How's My Electric Car Battery After 100,000 Miles? 

Those of us who took a bit of a punt ordering the ZS Mk1 before they were available to drive have been rewarded with a great car. If the battery holds up as well as yours on the MG5 I will be thrilled. Having said that I might look to change in the next 12 months for a slightly longer range and faster rapid charging. But then we did a 300 mile trip we lost only 20 minutes compared to an ICE. Thanks for the update and keep up the good work to help persuade others!

I think that I watced one of your early videos on the MG5 and that convinced me to purchase one - I'd never owned a brand new car ever before in my life - I'm now 80. For many years I'd run Landrovers, Discoverys and also three Range Rovers. In fact my last ICE car was a 2004 L322 Range Rover which had an LPG conversion - that was the only way I could afford to run it!! I've had the MG5 since October 2001 and I've no regrets whatsoever. My wife and I just love the vehicle; it does everything that we want, is comfortable, easy to drive and cheap to run - what more could you want. Thanks for the video.

This isn't just 100,000 miles like a normal person might run for several years - this is hard commercial running (50k miles a year!). So really good breakdown to show how practical commercial use EVs can be (granted vans etc are a little new still but there are some good ones now I think?)

Good review thanks. My dad has a 2 year old MG5 52kwh 32k miles. 2 minor issues 1 just a software update 2nd rear screen washer pipe came lose inside door pillar and one bigger problem when car wouldn't charge 200 miles from home. After 4 weeks in MG garage and a whole new charger socket. Still unable to charge they discovered a big fuse under the charge socket! Hey presto. Apparently he is the first person to have this issue. He still loves it though!

James, Thanks for this close up view of how well your MG EVs have been holding up with heavy use. On the subject of wear that occurs with calendar aging, vs miles, the biggest concern IMO is corrosion. This can lead to an expensive battery replacement when corrosion results in water intrusion into an EV battery pack. Owners of early Model S have had battery failures caused by corrosion of the fuse cover or vents allowing water to enter the pack. Tesla improved their battery design to be more robust to corrosion in later years (2015-ish and later).

Thanks James. I look forward to hearing your review of the car after 200,000 miles. Those brake calipers will still be good for another 100,000. 🙂👍

So much for many of the anti-EV crowd, who say the battery has to be renewed after 6 or 7 years. Right here, we have the equivalent of 14 years average motoring... And as for the silly scare stories regarding brakes........ Thanks for the video James.

Good stuff. Watched Petrol Peds interview with his pal Moggy who electrifies classic vehicles and they did some decent myth busting as well. The phrase that stuck in my mind was when listening to somebody always value experience over opinion and this video shows how durable the modern EV is. Top work.

just ordered a MG4 long range luxury spec(4weeks delivery time) , thx for clearing the battery degradation thing , that was what i worried most about when buying the MG .keep up the good video's

In my job we have a BYD eT3 with 470k km. Its perfect till now, zero fix maintenance

Great review James. This is a great real world ‘worst case scenario’ example based on the vehicle daily use. This is the kind of stuff the media need to use. Well done and keep up the great work. I’ve put a post up on my EV channel to promote your video 🙌✊

Impressive Quality. Well done SAIC/MG.

I second the opinion of the car. Almost 60k miles done and the only issue I've experienced is the little rattling noise from the dash on very low speeds... Other than that, no issues... Front tyres replaced after 35k miles (for more grippy ones as the factory fitted ones were rubbish). Rear ones replaced after 50k miles. Regarding the warranty on these, because of the fact that I cover over 30k miles a year I chose 12month unconditional warranty from TyrePros (£12 each). They replace and fix tyres during the whole period of warranty regardless of the tyre usage. Highly recommended! As for the electricity usage, on average I'm using 3.8 miles per kwh which is not bad given the fact that most of the trips I cover is done on motorways at legal speeds. State of health of battery still showing 100% for me according to the main dealer service sheet and I haven't noticed any significant quality issues with the materials used inside or outside of the vehicle. Next year I'm expecting to cover just under 100k miles so will give an update on that one. Really surprised with this vehicle. Was expecting it to fare quite a bit worse tbh. Will be looking to get an updated mg5, mg4 or Hyundai ioniq5 by the 2025...

