The history of the MG ZS as we know it

[Maxxed_Ross]

Was dored tonight so decided to go look up the MG ZS, here's what I found:

The ZS is essentialy a badge engineered Rover 45 (which was launched in 1999). The 45 in turn is a facelifted version of the Rover 400 which was launched in hatchback form in 1995 and saloon form in 1996. The Rover 400 had much in common with the Honda Civic of 1995-1999. At the time of development, Honda and Rover worked in partnership to design and develop cars for the Japanese and European markets.

The model was rapidly created from the Rover 45 after BMW sold off Rover in 2000. Development of the model was greatly accelerated by the fact that Rover had already created 400-series prototypes of the car using V6 engines and sporting suspension setups. In fact, MG-Rover developed MG versions of all three Rover cars on sale at the time. The Rover 25 became the MG ZR, the 45 the ZS and the 75 the ZT.

The Rover 45 donor car did not have a reputation for being a driver's car but in fact it was the most suitable car in the Rover range for transformation into an MG, its Honda heritage providing double-wishbone front suspension and fully independent multi-link rear suspension.

As a Rover, the car was always optimised for comfort rather than handling — as an MG this choice was reversed to dramatic effect.

Despite being arguably less pretty than the MG ZR and MG ZT in terms of external appearance, the ZS is arguably the best driver’s car of the trio, offering a lot of power in V6 form and a supple chassis with excellent handling.

A successor to the Rover 45/MG ZS (known internally as RDX60) was under development. This was to have been based on a shortened Rover 75 floorpan and was to appear in saloon, hatchback and 'tourer' (estate) bodystyles. Chassis development was being undertaken by Tom Walkinshaw Racing and ceased when TWR collapsed. The non-appearance of RDX60 meant that the ZS was facelifted and continued in production until the demise of MG-Rover.

In 2004 the ZS was facelifted with the rest of the MG-Rover range. The retro design cues adopted when the 400 became the 45 were mostly dropped. For the first time the Rover 45 and MG ZS became noticeably different looking cars – at least in the high specification ZS180 version. Wheelarch extensions, side vents in the wings and other touches delivered a distinctive look for the new ZS. The 2004 model also received a revised interior with new seat materials, a new dash design incorporating climate control on certain models.

MG ZS production ceased in April 2005 on the bankrupty of MG Rover, and the rights to make the car were soon repossessed by Honda - who owned the rights to the original 1995 design. MG production was revived two years on by new owners Nanjing Automobile, and the ZS's successor - the MG 5 - is set for a launch in 2008.

The ZS has been raced in the British Touring Car Championship since 2001. The West Surrey Racing (WSR) team enjoyed 'works' status for several years and initially ran cars with a two-litre version of the Rover KV6 engine, later switching to four-cylinder K-series engines developed by JUDD engineering. Ex-WSR V6 cars have appeared in other hands, and a 'junior team' was run in 2002 as part of a partnership with pop group "Attomic Kitten".