George Loveridge Driving Around for Travel News Update
The recent demise of the Ford Fiesta means that motorists are now turning elsewhere to get their small and practical hatchbacks. This MG3 appears to be the answer. With a traditional petrol engine mated to a clever hybrid system, this could be the future for petrol-powered cars. But what is the MG3 really like to live with, long term? Well, TNU Editor-in-Chief Malcolm Ginsberg has been the custodian of an MG3 for a couple of months now. He adds his ownership experience at the end of this report.
Despite the small city car looks, this is quite a hot little cookie. The 1.5 litre petrol engine along with the hybrid system provides a total of 194bhp and 425Nm of torque! Therefore, it may look cute and cuddly, but this MG3 can really shift if you need it to. The only thing holding it back from being a hot hatch is the 3-speed automatic gearbox. Around town and in traffic, it does not feel like it has any gears at all and makes for a very smooth drive. However, when you need to plant your right foot somewhat, there is a noticeable delay in progress ahead of an almighty roar from the engine. For daily commuting and motorway cruises, the MG3 performs very well and does it in an economical manner.
The front wheel drive hatch only weighs 1.2 tonnes, and as the battery is located where you would hope to find the spare wheel, it does handle very well. The electronic steering rack is light at slower speeds but does sharpen up when you need it to. Sadly, the steering column itself is not telescopic. Therefore, you can only adjust the height of the flat-bottom steering wheel and not the reach. For me, this resulted in a somewhat awkward driving position but for others, this may not be an issue. Other interior qualities are tremendous. With plenty of storage opportunities in the centre console, we have removable dividers in the cupholders for when you need to store additional items. We also get a well-trimmed cabin at this price point.
This top-of-the-range Trophy model comes with half-cloth half-leather seats, along with a leather dashboard, soft-touch plastics and orange stitching.
Overall, the interior is quite dark as there is no rear courtesy light (it's arriving - MG), and the front map lights are very dull. However, the 10.5-inch touchscreen provides a healthy amount of light and colour. Sadly, no wireless phone connectivity other than Bluetooth, but I am happy to report that you do get a USB, USB-C and 12-volt socket. Therefore, you should not need to buy a new phone charger to accommodate this car!
Additional Trophy luxuries include: front heated seats, heated steering wheel, rear privacy glass, a quick 360-degree camera system and a whole host of safety features included with MG Pilot.
The MG Pilot system is essentially posh cruise control and much more, housing a rear traffic alert, front collision warning, blind zone detection and lane keep assist. The best part about all of these systems is that you can turn them all off individually through a conveniently located menu within the infotainment screen. Therefore, if like me, you live in the countryside, you can disable the lane keep assist to avoid unnecessary beeps and bongs. Rear leg room is equal to that of a compact saloon, there just isn’t a rear arm rest or any cupholders. Moreover, the rear seats do not fold in the usual 60:40 split, the entire back bench folds as one. For some, this could be useful, but others may find this irritating. You will find 293 litres of standard boot space, but just short of 1000 litres with the seats down. Annoyingly, under the boot floor you will find a spare wheel well, but no spare. Instead, your locking wheel nuts, a puncture repair kit and a huge 12-volt battery.
The George Loveridge Verdict
My week with the MG3+ was very enjoyable. It is a small car, but from behind the driver’s seat, you feel as though you are in something bigger. In the snow, it performed respectively. The vehicle idles at 1500rpm, which is very high. So, when creeping using the automatic gearbox, it is initially a bit quicker than you first expect. This came at an advantage when navigating junctions covered in slushy snow and ice as it reduced wheel spin massively. For the price point, it is a very well-equipped vehicle and I could pick holes in a lot of it, but that is because it is missing the refinements and qualities that you would normally find on a car worth upwards £30,000.
Price as tested: £21,040
Lead in price: £18,495
Average fuel consumption: 45 mpg
Range (petrol): 450miles
Engine size: 1498cc
0-60: 8 seconds
Performance 7
Handling 7
Transmission 6
Noise 6
Economy 10
Ride and Comfort 8
Accommodation 7
Styling 8
Brakes 6
Finish 8
TOTAL= 73%
For next month George Loveridge was one of the first to get hold of the brand new KGM Actyon SUV. It should be an interesting report.
TNU's Editor-in-Chief adds his comments
My reason for trading down from a 7-seat Toyota Prius was twofold. We did not need the capacity and at 82, having started with an MG (Midget 1275cc) it seemed to me a good idea to probably finish with the same badge. In fact the MG3 offers remarkable value but suffers from some penny pinching and basic mistakes. The 360-degree camera system is brilliant, worthy of a car three times the price. No head-up display but what do you expect for the money. It is in the true tradition of MG in being a sports saloon.
No doubt it did not miss your notice that my initials are MG too!
One of my big gripes as a motoring journalist is the car hand over. This is normally delegated to a delivery driver who may never have driven the make or model before. The thing to do then is visit your local dealer for the marque and with a little bit of luck things will be explained.
MG have got over this difficulty by offering a 12-minute video called “MG Always with you” and in my case the MG3 Hybrid+. It knows the car better than the salesman. Problem solved! www.mg.co.uk/mg-always-with-you
And MG also places a QR code on the passenger side sun visor for quick access to the videos for people who are comfortable accessing the information this way.
Today’s car interior designers have an obsession with screen apps and finger controls. Instead of a simple push pull for the radio on/off and volume, the MG3 offers four buttons. There are steering column functions as well, but I have not fathomed them out yet. The side mirrors are heated when you switch the rear window demister. Heat is supplied for the front seats individually! Not having split backrests could cause a problem when three up and luggage, but the failure to have a light for the rear seats is a big cost-cutting mistake. New deliveries should feature these items. My car did not come with carpet protectors! The control screen itself is OK, but another inch taller would hardly add to the cost and make it just a little bit clearer. It would not spoil the forward view.
I have found the getaway fierce but maybe it needs getting used to. As for fuel consumption the read-out gives a figure from the start of the journey, not the average over a period. On my MG3 it gradually increases until it settles down at around 45mpg, although it can go up to sixty 60mpg with a quiet 50mph drive. It did not come with a proper handbook just something called a "Quick Guide", pretty useless. A better one is in the pipeline. "MG-always-always-with you". After a bit of arm twisting my local dealer Glyn Hopkin, my local dealer, did supply the full CONTENTS manual, all 345 pages. It's not practical in the car.
www.glynhopkin.com/mg/our-locations/mg-mill-hill
www.mg.co.uk/new-cars/mg3-hybrid
AND THIS IS WHERE IT STARTED. I THEN MOVED ON TO A COMPANY CAR, A LOTUS ELAN.
Not the Ginsberg car, but a very well turned out MG Midget circa 1967.
MG stands for Morris Garages of Oxford. The first MG was a sporty version of the then Morris Oxford saloon. This tradition has been continued until this day, the MG3 a quick little motor. MG produced a range of popular sports cars. Today you have the out outstanding Cyberster. www.travelnewsupdate.co.uk/article/804
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