Autoblog

Shanghai 2009: Roewe 550 RS gets its performance garb on

Damon Lavrinc — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 18:01:00 EST

Roewe 550 RS - Click above for a high-res image gallery

Roewe, SAIC's premium brand which owns the tooling rights to the Rover 75 platform, has brought out a sporting variant of its compact sedan, dubbed the 550 RS. In keeping with Shanghai Motor Show tradition thus far, little is known about what lies beneath the hood of the RS, but with the standard 550 packing updated versions of either the 1.6- or 1.8-liter Rover K-series four-cylinders, we suspect the RS' "performance" mods are limited to the decklid wing, roof aerofoil, side skirts and the matte (or just unpainted plastic?) front clip.

Gallery: 榮威 550RS 2009上海車展

Shanghai 2009: Roewe 550 RS gets its performance garb on originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 21 Apr 2009 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Shanghai Preview: New MG6 is... nice

Jonathon Ramsey — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 17:28:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, China, Roewe, Shanghai Motor Show

This is the MG6, and it's a good looking car. As the sporty version of the Roewe 550 (another good looking car), the MG6 gets a tauter nose with new lights, a slightly more upswept swage line, and a fastback rear end.

The Roewe 550 signified a break from the heavily Rover-based design still found models like the Roewe 750, undoubtedly due to the international design team based in China and the UK. The MG6 continues the trend of independent design, not relying on being merely a tweaked copy of its sibling, or any other car for that matter. It will be debuting at the Shanghai Motor Show, and to you, Roewe and MG, we say keep up the good work.

[Source: Auto Sina (translated) via The Tycho]

Shanghai Preview: New MG6 is... nice originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 16 Apr 2009 17:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Roewe 550, 750 arrive in Chile as MGs

Alex Nunez — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 14:07:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, China, Roewe

Remember the Roewe 550? Pretty nice-looking ride, especially for a Chinese car, considering some of the freakishly awful stuff that comes out of the country. SAIC apparently realizes that in terms of name recognition, MG > Roewe. Case in point: the introduction of the 550 and 750 sedans in Chile, where both cars are now being sold under the MG moniker by importer SK Bergé. The two four-doors will reportedly be joined by the TF roadster in November, but despite the traditionally British nameplate adorning their respective bonnets, all three are made in China. You know, like everything else. You can see a gallery of the brand's launch event in Santiago here. Thanks for the tip, Potts.

[Sources: Autoblog Spanish, Austin Rover Online]

Roewe 550, 750 arrive in Chile as MGs originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 26 Oct 2008 14:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Beijing 2008: Roewe 550 debuts, still good lookin'

John Neff — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 13:57:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, China, Misc. Auto Shows, Roewe

Click above for high-res gallery of the Roewe 550

Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation debuted the Roewe 550 over the weekend at the Auto China show in Beijing, and it joins the 750 in a lineup that was designed and engineered entirely in Britain. For those who don't remember the story, a little history lesson might be in order. SAIC fought long and hard against cross-town Chinese rival Nanjing for the right to purchase the bankrupt English automotive brand Rover. SAIC won the battle, but didn't secure the rights to the Rover name. Hence, Roewe was born and the 750 debuted as a rebadged version of the Rover 75. The Roewe 550, however, is its own car with a design that doesn't carry forward any obvious cues from Rover. Based on a shortened version of the Rover 75 platform, the 550 was reportedly being developed before MG Rover bit the dust in 2005, and SAIC has made sure to keep the car palatable to European tastes as it plans to sell the 550 in Europe eventually.

The 550 features a clean and tasteful exterior design, though some at the show note its interior isn't made of the highest quality materials. We do, however, like the digital gauge cluster that wraps around the analog tach, as well as the flush nav screen. The 550's available engines, however, are not as impressive and include the same 1.8T and 1.6L K-Series four-cylinders, as well as a 2.0L diesel, that were sold in Rovers before the company collapsed. Autocar points out it's also possible that the 550 could be badged as an MG in Europe, as SAIC recently bought its rival Nanjing, which settled for buying the MG name when it lost the bid to own Rover's assets.

