MG Rover has secured an exclusive deal to supply Caterham with powertrain products for an “ongoing period” of years. The company has been supplying engines on a joint-supply basis with Vauxhall for around 10 years, but this marks a strengthening of MG Rover ties to Caterham - at General Motors' expense.

It includes an agreement for Caterham to use the MG X Power racing brand on its race cars. Caterham will take MG's 1.4-litre K-series and the 1.8-litre (135PS and 160PS) engines - volumes are likely to total several hundred units a year. “This move underlines the reliability and quality of our engines,” said Greg Allport, MG Rover brand and motorsport communications manager. “We will be working on a number of other initiatives with Caterham, which will include the development of future engines.”