Just popped on the feed - 100k miles in two years and the only observation is the dirt! 4 years on my Mk1 ZS EV, just topped 60k miles, so this is definitely giving a lot of hope for 150k+ miles regarding the battery and motor, then I'll replace with something a bit more fun (after it's saved me £15k on petrol). I've had some seat vinyl tearing, and some self inflicted problems (broke the false floor in half) but apart from that very easy work for the MG EVs! Coming up to the 4th year service, so definitely will give you a call when the time comes around 👀

When I drove the MG5 I found it disappointing only because I'd previously driven a Kia e-Niro. Headroom, rear window view, instinctive control locations all scored lower for me. But you can't argue with the longevity and solid performance over time. A solid car. Yet another EV review with actual facts that puts the lie to the usual nonsense circulating in the mainstream media and among internet trolls.

If you had a diesel averaging 50 MPG (imperial), that would cost £15,000 for 100,000 miles at current average diesel prices (£1.58/l). Charging at night on Octopus Go and averaging 4 miles/kWh, it would cost less than £2000, which is similar to the servicing costs for diesel. So if the car cost £30K and goes for 200K miles, it's fully paid for itself in fuel and servicing savings (the same total cost as a free diesel car)!

Hi James ,John from Ayrshire Scotland great review up to 24000 in my 22 reg MG5 going to work and home great car. Thanks for the great update on how your cars are going and keep them coming as they are of great interest to me.

Brilliant vlog. I still have the leaf and still looking lol. Best wishes

Worth stating on your fleet. They aren't cosseted. They're aren't your pride and joy like someone's private car. They're a tool to let you do your job. Only had the one issue on ours. The 12V battery went flat through lack of use and wouldn't take a charge. At the time, my wife (it's her car) was WFH full time so it only went to the shops. A new 12V battery was fitted and now she works a good distance from home and goes in 2 days a week. Otherwise zero issues. It's a great car.

Thank you very much for your update James. The drive battery health and tyre wear was particularly interesting. I don’t own an EV yet but I’m constantly looking at what’s around. Where I can discretely inspect them I do and have noticed creasing forming in the seat bolsters of the MG4. Are you seeing this and if so is it a cosmetics thing rather than the bolster loosing its integrity. All in all your video is such a confidence builder for those sitting on the wall. Thanks for your Chanel James and Kate.

It may not be an issue yet for MG's but I almost crashed a 10 year old Mercedes because one of the rear brake pads fell apart. The friction pad separated from the back plate and my brake pedal went to the floor as I drew up behind another car. I was lucky and got stopped in time but it was close. I can only assume it was rust/corrosion that caused it because the pads had loads of material left so as a mechanic this is something you should bare in mind when working at older cars. On a happier note largely because of the great reviews from James and other RU-vidrs I bought a used MG5 and so far love the car.

I’ve had an MG5 for 15 months now - bought based on your experiences! Only done 7500km, carrying diy stuff from the shops and taking stuff to the tip! At this rate it’ll last about another 28 years - longer than me! Only downer is that the local garage that sold and serviced MG has dumped the concession, just sells Kia and Peugeot now, so I’ll have to drive 150km for the annual service/inspection (which cost 90€!)

James, how did the oil change look? Any engine fibres in the oil as it slowly destroys itself!? Oh wait… 😅 Thank you for your honest approach 👍🏻 My old diesel went to scrap last week and my new MG4 has done 400 miles in 5 days. 🎉

Great to see this James, an honest rebuttal of the FUD generated. Great to see the MG holding up as well as any make! My ZS Mk1 is still great after nearly 4 years, thanks for the intro at your favourite car park film location...🤣🤣 Still using independent EV servicing (when I do) , hate the BS from most Main Stealers.

perfect video as always mate, all I hear now is brake particles, usually I ignore but sometimes I bite. This vid is perfect. Keep,well 🙏

This is the long term review I was waiting for. It confirms what we all know about running EVs - they’re streets ahead of ICE, period

