I currently own a Suzuki Vitara mild hybrid 1.4 litre turbo petrol, so this is what my comparisons are based on with the MG4. I enjoy driving the Suzuki and have had no issues with it whatsoever. However, the pricing of the MG4 has made it possible for me to consider buying my first ever electric vehicle. It was this review by Jonny Smith on his Late Break Show YouTube channel which piqued my interest, led me to this forum and the resultant test drive I booked today:
Much appreciation to all the forum members old and new who answered my questions and gave me much to ponder. Needless to say I had 101 questions to ask my dealer and to be fair he answered them all honestly and is aware of the issues that are discussed here. For those interested I booked the test drive at
MG Perth Just ask for Graham and he’ll be happy to help!
After a short introduction to the car, it’s handling, regenerative breaking and a bit about the controls I was given the key and a route explained to me which took in a bit of city driving, small and large 3 lane roundabouts, dual carriageway, an A road and a few B roads with some villages. I was out for about forty minutes.
Upon opening the door, my immediate impression was the build quality and solidness of the door compared to my Vitara. Sitting down I adjusted the seat and felt the seats to be as comfy, and even better hugging than my present car. Good visibility out the front and hardly any bonnet to see. The rear view wasn’t quite as open as the Suzuki’s though and I will miss that car’s reversing camera. It was weird not having to turn a key and just twisting the dial into drive mode. The steering felt light and responsive and when I did a three point turn, I was thinking I wouldn’t have negotiated the turn as easily in my Vitara. The turning cycle felt shorter to me.
The car gripped the road reassuringly at all times. It was raining with low cloud, but visibility was fine. Sorry, but I was having too much fun to check on the efficiency of the battery.
I did note that I used 2% of the charge over the course of the test drive. There were no rattles or vibrations and only this strange, tinny sound which I found out was a song on the radio the previous driver had left on at a very low volume. I turned that off and enjoyed the peace even at Motorway speeds.
I must say, I was surprised by the acceleration compared with the Vitara when I merged with the dual carriageway. You catch up very quickly with any cars in front, so I’m going to have to be more careful in allowing more space when overtaking. The Vitara goes from 0 to 60 in just over 8 seconds, but the MG4 felt much faster than that acceleration or maybe I just can’t change gears fast enough.
I toggled the heating, demister and temperature controls on the infotainment screen and found it responsive and easy to use. Much better than the small touch screen on my Suzuki.
So, my closing thoughts are, the MG4 will be a step up for me in terms of materials and build quality, handling, responsiveness, acceleration and just fun to driveness! I’ll just have to get over reaching for the non-existent gear stick and for my left foot having nothing much to do.
As it was raining, I wasn’t (didn’t want to get all wet and muddy) able to look under the demonstrator, but it has done over a thousand miles and no oil leak seen. Neither on their Trophy demonstrator. The few cars which have been sold also have not reported this issue, but of course it’s still early days for some drivers, but fingers crossed
this doesn’t crop up.
I did take photos of the SE short range in the show room.
Can’t wait to take ownership!
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