A well balanced review . The small number of faults highlighted are annoying but certainly not a deal breaker. The car is amazing value in comparison to other EV's. The sunroof is a very nice extra that the competition do not provide. I've had my MG for almost a year and love it.
im deffo going leaf 30 for could years till mg bit cheaper , just to expensive for me at mo. did have an env200 24kw but the range was no use for scotlands highlands
I loved my 2020 MG ZS EV, so was happy to exchange it for a 2022 long range version. I hate it. It is so glitchy, the seats are really uncomfortable, the radio just turns itself off so you go for hours in silence, I have a squeal on the break, it keeps coming up with service required, range isn't as long as it was supposed to be, the seats don't lie flat so I can't put my dog cage in, parcel shelf is like a piece of cardboard in the new version. I am really disappointed with it.
@@stevenmalam485 yes - even if your home charger is tethered you might find you want to use one when out and about. Destination chargers are a handy resource if you’re that little bit further from home and want to top up whilst you’re doing whatever you’re doing. A lot of Tesco car parks have them for example - free to use, but you need your own cable. Don’t buy the cable from MG though, they’re much cheaper online. Make sure it’s a 32A type 2 to type 2 cable and you’re good to go.
Sorry mate, you seem like a decent guy but this video title is a bit of click bait. It sometimes seems that all the motoring experts want to see MG fail, I wonder why.? I've had many new and secondhand cars and they all have their faults. This kind of video title just adds to the depreciation value of my car, I guess some people's glass is always half full.
Someone at work has one of these, albeit the Excite version. It has the most amazing houndstooth check seat trim this side of a late 1970s Fiesta. For that reason alone, I'm a fan :)
I think it is great that MG are providing good quality EVs that are priced reasonably so average people can choose EV. But man, I couldn't live with that infotainment system. Having a good system doesn't cost large amounts of money because its software not hardware. Software engineers have to be employed to write it either way. They need to hire some more. That system doesn't look like it was even written this century. It looks like it was knocked up on a Commodore 64.
It is all very well replacing traditional analog controls with a touch screen but make sure it works well. If not, then give me good old knobs and switches.
Im totally on the other side. I want this new yoke from Tesla with no levers or external knobs anymore. Remove all those nasty things. And i am waiting eagerly for the moment my car drives me to my customers and i can do something productive during the drive. Read Clever & Smart e.g.
Had mine for 6 months and done 6k miles. Only issue has been the parcel shelf clips - the design/quality is rubbish. But, a quick look on eBay and i got 8 new ones for £3. Took 5 days to come and they've been fine. Not the ones you had - they fit a bit easier. I even sent some to a fellow member of the MG Facebook forum. So, not really a problem. Everything else is fine. Don't know why other commenters think this review puts them off the MG. The range dipping in winter is true of all EVs. Radio is really good if you set it up properly. On efficiency we never get as low as 3m per kw. 3.5 in winter and 3.7 to 4 in summer seems typical for us - driving style and use of heaters impact...... as it will for all EVs. Thanks for the update though!
As someone really close to making the leap to EV ownership I find your videos really useful and balanced. I understand where you are coming from. Thank you. I really fancy a Niro but can’t see £10k plus worth if difference, so can I put up with the little niggles ?..
Very helpful video, thanks for your insights. Have been debating all through the lockdown(s) switching to all electric and this has helped me decide on the MG ZS EV. 👍🏼😉
My mum has had hers since boxing day 2019 (she calls it EVie) was one of the first 500. Its been fine over the last 13 months. Pennies to run, loads of kit, actually drives ok (really quick off the line) but too many bings and bongs and very, very plasticky.
The bongs can be rectified by having a dealer install the “Comfort 2” update - it’s a far nicer place to be with that sorted out. MG consider it an upgrade rather than a warranty issue so most dealers charge for it to be loaded onto older cars since they don’t get any manufacturer support for it. Some will do it for free or a reduced price at service time, mind.
