: : October 2007 Well, another summer has passed and one we won’t forget, for all the wrong reasons. As I sit here writing this, I have just returned from the J.E.C. Classic Car Show at the Canford Arena, I always feel a little bit down after this event. For me this event marks the unofficial end of summer, but this year I feel even lower, for today Sunday 16th September the news was confirmed that Colin Mcrae, his 5 year old son Johnny and two family friends were all tragically killed when Colin’s helicopter crashed in the grounds of his home. Great Britain has had two World Rally Champions, the first was Colin in 1995 and he was three times runner up, the second was Richard Burns who was from Reading. He was WRC in 2001, he was taken ill during the 2003 Rally GB, was discovered to have a brain tumour and lost his fight for recovery from this in 2005. I have such great memories of both men’s skill behind the wheel of Fords, Subarus, Peugeots and Citröens from rallying all over the world, may they all rest at peace. If you have a spare five minutes, and you don’t know what that skill was like, go onto the internet, log onto YouTube and type "Mcrae" or "Burns" into the search box and enjoy. Richard Burns 1971 – 2005 Colin McRae 1968 – 2007                                                                                                        Bits, Bobs and the odd Spare Part Talking of websites... NAC MG (UK). As the company moves closer to the launch of its new  MGTF Sportscar, it has launched a revised  consumer website giving more information about the new LE500 model. A lot more will be added to the website as new products and services are introduced and at the end of the year customers will be able to reserve their car online (www.mg-uk.co.uk). The following was reported in Birmingham paper on Friday 28th September: The first MGs built under the ownership of Nanjing Automobile will not reach the showrooms until early next year after the corporation missed its end of the year target for the launch of its MG TF sports cars. Nanjing originally aimed to relaunch production for April this year, to coincide with the second anniversary of the MG Rover crash. But that date slipped and the Longbridge factory was officially reopened in May this year. The TF will now go to the showrooms in the UK from February rather than the end of the year as Nanjing Automobile planned. One of the problems has been importing windscreens from China, with many of them being smashed while in transit. Final details are being worked out on pricing for the car, although around 31 dealers have signed up so far to sell the car with more expected to follow. Meanwhile a marketing campaign is expected to start around December to alert MG enthusiasts and other potential purchasers to the relaunch of the car. Eleanor de la Haye, spokeswoman for NAC MG, said: "The car will be released to dealers in February and deliveries will start in March. People's expectation was that the car was be coming in the autumn. But autumn ends in October, and nobody is saying where is the car. In reality work is being carried out before the car is released. There will be a marketing campaign starting in December and run through January, people will be able to place orders in February and receive them in March." The ongoing negotiations about Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAID) has also slowed down preparations for the new car. Mrs de la Haye said: "There are logistical issues from working with a parent company 6,000 miles away from where you are." This has meant some components having to be resourced. The original intention was for the new MG TF to have 80 per cent of its components sourced from China, but following logistical issues, this has been reduced to 65 per cent.The new parts have necessitated further testing. Another issue has been getting hold of the hard tops for a limited edition version of the MG TF which will spearhead the relaunch of the vehicle next year. Only 500 cars are being produced to the 1.8litre 16 valve car, which will feature rear parking sensors, and leather throughout. Each individually numbered car is intended to act as a halo vehicle to create interest in the rest of the brand. Mrs De La Haye said: "This will be fully loaded and is aimed at generating attention for the car." The limited edition will only be sold in the UK and Ireland, although there has been interest from further afield. So things are not progressing as well as one would hope, some of the problems are bewildering, I think. Why ship windscreens 6,000 miles around the world? This is not a new car and the windscreens are available here. Why have they broken? Does this sound like inferior quality, I wonder? < Return to previous page