Before making it taxi read the warranty. I think you get from 60 to 40,000 miles warranty and the seven year warranty is just for the paint. Moreover do you have to declare it as a taxi in order for the warranty to be valid. It seems a really good car just bear in mind the warranty for taxis is different.
Its Chinese version (which is Roewe ei5) has been used as taxi here in Shanghai for several years. Volkswagen is still the mainstream taxi brand in Shanghai thou and for now Roewe is more like the taxi brand for ev taxi.
I have this on lease and everything Matt said is spot on. Decent range, acceleration, handling and practicality but looks like it's from a decade ago. And that's because it is, it's styling comes from the 2010 Roewe 350/360 that turned into the i5 and then Ei5 in 2017 and we (UK) got it called the MG5 in 2020. There's a newer version in Europe for 2022 which looks more modern that the UK should get at some point. Anyway excellent value for money
@@deadkemper Well, 95% of ICE cars have no soul. Very few are "driver's cars". Most basic cars have buzzy/harsh engines, terrible suspension, don't sound particularly good and are overall boring. In my opinion a basic EV is a far better car than a basic ICE car by virtue of smooth and instant power delivery and a low center of gravity for decent handling. For the vast majority of drivers who don't know what an M-car is, can't tell a 911 from a Cayman, or has no idea what a Type R or GTI is, the EV will be the superior and, yes, more fun car.
You were so slow to review this, it's as if someone asked for it and you said "don't wanna review it, it's probably crap". But now you finally got your hands on one that's exactly people need to know how good they are. Extremely underrated.
*Too bad thought that MG is a corporation directly owned by the Chinese Military Dictatorship. The very same Chinese Military Dictatorship that CRUSHED DEMOCRACY in Hong Kong! And the very same Chinese Military Dictatorship that STILL hasn't condemned HEAD NAZI Putler's GENOCIDE in and MASS RAPE of UKRAINE!*
This is the first real electric estate car. Surprisingly it seems great overall. Sure it's not very fast or sporty, but it does everything it should at a reasonable price.
@@WeirdSeagul The cross turismo technically has an shooting brake design, that's why its boot is only 300 liter compared to "cheap" Skoda octavia with over 600
*Unfortunately though, MG is a corporation directly owned by the Chinese Military Dictatorship. The very same Chinese Military Dictatorship that CRUSHED DEMOCRACY in Hong Kong! And the very same Chinese Military Dictatorship that STILL hasn't condemned HEAD NAZI Putler's GENOCIDE in and MASS RAPE of UKRAINE!*
I have one, and I couldn’t be more happier with it as an introduction to the EV life. Yes it’s cheap and some things other expensive EVs have witch would be nice. But as a family motor with 2 young ones it as absolutely banging 👍
I've been driving one for just over a year now, and I really like it. It handles well, the infotainment touch screen is very easy to use, and personally I think it drives well. People say that it's not a very good looking car, but if you want a car that gets you from a to b, then this is the car for you. If you want a car with all of the bells and whistles, then look at another more expensive car, but if you want a car that's a nice, comfortable drive, then I would advise you to take one for a test drive.
I've had this car for about 6 months now and I do about 700 miles per week. At the moment I am getting 300 miles on a full charge! That is a combination of motorway and town driving. It's boring but it works and gets loads of miles! In the winter however I was getting around 200 miles on a full charge. Still not bad though.
@@NickG24 I used to have a 21 plate leaf. It was really good. It just needed a bigger battery. In my opinion the leaf was way better. If it had a bigger batter I would have kept it
@@naazimahmed9781 yeah, I quite like the car and it was an incredible deal on lease. The 62kWh was £60 more a month which I thought I didn’t need to spend but with hindsight I would have!
Please do more reviews of cars like this! They may not be as fancy and pretty as others but the budget car market is huge right now, MGs and Dacias are everywhere
@@ocharni Visit the Philippines, a VW Santana and its larger than a Yaris, it’s almost big as a Jetta, they also offer an SUv and a wagon variant or hatchback, over here is extremely cheap got good services too. VW under Saic like all cars. Quite reliable too way cheaper than the Corolla and its rivals. Yeh Toyota, MG, VW, Opel and Renault also Honda I trust.