I work for a company that runs a fleet of 30 cars, and we are forever replacing the parcel shelf clips on the cars, this has been the same for as long as I can remember, we have Skoda's currently, but have had other makes as well, with the same problem, so don't feel to bad about it.
Sorry mate seems like a nonsensical rant to me. I traded in my Peugeot 3008 for the MG. The sat nav was a tom tom but that had to be backed up by a subscription payment. The radio was as clunky as the MG and the settings were much more difficult to get to. The Skoda superb I had before that was just as bad as the 3008 and the Sat nav had the same delay when booting up but was nowhere near the same quality as the MG. "If you want a better infotainment system then go for the Kia Nero or the Tesla"!!!! are you willing to pay £10,000+ for an entertainment system? what system do you have in your house? I have a JVC but no way would I have a B&O.
I knew there would be responses like this - what I’m saying is that the refinement isn’t there, not that the car isn’t good value. I’ve driven all manner of cars with similarly specced infotainment and this one shows exactly where the cost/corner cutting has been. It is lacking in attention to detail, not core functionality.
Thanks for this - my parcel clip has just broken and I remembered I'd seen your video a few months ago so have just gone in search of it again. Is the replacement clip still OK and doing its job?
19:28 Im pleased to say my Tesla Model 3 (now 15 mths old) had none of the build quality problems though i know thats unfortunately not everyones experience. I came very close to buying the ZS EV, my car even arrived in the dealers (late due to software issues) and was offered to me after i had cancelled and ordered the Tesla. I certainly have no complaints about Tesla software but that comes at a price. Glad to hear the MG is serving you well.
We have a red ZS EV coming late this month and it will be garaged beside our Model 3 SR+ in country Victoria. Nothing beats the Tesla but for affordability out here nothing beats the MG. Zappi seems to be the biggest HPWC seller out here ........but do we actually need one ?
Thanks,just signed up with Octopus using your link. Personally,I would struggle with the MG, range, and dubious software, quality, and dealer back up, but it is compensated with the purchase price. I opted for a Kia, yes it is much more expensive but many new EV owners want the fantastic value the MG offers, time will tell where it fits in with the EV buying public. I do see quite a few around now.
Thanks John! 🙏. I agree that the MG isn’t for everyone - it is a good value package but it definitely isn’t for everyone and I’m not willing to say that it is, much to the displeasure of some.
Excellent video with honest appraisal. It does gripe me when some people gloss over the niggles even if they are pleased with the car overall. Btw how long is the charge cable provided with the MG please?
Good to get this update on living with it, thanks. I have to admit I was slightly sceptical when you bought this, based on brief experience of a dreadful early MG6 hire car. But based on yours they seem to have come a long way...even if there’s a still a bit of room for improvement.
@@ModernHeroes Be assured, the MG6 is a much better car than many here in the UK would have us believe when they first arrived ten years ago. I now have hands on experience of three MG6s. Yes, quite ordinary but then, most production cars are ordinary. I bought blind and unseen an MoT expired MG6 Top Spec TSE GT ( hatch ) 84,000 miles for peanuts from the previous owner. He was professionally advised his car would need a four figure sum at least to get through the next MoT. I bought it with the intention of using the engine as a donor for a UK built MG. Soon discovered far too good to break. £200 and a few hours TLC later, test passed. I now have a car which is surprisingly good. Just about everything electric except power plant. Much better than I could have hoped. Low 30s mpg NOT driven for economy.
Thanks for this - my daughter is thinking of getting one of these so I'll pass the video on. PS - Looking forward to the next Panda video, have you got any further with it?
