This is the BEST affordable electric car | MG ZS EV review

MG has transformed the ZS into a real contender - allow us to explain in this review.

Read more at Auto Express:

It is no secret that SUVs and crossovers have seen massive sales growth in the UK in recent years. This means that, irrespective of whether electric, petrol or diesel is being used to power a vehicle down the road, there are no shortage of rivals for a small SUV like the MG ZS.

Things are slightly less crowded for battery-powered SUVs, especially more affordable options such as the MG ZS EV, but even this sub-sector is filling up fast.

Manufacturing costs remain high for electric vehicles, so few makers are able to offer prices anywhere near those of petrol or diesel equivalents. Despite this, MG has managed to deliver a pure electric SUV at a very attractive price which is ultimately its main weapon in attracting buyers - in fact, it's our 2022 Affordable Electric Car of the Year.

The MG ZS has had a relatively short life so far, as an SUV that is. MG previously sold a ZS saloon and family hatchback based on the Rover 45 up until 2005, when the remaining assets of MG Rover moved into Chinese ownership. When the ZS was reborn in 2017 it returned as a petrol SUV that showed how the new MG brand was making strides in upping the quality of its cars. Even so, the ZS remained a budget option let down by relatively poor fuel economy. The MG ZS EV addressed this by swapping the petrol motor for an EV powertrain. As Nicola Hume finds out in this review, the switch to electric has given the ZS a new lease of life.

More Auto Express videos:

Follow us

[standupmoto]

Nice look at the MG and thanks for not faffing on about stuff that the average commuter doesn’t want to know about. I have seen so many reviews on this vehicle where the presenter is comparing it to other EV‘s twice the price or how it handles compared sports EV’s, this is a commuter vehicle and that is how you reported on it. Thanks. ps ( I’m a world away in Aus but we do have this vehicle here)

[janaksodha]

You can reduce the volume of the indicators. It’s one of the options

[stighw]

My short review of the 2020 model after about 3 years and 50k of driving.

Pro`s
Price! I was looking at a new Kona but it was 430k nok, the MG ZS EV (black luxury, two set wheels, driven 10k km) for 235k nok. So Almost half price (500 km/270km range difference)
Looks: I think it looks great, and almost everyone says the same when seeing it. I think it is one of the best looking cars in a parking lot. I do have the 2020 not this one, so the grill is different and IMO better looking than this one.
SUV feeling. Sitting high is awesome. Maybe the best car I have driven for overview.
Sunroof is great! For the price of the car to have such a big sunroof, the car feels so spacious (it really is as well). Feels like luxury.
Range: 270 KM is not horrible. It is totally fine for all small to medium driving. If I have to fast charge 2-3 times for long trips a few times a year, I don`t really care. We usually stop at least 2 times for an 8-hour drive anyway. Also when considering price, it`s great.
Space is great inside and for storage in the back.

Con`s
My main grief is the infotainment system. I will be blunt, for the 2020 it sucks! It is laggy, and feels buggy. When you adjust the temp for example it takes 2-3 seconds before the adjustment shows up on the screen. The rest is somewhat ok. Can anyone confirm the system lags, so it is maybe a fault in my car?
No real airconition, as you have to manually adjust heat/cold up and down and sometimes it is hard to find the ok temp.
The charging hatch feels cheap. Need to press it in to pop it out. Rubber cup to cover the charging ports.
Overhead lights indicators a bit to bright when overhead lights are off.
The side beams holding up the roof are a bit thick and cover slightly more than I wish they did.

Overall a great buy at the time I bought it.

[johnmunro]

Quite a few of these around for under £10K now. That's MUCH more like it! I'll definitely have a look at them as a possible next car in a year or so

[billywizzer]

Had a very short test drive of this car (returned very early as the drivers seat had no adjustable lumbar support) and I found the seat to be very uncomfortable.
Also we were informed if we were to place an order (July 2022) the car would no longer have a glass sunroof.

[johnhindson]

Near the start: " the steering is super adjustable". I thought that one of the criticisms that most other reviews make is that the steering isn't adjustable for rake??

[theonlymerry]

I can't help but feel this review, while great is about 9 months late! Anyway, one thing to note is that you don't get and can't spec the panoramic roof on any orders now.

I've had my ZS for about 9 months now, it's had a couple of quirks but has been perfectly competant as a means of transport. Cheap too.

[jonathantaylor]

Great review, Nicola - I've said it before, I think your 'acting' background really plays to your strength in presenting... just brilliant. 😍
And, if I might also mention, your point about the position of the door mirror adjuster was absolutely genius - that would NEVER have even popped up on my radar as an annoying design quirk of a car's interior, but you're absolutely bang-on right about it...!! 😎

[danielramon]

All her videos are amazing: clear, complete and always very understandable...what else is posible!

[jamiep]

I enjoyed watching the Video Review. The updates look great particularly the New Front Fascia

[interceptor-sskb]

My Grandad has one and last time it was in for a service they Warned him that there is alot of corrosion underneath for a car just over a year old, they have put a warranty claim against MG its a known problem apparently.

[stevejones]

Wow!!.. you changed the wheels, grille, bumpers AND the hue of blue (see what i did there) nyuk nyuk🙂🙃 and made it the car it should always have been. Nice!
Anyway keep up the good work 😉🙂

[petershorney]

Chinese tech, Chinese price? Compare that with the Polestar 2 - Chinese tech, western price. Your call..

[JSsm]

Got mine finally on the boat, should be here in December. Nuts that I was watching your reviews for it nearly a year ago.
Now I just need to learn how to deal with automatics.

[samoyedpuppy]

"You're not Vin Diesel Nicola!" Absolutely hilarious 😂

[richardkennett]

However, now there’s the MG4!
Nicola get out in one of those! It will be just Lovely! 😘

[amramweismann]

indicator volume can be adjusted commentator just miss it as well as most people miss it

[joemckillen]

I saw a review of this car on another YouTube channel that said the indicator sound was played through the speakers so maybe they do that so you can hear the indicators even when your music is loud. If you lower the music/radio sound then maybe the indicator sound will be lower too.

[apn]

Maybe the MG engine is not particular modern, but I bet it is more reliable and cheaper to repair or replace than the Peugeot or Renault modern downsized engines.

[vaultboy]

Awesome review! How many miles approx will this car go on highway only in the winter? Any indication? :)