Mini 3D Hatch vs MG ZS EV

What's the difference?

Coincidence is a funny thing. The same week I had the Mini Cooper S 60 Years, the last VW Beetle rolled down the line in Mexico. VW blamed its mammoth €25bn investment in electric, but the reality is that nobody was buying that nostalgia trip anymore.

The story of Mini is quite different. BMW's aggressive expansion of the range beyond the three-door hatch has breathed all sorts of life into a brand that could have disappeared up its own Union Jack. Instead of sticking to the formula, the brand tried all sorts of things but has since settled on the hatch (three- and five-door), the Cabrio, the wacky Clubman semi-wagon and the Countryman SUV. BMW is now making lots of cars on the same platform, a nice two way street.

The Mini Cooper S is 60 years old and unlike the Beetle, it's powering on past its birthday and the company - no stranger to a special edition - has slapped together a classic combo of colours, stripes and badges.

If, like just about everybody, you’re a bit concerned that an electric car might not be able to travel as far as you need to go, then the new MG ZS EV Long Range could be the small, fully-electric SUV for you.

We’ve tested the ZS EV Long Range here and can tell you how far you’ll get on a full charge and how much extra you’ll have to pay in price over the standard range version, along with what it’s like to drive, its features, practicality, ownership costs and of course its safety systems.

Be sure to watch the video above, where I’ll take you for a ride and show you my Big Foot tattoo. Yes, seriously.