My brother took delivery just before Xmas of a MG HS PHEV Exclusive, and for the normal list price of 33k represents a hell of a lot of car for the money, even from the overall quality prospective with many motoring magazines describing it as feeling like a much more expensive car. And considering he paid a bit over £26,000 makes it the absolute bargain of the year! However, and from looking on the internet he is not alone with issues re the Infotainment system, in that it keeps on crashing and resetting. His car is booked in at a local MG dealer in a week or so for the issue to be looked at, and when you mentioned Infotainment I did wonder if you too had similar problems. In terms of these systems in general from my some twenty years experience of owning cars with various generations and versions, it seems to me it doesn't matter what the car costs or what badge is on the bonnet as to how good of bad a driver will find the operation. You could spend a half a million pounds on a fully specced Rolls Royce Phantom, and get a broadly similar, in essence to the IMO awful BMW derived IDrive based disaster that they fit in everything from a cheap BMW to a Mini! Famously Jaguar Land Rover had an absolute nightmare some five years ago when they launched their 'In touch control pro' Infotainment package which almost single handedly sent Jaguar reliability from almost at the top to almost the bottom of the JD Power reliability surveys of the time. Speaking from my experience of the two cars I own now - a DS3 (3 Door old gen model) bought new in 2018, and a Maserati Ghibli bought new in 2015. The system in the French car is derived from a system originally and not surprisingly sourced from Citroen, who in turn sourced it from an Italian electronics vehicle supplier - Marelli, and although the system has been updated for my generation of car with different screen displays, it's fundamentally pretty unintuitive and the Sat Nav from the prospective of destination entry somewhere between difficult and downright garbage. All that said over time I have got used to its 'perculiarities' and even though the car has Apple car play, thanks to a combination of Siri and the controls round the steering wheel I persevere with it. The Maserati uses a system derived from Chrysler's 'Uconnect' albeit adapted to appear like Maserati own system called 'MTC'. Its far from being the most sophisticated, but uses a Garmin Sat Nav interface, and whilst it doesn't have the fancy animated graphics of a system from perhaps a similar priced Mercedes it's dead easy and simple to use, and in five and a half years has always worked without any lag or issue. Whilst this system may be fitted in a Maserati, it's broadly similar to that you would find on any Chrysler/Jeep product with a much lower list price. So the point of this long and rambling comment is, as I say, it doesn't matter what brand of car you buy and at what price, the Infotainment system and its effectiveness is based on many factors outside of where the car was manufactured including China, and what the list price of that car was. Given your concern as to where and who designed the infotainment in your MG ZS, imagine your shock if you had bought a Rolls Royce only to find the basis of the system was the same as you would find in a Mini, and as a result pretty rubbish to use!
Great video, it is refreshing to listen to a real user, I am tempted to buy one, just need to persuade Mrs. It would be good to hire one for a week so I could try it out. Anyhow, thanks for the video
I would perhaps change the title, as it is misleading and puts people off from considering purchasing one. It’s like saying that a building will collapse when you have a bit of cement that is crumbling.
Love my MG ZS EV. Stops you getting bored, with lots to learn. Octopus Go Faster can be 4.5p to 5.5p, 3 to 5 hours starting 8.30pm or half hour increments. Have fun.
I'm thinking about getting another EV and am considering the MG ZS EV. It's great for the price, but it's missing some features I really like on my Leaf Tekna, so I'm holding fire at the moment to see what 2021/22 brings. If all you have to worry about on you MG are the things you've mentioned it's no big deal in my opinion.
Exactly my point, thank you. It lacks a little in refinement but if you can put up with that, the cost versus spec and performance definitely checks out.
Service departments are fully open so all you needed to do was ring up and get the clip ordered for free. No way I pay for anything that needs replacing under warranty and technically you have invalidated the warranty by using non standard parts.
Gutted that the parcel shelf doesn’t have a warranty any more. There’s no way it was worth bothering the dealer for, not least of all because they’d no doubt have wanted to see it first!
As I said, service departments are operating normally and it’s the cars warranty you invalidated. They will use any excuse not to fix something expensive
Certainly is - I imagine the rapid charger there is quite busy though because there’s not loads in the area. The 7kW posts are welcome too - quite a few stores in the area with those now.
