BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - Shanghai Automotive Industry (SAIC) on Tuesday launched its first car in the UK, as the new sporty MG6 rolled off the production line.

The car is also the first all-new MG in 16 years.

The design and development of the MG6 was all done here. But the cars are arriving partially built from China before the electronics, engine and testing are completed in the UK.

In the UK, the carmaker will first send 40 cars to its franchisers to test the waters, until mid-May, when the car formally hits the market.

Although most of the MG6’s will be hatchbacks, the company said on Tuesday that it plans to introduce some sedans in two months.

The retail price of a new MG6 will be about 16,000 pounds in the UK. The company expects to sell up to 2,000 MG6’s this year.

The same type of car has actually been running for roughly one year in China before its introduction in the UK.

The carmaker said it had made some alterations on the model to adapt to the UK market. In terms of emissions standards, for example, it has upgraded from Euro 4 for its China version to Euro 5 here.

The Euro 5 standards for cars further restrict emissions, from both petrol and diesel cars, of carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, oxides of nitrogen and particulate matters. The tighter standards were applied in September 2009 for new models of cars and in January 2011 for all new cars.

Tuesday’s off-line ceremony was attended by Yu Zhengsheng, Chinese Communist Party Secretary of Shanghai, and Liu Xiaoming, Chinese ambassador to the UK.

MG Rover, a British car manufacturer, was founded in 1924.

SAIC bought MG Rover’s assets in July 2005 and in August 2008 began small-scale assembly of limited edition MG TFs from Chinese-made kits at Longbridge.