I don't think the none EV owners quite believe how cheap it is to run an EV, my sister looked at an electric van and was quoted £600 more for insurance than a diesel van so she dismissed it. Not including all costs and doing total cost of ownership will get you the wrong answer.. For myself I have now got my house electric/car fuel bill down to about £30 per month to run a 6 bedroom house with 6 people living in it and driving 8500 miles per year in an i3, Solar, House battery , EV, Octoppus Intelligent means I get 8.5Mwh per year for £50/month and I get £200 ish FIT/year. Next year I start getting my Ripple Energy credit so I will probably be in credit each month! 7 years of planning and saving for this is now paying back in spades. Next job heat pump..

It may be worth doing a video on servicing by companies such as Cleaverly as a lot of people think it will invalidate the warranty also some people are concerned about software updates.

I love these style of videos, one thing for sure, when i ask you guys to service my Tesla we can't exactly get pally as they only need servicing once in a blue moon. :)

I'm having my two year service done next month after a mere 12.5k miles - I booked it with Kate earlier today :)

Will be interesting to compare this to my Peugeot E-expert van next time Smithy comes to service it as it is coming up to 2 years old and done 70,000 miles currently. I think it’s lost about 2% battery, still on the original rear tyres and changed the fronts around 56000 due to a puncture with 2mm tread left. .

Hi James so Happy you shared this. I have an ZS 2022 and I see a bit of degradation about 6-8% and I have done about 10000km in a year now. It scares me of course since it is such a big drop but I think it will slow down over time the drop of battery capacity. I try to charge only to 70% normal days and go to 40-50% before recharging unless I have longer drives then I go to 100% which I have done maybe 10 times since owning my ev. I do live in Sweden and think the weather is the main culprit for this degradation.

Great James keep up the great work. Was looking over Steve’s when he was servicing our cars. You battery is the same SOC as my Ioniq at only 25000. Hope it stays at that for a long time. I would be getting very nervous about an ice car at 100000.

I am impressed with the durability of this, food for thought. It was implied in the video that it had not needed services, but some commets mention an annual inspection/service??

I think that the MG5 would be a very good car for me and wanted one so much when I learned about it on the Fully Charged Show. But alas, I live across the pond (in the U.S.A.) and they aren't available here, so I keep searching for a small or medium sized EV with good specs and at a price I can afford. We have 2 hybrids and are ready for a full BEV ASAP. Thank you and best wishes.

I don’t have a home charger yet. I live in a small block’s bungalow and have a private parking space in a communal parking lot.

Picking up James' point regarding the traction battery doing high mileage over a short or long time. There's an arguable point, I feel, that 100k miles over 10 years is easier on the traction battery than 2 years for the same mileage, especially if you have a battery that hugely prefers lower charge speeds, say in the Type 2 range of 7-22kWh. Over 10 years/100K miles you are obviously going to do less truly rapid charging. So I would say that it is arguable [not definite] that high mileage in a short period is harder on a traction battery than spreading it out over an extended time. And if true, it means that MG5 is doing even better than it already seems.

This MG it’s strong, relieve and cheap… 💪

We have just ordered our first EV an iX1 20 xLine. As a former ice technician, I can appreciate how much lighter ev's are on parts and consumables. I think the media wants to put ev"s down as it's a new technology, and Tesla is a disruptor, and legacy manufacturers have been blindsided by the Chinese and Tesla

Hey James long time, no see, great to hear the workhorse is performing so well. 👍👏

Thanks for the video, good to know you’re still a fan of the MG’s. I’m just hoping for MG5’s and other MG’s to get free software updates to be able to charge at the (non) Tesla charger network, I can’t understand why we seem to be the only car brand that isn’t able to do so right now.

Thanks for sharing driving experience in real world working environment. That degradation figure is fantastic. I've seen much more on my first gen ZS EV but we do live in Queensland with super warm/humid summers. Keep up the great work and so sad we don't get these MG5's down here.