Really helpful vid, thank you. We run 2 ICE vehicles at the mo and when my van dies the next will def be electric. Choice would be between a leased Niro or a ZS bought outright. Given the iffy infotainment and the fact that it has to be improved, I'm reluctantly leaning towards leasing.
I'm amazed at all the high tech features you get on such a cheap car, you normally only find these things on cars costing twice the price, no wonder they are so popular
Well, I had a 22kwh Zoe with owned battery and changed to a Kia Soul EV with the 30kwh battery on an 18 plate. Very tempted by the latest Soul EV but think I will pass on the MG. Looks like value though.
How strange? Mine came with the comfort 2 update and l had a further BMS update in September but l can't ac charge with the car unlocked?? But having said that it's a good package for the price. What l don't understand is why if SIAC went to the trouble of fitting an air conditioning unit why didn't they spend another 20 quid and install a heat pump? since the resistance heater reduces winter range by about 10% which is quite a lot on an already limited range. Anyhow send my love to wee Jimmy Mc Sturgeon. ☺️😉
It’s an odd one that - you’re not the first person I’ve seen say they’ve had the latest updates yet still can’t charge when unlocked. Definitely seems to be inconsistency in this area from MG and their dealers 🤔
Depends how discounted we’re talking - I’ve seen pre-reg delivery mileage cars for £20,500 so it would need to be a fair bit cheaper than that still to appeal.
Interesting to see how you’re getting on with it. Not an EV fan TBH, but happy to experience your joys and woes along the way. How’s the bargain basement EV going?
I’ve got the charger refurbished and ready to go back on. Really need to charge all twelve lead acid batteries fully before I put it back together though, so they’re balanced!
heavy handed scotsman :D - surprised the clip broke usually its the string - seeing as you never touch the clip - thought the rav had gone long time ago?
Agreed - I’ve never seen a failure like that but the clips are very flimsy. Rav is a bit of a sore subject - sale fell through so it’s just sat around since 🙄
I would recommend the Kia e Niro 2 with the 32 kw battery. The price difference is about £5000 on a pcp or a lease the payments wouldn’t be that far apart. The Kia is much better built and will hold it’s value better and the dealer network is larger. I myself have the Kia e niro 4 with the 64 kw battery along with the bigger motor and love the car.
Seems to be almost as much an issue for current Skodas as it is for MG - only other brand I seem to be hearing it for! You’re right though, it’s not a big deal, just frustrating!
Vic Young in South Shields are selling this spec for £20,500 pre-reg (and the lesser spec Excite for £18,950). I paid £22k for this one brand new unregistered and could’ve had an Excite for £20k at the time.
Not really that much into SUV but the MG ZS EV - or the many reviews of it on RUclips - got my attention and I ponder trading my Renault Zoe R90ZE40 for a top-trim MG ZS EV. The infotainment gets bad marks in every review I've seen so far (except for one perhaps) and indeed reminds me of one of those units I got on eBay for my former Smart 451 to bring multimedia, free-hands phone and sat nav to the car. It was cheap and kind of awful (based on Windows CE) and I even had to get the nav software on ebay (i-go 8 or some such). I was quickly reminded of this when I noticed the "launch time" required to bring up the navigation function on the MG ZS EV - quite similar to what I had back then. Ok, using Apple CarPlay would be new to me because the Zoe lacks both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, so I know this only from hearsay. Given that the brand MG is a new brand - despite SAIC being a auto maker for quite a long time - I wonder what the long-term quality of the car will be. Overall finish and build quality is supposedly good, like panel gaps and so. More important to me would be its resistance to corrosion and the durability of parts like shocks, control arms, electrical wiring and connections and so on. If I get me one of these MG ZS EV, I'll probably lease the car for three years and give it back. Other things that I find a bit disappointing is single-phase AC charger and - according to other RUclipsrs - somewhat unpredictable DC charging speed. So yes, I think I'll go and enjoy some other videos from your collection about this car as I'm really interested in owner's opinion / experience versus probably paid opinions often to be found when a brand and / or new vehicle is introduced to the market. Thanks for this honest review (the "falling apart" was limited to that clip :-) )
Lets see how they hold up in Aussi conditions. I think I would go for a 2nd hand Kona or Ioniq. 2014 Tesla Model S here with 290000km on the clock, which hold up very well. But great to see something affordable appearing on the market.