A throwback to 'cheaper' times. Practical, cheap and unusually for an MG, reliable. Nice to actually see a more affordable option on an EV, shame the parent company couldn't have tried a bit harder on styling. I'd actually like to see a real world week long 'Live with' challenge against a Tesla with a family, kids, dog etc and see which one comes out on top.
I've been researching practical cars that have good performance, range, affordability and can carry a family of 4 and baggage and this is the only EV that ticks all the boxes. I test drove one the other day I was very impressed with it's performance and handling. A lot of people are commenting at the lack of power which is ridiculous. This isn't a Tesla. It sells for almost a quarter of the price and has a 7 year warranty. It's very punchy and is a superb drive. Yes it looks very dated but in every other aspect, this car is spot on. I think the facelift version will sell very well if they can keep a similar price.
It's a shame the facelifted version hasn't made it to the UK yet - its still a little ungainly in its proportsions but the interior looks much more modern and the Passat front end has been removed. It's out in Europe and its home market now so hopefully in the UK soon.
@@davyhoogy Yeah, the RHD Facelift MG5 is due in UK towards the end of 2022, maybe - or it might be 2023 🤷♂ Comes with an app the same as the facelift ZS, but suspect it's mechanically the same as MG5 Long Range model but with a new nose and MG ZS styled interior.
I had the same decision to make in January, and decided to just get the current model LR exclusive. I didn't want to wait up to 12 months for the face-lift to launch in the UK then wait many more months due to the chip shortage. Could always look at trading it out in 2-3 years during a pcp
@11:23 I disagree, Mat. The camera feels really expensive because it can automatically convert an Audi A1 into an Evoque for maximum reverse camera viewing pleasure
I think point was made that the centre part of the cluster was aleady a digital screen. It probably would not have taken any increase in cost to increasse the gigital screen size to cover across full width - at least when you took into account the savings of 2x large mechnical analog dials at either end.
@@bbbf09 you forgot the added software design and development cost of adding the information on the analog dials to the new big screen. Someone's gotta be paid to do the extra work lol. Its not just as simple as a parts cost calculation. My guess is two dials and a small screen worked out substantially cheaper, most likely because its borrowed from another car and hence reworking the screen with above costs would not be cost effective at all in that case
@@brianbickle7395 yeah have to agree on this. where i live there's so many big fines for using your phone even if not to the ear, but perfectly ok to have your face in the middle of the centre console staring at a screen below the windscreen and climate vents lol.
@@SHRModding Mmm - doubtful. I admit I'm mechanical engineer - so tend to count costs there and may be inclined to mech bias - but I have done a little controls and software engineering in my past so I'm not clueless. And I'm well used to appraising costs from value engineered POV in small to medium production batches. Software costs are negligible when amortised over thousands of units. Physical hradware is not, as it can't be amortised - you require one for each car produced. Lets say you can break even manufacture each of those dials for $10 each ($20 for two) - and that's optmistic. Over 100,000 cars produced that's $2million dollar saved. That is not $2m of software development - I can guarantee that. Not even $0.5m. There would be costs of wider digital screen - and this where the break even point might be skewed - so that may be reason.
Got 16s on my Mazda 3 and they're fitted with 60 profiles. Do they look a bit naff? Yes, does it go down a terrible country road without batting an eyelid? Yes. It rides really really well and that has to be due in part to the balloon tyres (and the independent rear suspension).
The design or styling is just perfect if you want to remain inconspicuous around town. Its the automotive equivalent of a new identity from the witness protection problem. Sometimes that's not a bad thing for a practical car.
I was not expecting such a positive review. Having seen quite a few of these cars out and about, my impression of them was not good because they look terrible. However, at just over £30K - super cheap for an EV - and with a 7 year warranty, the MG5 is excellent value. Also, it offers an alternative to all the SUV/crossover vehicles that make up most of the EV market.
All time single pedal mode is not good for the brakes. Having to dab the brakes occasionally prevents rust build up and ensures conventional brakes will still work effectively in an emergency.
@Alfred Wedmore Can you please elaborate what you mean by mud causing issues on Prius brake system? As I've been working in the automotive repair industry for 9 years and I'm yet to see mud cause any issues to do with the braking system .
2:49 If the screen stops working, those physical gauges will still work. I'd love it if all car manufacturers did that, instead of having stuff like warning lights, speed, etc. be on a screen.
@@avatr7109 I disagree. I think that it looks better than a lot of screen only interfaces. I'm not going to pretend that it's the best looking gauge cluster ever, but it looks decent enough.
