Rust Issues

Has anyone had any rust issues on the MG ranges. There are reports of rust issues on Chinese BYD vehicles in Australia after just a few months from purchase.

I take it that you're referring to the Electric Viking vid ? BYD vehicles involved in crashes were showing rusting on exposed joints after only 6 months on the road.
Gotta say, the chinese manufacturers do seem to be several decades behind when it comes to rust prevention in their designs.
If you have an MG4 I suggest that you take the plastic cover off that's under the bonnet, the salt laden crap that covers everything has to be seen to be believed.
Also leaves, stones and permanent pools of water in the sections of the subframe where the track control arms mount 😳
A stone chip on the roof on mine turned rusty within days, no zinc there, paint seems really fragile in general.
She's going to need TLC to prevent her from looking like a 20yr old trawler before the first MOT with the winters up here 😳
 
Yes that’s right having seen the Electric Viking vid I was concerned there may be issues with other Chinese manufactures. I have an MG4 Trophy on order and your comments concern me even more. Have I made the wrong decision?
 
I take it that you're referring to the Electric Viking vid ? BYD vehicles involved in crashes were showing rusting on exposed joints after only 6 months on the road.
Gotta say, the chinese manufacturers do seem to be several decades behind when it comes to rust prevention in their designs.
If you have an MG4 I suggest that you take the plastic cover off that's under the bonnet, the salt laden crap that covers everything has to be seen to be believed.
Also leaves, stones and permanent pools of water in the sections of the subframe where the track control arms mount 😳
A stone chip on the roof on mine turned rusty within days, no zinc there, paint seems really fragile in general.
She's going to need TLC to prevent her from looking like a 20yr old trawler before the first MOT with the winters up here 😳
Macadoodle, thanks, this is helpful to know (if unwelcome news), what would you recommend people do to improve corrosion protection on their cars?

Yes that’s right having seen the Electric Viking vid I was concerned there may be issues with other Chinese manufactures. I have an MG4 Trophy on order and your comments concern me even more. Have I made the wrong decision?
Nobody can answer that for you.

How long are you intending to keep the car? (beyond the corrosion warranty?).
What's your local climate like?
Will you be keeping it garaged or outside?
 
I've seen this stuff used by some people who really try to look after their cars. This video gives an example of it in use. With the under tray of the MG4 taken off, it should be fairly easy to access the parts that are more vulnerable to rusting

EDIT: There's also Atom Mac by Bilt Hamber Atom-Mac - Bilt Hamber
 
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Has anyone had any rust issues on the MG ranges. There are reports of rust issues on Chinese BYD vehicles in Australia after just a few months from purchase.
I'm not sure what relevance and reports of rust on BYD in Australia has got to do with MG4? Please do enlighten me?

Should Volvo and Polstar and Tesla Model 3 also be concerned since Geely a Chinese company owns the first of these and UK Tesla Model 3s are Chinese-built too? If it is the country of origin you're concerned about what about iPhones and iPad has anyone checked them for rust?
 
Even with my personal take on MG quality control that's a massive leap just to lump all Chinese manufacturers in together
The Chinese will build you almost anything at the price point and quality you're willing to pay for.
If the big legacy manufacturers stipulate a certain quality and finish for cars produced there, they (China) are more than capable of producing that.
I believe Chinese model 3's are far better built than the American ones also.

If we're talking about rust prevention measures specifically though, I can say I've been a little disappointed with how scant they are on the 4.
The overlapped joints on the subframes are rusting already, stonechip marks are doing the same, there's numerous water and mud traps which I just know will end with serious corrosion if not cleaned out after a winter up here.
The sills have a rubberised coating on the inner portion but not much more than primer on the outer section hidden by the plastic trim, a rust fest in waiting if ever I saw one.

MG has form on this, videos I've seen on the ZS did not look encouraging, really quite heavy rusting underneath cars less than 2 years old.

Keen pricing always tends to have a downside I'm afraid.