@@moestrei Model S, nice. How many kms are you getting from the battery after almost 300,000kms? I see Model S's come up occasionally on the 2nd hand car market (actually test drove one 2 years ago but didn't go ahead with the purchase in the end) but they are still fairly pricey and I do wonder about those 7 year old batteries.
@@yggdrasil9039 Depends on the speed and conditions (i live in hot and hilly inland) but its around 355km. Bought it 8 months ago for $50k. Drives and looks almost like new inside / out. I was told this car (P85+ Signature) is the first Tesla officially registered in Australia.
@@moestrei I know that car. I saw it on the web for a long time and was dreaming that $60k would somehow magically appear in my bank account so I could buy it. Wow congratulations, you got a good price too. 355km range is pretty awesome for 50k. Better than a brand new Ionic which costs $53k and does 311km. I was watching another Model S on car sales for $61k recently but I think it just got sold as it's disappeared. That also looked like an awesome car. Great for longer trips as it's very roomy inside. Less good for narrower streets in Sydney though. The design of the Model S I think is the best out of all the Teslas.
The prices of ev’s still making me mad. They want everybody to be green and electric. But they ask ridiculous prices for the most normal cars. If they want average families to stepping over to the ev word than do something with those stupid prices
I don't know what kind of RUclips reviewers you've been watching but I've never heard anyone talk about trying to plug their EV into their pubic region, nor do I think it would be ideal for anyone! :O
You bought it? Dude electric cars are so much better between generations. Especially at the lower end. I'm leasing my facelift Ioniq for 310 a month average over 2 years 12k miles per year. Octopus even gave me 8000 miles of electric free.
@@ModernHeroes do you remember when smartphones came out and the difference between an iPhone 4 and a. 3gs was a vast? That's electric cars at the moment.
@@ModernHeroes I kept my ZS for a year and a bit and moved over to Honda. both are not EV. I was very unhappy with my dealer experience with MG. When i asked them to put a clip on at its first service they said the car has to be booked in for a whole day to do that and sticky door handles. As there is only one dealer in the Southampton are. I decided to change cars. As i could see problems ahead if a clip and sticky door handles needed an all day job, meaning i have to waste a day in Southampton, when it could of been done while serviced as requested a month before service . The attitude of the sour faced customer service guy did not help.
@@JoePeddie some of the dealers are definitely leaving a lot to be desired. Not the first person I’ve heard had bad experiences in Southampton sadly. Looks like I’m a bit better served in the Midlands, but it’s a sorry state of affairs if you’re lumbered with the useless ones.
@@ModernHeroes I would of kept it for 3 years and moved to an EV, but that was not to be. I have a Civic 1.0 SR. Loads of kit brand new and got it for £17800, Same sort of price but a far better looking car, better build quality , more kit and it has a bigger boot, that has come in handy. Yesterday i managed to get a 3 seater outside bench in it. Plus i have a dealer on my door step in the New Forest that has a very good reputation. I got my car from Reading brand new and registered it with my local dealer
@@JoePeddie rented one of those Civics not so long ago, it was pretty good! I don’t think the ICE ZS looks like particularly good value for money versus the competition, if I’m honest.
over £5 for a tiny bit of plastic i do better mileage than you 3 is dam poor my ioniq 28kwh can do more miles than your 50 kwh one. there are ev vans that do better. in miles. how about rust the petrol version if this car has high amount of rust and there was a poll on mg zs ev site. if you take it the battery and drive train are made by some on else that have higher standards so there off the shelve items not made by MG
It's the overriding reason I would not buy one of these cars. I have zero confidence in Chinese build quality......... the residuals will be a shocker too, most likely.