A small correction to discussion here - you can't equate 100k miles over 2 years to 100k miles over 10 years where a battery is concerned. The reason being that only a portion of battery degradation is cycle-dependent. Many of the side reactions that occur within the battery are more strongly correlated to temperature, voltage and time and not to usage. And there is the slow diffusion of electrolyte solvents through battery seals, which is time and temperature dependent. It is all extremely complex, but it does mean that you can't just say that the life on an EV battery is "x thousand miles", irrespective of age. It is quite likely that old low mileage EVs will die at fewer miles driven than equivalent ICEs, whilst high mileage (short lifetime) EVs will go much further than equivalent ICEs.

Thanks for the update.

Hi James - Thanks for the informed video. The MG5's have proven to be a great workhorse and brilliant purchase. Very interesting to see your very limit brake pad wear. Some lower milage owners of both MG5's and ZS EV's are seeing dealers requesting discs & pads replacement at only two years old !. Rear disc's on the ZS EV are only available as OEM items and are expensive. Have you witnessed any premature replacement necessary yourself ?. Are you using the OEM disc's on the rear's ?. Thanks.

I have a 2020 Nissan Leaf e+ that has only done 12000 miles in 3 years yet for the past two services and recent MOT I have had an advisory on the front disks due to excessive rust. I am going to get these replaced as it is a lease car but Nissan have quoted £480 to replace these and the pads. I had another Leaf before this that did 30000 miles without any issues. I can't help but feel this is due to inferior materials but no chance of brakes being under warrenty. The dealer has said it is probably lack of use of the brakes that has caused the rust build up.

Great review! Good to see real world data from actual use! EVs are here to stay!

I'm glad he said £0.018 per mile when you're charging at home. Interesting data. Important caviat.

Definition of workhorse. Great economics.

100,000 mikes in 2 years? Wow 960 miles (1500km) per week average 307km/day Heck. Pretty much an ideal justification for an ev.

One thing that might be worth commenting on is while a traction battery with 100K through put isnt showing any particular issues you could find a battery thats had less usage is worse because its been left sat at a high voltage for long periods as thats a known issue for lithiums which cause degredation faster than cycling. Good little round up of the MG 5 though.

What a great car. I can't believe the state of the brake pads.

James - a good review! These MG5s seem to be a good fit for your tasks, if you can locate chargers on the long mile days. Seems like that was a problem early on, or in some locations for you. Surprising the brakes survive that well on those cars, and no real battery degradation either - awesome! You should put a single MY to work for comparison, since the SC spacing and time spent charging should be quite beneficial to the guys, and the interior space available on the Y - wow! You may want air suspension to be available prior to getting one due to the steady “ballast”?

Really great to see and reassuring as an MG5 EV owner, thank you. In terms of storage for tools etc, would you consider adding a roof box, or could this have too big an impact on mileage on long journeys?

Fantastic to watch another update James, at the end of our first year with our MG5 pre-FL & love it even more! Though today we found our fist ding in the front side panel, quite small but still annoying to see, if you have any advice on removing small dents on these I’d be most appreciative. All the best & take care on those roads.

I’m glad you like the MG5!! It’s a very good looking car, but it’s not for me!! But there again, it’s more likely to be seen with a taxi driver!! They’re used by the taxi company in Harlow!!

Great stuff! That brake wear comparison was spot on. How much DC charging did that vehicle get?

Still has the disadvantages over a diesel. Range leading to Range anxiety. Constant planning of routes due to lack of chargers, initial cost, and charging times especially if you can’t charge from home. Possible future power supply problems if sales outpace chargers availability and the necessary nuclear power stations that take 15 years plus to build. For 33 million cars going electric and applying average milage ( 10000 ), average range (250 miles ), average battery pack ( 54 kW ) works out at an additional annual power requirement of 89gWs of power and that’s over the output of 2 of the largest nuclear power stations ever built each rated at 39gWs output annually. Now consider van,trucks and lorries heat pumps, cooking all to be electric then there will need to be even more nuclear power stations built. Another problem is EVs are not very suitable for towing caravans or charging when having a caravan hooked on. ( see Pedro Pete RU-vid re towing a caravan. ). Motor homes will have a restrictive range and an overall gross weight ( Citroen relay has either 73 mile or 137 mile range depending on battery choice. ) The trouble EVs have their place but they are not suitable for every thing.

