I was just thinking about my MG and its British Leyland badge and am wondering, do we need a category for the parent company's name. For example, there is no chevrolet company. The company is General Motors Corporation and Chevrolet is simply a division of that company as is buick, oldsmobile, cadillac, Saab, etc.

My MGB has a British Leyland badge so technically it is a 1977 British Leyland MGB. Since its start, MG has been owned by several different companies: Morris, BMC, British Leyland.

Corporate ownership does make a very real difference in both the design and quality of cars. This makes me wonder if it would be a good idea to list the parent company as well as the simple brand name we generally use when we identify a car.

We make the distinction is some cases where we know the history. For example Dodge Brothers (independent) and Dodge (after Chrysler bought the company). The same would apply to Oldsmobile and many other brand names.

As groups change, I am not sure it is a good idea. See for example Daewoo : at a time it owned SsangYong, now it is owned by GM, but SsangYong was/is not owned by GM
Same for the MG, the group would depend on the year. I am not sure that it would really add useful info, but for sure it will add problems when we will have to list the vehicles

It would sure add problems to listing but I do find that kind of information interesting.

Don't mind me today, I have had too much sugar and am going at about 180 kph

Ooh, Subdivisions! GM had a lot of those in the 1920's & 1930's. LaSalle was a division of the Cadillac Motor Company, which itself was a division of General Motors. Marquette was a one-year(1930) division of Buick Motor Company, which itself is a division of GM. I believe Irving was a short-lived division of Oldsmobile Motor Company, which as we all know is a division of GM, and Pontiac was originally a division of the Oakland Motor Company, which superceeded Oakland in 1931.

Let's just leave it as it is. It would be long winded saying it's a General Motors Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale Brougham or Toyota Lexus ES330 or VW Audi Lamborghini Diablo.