MG4 in Australia

[ozzz]

Good work hopefully MG Dealers in Australia will keep some stock and not order as required I wonder if uk 4 owners are having same success in this fix?.

 

[wattmatters]

So if you have not checked for distortion of the undertray on your MG4, I'd encourage you to do so and then if there is any distortion call the MG dealer and book in for the fix.

This is mine. A little buckled, perhaps not as much as yours:

 

[siteguru]

I posted elsewhere that I've just sent my dealer an email about this fix. (Including a screen grab of the bracket and bolts).

 

[Corindikev]

That looks pretty good to me. I wouldn't worry about that. Strange how some look almost perfect and others are hugely distorted

 

[siteguru]

Mine is more like @wattmatters' though more towards the offside than nearside.

http://www.siteguru.co.uk/MG4/Undertray.jpg

 

[wattmatters]

That looks pretty good to me. I wouldn't worry about that. Strange how some look almost perfect and others are hugely distorted

It is weird.

 

[wattmatters]

I've had better luck with Apple CarPlay of late (touch wood). About a month back I bought another Apple cable, this time shortest one they had (50cm), and gave the phone's lightning port as good a clean out as I could. It seems to be more stable now. I still wait until the car is ready to drive before plugging in though.

 

[leonkernan]

I still wait until the car is ready to drive before plugging in though.

You have to. The Carplay software on the car only starts when it detects a phone plugged in and it doesn't check on startup if one is already there.

That's something they could fix so easily, so hopefully one day..

 

[wattmatters]

Took some snaps of the 12 V battery (64 Essence):

B45F(LN1) made by SAIC
20 hour rate capacity: 45 Ah
CCA: 450 A

 

[leonkernan]

Supercheap will get you one as a special order for about $360.

Century Stop Start Battery LN1 MF - 438CCA, 52Ah, 12V, 109113

Century Stop Start Battery LN1 MF - 438CCA, 52Ah, 12V, 109113

www.supercheapauto.com.au

I had to order a hybrid type one for the Prius C I had before the MG and that was a similar price. Luckily the original in that lasted 8 years and it was not driving during lockdowns that finished it off.

 

[Corindikev]

It's just a maintenance free lead acid battery so it could be replaced by any the same size with the appropriate AH rating.

A deep cycle battery is best as it is designed to be depleted at a more linear rate and then recharged from any point again including a very depleted state. A battery with a CCA (cold cranking amps) rating is designed for very fast delivery of power to a starter motor for an ICE engine but does not have the stamina of a deep cycle battery.

 

[wattmatters]

A deep cycle battery is best as it is designed to be depleted at a more linear rate and then recharged from any point again including a very depleted state. A battery with a CCA (cold cranking amps) rating is designed for very fast delivery of power to a starter motor for an ICE engine but does not have the stamina of a deep cycle battery.

Indeed.

I wonder, apart from cost/weight, why they chose those specs?

The CCA doesn't seem particularly relevant for an EV but try to find one with correct form factor that's recommended and they all seem to be regular small car starter batteries rather than one focussed on "deep" cycle capabilities and longevity (e.g. with thicker lead plates). The tray seems to have room to accommodate a much larger battery.

I just noticed elsewhere people talking of system gremlins (car not starting and cycling through every error code known the humankind). I had one of these happen last week. Needed to power off and back on again to clear the errors so I could start driving.

 

[tsedge]

Indeed.

I wonder, apart from cost/weight, why they chose those specs?

Cost I think was the main consideration.

The CCA doesn't seem particularly relevant for an EV but try to find one with correct form factor that's recommended and they all seem to be regular small car starter batteries rather than one focussed on "deep" cycle capabilities and longevity (e.g. with thicker lead plates). The tray seems to have room to accommodate a much larger battery.

Yes, a replacement will probably be larger but there is room.

I just noticed elsewhere people talking of system gremlins (car not starting and cycling through every error code known the humankind). I had one of these happen last week. Needed to power off and back on again to clear the errors so I could start driving.

Worth keeping an eye on, might be the signs of a bad connection somewhere.

 

[Dodgy]

It's just a maintenance free lead acid battery so it could be replaced by any the same size with the appropriate AH rating.

