for the small team of British engineers who were kept on after the implosion of Longbridge. For it was they who have ‘taught’ the Chinese how to Anglo / Europhile the cars rather than building cut price rubbish with interior fittings made from recycled Leo Sayer LP’s. What is making my p!ss boil though is the hypocritical way the dealerships behave and how poor a memory the buying public really have.

My big problem with MG in its current form, and has been ever since the re-birth, is their refusal to accept the buying public and to a lesser degree their dealers, aren’t complete idiots when it comes to looking at a car not just as a vehicle, but as a complete package that includes, back up, customer support and a caring attitude from the manufacturers. All those big group dealers that fell about laughing back in 2008 at the thought of a reborn MG are now falling over each other to grab a franchise. None of this I may add are in the best interests of the buying punter but more about making a quick quid, and MG certainly are posting some serious sales results – like I have mentioned, mainly because the cars are ok and they represent incredible value for money.

Only in the UK would folks buy the brand in such huge numbers after the parent company effectively shafted all those concerned with the old guard of MG. As MG Rover slowly gasped its dying breaths fuelled in part by mass media attention, the Chinese parent NANJING as it was then, withdrew their plans to kick start MG Rover into life once again. They chose instead to sit on the sidelines and pick at the carcass akin to a flock of hungry vultures – what a poor memory and unpatriotic attitude some of us really have. Also, we have the sad state of affairs with the smaller dealers like Brands of Lincolnshire and the legendary Summit Garage in Dudley having the sabre rattled in their face from MG Motor who seemingly no longer want these bloody superb little dealers that go way beyond the normal realms of customer care and top class service.

Not meaning to put MG in the same category of the likes of Skoda, Lada and other former Soviet brands, but here is a thought. All those aforementioned retailers of Communist clunkers all had one thing in common that kept the owners coming back for more – customer care. Despite the likes of the Lada Riva being about as shameful to drive as wearing a verruca sock at a school swimming lesson, the importers and dealers offered a level of customer care and parts support that put many European volume manufacturers to shame. If you are selling something sub-prime or cheap, you have to have a USP or unique selling point, and in their cases it was good old fashioned customer care. Without a solid foundation and back up in place you may as well quit selling cars and diversify into selling furniture instead.

Customer care is what STILL lacks with MG Motor. The forums are alive buzzing with the way some dealers either wont or cant sort their issues out. In fairness, it seems to point towards bigger dealers or sites that operate a multi-franchise operation – the smaller one brand outlets have much more to lose. My concerns are only reinforced when reading posts on owners Facebook pages and reading some of the review sites like TrustPilot. The old concerns of manufacturer, or in some cases dealers falling short on service rear their ugly heads time after time after time. It just isn’t good enough when the buying public expects excellence in every area. The company needs the smaller independent dealers just as much as the bigger groups and in the case of the larger operations, they seriously need to do their part in caring for the customer long term – even if the manufacturer doesn’t seem capable of doing so!