Happy Zappy
Standard Member
I thought I would pen a few lines after a year living with the MG ZS EV.
Although I’ve had a few new company cars when I was working, this has been the first new car I’ve bought personally. Having now retired, most of our journeys are local, so an EV seemed to make sense. My previous long term car was a Porsche Boxster, which I had to sell because of problems getting in & out of it due to old age and while looking for my next long term car had a Citroen DS3 for a few months.
In the last 12 months I have driven 4070 miles, like everyone this is much reduced due to the effects of lockdown. So, what have I found.
I got used to logging all my fuel usage to make expenses claims, so have continued this in retirement. My Porsche was costing me 19p / mile in fuel, the Citroen 11p / mile. The MG has cost me just 3.8p / mile. So over 4000 miles I have saved some £600 compared to the Porsche. I've averaged 3.52 miles per Kwh, which I'm reasonably happy with, however, I've never got anywhere near the 4 miles per Kwh some claim, even in Eco mode.
Due to the relatively low mileage I do and the lack of timed charging on the MG, I have not moved to a dedicated EV tariff for my power, but stuck with EDF. I did look around but couldn't improve on the total package for both electricity & gas for the whole year.
I didn't appreciate the bong-a-thon going on inside the car to start with, so had the Comfort 2 Upgrade done in August. Despite returning to my selling dealer, they still charged for doing this, although they did reduce the bill by 50% to "just" £52.80. However, I have to say this totally changed the driving experience and was glad I had it done. Since having it done I've had more opportunities to try MG Pilot and must say I think it works well. The only down side is I find it "hunts" a bit trying to hold the lanes on a motorway. I've never had a car with Adaptive Cruise Control before and enjoy the benefits. I do think it maintains too much distance sometimes to the car in front and always switch it to the nearest option. Of course the lack of Regen in ACC is a bit of a let down.
The few options I've added have all been courtesy of Ali Express (except for the NextBase dash cam). All the sills have had scuff plates added and the interior, boot & reversing lights have been upgraded to LED. I've just received some LED headlights which will be fitted soon. I am aware of the potential MOT issues and will address them in 2 years time.
What do I wish it had? I don't think I appreciated how useful climate control was until I was without it. It's very complicated twiddling with temp, fan, air outlet while trying to see the effects on the screen in just a couple of seconds!!! I also wish it had rear passenger lights and an auto dimming rear view mirror. Also more info on State of Charge of the battery would be useful (could the Battery button not be re-purposed, MG?)
The car has just had it's first annual service for which I was charged £117.60. At the same time they did updates SA015/016/017. Not totally sure what they are, but I think they mentioned about the door wiring harness and battery management. I do know that now it will charge on AC without being locked (could have done with that when I plugged in at Tesco, walked off & forgot to lock the car!!!)
I know there have been comments from others about the suspension, which I find to be fine for the type of vehicle. Also about the auto headlights, which again I find to work perfectly, I have never knowingly noticed us dazzling oncoming cars.
Overall, a great car and excellent value for money. It's incredibly easy to drive and all passengers love the panoramic glass roof. I know we would all want a bigger battery / longer range / on-line app, but would I buy it again? Yes.
David
Although I’ve had a few new company cars when I was working, this has been the first new car I’ve bought personally. Having now retired, most of our journeys are local, so an EV seemed to make sense. My previous long term car was a Porsche Boxster, which I had to sell because of problems getting in & out of it due to old age and while looking for my next long term car had a Citroen DS3 for a few months.
In the last 12 months I have driven 4070 miles, like everyone this is much reduced due to the effects of lockdown. So, what have I found.
I got used to logging all my fuel usage to make expenses claims, so have continued this in retirement. My Porsche was costing me 19p / mile in fuel, the Citroen 11p / mile. The MG has cost me just 3.8p / mile. So over 4000 miles I have saved some £600 compared to the Porsche. I've averaged 3.52 miles per Kwh, which I'm reasonably happy with, however, I've never got anywhere near the 4 miles per Kwh some claim, even in Eco mode.
Due to the relatively low mileage I do and the lack of timed charging on the MG, I have not moved to a dedicated EV tariff for my power, but stuck with EDF. I did look around but couldn't improve on the total package for both electricity & gas for the whole year.
I didn't appreciate the bong-a-thon going on inside the car to start with, so had the Comfort 2 Upgrade done in August. Despite returning to my selling dealer, they still charged for doing this, although they did reduce the bill by 50% to "just" £52.80. However, I have to say this totally changed the driving experience and was glad I had it done. Since having it done I've had more opportunities to try MG Pilot and must say I think it works well. The only down side is I find it "hunts" a bit trying to hold the lanes on a motorway. I've never had a car with Adaptive Cruise Control before and enjoy the benefits. I do think it maintains too much distance sometimes to the car in front and always switch it to the nearest option. Of course the lack of Regen in ACC is a bit of a let down.
The few options I've added have all been courtesy of Ali Express (except for the NextBase dash cam). All the sills have had scuff plates added and the interior, boot & reversing lights have been upgraded to LED. I've just received some LED headlights which will be fitted soon. I am aware of the potential MOT issues and will address them in 2 years time.
What do I wish it had? I don't think I appreciated how useful climate control was until I was without it. It's very complicated twiddling with temp, fan, air outlet while trying to see the effects on the screen in just a couple of seconds!!! I also wish it had rear passenger lights and an auto dimming rear view mirror. Also more info on State of Charge of the battery would be useful (could the Battery button not be re-purposed, MG?)
The car has just had it's first annual service for which I was charged £117.60. At the same time they did updates SA015/016/017. Not totally sure what they are, but I think they mentioned about the door wiring harness and battery management. I do know that now it will charge on AC without being locked (could have done with that when I plugged in at Tesco, walked off & forgot to lock the car!!!)
I know there have been comments from others about the suspension, which I find to be fine for the type of vehicle. Also about the auto headlights, which again I find to work perfectly, I have never knowingly noticed us dazzling oncoming cars.
Overall, a great car and excellent value for money. It's incredibly easy to drive and all passengers love the panoramic glass roof. I know we would all want a bigger battery / longer range / on-line app, but would I buy it again? Yes.
David
