Reliability worry

[Big Ears]

My problem is so many people seem to be having quite odd different issues any or all of which could happen to our car which doesn't breed much confidence in the MG brand its dealers and service centres.

And this is only the forum members who have spoken up, there are thousands more cars out there we know nothing about.

 

[L33th4ll]

After the test drive I really like the car the tech inside the car is great

 

[Big Ears]

After the test drive I really like the car the tech inside the car is great

So did we, but ask lots of questions before buying about the software how it actually works and how bits of it can be turned off etc, don't let them pull the wool over your eyes like ours did.

 

[Rolfe]

My problem is so many people seem to be having quite odd different issues any or all of which could happen to our car which doesn't breed much confidence in the MG brand its dealers and service centres.

And this is only the forum members who have spoken up, there are thousands more cars out there we know nothing about.

Many people only join a forum like this because they have an issue they need help or advice with. It's not a representative sample. Any big purchase carries some degree of risk, and if you never do anything until you're 100% certain you won't do very much at all. The MG4 is still very competitively priced. Of course one could go off and buy a VW or a BYD or some other marque at a much higher price - and still run into problems.

The 78% satisfaction rate in the forum poll isn't that far out of line with what you'd find in other brands, in my opinion. Lots of people coming on here and saying that they love their cars to bits and haven't had any significant issues in a year and more of ownership. As for the paint, when the member with that issue started his thread asking for others' experience, I went out and looked very closely at mine, which had a significantly higher mileage than his car, and found absolutely no blemish at all apart from a tiny scrape on the front of the bonnet that was obviously self-inflicted and hadn't gone beyond the primer.

If @L33th4ll wants to know more about the software he'd do better to ask members here, who probably know more about it than some random guy selling cars in a dealership. There's a whole guide to the Trophy that someone has written to help new owners. The absence of driver profiles meaning that you have to get used to setting every parameter the way you want it every time you get into the car is the main issue. I agree, if that's something that bothers you a lot, don't buy this car. But I think @L33th4ll already knows that.

This is a car that nearly 80% of owners here, in a forum that tends to attract people who have run into problems, are happy with. Owners are lining up to declare how pleased they are with their cars after over a year driving them. Sure, do your due diligence, but don't be unreasonably put off because of a few people that have had isolated issues, or indeed problems from the past that have mostly been solved by now.

 

[tsedge]

Well, I didn't join because I had a problem, I joined because I'd ordered the car and I was enthusiastic about it.

I still love it, I am still enthusiastic about it, but I am not going to pretend that I haven't had a bunch of problems and I am not going to hide them to try to persuade people to buy an MG4 either.

Most of the problems I have had have not been early issues that were long since fixed and I am still getting new problems as the car ages.

People need to be aware of things like this if they are considering a purchase and I think it is most useful for people to share their experiences good and bad rather than try to persuade people one way or another.

The statement that most people are happy and don't speak up is true, but that doesn't invalidate the problems that some people get and it doesn't mean the chances of getting problems are zero either.

The service experience is mostly bad with MG, judging by comments and past surveys and that is worth knowing, as well as the limitations in the warranty.

 

[siteguru]

I joined to do research about the car before deciding to get a test drive. Obviously there weren't many candidates to provide first-hand detail back then (I was one of the early adopters) but enough of them that I was able to make an informed decision, plus we had already developed a checklist by then for common issues to look out for. It didn't put me off.

 

[Rolfe]

That's all absolutely true. I didn't join because I had a problem either, I joined because I was scheduled to pick my car up in three days and thought I'd better get an education. I admit I also felt what @L33th4ll has been feeling. OMG oil leak! Undertray! Locking-in issue! Dealers being absolute morons! LKA! And so on.

But at that time the car was in a class of its own as regards bang for your buck. It was literally the only EV available that was within my budget, by £10,000, and on the face of it, it was exactly what I wanted. And the reviewers were pretty positive. And it drove like a dream on my test drive. I took a deep breath and decided I was sticking to my decision. What other choice did I have, really? And people like @siteguru reassured me.

I thought there were three possible outcomes. The car could be an absolute turkey and I'd have to get rid of it and swallow the loss. (Though goodness knows what I'd have changed it for. A second-hand ICE?) Or I might really like it and decide to keep it till it rusts under me. Or the development of new EVs might produce something so spectacularly desirable that I'd want to trade it in for that reason, again swallowing a loss.

Well, the first one is a boat that has long since sailed. I'm currently on the second scenario, and a very happy bunny except that I never want to see my dealership again. Who knows, about the third one? All sorts of wonders promised by the clairvoyant gurus. But whatever spiffy new tech appears, it seems to me that I have a good car that I'm happy with and have no reason to want to change.

I'm glad I didn't listen to that little inner voice when I first joined the forum. I would say, however, that the bulk of the software issues seem to be related to the Trophy - probably inevitably given all the extra features it has - and the SE's annoying little issues were at least constant and predictable (and nearly all fixed with R33). So someone considering a Trophy who is concerned about software issues needs to read the Trophy threads on that.

But as regards paintwork and seats? Most people are not reporting paintwork issues and the one or two who are seem to have received substandard cars in that respect. And there are some really nice seat covers on AliExpress.

 

[Lord Randall]

Car is great, I love it, my wife loves it too. Feels and drive like an european hatch.
I like it's handling more then an A3 phev, a Leon FR and a GLA I drove over the last year as company cars. And the interior is close enought to VW group's cars.
Most of the issues are tied to software, they will be solved at some point.
I mean R59 update (or the new software on the MY24) has most of those sorted and a load of quality of life improvement.
MG is looking at owners feedbacks and reacting. That's alone is huge plus.

