MG make their mark on the road and the track

17 August, 2015

It’s not every day that a customer’s new car is handed over by a racing driver, but for lifeguard Ryan Sykes that’s how he received his brand-new MG3 when British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) star Jack Goff handed over the keys to the enthusiastic teenager, fresh from his maiden BTCC victory in Snetterton. 

Ryan is the son of the owner of Norfolk-based company 5 Star Cases, one of Jack’s sponsors, and from the start of the partnership between MG and Jack, Ryan has been hoping to own an MG of his very own.

“My dad started working with Jack in 2013, but it wasn’t until Jack started racing for MG Triple Eight that I started looking at MGs and saw what they had to offer,” says Ryan. “I thought the MG3 was great, so when my old car packed up I knew I wanted one. I got the chance to personalize my car and make it how I wanted it to look, which was pretty cool. I’m glad I did though, because my sister wants one now!”

The MG3, alongside the MG6, is designed and engineered at the MG site in Longbridge, Birmingham, where final assembly also takes place. The MG3 is a new-generation supermini, which brings fun and style to this sector of the market at very affordable prices. The 1.5-litre petrol-powered car can also be personalized, so owners have the option of giving their car their own style statement.

MG was voted the fourth-best manufacturer in the UK in the Auto Express Driver Power Awards in 2015, and they’re the fastest-growing brand in Britain in 2014 as shown by official figures issued by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

No sign, as yet, of an official MG distributor in New Zealand.

Lunch with … Rodger Anderson

At first, I wondered if I’d driven up the wrong driveway. The car in the garage was an early Mustang resplendent in royal blue with two broad gold stripes, which was not what I was expecting. I knew that Rodger Anderson, who made his name in Minis and a BMW 2002, was a Porsche man these days — the other end of the spectrum from American muscle. I had no idea of his affection for Detroit iron. It didn’t take long to discover just how passionate this former Saloon Car Champion is about cars, as long as they’re interesting.

Back from the brink – 1968 MGB GT

Auckland classic car enthusiast Kerry Bowman soon realised he had a massive job on his hands in restoring his classic 1968 MGB GT. When Kerry and his MGB first appeared in New Zealand Classic Car in March 2021, in “Behind The Garage Door”, the stripped-out shell had revealed some nasty surprises. Once the true extent of the hidden damage was discovered, the work would normally have been handed over to a professional fabricator. However, with the assistance of experts such as MG specialist restorer, Paul Walbran, Kerry has completed an impressive restoration and saved this car from the scrapheap.