MG4 Last decision

[Tarek]

Hey fellow forum members,

I'm excited to join the MG community and have finally made up my mind to buy the MG4. I even have the quotation in my hand! However, after spending hours reading through numerous threads and discussions, I've started to have some cold feet.

Recently, my local dealer surprised me with some interesting offers on two other EV models: the Renault Megane EV and the Kona EV. They're offering just 15-20% extra on the price of these vehicles. Now, I'm feeling confused all over again and don't want to go through the entire research process once more.

Since this is my first EV purchase after selling my ICE vehicle four months ago, I really value the insights and experiences of those who have thoroughly tried these vehicles or conducted in-depth research. Could anyone who has hands-on experience with the MG4, Renault Megane EV, or Kona EV provide some advice on my decision?

I'm specifically looking for feedback on factors like reliability, performance, driving experience, charging infrastructure, and any other considerations that might help me make an informed choice. Your input would be immensely appreciated as I navigate this exciting transition into the world of EVs.

Thank you all in advance for your valuable assistance!

 

[dsimpkins]

Despite my lack of familiarity with these terms, I'm counting on my future experience with the car to understand them . Sometimes, diving into the unknown can be quite an adventure, and I'm excited to embrace it with a sense of curiosity!

Just another note, and sorry to bother you again, going back to my mention of the German video. I was wondering if you heard about the reported rusty internal components mentioned in that video. If any of you have insights or further information about that?

I took the plunge and embraced the adventure of getting my first EV about 3 months ago. Yes it's different, and people keep asking me if I'm happy with it. I think because they are expecting me to say, "Oh no, don't get an EV", and then for me to spout the usual reasons why people are nervous about buying one. My brother in particular couldn't believe I had bought an EV "But you're a car guy". "Just go take one for test drive, then you'll understand". My experience so far has been a good one overall. Yes it's different to other cars, and there are things you have to do differently, but there are so many things better than a traditional car that I love. I do have other ICE cars to play with, but my daily driver is the MG4 (SE LR)

Yes, lane keep assist (LKA) has issues, but I have learnt to switch that off every time I get in (but most new cars have LKA, and people complain about it regardless of make/model) However there are features in the MG4 I absolutely love:

• The adaptive cruise control is far superior to regular cruise control of my old car, and I only use it on the motorway where it works extremely well.
• I recently discovered this week the autohold feature that others on the forum have mentioned. I don't have to hold the pedal down when stopped at junctions, or use the handbrake. It's so effortless to drive when commuting. I love it!
• It's also lots of fun being rear wheel drive. As others have said, it drives so well, "like a BMW", having never owned one of those I'll have to take their word for it. However there is one bend on the way home from work that I can't resist from flooring it at the apex, and it rewards me with a thrill everytime.
• I was used to lots of torque from my previous car (a diesel), but EVs just have lots more torque, instantly.

It is great to drive, but it is also a learning experience, and initally I suffered with range anxiety that most EV drivers have. Now I'm more used to the car that has faded, and I'm have no regrets. There seems to be more problems with the earlier cars (what I would call being on the bleeding edge), the latest cars like mine appear to have corrected these issues (being on the cutting edge)

 

[DBedford]

I took the plunge and embraced the adventure of getting my first EV about 3 months ago. Yes it's different, and people keep asking me if I'm happy with it. I think because they are expecting me to say, "Oh no, don't get an EV", and then for me to spout the usual reasons why people are nervous about buying one. My brother in particular couldn't believe I had bought an EV "But you're a car guy". "Just go take one for test drive, then you'll understand". My experience so far has been a good one overall. Yes it's different to other cars, and there are things you have to do differently, but there are so many things better than a traditional car that I love. I do have other ICE cars to play with, but my daily driver is the MG4 (SE LR)

Yes, lane keep assist (LKA) has issues, but I have learnt to switch that off every time I get in (but most new cars have LKA, and people complain about it regardless of make/model) However there are features in the MG4 I absolutely love:

• The adaptive cruise control is far superior to regular cruise control of my old car, and I only use it on the motorway where it works extremely well.
• I recently discovered this week the autohold feature that others on the forum have mentioned. I don't have to hold the pedal down when stopped at junctions, or use the handbrake. It's so effortless to drive when commuting. I love it!
• It's also lots of fun being rear wheel drive. As others have said, it drives so well, "like a BMW", having never owned one of those I'll have to take their word for it. However there is one bend on the way home from work that I can't resist from flooring it at the apex, and it rewards me with a thrill everytime.
• I was used to lots of torque from my previous car (a diesel), but EVs just have lots more torque, instantly.

