Are the facelift cars better?

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SamMg

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Hey All,

Is there a difference in the quality of the MG4s since the facelift in mid-2023?

I'm looking at the Standard & Luxury models here in Germany. I've read about the differences like seat heating, rear wiper and one-pedal driving, but I'm wondering more about:
  • Known issues: Like the oil leaks etc - are some of these fixed in the facelift?
  • Trim / Finish: e.g. seats, surfaces, and rattles.. is there any difference?
  • Software updates: on the ID3 the old models can't update beyond a specific software version.. do MG block these?
For background - I'm looking for a small family car to do the school, after-school & shopping runs. Most trips will be very short, so range isn't a concern. For longer trips we have our ICE station wagon for that.

I recently test-drove a facelift Luxury and thought it was great, but I'm not sure I can stretch my budget. Here in Germany they are around €30k for the facelift version, whereas a year-old ex-demo Standard is around €20k... so I'm not sure whether to stick to the newer-built cars.

Thanks for any help!

Cheers,
Sam
 
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I have a year-old pre-facelift car (bought new) and I'm quite happy with the quality apart from the bloody undertray issue which seems to affect cars of all ages and is not confined to phase 1. I never had an oil leak, and the finish, seats etc. are fine. I don't think these things are any different in the face-lift.

The rear wiper seriously isn't necessary, I think they just added it because people were remarking on its absence. The car is designed not to need one. The central head-rest is a positive liability unless you are actually carrying three people in the back seat. Most people take it off. The rain sensor may or may not be a good thing. I don't really mind setting the wipers manually.

As far as software goes, don't get a phase 1 car if one-pedal driving is something you care about, because these cars may never get it.

The SE is what it is, and for me it's a great car and it does what I want it to do without the extra bells and whistles the Trophy/Luxury has. I personally wouldn't want to be bothered with all the stuff I hear about from Trophy owners with maps and satnav and welcome messages and so on, but if you really want heated seats, then there's that.
 
Ours is post-facelift, and we've had none of the reported issues at all. So yes, it's worth it. Of course, ours was second-hand when we got it (only about 4 months old, though, with 1500 miles on the clock), so it is possible that the previous owner had all the issues and got them fixed. But I kind of doubt it. I think it had been used as a demo car, tbh.
 
I would question, personally, whether it's worth going for the Trophy for a second car that's only going to be used for short local journeys. The SE SR would be absolutely adequate for that.

Also, I don't think there is any fundamental quality difference between the phase 1 and phase 2 cars. It's more a question of whether you care about a rear wiper and a rain sensor and need the third head-rest. Oh, and one-pedal driving of course.
 
Thanks for the quick answers. I really appreciate it, and it's good to know that there's little difference - this is going to save me some good cash already.

Seat heating here in Germany could indeed be worth it, but then I could just turn on the heating while we're getting organised for school instead :). I generally feel the same about the rear wiper, custom welcome message and the central head-rest.

Our other car is 10+ years old, so I'm hoping that this will be a successful entry into the world of EVs, and used on the slightly-longer trips, where other things like rear speakers would be useful... but I've also seen some forum posts about installing speakers later.

I think you've saved me some money!
 
I'm surprised to read people have been reporting oil leaks in an electric car... What oil are we talking about here? Brake fluid??
 
There is a simple reduction gearbox that brings the speed of rotation of the motor down to the speed required to turn the wheels. That has some oil in it. There was a problem with the oil breather on that on some early cars, but nobody has mentioned this for over a year as far as I can tell.
 
SamMg said:
Thanks for the quick answers. I really appreciate it, and it's good to know that there's little difference - this is going to save me some good cash already.

Seat heating here in Germany could indeed be worth it, but then I could just turn on the heating while we're getting organised for school instead :). I generally feel the same about the rear wiper, custom welcome message and the central head-rest.

Our other car is 10+ years old, so I'm hoping that this will be a successful entry into the world of EVs, and used on the slightly-longer trips, where other things like rear speakers would be useful... but I've also seen some forum posts about installing speakers later.