I also see MG trying to switch to a more premium status, servicing will get better over time too for this reason alone.

 

[decrep]

That's all absolutely true. I didn't join because I had a problem either, I joined because I was scheduled to pick my car up in three days and thought I'd better

95% of what you say on this response applies to me as well, except I joined a few days after picking it up, and so far I don't want to ditch my dealer, the next closest one is over 100km away

 

[Rolfe]

Ouch. I have one 35 miles away. There are others, but that one looks promising. I'm going to have to let my current dealer fix my charging port lights first though.

 

[FrancisM]

I pick my MG4 SE LR up this Friday. Just hoping it's not a Friday car! Watched the videos and had a test drive before ordering. I'd heard about the LKA issues and having to reselect options with each drive. Disappointing they are not fixed after 2 years but I can live with them. Did have 2nd thoughts about spending so much on a Chinese made car (ethical questions) but the Dacia Spring is made in China and the batteries of the Citroen eC3 are made in China. Reliability doubts mitigated by buying from local dealer (4 miles away) who has been in business for a very long time, and the 7 year warranty.

I used an inflation calculator to compare the price of the MG4 with a Fiat Punto I bought in 2002 and a Skoda Roomster in 2012. The MG4 is more expensive than the Skoda by about 4 years worth of petrol. The Skoda has been absolutely brilliant. Was only offered £1800 as a part-ex so we are keeping it for now because the Mrs is learning to drive and we were both nervous of her getting behind the wheel of the 200 bhp MG.

 

[pollenface]

What would everyone say knowing how their car has been?

40,000kms and nothing (22 MG ZS EV). The biggest problem is keeping it clean because it gets driven 5x as much as our diesel car

 

[decrep]

40,000kms and nothing (22 MG ZS EV). The biggest problem is keeping it clean because it gets driven 5x as much as our diesel car

Is that why you have a bee as your avatar?
I've been collecting a few lately

 

[Big Ears]

Well, I didn't join because I had a problem, I joined because I'd ordered the car and I was enthusiastic about it.

I still love it, I am still enthusiastic about it, but I am not going to pretend that I haven't had a bunch of problems and I am not going to hide them to try to persuade people to buy an MG4 either.

Most of the problems I have had have not been early issues that were long since fixed and I am still getting new problems as the car ages.

People need to be aware of things like this if they are considering a purchase and I think it is most useful for people to share their experiences good and bad rather than try to persuade people one way or another.

The statement that most people are happy and don't speak up is true, but that doesn't invalidate the problems that some people get and it doesn't mean the chances of getting problems are zero either.

The service experience is mostly bad with MG, judging by comments and past surveys and that is worth knowing, as well as the limitations in the warranty.

Just a couple of points as your post may be a bit mis leading.

I didn't say anyone joined due to a problem but it's safe to assume some may have.

Who made the statement "that most people are happy and don't speak up"? if they don't speak up we don't know if they are happy or not.

 

[tsedge]

Just a couple of points as your post may be a bit mis leading.

I didn't say anyone joined due to a problem but it's safe to assume some may have.

Who made the statement "that most people are happy and don't speak up"? if they don't speak up we don't know if they are happy or not.

I wasn't actually replying to you. So whatever you said or didn't say wasn't relevant to what I said.

It is a generally acknowledged fact that most people on forums are readers, not contributors (this has been studied as a general phenomenon) and past surveys have indicated 80%+ high satisfaction from members here with their MG4. That is what people are referring to.

 

[Big Ears]

I wasn't actually replying to you. So whatever you said or didn't say wasn't relevant to what I said.

It is a generally acknowledged fact that most people on forums are readers, not contributors (this has been studied as a general phenomenon) and past surveys have indicated 80%+ high satisfaction from members here with their MG4. That is what people are referring to.

I see, thanks

 

[Buster72]

Hello all

Currently waiting on delivery of lease car.

Mg4 trophy my23. The more I read on this car the more I’m thinking of cancelling lease.

From paint issues ripping seats and faults this car looks more and more of a bad choice

What would everyone say knowing how their car has been?

I have had my SE SR now for not far short of 2 years. And so far, the car has been rock solid reliable.
And more importantly, it is a pleasure to own and drive. So I would not worry at all about getting one. You will love it.

 

[Caramaddy]

To be fair, if you have a bad experience with any make of car you avoid such a purchase in the future.
We can learn from others but firsthand experience is the best way to come to a judgement.
I try hard to conduct due diligence before buying any car. I have bought, what I would consider lemons on more than a couple of occasions.
The choice of buying a MG was really left field for me and not without some trepidation. Early days yet with my nearly 3 year old MG5 but I am still blown away.

Time will tell but so far I have been very pleasantly surprised by this car.

 

[Big Ears]

I can't speak to any other MG or any of the older versions, maybe they were good cars pre the software we're all saddled with now, I must assume so, I have looked on other marque forums and the nanny software doesn't seem to be the main issues as with the 2024 new models, just the usual grumbles.

The car (MG3 Trophy +) itself seems to be okay, I'd not say it is good as the gearbox appears to struggle knowing what gear ratio it needs to run, if you floor it the engine and EV motor seem to not be working together smoothly so it's very jerky, the regen seems to work well, and laid up battery life seems fine so far (3 weeks) I have no idea what the quiescent loads are when it's stood for weeks with no use though.

I keep reading about software updates, not seen one for the MG3 Trophy + yet, is there one out?

 

[L33th4ll]

Thanks to all for positive info.

My job is in the motor trade so I am very aware of car issues.

I am a product manager for turbos and engine components so it says a lot why I’m getting an EV.

People slate Chinese parts but the main amount of car parts sold today are Chinese even the top brands. The main worry for the MG is software rather than hardware for most.