Well done Mat, you finally got around to testing it and, yes, I agree with everything that you say about..........and I have one and am very happy with it! The new facelift version does look better and, excluding existing orders/stock, it's all you'll be able to order after this week. Unfortunately the new model (bigger wheels, slower 0-60) won't be delivered to customers much before next year. With the warmer weather, I'm now getting between 4.1 and 4.6 mpkWh on rural roads and no motorway (where it drops to 3.9) giving me a possible range of over 250 miles.
@@tiadaid well the MG5 EV is a rebadge of the Ei5 from 2017 which is based on the Roewe i5 which in turn is the Roewe 360 from 2015 and based on the 350 styling from 2010. So a decade+ styling is about right because it is. It's a decent EV for the money
I've got one on the original 52kWh ones and I absolutely love it. It's stripped out inside as I use it as a beater works van and have fitted a frunk (plastic box from Factory Store) for the charge cable. I've never had less than 4m/kw from it and with my solar it's working out about three quarters of a penny a mile to run. Love the way it gets off the line and it's nearly as much fun to drive as my Model S. . Highly recommended.
I've also got the 52 kWh. Very pleased with it. Really good acceleration, even in Eco. Maybe the smaller, lighter battery is beneficial in this respect. Like you, I average over 4 miles per kWh and I've got over 5 on longer runs in good conditions.
I think a turning circle comparison from a car in the same class would be more useful. Comparing a hatchback with an estate seems rather pointless to me
@@johnsmith-cw3wo AMD is American, plus Intel is already in the gutter thanks to AMD not having been a threat for the better half of a decade, so what are you on about?
You could pay £25k plus for a new petrol Astra, Focus or Golf, but this MG would be around 70% cheaper to run if you charged it at home most of the time, on an EV tariff. I'm talking 2p per mile, against 20p+ per mile for the petrol equivalents..... And if you regularly buy shopping from the likes of Tesco or Sainsburys, then both offer free charging. As do places like Ikea and LDL....
The facelifted version does help with the awkward looks. It’ll be interesting to see where this marque is in 10 years time. I think they will end up doing very well. Good luck to them
It’s owned by the Chinese government who are providing aid to Russia in support of the their war efforts. It’s a shame, but I don’t wish them any luck at all.
@@MADEINNSW I try to avoid bit it's difficult these days to find a vehicle brand that isn't made in China, owned by China, or built from Chinese parts. Cheap labour always wins, even when it doesn't translate into cheap prices, in the case of the big car brands (just more profit for them).
I like it when Matt reverses into the bay, there was an image of a Range rover on the rear view cam. The next second, he's actually Infront of an Audi 😊
Hi Mat, you are great as usually. Personally I follow each single review that you do. I just want to make a request. Since you have a lot of followers coming from Europe, what do you think about expressing your results also in the metric system? I mean, I was interested in the consumptions but I would have appreciated a lot to know it in terms of km/kWh… or the acceleration times referred to km/h speeds. Think about it. Thank you in advance. I will keep to follow you anyway
In my 20's I drove and toured the south of France in an MGBGT. I didn't even have to lift the bonnet, unlike many other cars I had used for the same purpose. I would therefore disagree with your comment about them being unreliable.
This car's brother, the Roewe Ei5 (I think) which has been sold for millions in China alone. Its been widely used as "Uber" and its by far the most reliable EV Uber in the Chinese ride sharing market. It was firstly sold in 2015 (?) and one of the drivers said it can still run more than 300Km per charge with 350k KM on mileage, and you dont need sophisticated maintenance. FYI, the price in China converted to pounds is about $22000 for the highest trim.
In the annoying things: • Stereo from apple car play is really quiet, so have to turn it up quite high, then when you next get in the car the radio is extremely loud and almost deafening. • Collision warning in a city goes mental, every time you get in the car you have to turn the sensitivity to low as it resets each time. • No auto lowering of wing mirrors when reversing. • No app, no charging scheduling for off peak charging. Apart from that, excellent value for money car. Ascetics improve with the facelift coming soon.