How is this car fairing after 9 months and over 6000 miles? New update here: m.ruclips.net/video/IhhrCKqr7g4/видео.html
A well balanced review . The small number of faults highlighted are annoying but certainly not a deal breaker. The car is amazing value in comparison to other EV's. The sunroof is a very nice extra that the competition do not provide. I've had my MG for almost a year and love it.
im deffo going leaf 30 for could years till mg bit cheaper , just to expensive for me at mo. did have an env200 24kw but the range was no use for scotlands highlands
I loved my 2020 MG ZS EV, so was happy to exchange it for a 2022 long range version. I hate it. It is so glitchy, the seats are really uncomfortable, the radio just turns itself off so you go for hours in silence, I have a squeal on the break, it keeps coming up with service required, range isn't as long as it was supposed to be, the seats don't lie flat so I can't put my dog cage in, parcel shelf is like a piece of cardboard in the new version. I am really disappointed with it.
That’s our lovely Scottish weather for you
One of my parcel shelf clips just broke, thanks for the eBay link, saves me buying wrong size.
👌- can confirm the new one is holding up well!
Thanks for you your video. Can you please advise on where I can get MG ZS EV shelf clips?
There’s a link in the description to an eBay listing for the compatible clips I use in this video. Highly recommend them.
I have mine ordered for the end of March, your videos have been absolutely fantastic. Made me realise I made the right choice.
Glad to hear it - you’ll love it I’m sure!
Would you recommend buying a charging cable? I’m having a home charger installed at home, is there any need of a separate cable
@@stevenmalam485 yes - even if your home charger is tethered you might find you want to use one when out and about. Destination chargers are a handy resource if you’re that little bit further from home and want to top up whilst you’re doing whatever you’re doing. A lot of Tesco car parks have them for example - free to use, but you need your own cable. Don’t buy the cable from MG though, they’re much cheaper online. Make sure it’s a 32A type 2 to type 2 cable and you’re good to go.
"Goes in the hole, takes a bit of force to get it in. Going to need two hands I think"
Story of my life.
Sorry mate, you seem like a decent guy but this video title is a bit of click bait. It sometimes seems that all the motoring experts want to see MG fail, I wonder why.? I've had many new and secondhand cars and they all have their faults. This kind of video title just adds to the depreciation value of my car, I guess some people's glass is always half full.
Someone at work has one of these, albeit the Excite version. It has the most amazing houndstooth check seat trim this side of a late 1970s Fiesta. For that reason alone, I'm a fan :)
I LOVE the Excite seats! Would definitely have had them over the pleather if I didn’t want the other stuff that the Exclusive comes with.
With the broken clip you mentioned. Does that mean you now have an annoying bit of plastic rattling around in the bootlid?
Yes - but it doesn’t appear to have made itself known as of yet. Heard it when it broke, but it must have lodged itself somewhere.
I assume I’d be able to get it out by taking the trim off the inside and fishing around.
I think it is great that MG are providing good quality EVs that are priced reasonably so average people can choose EV. But man, I couldn't live with that infotainment system. Having a good system doesn't cost large amounts of money because its software not hardware. Software engineers have to be employed to write it either way. They need to hire some more. That system doesn't look like it was even written this century. It looks like it was knocked up on a Commodore 64.
EXACTLY! CarPlay takes the pain away for the most part though.
It is all very well replacing traditional analog controls with a touch screen but make sure it works well. If not, then give me good old knobs and switches.
💯💯💯💯💯
Im totally on the other side. I want this new yoke from Tesla with no levers or external knobs anymore.
Remove all those nasty things. And i am waiting eagerly for the moment my car
drives me to my customers and i can do something productive during the drive.
