MG vs GR! Chinese brand's new all-electric hot hatch would target the go-fast Toyota Corolla and Hyundai i30 N!

MG's new and all-electric Toyota Corolla rival will include a hot hatch variant if the brand in Australia gets its way, with the Chinese car maker already putting the finishing touches on a bespoke EV small car that will break cover next year.

Better still, a go-fast variant promises to hark back to the MG's of old, which means affordable performance, according MG Australia's Marketing and Product chief, Danny Lenartic.

In other words, you can expect it to be affordable.

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An EV hot hatch would form the halo in the brand's new electric small car range, which is expected to be a bespoke build entirely seperate from the existing MG3.

"It's 2022 or 2023, there might be a few model variants," Mr Lenartic says.

"Something more affordable, and then something a bit more exciting, if I have it my way."

Asked directly if that meant MG was working on an EV hot hatch, Mr Lenartic replied: "Potentially - and why not? It just comes down to battery (size) and price.

"EV is the new frontier. You've got a GT-R, you're got an R-SPEC, and we're the same. The battery process will be the same, it will come down to torque and kilowatts.

"MG has always understood where it comes from. My take on this is that the MG brand always brought affordable sports cars to the public. Now we want to bring affordable electric cars to the public - with similar characteristics and dynamics."

The new follows similar comments from MG Aus and NZ CEO, Peter Ciao, who told CarsGuide the all-EV hatchback would likely be Australia's cheapest EV, with a starting price that begins in the $30k bracket.

"There will be a hatchback electric vehicle," he said. "It will be below $40,000 .It will be 2022 or 2023, and it will be Corolla-sized. It will just be EV."

But today's comments confirm that, unlike MG's existing EV models - include the ZS EV - the new small car will arrive as part of a broader EV range covering more price points, and performance levels.