Hmmm, explain how the Audi behind you in the parking experiment, turned into a Range Rover Evoque on the rear camera, then back into an Audi and the back into an Evoque when we got the shot out the rear window? Poor continuity there Matt, you need to have a word with your video editors!🤣🤣
only car I could get my hands on that I can put my 3 dogs in, best purchase in many years...so far, 6k miles later, 2p a mile costs (home charging costs only)...brilliant
One of the reasons this car’s ride is decent is because it’s based on an older version Buick Regal / Opel/Vauxhall Insignia, which were also built by SAIC in China. It’s a decent car, and especially with a 7 year warranty, for anyone who doesn’t care for their car being “exciting” it is really a great deal.
I'm an MG5 owner and very pleased with mine so far. Coming across from a Skoda Yeti, this car feels like driving the future! It's fun to drive, especially around town. Pick up is rapid and the tech is amazing for the price. The car has MG Pilot which is a semi autonomous cruise control. When engaged the car will maintain the set speed, but keep it's distance from the car in front when necessary. It will slow down, stop, resume, speed up and even steer itself around corners. The car only asks that you keep a hand on the steering wheel. It will still steer if you take your hands off the wheel, but will sound a gentle warning if your hands are off the wheel for longer than about 10 seconds. If you still don't hold the wheel, it will loudly alarm to make sure you're going to comply. I've found this very handy on long runs, and also when stuck in traffic. I urge all of you to go and have a test drive. I'm sure you'll be impressed too. I've had the car six months now and only found one thing that could cause issues for the car in later life. There is a possible dirt trap behind the rear wheel, above of the suspension spring. Although the spring pocket does have a drain hole in the bottom, It's rather small, so could fill up with mud if not cleaned out regularly. This could then lead to rust further down the line if left unchecked. The car does come with a seven year warranty though, which is very reassuring.
My bad@BookyClockz I bought it in 2011. And it had the Toyota engine in it so it ran every bit of 275 but you're more than welcome to be skeptical if you choose.
The "Roewe Ei5" (which this is) got a 2021 facelift in China already, so the updated version will come to UK soon-ish. Not that I'd ever consider a EV (at least with current Battery tech) and frankly, I have no idea why people would spend 30k for something that's inferior to a 2k~ banger in almost every aspect. To be clear, I'm not hating on this car specifically, same applies to the competitors and double for Tesla after I once tried to get replacement parts for a customer's Model 3.
£2k banger argument works the same regardless of fuel. You could get a £2k well used 2005 Skoda Octavia Estate or £24k brand new 2022. Buying new you'll have the latest safety tech not from 17yrs ago. You'll have reliability and warranty meaning no hidden suprises 6mths after buying. Now why pay £30k (or £28k for the standard range) instead of buying that £24 new ICE Octavia, for this specifically it'll save you £2k+ a year on fuel Vs charging at home forgetting all the new tech like ACC and lane keep assist where it can steer and drive by itself
@@aaaa-ig6sc But what is the "new safety tech" ? Emergency Brake Assists for people that leave no safety gap, Lane Holding Assists for people which wobble across lanes like they're drunk or those stupid "Auto" Lights which are a diceroll weither or not you blind oncoming traffic (fantastic with Laser Light etc). and what not. My dad owns a car shop where I help out every now and then, so i got a decent idea about reliability and I can ensure you new-ish cars aren't more reliable. That said, I'd say in general ICE cars are very reliable as long as they are properly maintained, most older ones fail mainly because people cheap out on oil changes etc. I can't really compare EV and ICE running cost, since much of it involves local variables, but it's fair to say you save on fuel cost. I do wonder tough, where would you get Parts for the MG5 and at which price? Personally, I will never buy a EV with Lithium Batteries, I've seen two (Golf E and Tesla Model S) turn into fireworks spontanously so I'll surely not put such a thing in my garage.
@@MadIIMike saying you'll never buy a lithium battery based car is like saying you'll never own a phone or laptop just in case it catches fire. You'll have the slim 0.0001 whatever percent that's sold with serious defects. As for the safety tech a week after taking the lease a car pulled out of the road without looking, the onboard cameras and emergency braking reacted before I did and stopped the car with a metre spare, would have been a guaranteed t-bone and write off. The assist tech is actually very convenient once you've experienced decent auto main beam. Lane departure warning I turn off, but lane assist where it steers for you is ace. AAC on the motorway and lane keep on makes long journeys a breeze, you can toggle the distance you feel comfortable with.