A deep cycle battery is best as it is designed to be depleted at a more linear rate and then recharged from any point again including a very depleted state. A battery with a CCA (cold cranking amps) rating is designed for very fast delivery of power to a starter motor for an ICE engine but does not have the stamina of a deep cycle battery.

We had a significant parasitic draw issue with our 12V battery (now apparently resolved) with voltage dropping to abt 3V on several occasions. It doesn’t hold charge very well & it’s likely we’ll end up replacing the battery sooner or later and seek advice abt changing to AGM.

Are AGM batteries considered to be Deep Cycle/Leisure batteries?

It seems the OEM battery is a basic flooded lead acid type although I haven’t removed it and given it a swirl to see whether it makes the liquid sloshing sound characteristic of non-AGM flooded batteries. The OEM battery’s a LN1 group size and I’ve found there’s at least seven LN1 AGM batteries available locally - which would simplify changeover.

It seems AGM batteries may require higher charge voltages than basic lead acid batteries and the uncertainty I have is whether the car charges its 12V battery at a voltage high enough to maintain good charge levels. From my driver’s screen it usually charges around 14.1 – 14.2V but have seen it range between 13.9 and 14.5V.

Any gurus know whether this charge range will maintain an AGM battery?

 

[Corindikev]

AGM just means absorbent glass mat. It is used as a separator between cells. With a standard lead acid battery the battery acid sloshes around so AGM are used in motorbikes and things that get tipped upside down easily. It just means the battery acid won't slosh around and AGM batteries are generally sealed. There are deep cycle AGM batteries and high capacity CCA rating AGM batteries. AGM batteries usually are pretty good quality and they are more expensive due to the cost of components.

The CCA rating is the number of amps the battery should be able to crank out at minus 17.8 degrees Celsius or zero degrees Fahrenheit for 30 seconds so is useful in cold climates and of course Winter.

It is a useless rating for an EV as there is nothing that needs 800amps or whatever the thing is rated at.

Batteries tend to be one of those things that you get what you pay for. A cheap one might have some impressive specs but will barely last out the warranty. A good expensive one will go the distance.

 

[wattmatters]

This was our Q4 2023 charge stats and a comparison fuel cost estimate with our other car, a MkV Golf TDI:

Most of our driving is on 100-110 km/h roads.

723.6 kWh for 4,223 km = 17.13 kWh/100km

Heading up to Robina this coming week for a day trip, will be testing out a few chargers en route.

EDIT - Made some corrections to the data after review. I was able to parse out the proportion of grid charging at home which occurred during peak, shoulder and off-peak tariff periods and adjust the costs of home charging accordingly. I also noted a missing DC fast charge cost (the kWh was correct), so that was corrected. In the end the estimated energy cost saving by not using our ICEV only changed by 3c/100km (less than 1%).
Below is the version of the original I posted:

 

[leonkernan]

So this is new..

 

[revel42]

Looking at the bulletin number AS-TEC-02112023-01, I'd say 2nd November 2023

Hi.

If it's not prying... where did you get that bulletin number?
Are you able to see the other bulletins that MG has published?

 

[Corindikev]

It was posted on the MG4 Australian Owners facebook group. I don't know how it was found. My dealer didn't know about it till I told them. My car is booked in for the fix on 31 January. It appears that the fix does not apply to UK owners so it's all a bit odd.

 

[clayton4115]

Hi all
I currently own a 28 kWh Ioniq for the past 4 years and its been a terrific car, however the small battery and range has me thinking of upgrading to the 77 kWh MG4. Question is has anyone tried charging their MG4 at the now open Tesla superchargers and had no issues with charging? Also those with the 77 battery model what range are you getting at 110km/h with a load of people and luggage and air con on? With my current car it states a range of 250kms in town but in the country with a full load and ac on I limit my drives to 150kms before I start looking for my next DC charger. I am hoping to comfortably drive 300 kms on the 77 model. This will get me to the Tesla DC fast chargers (opening up to other cars) without any trouble from my location in Brisbane and into NSW. I chose Tesla DC chargers as there are multiple bays and most likely I will not need to wait (like I had to for up to 1 hr and 20 mns) on my recent Brisbane - Melbourne - Brisbane trip that was a terrible stressful experience in my Ioniq 28.