MG Prototypes at the British Motor Museum

Last year I read various articles on how MG enthusiasts had spotted rare MG prototypes rotting away on the old MG Rover site at Longbridge, Birmingham. A campaign, led by a YouTuber and MG enthusiast, Tom Cowling of Sheffield, caused MG Motor UK, the owner of the cars and the British Motor Museum at Gaydon, Warwickshire, to start talking about how to conserve these important (to British motor car history) cars. An agreement was reached that MG Motor UK would permanently loan the cars to the Museum who would put them on display for visitors to see 

This post was inspired by a visit I made to the Museum for the Historic Rally Car Register Open Day event on 13th January. While there I took the opportunity to photograph the MG prototypes on display.

Here is the background to the history of the prototypes and how they were discovered languishing in Longbridge –

The cars had been abandoned and left standing in the open, unprotected from the weather, at MG’s former site in Longbridge. Their futures were uncertain since MG Rover went into administration in 2005. If truth be told, it is likely that their new owners, MG Motors UK and its parent, China-based SAIC Motor, hardly knew of their existence and if they did what to do with them was one of their least concerns.

Some of the cars are –

• A mid-sized hatchback concept from 2003 based on the Rover 75 platform, called the RDX60
• Three MGF prototypes, PR 1, 2 and 3 dating from 1989-1992
• The first MG F produced in 1995.
• A unique TF GT.
• 1985 EX-E supercar
• Rover TCV (Tourer Concept Vehicle).
• A Mini ‘Hot Rod’ built for the 1997 Frankfurt motor show.

Here are the photos that I took when I visited the Museum on 13th January 2024 –

Here are two other concept cars that caught my eye on the same day – 

Nick