Rare, low-mileage MG XPower SV goes on sale

Iconic Auctioneers will attempt to find a buyer for this MG XPower coupe in the UK in late August. It’s in great condition with only one owner on the record and less than 12,000 km (7,500 miles) under the best, so it could fetch £30,000–35,000.

The car has a long and complicated background. It was originally designed by De Tomaso in the late ‘90s and called “Bigua”. Once the Italian automaker went bankrupt, the rights for the model were acquired by Qvale, which proceeded to release it under a different name, “Mangusta”. Only 284 units were made, according to reports.

The then-British automaker MG proceeded to purchase the rights from Qvale in 2001. Its own version of the car, known as the MG XPower, enjoyed a small production run of 82 units and had major modifications compared to both the Bigua and the Mangusta. The chassis and the drivetrain stayed largely the same, while the exterior was redesigned from the ground up by Peter Stevens of Jaguar XJR-15 and McLaren F1 fame. Italian coachbuilder Belco Avia supplied the carbon-fiber bodywork. The production took place in Modena in 2003, with all cars shipped to the UK for finalization.

The example seen here is an MG XPower SV spec. As such, it packs a 4.6-liter V8 borrowed from the latest Ford Mustang of that era. MG shipped this engine with anywhere between 320 and 400 PS (316–395 hp; 235–294 kW) depending on the order. Some examples even received experimental 5.0-liter and 5.5-liter engines tuned to 450 PS (444 hp / 331 kW). This isn’t one of them, however. It has a standard 4.6-liter mill and sends the torque to the rear wheels through a five-speed manual transmission and a limited-slip differential.

According to the listing, this car was only commissioned in 2007. It has since belonged to the same family and traveled around 11,750 km (7,300 miles). The seller claims it comes with a full package of ownership documents and manufacturer’s brochures. The condition is described as excellent.