Read Clever & Smart e.g.
Had mine for 6 months and done 6k miles. Only issue has been the parcel shelf clips - the design/quality is rubbish. But, a quick look on eBay and i got 8 new ones for £3. Took 5 days to come and they've been fine. Not the ones you had - they fit a bit easier. I even sent some to a fellow member of the MG Facebook forum. So, not really a problem. Everything else is fine. Don't know why other commenters think this review puts them off the MG. The range dipping in winter is true of all EVs. Radio is really good if you set it up properly. On efficiency we never get as low as 3m per kw. 3.5 in winter and 3.7 to 4 in summer seems typical for us - driving style and use of heaters impact...... as it will for all EVs. Thanks for the update though!
I’ve got a bit of a track record for poor fuel consumption 😂 so that’s not surprising. Thanks for watching.
Thanks for giving a true reflection of how things are with your MG instead of the usual BS.
As someone really close to making the leap to EV ownership I find your videos really useful and balanced. I understand where you are coming from. Thank you. I really fancy a Niro but can’t see £10k plus worth if difference, so can I put up with the little niggles ?..
That’s exactly what you need to ask yourself. I’m still happy with my ZS EV as is, it represents decent value.
1500 miles I wish only done about 1200 in 4 months do to you know what .Great car for the money.
Very helpful video, thanks for your insights. Have been debating all through the lockdown(s) switching to all electric and this has helped me decide on the MG ZS EV.
👍🏼😉
My mum has had hers since boxing day 2019 (she calls it EVie) was one of the first 500. Its been fine over the last 13 months. Pennies to run, loads of kit, actually drives ok (really quick off the line) but too many bings and bongs and very, very plasticky.
The bongs can be rectified by having a dealer install the “Comfort 2” update - it’s a far nicer place to be with that sorted out. MG consider it an upgrade rather than a warranty issue so most dealers charge for it to be loaded onto older cars since they don’t get any manufacturer support for it. Some will do it for free or a reduced price at service time, mind.
I work for a company that runs a fleet of 30 cars, and we are forever replacing the parcel shelf clips on the cars, this has been the same for as long as I can remember, we have Skoda's currently, but have had other makes as well, with the same problem, so don't feel to bad about it.
Second person I’ve seen mention Skoda in relation to this issue - I’ve honestly never seen it before on any make or model.
Same issue with my wife's Peugeot. Plus the parcel is that light it could be balsa wood.
Sorry mate seems like a nonsensical rant to me. I traded in my Peugeot 3008 for the MG. The sat nav was a tom tom but that had to be backed up by a subscription payment. The radio was as clunky as the MG and the settings were much more difficult to get to. The Skoda superb I had before that was just as bad as the 3008 and the Sat nav had the same delay when booting up but was nowhere near the same quality as the MG. "If you want a better infotainment system then go for the Kia Nero or the Tesla"!!!! are you willing to pay £10,000+ for an entertainment system? what system do you have in your house? I have a JVC but no way would I have a B&O.
I knew there would be responses like this - what I’m saying is that the refinement isn’t there, not that the car isn’t good value. I’ve driven all manner of cars with similarly specced infotainment and this one shows exactly where the cost/corner cutting has been. It is lacking in attention to detail, not core functionality.
Thanks for this - my parcel clip has just broken and I remembered I'd seen your video a few months ago so have just gone in search of it again. Is the replacement clip still OK and doing its job?
Certainly is! They’re far stronger than the original, definitely still much recommended.
@@ModernHeroes Many thanks - just ordered on ebay.
19:28 Im pleased to say my Tesla Model 3 (now 15 mths old) had none of the build quality problems though i know thats unfortunately not everyones experience. I came very close to buying the ZS EV, my car even arrived in the dealers (late due to software issues) and was offered to me after i had cancelled and ordered the Tesla. I certainly have no complaints about Tesla software but that comes at a price. Glad to hear the MG is serving you well.