It is great to drive, but it is also a learning experience, and initally I suffered with range anxiety that most EV drivers have. Now I'm more used to the car that has faded, and I'm have no regrets. There seems to be more problems with the earlier cars (what I would call being on the bleeding edge), the latest cars like mine appear to have corrected these issues (being on the cutting edge)

It would be hard to say the MG4 was ‘bleeding edge’, as it contains no tech that was not in other cars on the road at the same time. Just built to a competitive price and in doing so sometimes as a result parts fail due to corners being cut.

 

[Alb]

I think the point is that it's the bleeding edge for MG.

 

[Deleted member 9692]

I think the point is that it's the bleeding edge for MG.

Can confirm that I often refer to mine as ”that bleeding MG4”

 

[Rolfe]

I picked up a friend to go to our music lesson yesterday. She sat back in the passenger seat and said, "Oh, I just love driving in this car!"

 

[tsedge]

It would be hard to say the MG4 was ‘bleeding edge’, as it contains no tech that was not in other cars on the road at the same time. Just built to a competitive price and in doing so sometimes as a result parts fail due to corners being cut.

Bleeding edge for the money is the point - it is really easy to build £55-60k EVs, but nobody has really cracked low prices like MG.

In the main they've been really clever with their cost cutting and in some places it has gone too far. Admirable effort though.

 

[siteguru]

I picked up a friend to go to our music lesson yesterday. She sat back in the passenger seat and said, "Oh, I just love driving in this car!"

You'd better get that looked at - sounds like the steering wheel is on the wrong side.

 

[Rolfe]

Hah. Driving this car is what I do. Driving in this car can be the experience of any passenger!

 

[Mickser]

Hey fellow forum members,

I'm excited to join the MG community and have finally made up my mind to buy the MG4. I even have the quotation in my hand! However, after spending hours reading through numerous threads and discussions, I've started to have some cold feet.

Recently, my local dealer surprised me with some interesting offers on two other EV models: the Renault Megane EV and the Kona EV. They're offering just 15-20% extra on the price of these vehicles. Now, I'm feeling confused all over again and don't want to go through the entire research process once more.

Since this is my first EV purchase after selling my ICE vehicle four months ago, I really value the insights and experiences of those who have thoroughly tried these vehicles or conducted in-depth research. Could anyone who has hands-on experience with the MG4, Renault Megane EV, or Kona EV provide some advice on my decision?

I'm specifically looking for feedback on factors like reliability, performance, driving experience, charging infrastructure, and any other considerations that might help me make an informed choice. Your input would be immensely appreciated as I navigate this exciting transition into the world of EVs.

Thank you all in advance for your valuable assistance!

You will find that every car forum has mostly negative comments as its the only place where people can have a good moan but the points made can be helpful, of all the MG4 sold it's only a tiny percentage that have major issues,its a new model so you have to expect minor niggles,as I stated every car forum has negative comments so I would not worry Tarek

 

[Rolfe]

Seconded.

 

[drivethru]

Hey fellow forum members,

I'm excited to join the MG community and have finally made up my mind to buy the MG4. I even have the quotation in my hand! However, after spending hours reading through numerous threads and discussions, I've started to have some cold feet.

Recently, my local dealer surprised me with some interesting offers on two other EV models: the Renault Megane EV and the Kona EV. They're offering just 15-20% extra on the price of these vehicles. Now, I'm feeling confused all over again and don't want to go through the entire research process once more.

Since this is my first EV purchase after selling my ICE vehicle four months ago, I really value the insights and experiences of those who have thoroughly tried these vehicles or conducted in-depth research. Could anyone who has hands-on experience with the MG4, Renault Megane EV, or Kona EV provide some advice on my decision?

I'm specifically looking for feedback on factors like reliability, performance, driving experience, charging infrastructure, and any other considerations that might help me make an informed choice. Your input would be immensely appreciated as I navigate this exciting transition into the world of EVs.

Thank you all in advance for your valuable assistance!

Hi!

The MG4 was my first EV after 20 years of driving of driving ICE cars.

My journey - maybe similar to yours - including lots of YouTube review watching (Matt Watson CarWow review initially peaked my interest) and then lots of avid reading on this forum - which was really good (and bad). I was really reassured by the positive comments but there was a big question mark on some of the topics that kept cropping up in a negative light such as the lane keep assist and automatic emergency braking.

I still went ahead and collected my new Trophy in April 2023.

I must say, that the driving experience has been amazing and this easily goes ahead of the concerns that I had read about. I'll give more details below

Lane keep assist - I find it a subtle prompt with a nudge on the steering wheel in most cases which is fine to live with. It feels more crude when I am say getting off the motorway on a slip road and forget to indicate. The indicators cancel the lane keep assist so be mindful of that. I don't find it burdensome to turn off the LKA each time I drive but the truth is, I drive in and around London for work and leisure and so LKA doesn't get activated say 80% of my journeys.