Macadoodle, thanks, this is helpful to know (if unwelcome news), what would you recommend people do to improve corrosion protection on their cars ?

The underbonnet area is the worst I think, the totally open inner wings allow the tyres to throw everything inwards. Sand, rocks, random bits of vegetation. I swear it's like a beach in there now, half expect to see a crab scuttle by.
Come the spring I'm going to clean it all out best I can and douse all of the subframe and the reverse side of the wings in waxoyl or similar. That's about all you can do as I can't see how you would prevent it getting in there.
The battery and undertrays ( and oil leak ) protect the mid and rear section reasonably well, but the outer sills beneath the plastic covers need something IMO.
No idea if the bonnet, doors etc are galvanised as you would expect on any car these days, roof certainly doesn't appear to be, ignore chips there at your peril :confused:
 
I'm not sure what relevance and reports of rust on BYD in Australia has got to do with MG4? Please do enlighten me?

Should Volvo and Polstar and Tesla Model 3 also be concerned since Geely a Chinese company owns the first of these and UK Tesla Model 3s are Chinese-built too? If it is the country of origin you're concerned about what about iPhones and iPad has anyone checked them for rust?
Volvo, Sweden bought back the rights to Volvo from Geely back in 2021 but their cars are still made in China and Sweden and other countries so perhaps it does not matter where they are made as they are all supposed to follow the same quality control.
I have also seen videos of rust issues with BYD Atto 3's but they mainly refer to a vehicle involved in a crash being left out in the elements for some time.
In any case MG is a different Company so who knows? I suppose the fear is that they are built to a certain price but surely the warranty would cover rust issues.
You should not need to pull the thing apart and apply rust protection and I have not heard of this being done with other brands these days.
 
The underbonnet area is the worst I think, the totally open inner wings allow the tyres to throw everything inwards. Sand, rocks, random bits of vegetation. I swear it's like a beach in there now, half expect to see a crab scuttle by.
Come the spring I'm going to clean it all out best I can and douse all of the subframe and the reverse side of the wings in waxoyl or similar. That's about all you can do as I can't see how you would prevent it getting in there.
The battery and undertrays ( and oil leak ) protect the mid and rear section reasonably well, but the outer sills beneath the plastic covers need something IMO.
No idea if the bonnet, doors etc are galvanised as you would expect on any car these days, roof certainly doesn't appear to be, ignore chips there at your peril :confused:
This does not sound great for anyone looking to keep their 4 for a prolonged period of time.
 
Volvo, Sweden bought back the rights to Volvo from Geely back in 2021 but their cars are still made in China and Sweden and other countries so perhaps it does not matter where they are made as they are all supposed to follow the same quality control.
I have also seen videos of rust issues with BYD Atto 3's but they mainly refer to a vehicle involved in a crash being left out in the elements for some time.
In any case MG is a different Company so who knows? I suppose the fear is that they are built to a certain price but surely the warranty would cover rust issues.
You should not need to pull the thing apart and apply rust protection and I have not heard of this being done with other brands these days.
Remember the VW Group make a very significant number of sales and profits from their Chinese-built cars and those cars are built by the same company Shanghai Motor Corporation Limited (SAIC) which owns the MG Brand and also builds MG cars. SAIC, which is owned by the Shanghai municipal government, in addition to the SAIC and MG brands, operates two major passenger car joint ventures: Shanghai Volkswagen (SVW) and Shanghai GM.

SAIC Motor's subordinate companies includes: SAIC Passenger Vehicle Branch, SAIC Maxus, IM MOTORS, Rising Auto, SAIC Volkswagen, SAIC General Motors, SAIC-GM-Wuling, NAVECO, SAIC-IVECO Hongyan and Sunwin.
 
Macadoodle has eyes and hands on the MG4. In my view he is merely pointing out areas he has concerns about and that information could be helpful for other owners whether they choose to ignore it or otherwise. I for one find it useful and worth noting. Not interested in other cars or manufacturers or build location just the MG4. Thanks Macadoodle for the info
 

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