Have MG sorted out the MG4 yet?

[johncolescarr]

Trophy LR with 64k battery here. It's a brilliant car, though I do get envious of Teslas when I see them all plugged into their cheap chargers! But a couple of friends have Teslas, and they moan about various problems, so I guess any make will have its detractors. After two years with the car, I still think it is one of the nicest-looking EVs. And with its RWD, it drives like a dream!

The range is fine for me; if you have destination chargers and a home charger, that'll be all you need to calm your Range Anxiety.

Software-wise, it seems to have been programmed by the CEO's grandson on his Work Experience week (or the Chinese equivalent), so take things with a fairly large pinch of salt! But the 360 Camera is brilliant - I haven't looked over my shoulder while parking for a couple of years now

Just like any other subject-specific forum, you'll find a (very small) minority of people who just want to slag off the car (Lane Kill Assist? ) If you look at the top right-hand of this page, you'll see the true story - 77% of owners are happy with their MG4.

thanks for the feedback, I’m not one to dramatise reliability typically, my most reliable car was a Citroen and my least reliable a Mazda, the opposite of most expectations. The research I did on my local mg AD tended to suggest that it was a good one, but I guess I’ll find out.

I’m comfortable to test drive the MG4 now as I’m likely to prefer it on multiple levels, I’ve been in a 16 year old diesel mk4 Mondeo for the past 10 years and it’s getting tired.

I am only going to look at phase 2 models as I hope some of the early issues are sorted in the factory.

One reason for me to consider Tesla was the cheap public charging but when I looked into the savings for me personally it wasn’t that much, i do 15k pa, and my public charging will be about 15% of total, so at say 3.5 m/kWh and with a differential of say 85p to 50p, it works out as £225 pa. The Tesla like for like age and mileage is about £6k more, so I’d have to keep the car for 27 years to break even! Plus on my regular route the Tesla sc is open, so the difference is even less.

 

[agb]

Hi, I’m looking to take some test drives in the new year for the MG5, the MG4 and the Model 3.

Head says MG5 but I do find it a bit…fugly.

I’m sure the Model 3 is a great car but I’m honestly put off by the image and also worry that Tesla could implode if the tech bubble had a sharp correction.

I’m most likely to like the MG4 the most since it fits my use case the best, but I am genuinely put off by all the negative press on reliability.

To those in the know or have access to more data on this forum, what is the consensus on the face lift (post 2023) MG4 models? Are the niggles ironed out? Are there any big issues that render the car undrivable that are still plaguing the model? I’m in Leeds so any terrible news on the Leeds dealer (I’ve heard they’re ok from reviews).

will be buying used and I hold my cars for about 7-10 years.

John,
I find these failure issues are, in reality, few and far between on the NG4. It was the best selling EV in 2025.
Mine is the most solid car I've owned, looks tremendous ( metallic red) and totally reliable.
Sure, once or twice in 16000 miles I had to do what you do with any computer - turn off and on.
Like the time I was leaving motorway services and the lights didn't come on. I stopped, locked and unlocked the car - all reset perfectly.
I can tell you just how much I like this car: after 14 months I bought the bigger MG S5 - AND KEPT THE MG4. I couldn't bear to let it go!
I think I'll keep it for years

PS the software upgrade at the first service was great - LKA is very gentle and you can adjust the cruise control in 1mph steps

 

[Griffian]

Our 73 plate Trophy ER has been problem-free since we got it in Feb '24. We hope to purchase it when the NHS lease is up in Feb '27.

 

[aardvark5]

What exactly do you mean by 'sorted out' and undriveable?

Are you on about the Lane Keeping Assist?
I leave it on because it's less of a problem with updates but the wife always turns it off.

 

[Sparky2]

We have had our 2022 MG4 Trophy LR for nine months and as shared on various threads of this forum, it is an excellent driver's car ruined by seriously dodgy hardware and software connected to a flaky touchscreen. It is relatively cheap with a good range in summer but unless you spend a minute disabling all the dangerous 'safety features' that try to take over the steering and brakes every time you get in the car, the car will literally drive you crazy. Good luck with finding a decent dealer as the support from MG Motors UK is pants, bordering on the non-existent. Ditch the plastic wheel trims

 

[aardvark5]

but unless you spend a minute disabling all the dangerous 'safety features' that try to take over the steering and brakes

What else do you disable besides LKA?

