New Austin Healeys on the way?

Nanjing Automobile (that's the company that bought Longbridge and what was left of MG Rover) announced today that was linking up with Healey Automotive Consultants, owner of the famous Healey brand, and its technical partner HFI in order to "collaborate with each other on the future development of the Healey and Austin Healey brands and sports cars bearing (the) name".

Now anyone with even a drop of petrol in their veins will have heard of the famous Austin Healey models from the sixties but I doubt that there's much real magic left in the badge these days for anyone under about fifty. It's also unclear what sorts of cars will emerge from the collaboration. But it's still immensely heartening to see a development that may just produce some UK car-making jobs and some new British cars, and which provides a bit more evidence that Nanjing appreciates the British car-making story it bought into when it acquired MG Rover and its stable of brands.