Hi James Love the channel. However I would bring to your attention that 100,000 miles in 2 years is not the same as 14 years for the traction battery as batteries deteriorate from 2 things; charging cycles and AGE i.e the chemistry of the battery deterioates due time since manufacture as well as charge cycles.

I have a MG5 LR and I asked for the tyres to be rotated at the first service at the main dealer.There was a lot of hissing of teeth,as they said that would be an extra £180 as the TPMS sensors wouldn't be in the right corners etc. It was just a query so I left it,and will just do my usual fitting winter rated tyres and keep the originals.I think you just swap tyres and rims back to front and vice versa,but it seemed that the dealer was not keen or just looking for more £££.

Come 200k(?) I'd be offering the car back to MG (For a reasonable consideration) just so they can show it to any potential buyer worried about longevity. Even taking it around the car shows in a "used" condition with a picture of the odometer on the front would be a great advert. . (I bet it ends up as your company "emergency transport")

Sorry, since my post, I have to add that they changed (allegedly) the brake fluid. This raises 2 questions the first being really? After just 2 years and what environmental impact will this have disposing of the waste? Secondly, whatever happened to taking a hygroscopic reading, to determine the health of the fluid?

I have a face lift ZS EV and it's great! However, MG is not so great... I was told when I bought the car, that the first service would be about £65 and the next about £160. Whether that was salesman's uninformed speil, I don't know. But the first service was over twice that and the second (done yesterday) was a few quid less than twice that advised. Apparently, that's down to 'revised pricing'. I've read that the MG warranty is not as comprehensive as one is led to believe. For example people on the forum saying that an electric roof fault was not covered etc. So, my question is, that seeing James talk about how little needs to be done over really high mileages (mines done 14,500 miles in 2 years) why are main dealers charging so much and can we safely go to an independent? I mean, I asked for a state of health check on the traction battery and was told it was 98%, only to find that this was for the 12v battery! @James, do you service MG EV's in Hertfordshire or know of someone who can, because I think I'll just bin MG dealers. From past experience I've found that independents give a much better service and at a reasonable price.

Great insights, thank you James!

Hi @Jamesandkate, Can i ask if you charged these earlier MG5s on Tesla superchargers, and did you need to do anything to achieve this? I got a "vehicle not recognised" notice, and it wouldn't charge.

Brilliant review

Does anyone know if alternating the wheels to even out tyre wear affects the tyre pressure monitoring system (TPS) on an MG5? Thanks

Hello James I noticed from your shot of the inside of the car you use Blue print pollen filters , that’s if I’m correct looking at the boxes . Good choice by the way , a good product for reasonable money

No mention of how many days of charging and waiting around in service stations?

8:00. I get your point. However, 2y and 14y, in this instance, can not be compared because entropy isn't involved.

I had no carpets and no furniture for almost a decade and rented two rooms out to pay the mortgage. Spare money is not falling from the trees

I have the facelift version in black, on the whole its a decent car however the paint is extremely soft. It had a full machine polish, the paint was swirl and scratch free, two very careful washes later by me using snow foams, best shampoo, wool mits and just being very careful, the paint looks terrible again. Would certainly avoid a black one.

I would love one of those , wonder how much one with 100,000 miles would be? Much better than my 121000 mile leaf 30

Congratulations for your review 👏! Could you please share us how much you usually charge the battery (80% / 90% / 100% of the max load) ?

Thanks for the review (I'll stick it in the memory bank for later), it COUNTERS a lot of opinions (and facts!!) I've already seen which are quite negative. There are (too many to be dismissed) cases of batteries just "out" of warranty requiring replacement, and the replacement costs being truly horrendous. (I've seen the invoice from Roger Dean Chevrolet quoting nearly $30,000 USD to replace a hybrid battery in a Chevrolet Volt at around 70,000 miles). In Australia, at this point in time (we have some of the most expensive electricity in the world), it just isn't viable to go electric (a "tank" of electricity is "about the same" as a tank of petrol when range is factored in), and the periodic requirement for long distance driving without charging stations is the reality at this point in time.