 

[NiallM]

I’ve had the MG4 LR 64Kw for 6 months now and only really got niggles such as the speed recognition system never works first time I drive it each day. Kicks in fine from the second drive. The auto headlights can be a bit dodgy too but not often. Range wise it’s all over the place between summer and winter which is just the way EVs are. I’m getting 200 miles at the moment but was getting 250/260+ in the summer. I love it and can live with the niggles. No mechanical issues so far. All I’ve had is a blown fuse in the infotainment system the second week I had it.

 

[ippy1]

I have an original Trophy when they were first released, Over 3 years now. Yes, the LKA was pants when first released so I just turned it off. Once it was updated I turned it back on, and it stays on permanently now. I had some early day issues with rapid charging which took a while to resolve, but that was either the dealer or MG dragging their heels. To be honest, I expected some teething problems as it was a brand new model not a revamped ICE car, and the majority was fixed with software!
Would I go buy it again ? Well apart from the the huge depreciation, poor customer service… probably yes. It’s just works really well, and drives like a dream.

 

[Chrisdriving]

Had my X Power just over a year, car has been trouble free and drives awesome, previous car was a model 3 which i came to hate enough to ditch it with 10 months left on the lease.

 

[Moonraker244]

Hi, I’m looking to take some test drives in the new year for the MG5, the MG4 and the Model 3.

Head says MG5 but I do find it a bit…fugly.

I’m sure the Model 3 is a great car but I’m honestly put off by the image and also worry that Tesla could implode if the tech bubble had a sharp correction.

I’m most likely to like the MG4 the most since it fits my use case the best, but I am genuinely put off by all the negative press on reliability.

To those in the know or have access to more data on this forum, what is the consensus on the face lift (post 2023) MG4 models? Are the niggles ironed out? Are there any big issues that render the car undrivable that are still plaguing the model? I’m in Leeds so any terrible news on the Leeds dealer (I’ve heard they’re ok from reviews).

will be buying used and I hold my cars for about 7-10 years.

I had my MG4 Trophy LR in Nov 2022 and almost all the problems were sorted out on February 1st 2023 and I have had no trouble since then. Later, I did pay for an update to the active cruise control system. The radar scanner was recalibrated and an updated program was installed - since then no problems whatsoever.

The car does about 3.2m/kw in winter and about 3.8m/kw in summer. Mostly home charging but have seen 136kw/hr charging speed when on the move so no problems doing long journeys. Everything works on the car so second hand versions should not have any problems

 

[siteguru]

You shouldn't have needed to pay for the ACC update ... I didn't.

 

[MelanieMoxon]

What else do you disable besides LKA?

I turn the EBA down to the minimum as I have a couple of instances of it bringing the car to a halt via an emergency stop when it has gotten confused.

You shouldn't have needed to pay for the ACC update ... I didn't.

I think its part of a list of recalls on the cars software so it certainly should be at no cost.

 

[aardvark5]

I turn the EBA down to the minimum as I have a couple of instances of it bringing the car to a halt via an emergency stop when it has gotten confused.

That did happen to my wife once but luckily nothing behind her.

 

[MelanieMoxon]

That did happen to my wife once but luckily nothing behind her.

Same, well the second time I did get a honk from a following van.

 

[johncolescarr]

My takeaway from all the comments is that in general the niggles experienced are not deserving of the “worst reliability score” moniker. Most motoring media reviews are still recommending the car, albeit they all point to the reliability ratings.

I’m still to test drive and also will have the Tesla model 3 on the list, but it will have to be a damn sight better than the MG4 to warrant the premium

 

[LenEV2016]

My takeaway from all the comments is that in general the niggles experienced are not deserving of the “worst reliability score” moniker. Most motoring media reviews are still recommending the car, albeit they all point to the reliability ratings.

I’m still to test drive and also will have the Tesla model 3 on the list, but it will have to be a damn sight better than the MG4 to warrant the premium

There is every chance that you may not be that impressed by an older Tesla, pre 2021 revisions they were made in America and the quality was terrible, that improved when they would the UK spec production to China but even then they had some issues, a lot of which were only cured with the release of the Highland