MG's new premium EVs may not be MGs for long

MG is launching a pair of more premium electric vehicles (EVs) from another SAIC Motor brand, but this may be spun off into a separate premium arm in Australia, too.

Established over four years ago as a joint venture between SAIC Motor and the Alibaba Group, with the latter providing much of the software, IM Motors sits above MG, LDV/Maxus and Roewe in the SAIC Motor empire.

But in Australia, the brand is being launched as more of a sub-brand, officially titled IM Presented by MG Motor. The two IM vehicles are being sold as the MG IM5 and MG IM6, and even feature an MG Motor badge on their tailgates.

Selling them in MG showrooms – where they won’t be the only premium product anyway, following the launch of the Cyberster – allows the company to bring them in at a more tempting price.

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“From my point of view, every coin has two sides. If we want to build the brand independently, we have a calculation – maybe each car, we’ll add extra, maybe 10 to 15,000 AUD for the car because you need to build the showroom, you need to hire the sales consultants, you need to build the stock, all the things,” said Xu Chenyang, IM Motors Area General Manager for Australia.

By leveraging MG’s existing dealer network, then, the company can bring vehicles to market at a more affordable price.

“From my point of view, it’s the best choice for the customer,” said Mr Xu.

But that doesn’t meet IM vehicles will be sold in MG showrooms forever. There’s already talk of separating the brand.

“IM in Australia, and [MG Motor Australia CEO Peter Ciao] wants for the future, is a separate brand. Just in the very beginning, we’re in the same showroom, with the sales volume for a while. He’s willing to separate into two networks,” said Mr Xu, stopping short of confirming the specific sales targets the IM5 and IM6 need to meet for this to happen.

“It’s just like the very beginning [of] Lexus and Toyota, sometimes they are also in the same showroom, but when the sales volumes [went up] they separated.”

Another comparison can be drawn, this time with Hyundai’s Genesis brand. Initially, Hyundai sold a vehicle called the Genesis, before it established Genesis as a standalone brand; that Hyundai Genesis sedan subsequently became the Genesis G80.

Mr Xu said in China, where IM has a separate dealer network, its biggest competitors are Tesla and Zeekr.

But while Tesla is reaching further downmarket, IM doesn’t plan to encroach on the territory of other SAIC Motor brands.

“In China, IM normally sells above 200,000 RMB [A$43,000]. MG is around 100,000 RMB [A$21,500],” said Mr Xu.

In addition to the mid-size IM5 liftback and IM6 SUV – sold there as the L6 and LS6 – IM Motors has the larger L7 sedan and LS7 SUV in China.

These will be joined later this year by the LS9, the brand’s largest SUV yet and its first extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) with a petrol engine used as a generator.

The LS6 is also receiving a facelift and gaining an EREV powertrain.

“In the end of this year, we’ll release the LS9 and new LS6. These are also above 200,000 RMB. So we don’t have the plan to lower the brand positioning right now, because the SAIC group has got all the other brands,” said Mr Xu.

ABOVE: IM LS9, facelifted LS6

“IM’s positioning is above 200,000 RMB for our group’s strategy.”

Could we see some of these other models in local showrooms?

“We already launched some new models, but it depends on the CEO for MG, because once you import one car, you pay a lot for homologation and for ANCAP and for the modifications for right-hand drive. So it depends on Peter’s decision whether he wants to import more IMs to this market,” said Mr Xu.

He said he believed EREVs would be suitable for Australia, but these new vehicles haven’t been signed off for Australia.

Both the IM5 and IM6 start at $60,990 drive-away. The smaller Tesla Model 3 and Model Y, in contrast, start at $54,900 and $58,900 before on-road costs.