MG ZS vs Renault Scenic E-Tech

What's the difference?

MG is far more popular as a Chinese-owned brand than it was as a British sports car maker.

The company now makes cars that appeal to a wider range of people, especially those looking for an affordable way into electric vehicles. As part of that broad appeal the company also makes regular petrol cars like the one tested here - the MG ZS Essence.

That’s right, we’re not testing the electric version of the MG ZS, nor the hybrid variant. Not even the one with the turbo. Our ZS is the ordinary petrol version in the mid-level Essence grade. Could it be the pick of the lot? Well… you’ll know soon.

First, who are the ZS’s rivals? The ZS is a small SUV and competes against the likes of the GWM Haval Jolion, Kia Seltos and Mazda CX-30. Having tested all of them we can say the ZS does some things better but also struggles to match a few of the other qualities of its rivals.

Oh, and don’t confuse the MG ZS with the MG HS. The HS is bigger and a mid-sized SUV, while the ZS is a small SUV. Got it?

Read on and we’ll take you through the strengths and weaknesses of the ZS Essence.

@carsguide.com.au New-gen MG ZS petrol tested! #MG #ZS #car #carsguide #fyp ♬ original sound - CarsGuide.com.au

What’s 15 years between friends? Well, in this instance quite a lot because this is the all-new, pure-electric Renault Scenic E-Tech small-medium SUV.

The Renault Scenic we knew here until the late noughties was a petrol-powered, five-seat family car or an upright, seven-seat people mover.

But this is an altogether sleeker proposition, priced and specified to compete with other electric SUVs like the BYD Sealion 7, Hyundai Elexio, Kia EV5, Skoda Elroq and Zeekr 7X.

So, could this fresh Euro contender have what it takes to steer you away from such an impressive set of pure-electric competitors?

We attended its local launch to find out.