Check out the new Roewe 550 in our high-res gallery below.

Gallery: Roewe 550 - Live Shots

Gallery: Roewe 550

All photos Copyright (C)2008 Ibiza Wang / Weblogs, Inc.

[Source: Autoblog Chinese, Autocar]

Beijing 2008: Roewe 550 debuts, still good lookin' originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 21 Apr 2008 13:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Beijing '08 Preview: Roewe 550 unveiled, and it's impressive

Alex Nunez — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 13:58:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, China, Misc. Auto Shows

Click image for photo gallery

Every now and then, you have to eat crow. This is one of those times. Early spy shots of the Roewe 550 had me thinking it was nothing special -- and far from beautiful. Subsequent spy shots cast it in a better light, and now, with the release of official images of the final car, it's clear that this is a big deal for the Chinese automaker. The headlamps still seem a little weird -- they're sort of shaped like old telephone receivers -- but the whole package is well done and attractive inside and out.

The interior gives off the Euro-modern luxury feel of a BMW, with a wide, hooded IP that houses a nifty looking gauge cluster and the to-be-expected nav/multimedia screen. Outside, it's got a sleek, attractive profile that you'd expect to see coming from a premium European or Japanese automaker, but probably not China. So much for that. This is a very nice-looking car, period. Now, assuming it can handle a crash without turning into one of the death traps from a Saw film, it would seem that Roewe's got something really good here. We'll follow up when the big unveiling takes place in Beijing.

[Source: Auto Sina]

Beijing '08 Preview: Roewe 550 unveiled, and it's impressive originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 17 Apr 2008 13:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Beijing '08 Preview: Roewe 550 sedan spied at commercial shoot

Alex Nunez — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 12:32:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, China, Misc. Auto Shows, Roewe

Click image for a gallery of the Roewe 550 sedan

SAIC's Rowe brand (nee Rover) is set to formally unveil its new 550 sedan in Beijing next month. The sedan's styling is very mainstream save for its unfortunate front fascia. Those undersized, oddly-shaped headlights just seem very out of place. That said, it's not as if we're the target market, and it's likely to be one of the more important Beijing Motor Show debuts. According to China Car Times, the 550 will be powered by the same 1.8L turbo found under the hood of the Roewe 750 (the re-engineered Rover 75). We'll have more photos and additional details via the crew at Autoblog Chinese when the car is unveiled next month.

Gallery: Roewe 550

[Sources: XCAR, China Car Times]

Beijing '08 Preview: Roewe 550 sedan spied at commercial shoot originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 Mar 2008 12:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Roewe 550 is not beautiful

Alex Nunez — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 10:03:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, China, Roewe

The E-Type Jaguar is beautiful. The Lamborghini Miura is beautiful. Most reasonable individuals bestowed with the gift of sight would not argue those points. Alas, "beautiful" as an adjective is regularly abused. Case in point: the new Roewe 550, which is inexplicably described as such by our Sino-focused blogging brothers at China Car Times. We strenuously disagree. We understand that there are many ugly Chinese cars, and that when the nation's auto industry produces one that doesn't cause onlookers to instantaneously turn to stone, it's noteworthy. That said, "not overwhelmingly ugly" does not equal "beautiful." The Roewe 550's front end looks as if a modern Nissan/Infiniti (grille shape & slats), a Saturn Aura (everything below the front bumper), and a last-gen Chrysler Sebring or 300M (headlamps) got caught in a horrific Star Trek transporter accident. As you can see, the result is far from beautiful, despite the generous claims of China Car Times. They're entitled to their opinions, of course, but if this is beautiful then the new Malibu looks like Malcom Pray's 1939 Delahaye by comparison.

[Source: China Car Times]

The Roewe 550 is not beautiful originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 14 Nov 2007 10:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments