These are the first...
These are the first official pictures of the re-born four-seater’s cabin, which has just had its official launch in China. Now built by Nanjing MG, the new model retains many of the parts familiar to drivers of the MG ZT.
But at least O"Donnell"s...
But at least O"Donnell"s brutal assertion that the money the beleaguered quartet are paying themselves is "disgusting" should ensure him a place of his own in the book of Greatest Motoring Quotations. (I"ll compile it if somebody will publish it!). Unacceptable! Disgusting! Is this appropriate language from the boss of BMW"s substantial UK operation when referring to a rival firm which also happens to be a former member of the Bavarian company"s extended family? If these words of criticism came from a vulnerable, poorly paid MG Rover employee, I think they"d carry considerable weight.
But they"ve come instead from the mouth of a BMW director, which is rich. If capitalism the MG Rover way disgusts Jim O"Donnell, I wonder how the same man would describe his own company"s way of doing business. Wasn"t it BMW which acted like a selfish sugar daddy by marching into Britain and stealing the mistress known as MG Rover from its trusty and dignified long-term partner, Honda? Wasn"t it BMW which nicked some of the best ideas from Land Rover, only to dump it - and for a handsome price - after it had its way with the 4x4 specialist? Correct me if I"m wrong, but hasn"t the iconic, quintessentially English Mini marque now become a German brand? And isn"t MG Rover"s precarious plight today largely down to the trauma of being bought up by BMW in the Nineties when the Germans often gave little with one hand while taking a great deal with the other?
The Munich-based firm is a comparatively small one. It"s essentially owned by one frighteningly wealthy old woman and her family, the Quandts. Earlier this year in the States, a variety of financial experts ranked BMW as one of the top 10 most profitable motor companies on the planet. How come? Because it charges customers such absurdly high prices for some of its products. More than í‚á£33,000 for a standard X3 3.0-litre Sport or í‚á£58,000 for an X5 4.8iS for heaven"s sake! How disgusting are these prices? And in view of the extraordinarily high level of profits it makes from its customers, does BMW really represent the acceptable face of capitalism?
I WANT to briefly return to the subject of the M25 motorway. A recent incident provided further depressing evidence that one fatal smash can cause unnecessary delays and misery to hundreds of thousands of motorists for days afterwards. A petrol tanker driver died on Friday 12 November, and what alternative was there to sending vehicles on a ridiculous detour across local roads? The answer is simple - force vehicles to stay on the M25, but drive in the opposite direction to the one they"d like. After all, this is an orbital motorway!