MG MG4 Reviews

The MG4 XPower is outrageously powerful, blisteringly fast and looks as though it has just driven off a Fast and Furious set. And this all-electric powerhouse is priced about the same as a petrol-powered hot hatch. But while it has the go-fast stuff covered, what's it really like to live with everyday? We put the XPower to the long-term test to find out.

There's no doubting the MG4 XPower's impressive power and acceleration, but mystery still swirls around the cut-price performance EV. Is it a proper hot hatch? Or just a surprisingly potent city-friendly EV? Is it the best bang-for-bucks electric option in the market? Or rather a basic-feeling commuter with the grunt dialled up? To find out, we've put Andrew Chesterton behind the long-term wheel.

And that's time on the MG4, with the little EV earning its place among the most city-friendly offerings available right now, especially in light of the brand's most recent pricing changes.

Electric cars are pretty popular in Australia these days. But what are they actually like to live with day to day? We are spending a couple of months with the MG4 77 Essence to see how it fits into our lives and if it's a worthy addition to the EV market.

Something I need to stop doing is getting out of cars I’ve just been driving and walking off while they’re still running. Seriously, I’ve done it constantly lately and I blame it all on the MG MG4 I’ve been testing for the past month.The MG4 is a small electric hatchback and it doesn’t have an on or off switch. It just turns on when you open the door and sit in the driver’s seat and then turns off when you get out and lock it.That’s a convenient feature and I became used to it quickly. Thing is I’m now getting out of other cars without turning them off.There’s more to the MG4 than that trick, so let me start again.Our MG4 is the most affordable in its range which means it’s the Excite grade and it has the 51kWh battery. MG was doing a drive-way deal of $39,990 at the time of writing, making it one of the lowest priced electric cars in Australia.The Excite grade has most of the features of the Essence grade above it. There’s LED headlights, a 10.25-inch media screen and 7.0-inch instrument cluster, plus there’s Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.Just before I started in this MG4 I’d been testing the MG4 Essence and that gave me a clear back-to-back comparison of what you’re not getting in the Excite. Things like heated seats, a wireless phone charger and a power adjustable driver’s seat.You can do without those features if money’s tight, but I’m not sure I could live without the 435km driving range (WLPT) the Essence has from its larger 64kWh battery.The Excite’s 51kWh battery has a range of 350km (WLPT) and in real-world testing we found this to be accurate, but also not enough for longer trips where we knew a charger wasn’t waiting for us at the other end.The good news is the Excite is offered with a 64kWh battery, too, for about $5000 more which sounds like a lot at this level, but the extra capacity will take some of the range anxiety away.We managed to travel 405km in our Excite 51kWh but it was all urban duties - the school run, grocery shopping and city commuting. Overall our average energy usage was 23.1kWh/100km, which is on the higher side. Our long-term testing of larger heavier EVs returned better energy efficiency than this. Charging is quick and I found using a 75kW charger the battery could be filled from five to 90 per cent in under an hour, which is impressive, but don’t forget the battery isn’t enormous.What is impressive is the way the MG4 Excite drives. This is a comfortable, well composed sporty hatchback with good handling. I feel the way this car drives is outstanding for the price bracket with great steering, too, and a superb feeling of connection to the road. The practicality of the MG4 is also outstanding. We have a small family with a toddler and a bigger kid and we lived daily with the MG4 and never found room for us or our stuff in the cabin to be an issue. Boot space is a little restricted, though, at 363 litres, but the beauty of a hatch is you can fold the rear seats down to carry something larger, which we did. We bought a small cabinet online which fit with plenty of space to spare. Have a look at my pictures.Great styling with a sporty face, interesting tail-lights with a cool LED design and a premium-looking interior complete what is an outstanding package, especially at this price.Acquired: June 2024Distance travelled this month: 405kmOdometer: 1493kmAverage energy consumption this month: 23.1kWh/100km

These two hatchbacks make headlines for their relatively affordable price tags and long driving range but which is better?

MG is going after the Honda Civic Type R and Toyota GR Corolla with an all-electric hot hatch. We hit the road to find out if this a sign of things to come or a step too far, too soon for the EV market.The MG4 XPower packs plenty of performance but can it provide the driving thrills hot hatch buyers demand? Read our review to find out.

The range-topping model in MG’s new electric small car line-up is the MG4 Essence 77. Priced from $55,990 (plus on-road costs) this Mazda 3-sized hatch is the most expensive option but still one of the more affordable EVs on sale today.

The MG4 Essence 64 sits in the middle of the Chinese brand’s electric small car range, priced at $47,990 (plus on-road costs) and offering more performance and equipment.

The MG4 Excite 64 is the first step up the ladder in the range, priced at $44,990 (plus on-road costs), a $6000 premium over the entry-level Excite 51.