Automatic emergency braking - so I've experienced this both whilst using automatic cruise control and manual driving. It can be annoying - I think with city / London driving, sometimes the system can get tricked when you are overtaking a stationary bus or vehicle and have to borrow some of the oncoming Lane etc. It may think the oncoming traffic is an accident waiting to happen but it can be overridden by a tap on the accelerator pedal. This is what I am now use to and it works fine - to pre empt when I think AED may kick in and to have the foot ready. Again, not really a big issue for me.

So these two above were my big fears pre ownership but post ownership I feel they are minor niggles. This may be because of where I live and how I drive.

Now the major gripes....

Bluetooth and mobile phone pairing - it is shocking. It's something I rely upon for work and personal calls whilst driving and also streaming and listening to audio from my iPhone. It's really bad - in my opinion - that the MG4 simply cannot remember my phone and I have to go through a whole process to repair it which at times is also fraught with issues. I guess I was used to getting in my car and having Bluetooth automatically connect all the time from my previous car.

The other gripe of mine with telephony is that one cannot make a call / select a contact or number to call by using the steering wheel controls. You have to manually touch the screen whilst driving in order to this. This is inconvenient for me as I make a lot of work and personal calls whilst driving.

Overall I am happy with the car and love EV driving. It is saving me £££ on diesel costs and is a refined drive as you don't hear engine noise or feel engine vibration. There is a lovely whizz-chiming sound of the electric motor which is calming and very addictive.

I hope this helps.

 

[tsedge]

Now the major gripes....

Bluetooth and mobile phone pairing - it is shocking. It's something I rely upon for work and personal calls whilst driving and also streaming and listening to audio from my iPhone. It's really bad - in my opinion - that the MG4 simply cannot remember my phone and I have to go through a whole process to repair it which at times is also fraught with issues. I guess I was used to getting in my car and having Bluetooth automatically connect all the time from my previous car.

If you use CarPlay you don't need bluetooth and can make / receive calls and listen to your audio using the appropriate app. You do have to plug the phone in for this.

The other gripe of mine with telephony is that one cannot make a call / select a contact or number to call by using the steering wheel controls. You have to manually touch the screen whilst driving in order to this. This is inconvenient for me as I make a lot of work and personal calls whilst driving.

Again, with CarPlay, you can use Siri to make calls and the phone button on the steering wheel will initiate this. I haven't tried it myself, but others have.

 

[Tonych]

Certainly, I have owned an MG4 Trophy for three months. My thoughts on the MG4 are:

The car drives superbly, a pleasure to drive
The car is loaded with all the tech you could really want
My expectations when spending approx 30k on a product is the the product will be as described. It was not so, it has faults.
When raising the faults I have found (as covered in this forum) I found MG customer service appalling so far.
MG as a company employ just 40 staff
All dealerships are franchised and as such customer service is hit & miss

My main takeaway here, is to carefully research the customer service of the dealership and company (brand) you are potentially putting your money into. Buying a good car without good customer service makes the car not so good.

I agree on your point regarding support being hit and miss - for me this includes sales and servicing too. After 3 years of ZS EV ownership to which we recently added a MG4 I take all my support and servicing to MG Milton Keynes despite living in London

 

[IanMK]

The MG4 was my first EV after 20 years of driving of driving ICE cars.

My first EV in over 50 years of driving. However, I've been driving automatics almost exclusively for over 40 years. My first rear-wheel drive car for quite some time - almost caught me out last week when I put my foot down a tad early on leaving a roundabout

 

[Rolfe]

Me too. I passed my test in 1972, drove my father's car and then a motorbike for a bit, and didn't get my own first car until 1985. Manual transmission from then until I got the Golf with its DSG in 2009. I'd never been in an EV until I had my test drive in the MG4 in April of this year - five days before I drove off in my very own SE SR.

I'm just in from church, having picked up an elderly neighbour because of the heavy rain showers. Her late husband ran the garage in the village for decades, absolute ICE specialist. His widow is now in her 90s with a dodgy hip. Anyway, as we set off on the 400 yard drive back, I said, do you want to go for a wee spin? So I took her a round trip of about seven miles, showing off the acceleration and the regenerative braking and the ACC. She was well impressed, but then said "I think Bill (her late husband) went at the right time!"

I think there will be plenty work for ICE specialists for a while yet though, as the Luddite contingent fight to keep their gas-guzzlers on the road as long as possible. But EVs are the future.

 

[Tonych]

Hi!

The MG4 was my first EV after 20 years of driving of driving ICE cars.

