What is your opinion on your MG4 for build quality - Good or Bad

I understand people who have had bad experiences with the MG4 giving negative feedback. I feel really lucky to have 'landed on my feet' with the car I have ended up with. It seems that the majority of people having problems have the Trophy version, whereas I went for the SE SR, mainly because it was immediately available. I couldn't justify the price difference between SE and Trophy - a lot of the differences, heated seats/steering wheel, sat nav, and range were not that important to me. I probably would have gone for the SE LR, but as it turns out, I am really happy with my choice, and with the travel I do, back and to, to work I am managing the range and recharge easily. I wish everybody could have the same experience as me, as the car is a pleasure to drive/have.
 
Some cars might be understating miles per kWh on the trip computer. Mine was and I only discovered it when I did the maths by taking the actual kw's of charge put into the battery and the actual miles covered using Google Maps not the trip computer. The only variable then is the accuracy of the SOC percentage displayed in the car.

I can also report that after almost 4,000 miles efficiency is improving with each charge/discharge. I would say my non-motorway average is currently around 4 mpkWh and motorway trips between 3.5 and 3.9, a bit less if the temperature drops at night, for example. I generally cruise at 65 to 67mph on motorways using cruise control. Eco mode with adaptive regen on motorway runs and Eco mode with strong regen on non-motorway journeys. Not sure how much difference it makes in term of efficiency, but I prefer the regen braking to be adaptive when it's not stop-start driving.

On the build quality front, I am pretty happy with my car. Some of the external piano black panels on the cars pillars are a bit scuffed and I am hoping MG will sort these out for me as I complained on the day I collected the car in November. The infotainment system and associated features are a bit buggy but I'm sure they will be improved with subsequent software updates. The car feels solid, well planted on the road when driving, even in cold and icy conditions and I think it's comfortable on the long journeys I find myself doing frequently at the moment.
 
I've only had my Trophy for a week and done over 300 miles and I was quite nervous about my decision to buy one with all the problems that have been reported. But when I get in and drive it I love the way it drives and the power delivery it's so quiet , smooth, comfortable and effortless. The build quality for what is a budget EV is certainly good enough. Hopefully the problems will all get ironed out and we can all enjoy what is basically a nice car.
 
adiel said:
Some cars might be understating miles per kWh on the trip computer. Mine was and I only discovered it when I did the maths by taking the actual kw's of charge put into the battery and the actual miles covered using Google Maps not the trip computer. The only variable then is the accuracy of the SOC percentage displayed in the car.
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I found this happened when I hadn't charged my SE SR up to 100% for a couple of weeks. The battery chemistry means this is necessary for the BMS to accurately gauge the charge level.
 
bowfer said:
Only my opinion, but I don’t believe there’s a fault free 4 out there.
There’s only owners that are putting up with issues or haven’t noticed them.
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TBH the only thing that irks me with my SE standard is the oil leak, if the dealer would post me a modified breather I'd even fit it myself as I cant be ar$ed with the dealer visit process.

I LOVE driving the thing though, it's like an electric go kart compared with my last car. The speed you can safely thread it down a quiet B road is giggle inducing.
Certainly don't regret buying it so far :)
 
I took ownership of my MG4 SE SR in late October and I've now covered 3800 miles. I have exclusively been using expensive fast chargers, which is still working out better than my former ICE vehicle (an Audi A2 petrol).

When I picked my car up, I asked my MG dealer to literally go through the list of common faults from this forum before I accepted it, and it has basically been fine.

It is a cracking car to drive, gets the efficiency I expect given the different driving styles I adopt, and it being winter. All in all I think it is a bracingly well built vehicle, and represents excellent value for money. It is also just plain fun to drive - I recently took a Model Y rear wheel drive for a test-drive around favourite roads, and can honestly say the MG4 SE SR is more fun, it is lighter, and reacts better to driver inputs. Build quality is excellent.

The only issue has been the 'keyless' entry stopped working recently, which my dealer checked when doing the recent software update last week. The issue with the handle is only if you press the button 'at the top' where as it works if you press it 'at the bottom' it works - the dealer will be looking at it at the next available opportunity (early March), and provide a courtesy car whilst it is with them. Great customer service.

There appear to be a lot of repeated complaints and moans on the forum for whatever reason. My experience has been that the car is excellent. Sure some of the software could be improved... I'd personally like 'camp mode' and 'dog mode'... but software improves over time. From a hardware perspective the car has been great so far. I know the handle will be fixed under warranty, and for now I just use the 'unlock button' on key fob, as I've done with every vehicle I've owned, except those early models where you had to physically insert an actual key, before jumping in, manually adjust the choke etc. The EV experience is completely different, and the MG4 is an excellent EV at a bargain price point.

