UK brand MG, which is part of state-owned Chinese automaker SAIC Motor, has launched sales of its first pickup, not in China or Britain, but in Thailand.
Pickups account for roughly half of all vehicle sales in Thailand and the new truck will help MG build sales in the key market.
The truck, the MG Extender, is a rebadged version of the Maxus T70 pickup SAIC markets under the Roewe marque in China. It is assembled at MG's plant in Thailand.
The pickup is fitted with a standard 2.0-liter turbocharged diesel engine and a six-speed automatic transmission. It has a starting price of 549,000 Thai Baht ($17,815).
The pickup is the second new product MG has rolled out in Thailand this year, following the V80 van.
The V80, which went on sale in March, is a rebadged Maxus V80 that MG distributes in China.
In addition to the T70 pickup and V80 van, MG also sells the locally produced MG 3, MG 5 and MG 6 sedans, and the MG ZS and MG GS crossovers, in Thailand.
After acquiring MG in 2007, SAIC has used the British brand to expand globally.
MG launched production in Thailand in 2014 and opened a plant in a second country outside China in May when it began output at a factory in India that SAIC purchased from General Motors in 2017.
