My views on the facelift Trophy SR after a month of ownership and after 12 months with a 1st gen Exclusive.
Pros
- Lighter steering around town (eco) and generally a more refined, quieter drive.
- Infotainment system is much improved - fast, responsive, although still has its quirks! (see below)
- LED headlights are a big improvement over the previous model, literally night and day!
- iSmart app has basic functions working, but some don't work at all such as Travel and Touchpoint.
Cons
- KERS is really a step backwards from the 1st gen - only goes to -20% at Level 3, even though the gauge goes down to -25% and it is noticeably less strong. Also, it is limited in each mode - Level 1 won't go any higher than -6% even if you are pressing on the brake as well - the 1st gen would increase KERS response with braking no matter which mode it was set to. When fully charged there is zero KERS whereas the 1st gen used to simulate KERS when the battery was full. This is really noticeable and always catches me out! And still no KERS in MG Pilot...
- The all round cameras are useful but the quality is very grainy and affected by bright light and in the dark.
- Some features in the infotainment system, such as speed assist, are inconveniently buried deep in the menus while there is a quick shortcuts menu from the Homescreen currently with very little on it and not able to personalise either, I used to be able to assign the * button on the steering wheel to quickly get to the 'driving assists' menu but that also isn't an option any more.
Overall, really enjoying the facelift MG ZS EV and hoping some of the quirks can be fixed by MG in future software updates as was the case with the 1st gen.
Yeah - That is a very good appraisal / comparison between both ZS EV models.
We had the Gen1 version for just over two years and almost 20,000 miles.
I found myself nodding my head along in agreement, as I read through your observations.
Our previous ZS EV had the BMS update and I found that after this update, the Regen was stronger even when the battery was fully charged.
It was the very first thing I noticed when we had the car back.
This could be because the BMS update increased the size of the buffer, at the head of the HV battery.
You right, the Regen is slightly muted on the facelift, in comparison to the Gen1 model.
We have had the LR version ( which I love ) for about 2 months and covered about 3,000 miles.
I find that charging to 80% fits our requirements brilliantly. It means we are charging less ( of course ) and it offers more range at 80% than the original model did at 100%.
We consistently see a predicted range of 211 - 212 miles at 80% SOC.
This is with both trip counters reset.
Over this time, I always use normal mode and max Regen level 3.
I did the very same on the Gen1 model.
Driving on a good cross section of different types of roads, that includes motorway and dual carriageways, plus throw in some town driving for good measure, I find the GOM does a pretty good job of aligning the predicted range, to the achieved miles covered.
It’s pretty much on a one for one basis really.
Efficiency is around the 4.2 to 4.5 ( ish ) mark.
All this said and for all this, I do agree that the facelift model is very much improved proposal over the original model.
Everybody has things that will be more or less important to that individual on the facelift model.
All of the improvements are very welcome and has definitely raised the bar.
But for me, the most attractive thing of the upgrade, is the larger battery !.
Question
to myself :- Would / could I have justified the cost of upgrading to the face lift, from the original ZS EV - if it had close to the original range of the first model ??.
Easy answer - NO !.
The improvements are great, but range and future requirements, plus future battery degradation, that will come with age, is now high in my list of priorities.
I learnt this lesson on the original model.
When the rumours of the face lift started, I lot of people ( including myself ) where hoping that MG increased the battery size up to 64+ Kwh’s in order to match the e.Nero and the Kona.
These where the ZS EV’s closest rivals.
When they announced the LR at 71+ Kwh’s I was ready to commit to an order straight away !.
Speaking only for myself here, I sincerely think that getting the pack size is a major factor in regards to anybody who is looking to keep their cars for a few years.
If you purchase an EV and it just about fits your usage pattern NOW.
Then after a few years and number of miles covered, even if you usage remains the same.
You are going to bed yourself stopping more often to charge in years to come.
The range on the original model, did not stop us going where we wanted to go.
But the depletion in actual range was noticeable on longer drives ver time.
The LR just offers us a bigger range buffer and protection from the degradation that will happen over time.
I would strongly advise anybody to calculate some battery degradation into there plans, when choosing an EV - IF they intend to keep the car for a few years or more.
Great review
@starmonkeylg .