There is a reason the MG4 scooped up so many awards. It is a great car.
 
... everything todate is pretty much perfect, there is a very minor misalignment above one headlight - but nothing that cant be fixed with a simple turn of the bonnet stops? (maybe) - a few years ago I looked at a aston martin car in an airport (BoTV?), and the panel gaps were not what i would expect for such a car!
 
Sparkles said:
I took ownership of my MG4 SE SR in late October and I've now covered 3800 miles. I have exclusively been using expensive fast chargers, which is still working out better than my former ICE vehicle (an Audi A2 petrol).

When I picked my car up, I asked my MG dealer to literally go through the list of common faults from this forum before I accepted it, and it has basically been fine.

It is a cracking car to drive, gets the efficiency I expect given the different driving styles I adopt, and it being winter. All in all I think it is a bracingly well built vehicle, and represents excellent value for money. It is also just plain fun to drive - I recently took a Model Y rear wheel drive for a test-drive around favourite roads, and can honestly say the MG4 SE SR is more fun, it is lighter, and reacts better to driver inputs. Build quality is excellent.

The only issue has been the 'keyless' entry stopped working recently, which my dealer checked when doing the recent software update last week. The issue with the handle is only if you press the button 'at the top' where as it works if you press it 'at the bottom' it works - the dealer will be looking at it at the next available opportunity (early March), and provide a courtesy car whilst it is with them. Great customer service.

There appear to be a lot of repeated complaints and moans on the forum for whatever reason. My experience has been that the car is excellent. Sure some of the software could be improved... I'd personally like 'camp mode' and 'dog mode'... but software improves over time. From a hardware perspective the car has been great so far. I know the handle will be fixed under warranty, and for now I just use the 'unlock button' on key fob, as I've done with every vehicle I've owned, except those early models where you had to physically insert an actual key, before jumping in, manually adjust the choke etc. The EV experience is completely different, and the MG4 is an excellent EV at a bargain price point.

There is a reason the MG4 scooped up so many awards. It is a great car.
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Very well said. And I agree with your comprehensive assessment.
 
Since the days of the model T ,building a car is not rocket science. The reported problems tend to be quality control issues or software glitches ( which is rocket science) . The quality is a SAIC management problem ,if you allow something to pass, you are sanctioning it! and for example the buckled undertrays, the team fitting these are on a time limit per item and do not want to stop a production line or lose wages by flagging up problems for the line managers who similarly pass it on to QC who may flag it up the line but are told to pass it. It then becomes cultural and perceived company policy.
Others will be better qualified than me to comment on software but it does seem that the design has been rushed and not tested ( unless we are the testers ) to rigorous standards.
I will also guess the other manufactures and their customers are having similar issues but two wrongs don,t make a right.
If we the customer accepts crap do we get what we deserve?
 
OriginalBigAl said:
Since the days of the model T ,building a car is not rocket science. The reported problems tend to be quality control issues or software glitches ( which is rocket science) . The quality is a SAIC management problem ,if you allow something to pass, you are sanctioning it! and for example the buckled undertrays, the team fitting these are on a time limit per item and do not want to stop a production line or lose wages by flagging up problems for the line managers who similarly pass it on to QC who may flag it up the line but are told to pass it. It then becomes cultural and perceived company policy.
Others will be better qualified than me to comment on software but it does seem that the design has been rushed and not tested ( unless we are the testers ) to rigorous standards.
I will also guess the other manufactures and their customers are having similar issues but two wrongs don,t make a right.
If we the customer accepts crap do we get what we deserve?
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They certainly didn’t want to stop the production line to fit the correct rear view mirror in my car.
Hence I have an auto dipping mirror the SE shouldn’t have and doesn’t work.

Sparkles said:
There is a reason the MG4 scooped up so many awards. It is a great car.
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Firstly, the press only drive the cars for a short time and don’t have the time to notice everything that annoys us owners.
Secondly, it’s pretty common knowledge press cars from any make are prepared and kept to higher standards than us mere mortals get.
Thirdly, and most annoyingly, there are too many people benefitting financially to say good things.
Example is one highish profile person on twitter who won’t say or hear anything bad about the 4.
God forbid it’s because she got the car free or cheap (but will deny it anyway)
 
I love my MG4. I've cover 4500 miles since I picked the car up early November. Yes there are a few niggles which will need to be sorted out in time.
But I happy with ( In no particular order) :
The Looks
The Drive
The Comfort
The Colour
The Ease of use
The Economy
The Equipment level (SR)
 
Macadoodle said:
TBH the only thing that irks me with my SE standard is the oil leak, if the dealer would post me a modified breather I'd even fit it myself as I cant be ar$ed with the dealer visit process.