My journey - maybe similar to yours - including lots of YouTube review watching (Matt Watson CarWow review initially peaked my interest) and then lots of avid reading on this forum - which was really good (and bad). I was really reassured by the positive comments but there was a big question mark on some of the topics that kept cropping up in a negative light such as the lane keep assist and automatic emergency braking.

I still went ahead and collected my new Trophy in April 2023.

I must say, that the driving experience has been amazing and this easily goes ahead of the concerns that I had read about. I'll give more details below

Lane keep assist - I find it a subtle prompt with a nudge on the steering wheel in most cases which is fine to live with. It feels more crude when I am say getting off the motorway on a slip road and forget to indicate. The indicators cancel the lane keep assist so be mindful of that. I don't find it burdensome to turn off the LKA each time I drive but the truth is, I drive in and around London for work and leisure and so LKA doesn't get activated say 80% of my journeys.

Automatic emergency braking - so I've experienced this both whilst using automatic cruise control and manual driving. It can be annoying - I think with city / London driving, sometimes the system can get tricked when you are overtaking a stationary bus or vehicle and have to borrow some of the oncoming Lane etc. It may think the oncoming traffic is an accident waiting to happen but it can be overridden by a tap on the accelerator pedal. This is what I am now use to and it works fine - to pre empt when I think AED may kick in and to have the foot ready. Again, not really a big issue for me.

So these two above were my big fears pre ownership but post ownership I feel they are minor niggles. This may be because of where I live and how I drive.

Now the major gripes....

Bluetooth and mobile phone pairing - it is shocking. It's something I rely upon for work and personal calls whilst driving and also streaming and listening to audio from my iPhone. It's really bad - in my opinion - that the MG4 simply cannot remember my phone and I have to go through a whole process to repair it which at times is also fraught with issues. I guess I was used to getting in my car and having Bluetooth automatically connect all the time from my previous car.

The other gripe of mine with telephony is that one cannot make a call / select a contact or number to call by using the steering wheel controls. You have to manually touch the screen whilst driving in order to this. This is inconvenient for me as I make a lot of work and personal calls whilst driving.

Overall I am happy with the car and love EV driving. It is saving me £££ on diesel costs and is a refined drive as you don't hear engine noise or feel engine vibration. There is a lovely whizz-chiming sound of the electric motor which is calming and very addictive.

I hope this helps.

I have to agree - I couldnt believe that (unlike my Mk1 ZS EV) the MG4 doesnt remember my phone and connect automatically. There are times when I simply dont want to cable connect thro Android Auto. I've taken to wearing a bluetooth bone conducting headset to make sure I can receive calls.

 

[Rolfe]

My phone connects automatically, without me doing anything about it. I didn't think it would because it doesn't support Android Auto, and I got the fright of my life when I got the phone out to make a call while I was sitting in the car, and the infotainment screen went to phone and the sound started coming out of the car speakers. I didn't even realise there was a microphone that would pick up my voice without me talking into the phone!

A couple of times I've initiated a call to a charger operator while standing outside the car and taken a couple of moments to realise that the handset was dead because it was all happening inside the car!

 

[PeteC]

A couple of times I've initiated a call to a charger operator while standing outside the car and taken a couple of moments to realise that the handset was dead because it was all happening inside the car!

I've had the exact same thing happen and thought they weren't replying. It took me a little while to realise that my phone was connected to my car. I ended up standing at the charger talking very loudly to my car as I wasn't sure whether the phone's microphone would still be working!

 

[dcweather]

I'm just behind you in the decision making queue. I currently have a Renault Captur E tech hybrid which I find to be excellent but is soon due for its change. My wife has a 9 year old Yaris hybrid which frankly is a superb car that was very cheap and has held its value incredibly well. But I like a change and the MG4 is probably the car I have been waiting for to make the jump. Of the negatives the blue tooth phone thing is a big annoyance for me. My last three cars have just worked, once paired. I think the Renault has come unpaired about twice in two years and I found that very annoying. If I go for it I am torn whether I should go for the bottom of the range (It will be on a PCP plan and i can afford either) or the Trophy which has some nice features like blind spot monitoring which i love in the Renault, but not sure what the other differences of significance are for the big price difference?

 

[drivethru]

If you use CarPlay you don't need bluetooth and can make / receive calls and listen to your audio using the appropriate app. You do have to plug the phone in for this.


Again, with CarPlay, you can use Siri to make calls and the phone button on the steering wheel will initiate this. I haven't tried it myself, but others have.

Yes this is true but wireless connectivity is a must for me (and shouldn't be that hard considering the times we live in) - there are times where I make site visits for work and so getting in and out of the car to use the cable and siri isn't the most practical.

I'm just happy that the driving experience makes up for it. I do hope mg can fix this issue.