FWIW, I owned a gen 1 ZS EV for a couple of years, then the facelift came out. On the face of it, seemed reasonably worthwhile, but could have easily stayed with the gen 1 for another couple of years. But then here in Australia some new rebates came out: $3k back from MG, them another $6k from the government. The $9k was pretty attractive.
In any case, the short end of the story is that the gen2 2022 ZS EV short range has certainly surpassed my expectations: surprisingly so much more refined, I think they nailed it for the price or otherwise; a had a good look at the Atto 3 (dreadful interior, dodgy & unnecessarily complex warranty); Tesla, nah - knees around my head in the M3, the MY far too large & with poor suspension…; Volvo far too pricey & dubious range.
While the gen 1 was certainly fun to drive & could easily fishtail away like a startled water dragon, the gen 2’s steering, suspension, handling & sound proofing all add up to a much more refined car. Then there’s and improved sound system, great infotainment & maps, more comfortable seating, and aircon for the rear seats. The dive modes have been nicely tuned over the gen 1. And LFP battery chemistry with a little more range & seemingly better economy. Zero technical issues, 7 year warranty, what’s not to like?
Well: no power tail gate, who cares? No frunk, LFA is waste of time, but the Cruise Control auto distance keeping is brilliant. I have no interest in MG Pilot. I also notice many common issues come up on far more expensive EVs than this one. Great car. I suspect one recommendation would be to try to ensure you have the best MG service centre possible, mine have been excellent, knowledgeable & responsive (although another was truly useless in the past). All EVs should come with a space saver or as an option, but no one does except for Audi & Jag I believe.