I LOVE driving the thing though, it's like an electric go kart compared with my last car. The speed you can safely thread it down a quiet B road is giggle inducing.
Certainly don't regret buying it so far :)
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what was your last car?
The MG4 does not handle badly but its also not a good handling car!
It grips but its very wallowy and gets unsettled easily with changes to the road surface. Its by no means a car that is planted to the road

Put it this way, i jumped into my wife's 2004 audi TT that has 100k on the clock this weekend, and that instantly pointed out that the MG4 is not a great handling car and it had a lot less creaks!
 
Michael1982 said:
what was your last car?
The MG4 does not handle badly but its also not a good handling car!
It grips but its very wallowy and gets unsettled easily with changes to the road surface. Its by no means a car that is planted to the road

Put it this way, i jumped into my wife's 2004 audi TT that has 100k on the clock this weekend, and that instantly pointed out that the MG4 is not a great handling car and it had a lot less creaks!
Click to expand...

Agreed, it’s an ok handling car in comparison with any other bog standard hatchback, but let’s not get carried away.
It’s what you’d expect for a heavy Astra/Focus type car.
 
Michael1982 said:
what was your last car?
The MG4 does not handle badly but its also not a good handling car!
It grips but its very wallowy and gets unsettled easily with changes to the road surface. Its by no means a car that is planted to the road

Put it this way, i jumped into my wife's 2004 audi TT that has 100k on the clock this weekend, and that instantly pointed out that the MG4 is not a great handling car and it had a lot less creaks!
Click to expand...
I don't think a comparison to a TT is a level playing field! The last trip I had in a TT, as a passenger was not a pleasant experience! Harsh ride and felt every catseye! I wouldn't say it cornered flat either.
Personally, like @bowfer says, I find the MG4 is not bad for what it is, an electric hatchback.
 
bowfer said:
Agreed, it’s an ok handling car in comparison with any other bog standard hatchback, but let’s not get carried away.
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Again the MG is not a bad handling car but it makes me giggle when people claim its like a go kart because its not even close so i hate to think what they used to drive and i like to give my honest opinion as someone who is a passionate driver who actually knows what a decent handling car feels like.
I think i a lot could be down to the continental tyres it comes with because they really are a pile of turd.
Also they are bringing out a sporty version so they need to make the standard versions a bit crap to make that feel more special
 
Michael1982 said:
Again the MG is not a bad handling car but it makes me giggle when people claim its like a go kart because its not even close so i hate to think what they used to drive and i like to give my honest opinion as someone who is a passionate driver who actually knows what a decent handling car feels like.
I think i a lot could be down to the continental tyres it comes with because they really are a pile of turd.
Also they are bringing out a sporty version so they need to make the standard versions a bit crap to make that feel more special
Click to expand...
My 4 handles a bundle load better than my last couple of cars. A VW Passat and a Seat Arona FR Sport.
Having sold cars for around 12 yrs and driven loads of different makes and models I have to say the for me it's among the best handling non sports cars I've been behind the wheel in .
My tyres are fine and the car felt very stable and predictable during the bad winter weather.
 
I find the weight of the 4 quite surprising in terms of handling.
She’s a heavy beast, the lightest one is 1655 kgs.
That’s 75 kgs heavier than the Leaf I had directly before it and 103 kgs heavier than the MG5 loaner I have just now (!)
The 5 is a vague boat of a thing, but I’d give any 4 driver a run for their money in it just due to the lighter weight.
 
I understand that some owners who have issues, see those issues as a deal breaker and want or have given their car back and opt to go for a different make.
We have had our order in since October and I have read many a thread on here and wondered whether we are making the right choice.

Last night, I watched one of the auto trader guys giving a review on one of their Skoda Enyac’s, that they had on a long term loan.
Considering the Skoda is top of the range, so over 50k, they loved it despite some issues.
They listed about 6 issues, which I would consider minor, BUT not for 50 GRAND.
And to top it off the reporter said that all the time they had it, Skoda could NOT solve the problem with the infortainment….. which was….. the screen turning itself off while it was being driven and the screen not restarting.
The reporter said that on one occasion he had to disconnect the DC battery and do a reset as such.
They mentioned that all of the infotainment could not be brought back to life, with button pushes and no voice controls.
Well, I decided not to consider the Enyaq, cause I don’t want to drive one with an infotainment that doesn’t work while I am driving.

I was looking at the Cupra Born for myself but their forums have just as many niggly problems as this forum.

One mustn’t forget that the MG4 is the first real affordable family car….. and it will not take too long for MG China / UK to iron out their issues.

So I am hoping that when we take delivery in March we will have an MG4 with no issues, but if we do, it will just get sorted by the dealership.
 
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Are you enjoying your MG4?

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    Votes: 83 13.5%

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