@@aaaa-ig6sc If given a plausible alternative, I would not use a Phone with Li-Ion Battery. I can drive safely, I even go to racetracks every now and then. A car doing anything I do not ask it to do sounds like a bigger safety hazard than anything else for me. Also, people tend to get dumber the smarter their cars get IMO. Some "accidents" I've seen would have been classified as attempted suicide in the 90s.
To me they look identical except for the interior! The newer version looks like the old car with the front grill Louvres have been replaced by plastic otherwise all else on the exterior is the same
@@tonnyochieng118 This version is basically identical, but there is a newer facelift Ed model due. MG just haven’t confirmed if/when it’s coming to UK.
The soft suspension is probably a lot to do with the higher profile tyres. Everyone is going low profile nowadays in crossovers and suvs which makes zero sense from a comfort perspective. 100% form over function. This car is a breath of fresh air
I'm so glad you talked about the footwell depth, every other review seems to avoid the subject. The stress position seating position is a deal-breaker where everything else about the car would have been fine, but people looking at cars like this are probably considering environmental impact, which you might want to consider when recommending alternatives in the future.
I've been driving one for 7 months. Did 10k exactly. In my opinion this is the best family value for money EV available on the market right now If you need a decent range and practically this EV is for you. Yes it's not the prettiest car but it does the job. I actually made a video about it 😅😸
*MG is a corporation directly owned by the Chinese Military Dictatorship. The very same Chinese Military Dictatorship that CRUSHED DEMOCRACY in Hong Kong! And the very same Chinese Military Dictatorship that STILL hasn't condemned HEAD NAZI Putler's GENOCIDE in and MASS RAPE of UKRAINE!*
Nice review. Undoubtedly reasonable value for an EV and the upcoming facelift addresses some of the highlighted issues. Look out for the '7' year warranty as some suspension components, the infotainment and drivers aids are only covered for 3 years.
Took them ages to do a review of this car because its a cheap MG. Now they realised that a lot people actually do consider this car due to its good value and are interested to know more about it. They've become a bit of a brand snob rather than the original intent of carwow giving sensible buying advice.
the small wheels are one reason why the suspension is confy ! I’d be interested to know how it compare re noise with model 3 which is not know as the most silent of EV either ? Nice review !
I'm pretty certain the cynically rebadged, unreliable Austin and Rover hatchbacks in the '80s, '90s, and '00s did more to destroy the brand image and history of MG than the new Chinese-made cars could ever hope to.
VW have been in business for 100 years and lied about emissions. This MG company is very new and is already undercutting VW on price and overtaking them on range for EVs.
*MG is a corporation directly owned by the Chinese Military Dictatorship. The very same Chinese Military Dictatorship that CRUSHED DEMOCRACY in Hong Kong! And the very same Chinese Military Dictatorship that STILL hasn't condemned HEAD NAZI Putler's GENOCIDE in and MASS RAPE of UKRAINE!*
depends on the usage, while most model s' are at 90% or above in terms of battery health, the overall wear and tear, constant heating and cooling may cause some cells in the battery packs to stop functioning. In case of Tesla, they do not repair parts of the battery pack, they replace the entire battery pack even if a particular stack of cells have gone bad. Which is why it gets really expensive to get the car running if a few cells in the battery go bad. If mechanics are able to figure out how to replace individual cells when they go bad, these batteries could last a long while, but as of now they're really expensive to replace.
Good answer Thankyou! Everyone seems to shy away from the details and just wants to deal with the here and now! I understand that investment in the future of electric vehicles needs to be more than just selling them! 🧐
matt is really weird, he somtimes goes hard on some really good cars and with this piece of crap hes actually being very nice and barely criticizing anything
It's called managing your expectations. The 'really good' cars you're referring to don't live up to their price, while the MG5, which he admitted he wasn't expecting much from, managed to exceed his modest expectations.
You ain’t kidding for 29k saying it’s a piece of crap is being polite. To say it’s inexpensive is an insult to the majority of people who are driving around in sub 10k cars. I wouldn’t give it a look if it was 10 grand, it’s a pig.
It may have been worth mentioning, there's a new version coming out later in the year. It looks much better and has tackled some of the minor annoyances. It's probably worth waiting.
I had a test drive on one of these and I must say it the seat is the most uncomfortable seat I’ve ever sat in plus on the 6 month old demonstrator I drove so many bolts on it were rusted already!
