MG XPower SV-R: ‘In your face’ and proud of it

MG is making sports cars again and while it’s not the affordable, rorty little MG F replacement many may have hoped for, it’s comfortably the most exciting thing the company has put out in decades. Although it’s not like the firm hasn’t been trying these past few years. It rebooted the XPower performance brand in China back in 2019 with a hot version of its MG 6 saloon, followed by the surprisingly rapid (if a little undercooked) MG 4 EV a few years later. The Cyberster is, however, the most convincing performance car it has built in yonks, and if an XPower version ever comes to fruition it’d be a mighty statement of intent.  

Even without it, SAIC, the marque’s Chinese owners, have arguably done more with the XPower brand than MG Rover ever did. Granted, there were the stunning lime green-over-black racers in the BTCC and Le Mans in the early ’00s, alongside a handful of XPower concepts with huge engines and ridiculous amounts of power. The MGF 500 was particularly silly, sporting massively stretched arches, a towering rear wing and a twin-turbo V8 with 500hp on tap. But none made it beyond the prototype phase, sadly – though the XPower name would get its production car appearance with the wild-looking SV, much like this one.

While most XPower concepts were designed and built in-house, the SV came about in the late ’90s when a chap called Bruce Qvale, who was building the De Tomaso Mangusto under the Qvale name, went on the hunt for a UK distributor and caught the attention of MG. Likely seeing an opportunity to slash development costs, MG elected to buy the rights to the Magnusta and use it as the basis for its very own performance car. The first draft was the X80 concept, an awkward-looking coupe that was deemed too restrained by the MG board, so MG called on the services of McLaren F1 designer Peter Stevens to come up with a look that was more, in his words, ‘in your face’.

It’s very much a marmite look, but there’s no denying Stevens met the brief. The big nose at the front, the slats in the bonnet, the massive side vents and that chunky rear wing, all of it made from carbon fibre. More outlandish was the claim that the SV could be specced with a 1,000hp nitrous kit from the factory. A marketing stunt, obviously, but it’s believed someone did in fact tick the option on their order form, only to be swiftly told that, while it’s theoretically possible, the moment you’d hit the red plungers Brian O’Conner-style, a ‘danger to manifold’ warning would be the last of your worries.

Instead, the SV launched with a Ford Mustang-sourced 4.6-litre V8 with a far more sensible 324hp  on tap, though the SV-R you see here came with a Roush-tuned 5.0-litre engine. MG claimed it was good for 395hp, but those in the know believe it was putting out closer 410hp. Hard to see how MG would have got that anywhere near 1,000hp, even with nitrous, but it was a decent amount of grunt nonetheless. Both a Tremec five-speed manual and four-speed auto were offered, though apparently only four of the latter were produced, with the remaining 39 SVs and 39 SV-Rs being the former.

After a short drive in the example we have here, it’s clear to see why the gearbox received a bit of stick back in period, not least by Rowan Atkinson. It’s said third was extended to meet noise restrictions, so it’s not uncommon for owners to have a shorter final drive fitter to up the ante a bit. There’s a good amount of punch right from the off, however, and a fabulous exhaust note as you approach the 7,000rpm redline. The steering is also superb, with a slick, oily feel that only an old hydraulic rack can deliver. It’s surprisingly responsive on turn-in, too, the nose changing direction keenly despite a whacking great V8 over the front axle. 

What’s more remarkable, though, is how well put together everything feels. Build quality was a common criticism of the SV, and anyone who’s read Atkinson’s old long-termer pieces will know how many times he sent it back to Longbridge to sort niggling issues, but that was 20-odd years ago. Nowadays, there’s an immensely passionate and active owners’ club, plus a dedicated register with most of the 82-strong production run accounted for. So any issues that would have been present back in the day have very likely been sorted by now, especially on a well cared for example like this one.

Finished in Grigio Titanium, this SV-R has covered just 11,000 miles since 2004 and looks to have been coddled ever since. The bodywork appears immaculate, the interior spotless and the mechanicals, from what I could glean from a short drive, tight as a drum. You’ll need to give the seller a bell for the price, but expect it to cost more than the £56,750 being asked for this all-black 2007 SV. More expensive than a new Cyberster, then, but the SV-R will surely turn more heads, is 500kg lighter and, above all, sounds a heck of a lot better. See for yourself in this video we’ve put together.