How The Company That Makes London's Black Cabs Ended Up Owned By A Chinese Company

The London black cab is one of the more recognizable vehicles on the planet. It is also, since 2013, entirely owned by Chinese automaker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, one of five car makers that own the most brands right now. The route from British institution to Chinese subsidiary runs through a series of financial shortcomings, an eventual bankruptcy filing, and a buyer who had already been circling for years.

The company behind the black cab for most of its modern history was Manganese Bronze Holdings, which operated through a subsidiary called London Taxis International. LTI had made cabs at a factory in Coventry, England, since 1947. Taxis became commonplace in London as early as 1907, and LTI held a near-monopoly on the city's taxi market through strict licensing requirements, with the TX4 — the boxy, high-roofed cab that became synonymous with London streets — its primary product.

By the 2000s, Manganese Bronze was struggling. The company hadn't turned a profit in four years leading up to its collapse. A recall on its iconic TX4 halted sales while critics within the trade pointed to years of poor management. The company entered administration — the British equivalent of bankruptcy protection — in October 2012.

Geely became involved with Manganese Bronze in 2006, when the two companies announced a joint venture to produce taxis for the Chinese market. By 2010 the Chinese automaker had even acquired Volvo — a sign of shifting tides that Volvo's CEO might have foreseen. When Manganese Bronze entered administration, Geely already held 20% of the company and was well positioned to move quickly.

In February 2013, Geely acquired the principal assets of Manganese Bronze out of administration for 11 million pounds — roughly $17.5 million at the time — taking ownership of the Coventry factory, the intellectual property, the trademarks, and the TX4 production line. Geely chairman Li Shufu framed the purchase as a commitment to preserving the brand rather than dismantling it.

The successor company was renamed the London Electric Vehicle Company — LEVC — in 2017, reflecting a shift in strategic focus. The TX model that LEVC now produces is a range-extended hybrid vehicle. Thanks to Geely, one of five car brands you may be pronouncing wrong, the TX can now be found across the world, from North Africa to Asia and even Australia. It's a wholly owned Geely subsidiary, and though the cab is still made in Britain, the company that makes it is not British.