I'm sure you and the team have considered it, but have you considered a maxus t90ev with a utility/service bed on the back? Rubbish charging curve, I know (despite the 90kWh pack), but there might be some tax advantages to the pickup truck, and it might give options for more kit in the back. Back in the day the AA used the venerable Vauxhall Brava pickup (Isuzu underneath) for the same job.

Interesting and encouraging video James, thanks for taking the time to do this. Aside from the reduced pollution including tyre and brake emissions would I be correct in assuming the lower running costs and minimal downtime of the cars plays an important part of being able to provide the mobile service at a competitive cost?

Does anyone have my issue? The charging cover stop closing, the pin stop clicks! And how much cost to fix it! I've got this problem from a week and using a tape to keep it close!

😢​​⁠ Money always makes money! I too have invested in renewables, solar, EV, heatpump and it was a large investment however I’m getting a return on that investment that beats what the bank was paying. As for payback I’ve increased the value of my home and made it a better buy compared to my neighbours that hasn’t all this technology. However it’s those with the money to invest that benefit most.

Was awaiting your return- telling statement at end was 10 services on a diesel - wonder how much that would have been.

Makes a lot of sense for a trade person to retrofit an mg 5. To get a van with similar range would be double the price. (e.g Id Buzz)

Hi James great straight to the point informative video thanks. Could you explain how it's possible to keep the warranty on my FL5 but have you do the servicing.i have been burnt by Nissan before insisting I have break fluid change after 18,000miles.

From the wear on tyres and brakes, I'd suggest this car has done a lot of motorway miles.

thats pretty damn good, so much for the ‘cheap’ in chinese

Brilliant matey 👏 👍 👌

I am very pro-EV and have an MG5 LR myself. At 7:24 you say that 100k miles over 2 years and over 10 years is the same. Not exactly, as lithium batteries chemically degrade even if they are stored at 40% in a cold place and not used at all. It's not going to be a huge amount, but just cycling the battery/energy throughput alone isn't the only predictor for wear as average temperature, age and average depth of charge/discharge definitely has a bearing too. Do you know anything about 12V system issues on these cars?

Wow, my 1972 VW Bay van had 220k on it!

Is there an amount of work time lost to DC fast charging during work days? If so, any idea how that impacts the total cost equation?

I'm changing my 150Ah battery modules for 174Ah (52 - 61kWh) if they made 200Ah modules in the same form, it would give it 70kWh and around 300miles range driving carefully! Tesla beater?

wow this a huge cost saving... EV is such a reliable work horse...

Really impressive! Can I ask whether you have been routinely charging to 100% or something less than that?

Motor industry practice is for steering wheels to start to polish at 80,000 miles or so. This is to combat clocking.

We all choose how we spend what we earn. You can pay monthly for Ripple shares but the other items I had to save up for. You could borrow but that reduces the short term benefit. It is true that money makes money, I had nothing in my 20s but after 40 years of hard work I had enough to invest in my retirement. You have to start somewhere and I wish everyone best of luck but luck is only part of the journey.

I love your channel and I'm an EV fan but the traction battery and age is definitely up for debate. All batteries, including lithium batts suffer from calendar aging as well as cycle degradation. That's because there is always a chemical reaction going on in the battery whether it's charging, discharging or just sitting there. Calendar aging is even in the manufacturer's specs for lithium ion batteries. Calendar aging is generally put at 0.5% to 2% a year with some batteries suffering bigger drops in their first year but then levelling out.

Great video vehicle sounds great can you tell me what the battery chemistry is the MG5 is not available here in NZ would the MGZSEV have similar reliability and longevity Thanks cheers 8:54

Thank you for a great video 👍

Does the modification increase your insurance premiums? If so how much?

Thank you James, we own one and love it. When you rotated the tyres did you have to reprogram the TPMS ?

What was the purchase price and what is the likely resale value after 100K miles ?

I do notice on my EV, I’m not cleaning brake dust of the wheels, like all my other cars before it ..And I’ve been driving it seven months now.