2023 MG 3, MG ZS to live on: 'Value' motoring is going nowhere according to Chinese-backed brand

Despite a torrent of new MG models arriving in the next year, including the combustion MG5 sedan and MG4 electric car, the brand is sticking by its historically popular affordable duo of the MG3 hatch and ZS small SUV for the foreseeable future.

Speaking to CarsGuide at the launch of the new MG ZS EV, now Australia’s most affordable electric vehicle, MG’s representatives explained a rollout of a new brand identity followed by new model activity won’t come at the cost of what the brand calls its value-oriented models.

“We’re still interested in making sure we provide the best value across every segment. The public are still responding well to these cars, and we don’t have a phase-out date,” said the brand’s director of sales and marketing, Giles Belcher. “Value will remain at the core of our offering - even though this means different things to different people”

The brand said the MG3 hatchback - one of Australia’s most affordable new cars - would not be replaced by the incoming MG5 sedan, while the ZS SUV will continue to be sold alongside its ZST successor - even though the brand said it originally had plans to phase out the original ZS roughly a year out from the ZST’s arrival.

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It’s not hard to see why MG would hold on to some of its older catalogue, as it fills the needs of some entry-level customers at a price-point which mainstream brands from Japan and Korea have seemingly abandoned.

The ZS SUV commands 17 per cent of the congested small SUV marketplace, while the MG3 hatch now makes up 36 per cent of the light hatch space.

The brand's representatives indicated that its Chinese factories had the flexibility to offer both its new and more technically advanced vehicles alongside its older catalogue.

This has become a major advantage over some of its rivals which are forced to switch production to newer and more expensive models.

MG has had a surge in sales off the back of its relatively affordable, and comparatively available line-up over the last few years, now occupying seventh place of all car brands in Australia, ahead of Subaru and Suzuki, but behind Ford.

The MG5 sedan, which the brand is hoping will arrive in Australia in the first half of next year, looks to bring the same value-focused offering to the Corolla-sized space, plugging a major hole in MG’s current line-up.

The MG5 sedan could be another price-leader for MG.

It's powered by a 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine, in either turbocharged (127kW/275Nm) or non-turbocharged (88kW/150Nm) forms, paired to a dual-clutch or continuously variable automatic transmission respectively.

Costing from the equivalent of roughly A$20,000 for the turbocharged version overseas, the MG5 could also become a cost-leader in its segment.

Meanwhile the MG3 continues with the same core underpinnings it launched with overseas in 2011, having last been facelifted in 2018. It currently costs from $18,990 before on-road costs, making it the next most affordable automatic new car in Australia after the Kia Picanto S which costs from $17,590.

Air has been cleared for the MG3 and Picanto thanks to the departure of the Suzuki Baleno, which won’t be replaced by a new model next year.

Despite dated cabin and safety technology, the MG3 continues to sell well.

The brand would not say if the MG3 would ever be updated again, and it seems as though if a new generation arrives it will look completely different. MG hinted to CarsGuide in 2021 that the future of the small hatch might be electric.

Meanwhile the original ZS costs from $22,990 in base Excite automatic form, which counts its primary rivals as the Kia Stonic S auto ($23,490) and base Hyundai Venue auto ($23,760).

Evidently the ZS can simply be replaced by the ZST if production ever stops, although that model isn't currently as cost-leading.

Time will tell if the brand can strike gold twice with the also-Corolla-sized MG4 electric hatch, which seems to have the ingredients to be one of Australia’s most affordable electric cars when it arrives next year.

Expect to learn more about the MG5 and MG4 early in 2023.