MG Rover dealers talk business

Around 200 dealers met in Gaydon, Warwickshire to discuss proposals from Capital Bank — the car finance arm of HBOS — over the sale and distribution of 10,000 new and 5,000 demonstrator models. Capital Bank took ownership of most of the MG Rover stock after the manufacturer went into administration. Motor Trader learnt that the bank's offer included discounts of 15 per cent off the wholesale price of the cars and provisions for warranties and vehicle distribution. Under the previous arrangement with MG Rover, dealers were able to secure a discount of around 20 per cent paid for by the Longbridge business. It is also understood that Capital Bank has its own licensing and registration staff in place and is already in talks with trailer firms to speed up distribution. But MG Rover dealer council chairman Richard Cort said the 15 per cent figure was wide of the mark and stressed that nothing had yet been agreed. “I won't go into exact figures but Capital Bank has not been as generous as that at this stage and we will not call another meeting until we have a proposal that we are comfortable with,” Cort said. “We talked about warranties, about an on-going aftersales franchise, we talked about lots of things. Nothing has been agreed but talks are on-going,” he added. Cort said the meeting had been “constructive” and that the network was “keeping positive” but warned that it was imperative to get the stock moving. “The main objective for everyone is to get those 10,000 cars moving, that's for dealers, for the administrators and for Capital Bank,” he said. The bank did not attend the 400-strong meeting, which included dealer groups and industry professionals. A Capital Bank spokesman said the company was now waiting to hear from the MG Rover franchised board about the offer. “Dialogue has been open and constructive and we have been in regular contact. There is a strong demand for MG Rover cars right now and we have to make sure we act quickly to meet that,” he added. Meanwhile, the MG Rover collapse has continued to reverberate. Cort said the MG Rover network currently stood at around 220 dealers and had fallen from 267 just a month ago. Elsewhere, Stadco, a body-panel maker, has announced that it is to close its Coventry plant next year with the loss of 200 jobs. The company cut the workforce by 230 after MG Rover went into administration but last week said it had no other option but to close the factory. The company is aiming to find alternative work for employees elsewhere in the business. Stadco managing director Andrew Morris said he had hoped something would emerge from the ashes of MG Rover but it was now clear that nothing “substantial” would.