I think you've saved me some money!
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I find the pre-heat facility compensates pretty well for the lack of heated seats. The SE has cloth seats which aren't so "cold" when you first sit on them either. (Of course, I then fitted fake leather seat covers, but they only feel cold for a moment when you first get in.)

It's true the Trophy has more for back-seat passengers than the SE and that could be something to think about. I seldom remember that because I don't often take back-seat passengers and when I do everybody is talking anyway.

Don't think you can't road-trip the SR though. I road-trip mine and it's fine. You do need to be a bit more relaxed about time because it charges rather slower as well as having a shorter range, but it's still good to go on the big road.
 
Ditto regards the pre-heat facility. Completely replaces the need for heated seats. I went from a car with heated seats to one without, but with pre-heat. TBH I would rather have the preheat as it saves all the hassle of defrosting windows, and the whole cabin is already warm, rather than waiting for the seats, then the rest of the car to warm up.
 
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Absolutely. I really can't understand the people who go on about using the heated seats to keep warm instead of warming the cabin. I like the cabin to be warm and comfortable, and the MG4 manages this immeasurably better than any of my ICE cars ever did. And quickly too.
 
Rolfe said:
Also, I don't think there is any fundamental quality difference between the phase 1 and phase 2 cars. It's more a question of whether you care about a rear wiper and a rain sensor and need the third head-rest. Oh, and one-pedal driving of course.
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There's a rain sensor on the MY23? Not on mine... The rear wiper is invaluable though.
 
I have to say, I agree with @YaR , I do like the rear wiper. And for me, it does clear a sufficient amount of rear window, but then I am reasonably tall, so the rear headrests don't especially get in the way. I also like to heat the seat and the steering wheel because I get better 'fuel' consumption that way. But there again, I'm not in Scotland, so it's not as cold down here. If the temp is below about 5°C, then the cabin heating does go on, but otherwise I find the seat heat is ample.
The rain sensor is not bad, although I've had better in other cars.
 
YaR said:
The rear wiper is invaluable though.
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emmadragon said:
I have to say, I agree with @YaR , I do like the rear wiper.
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Thanks.. food for thought.

Rolfe said:
Absolutely. I really can't understand the people who go on about using the heated seats
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My wife is the fan here.. I don't really like the feeling of my tush getting hot while I'm driving!

emmadragon said:
I also like to heat the seat and the steering wheel because I get better 'fuel' consumption that way.
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Makes sense for solo drives.. but for the short school run (and anything else with the kids) their booster seats aren't heated! :)
 
It's all very subjective, but often just hearing other people talk about their experiences and how they feel about the car's features can help someone make up their mind.

As far as the rear wiper goes, I only notice that there isn't one when moving off on a rainy day. Once the car is underway it clears itself. If you have one and always turn it on, you wouldn't notice that. I rather like that the entire rear window is the same, not just wee semicircle.
 
Rolfe said:
Absolutely. I really can't understand the people who go on about using the heated seats to keep warm instead of warming the cabin. I like the cabin to be warm and comfortable, and the MG4 manages this immeasurably better than any of my ICE cars ever did. And quickly too.
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We find we do use the heated seats in winter. Not as a substitute to warming the cabin but in addition. It is just nice to have as an additional thing. I completely agree it isn't essential and warming the cabin makes a big difference.

Much more important is the heated wheel. This we use a lot in winter and it is so nice to drive with that. Never had that before.

But it wasn't the heated seats or wheel that made the difference for us choosing Trophy trim, the 360 camera was the thing as it makes parking so much easier.
 
I use the heated seats when heading off to play tennis or squash in the winter, gets those muscles nice and warm :)
 
I've never had a heated steering wheel, so I'll have to take your word for it that it's good!

In my Golf I had a winter routine of getting in, turning on the heated seat and the heater up to HI. All but my bum would be freezing for about the first ten miles. Then after I retired, and covid, and I hadn't been driving so much, I got in the car one cold day and realised I'd forgotten all about the fact that I had heated seats! I took that as an indication that I'd be happy enough with the pre-heated cabin on the SE, and so it has proved.
 

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