We have a red ZS EV coming late this month and it will be garaged beside our Model 3 SR+ in country Victoria.
Nothing beats the Tesla but for affordability out here nothing beats the MG.
Zappi seems to be the biggest HPWC seller out here ........but do we actually need one ?
I use OHME charger has built in timer ideal for octopus go
Can I ask, if you haven't got off road parking, how do you charge at home?
The road outside my house is private and I’m allowed to park pretty much right outside the front door, so charging isn’t an issue.
Thanks,just signed up with Octopus using your link. Personally,I would struggle with the MG, range, and dubious software, quality, and dealer back up, but it is compensated with the purchase price. I opted for a Kia, yes it is much more expensive but many new EV owners want the fantastic value the MG offers, time will tell where it fits in with the EV buying public. I do see quite a few around now.
Thanks John! 🙏. I agree that the MG isn’t for everyone - it is a good value package but it definitely isn’t for everyone and I’m not willing to say that it is, much to the displeasure of some.
Excellent video with honest appraisal. It does gripe me when some people gloss over the niggles even if they are pleased with the car overall. Btw how long is the charge cable provided with the MG please?
The 3 pin charger? I couldn’t tell you to be honest, have only used it once. Maybe 3-4 metres? Certainly not terribly long.
@@ModernHeroes yes, thanks.
Good to get this update on living with it, thanks. I have to admit I was slightly sceptical when you bought this, based on brief experience of a dreadful early MG6 hire car. But based on yours they seem to have come a long way...even if there’s a still a bit of room for improvement.
Haven’t had the pleasure* of a MG6 - I’ll definitely buy an awful sub £1000 one at some point though.
@@ModernHeroes Be assured, the MG6 is a much better car than many here in the UK would have us believe when they first arrived ten years ago. I now have hands on experience of three MG6s. Yes, quite ordinary but then, most production cars are ordinary.
I bought blind and unseen an MoT expired MG6 Top Spec TSE GT ( hatch ) 84,000 miles for peanuts from the previous owner. He was professionally advised his car would need a four figure sum at least to get through the next MoT. I bought it with the intention of using the engine as a donor for a UK built MG. Soon discovered far too good to break. £200 and a few hours TLC later, test passed. I now have a car which is surprisingly good. Just about everything electric except power plant. Much better than I could have hoped. Low 30s mpg NOT driven for economy.
Thanks for this - my daughter is thinking of getting one of these so I'll pass the video on.
PS - Looking forward to the next Panda video, have you got any further with it?
I have a pile of Panda bits ready to make some progress, just need some time! Keen to get on though.
if you look for an ev ioniq 28 does better than an ev you can buy any second hand
Really interesting. Thanks!
My brother took delivery just before Xmas of a MG HS PHEV Exclusive, and for the normal list price of 33k represents a hell of a lot of car for the money, even from the overall quality prospective with many motoring magazines describing it as feeling like a much more expensive car. And considering he paid a bit over £26,000 makes it the absolute bargain of the year! However, and from looking on the internet he is not alone with issues re the Infotainment system, in that it keeps on crashing and resetting. His car is booked in at a local MG dealer in a week or so for the issue to be looked at, and when you mentioned Infotainment I did wonder if you too had similar problems.
In terms of these systems in general from my some twenty years experience of owning cars with various generations and versions, it seems to me it doesn't matter what the car costs or what badge is on the bonnet as to how good of bad a driver will find the operation. You could spend a half a million pounds on a fully specced Rolls Royce Phantom, and get a broadly similar, in essence to the IMO awful BMW derived IDrive based disaster that they fit in everything from a cheap BMW to a Mini!
Famously Jaguar Land Rover had an absolute nightmare some five years ago when they launched their 'In touch control pro' Infotainment package which almost single handedly sent Jaguar reliability from almost at the top to almost the bottom of the JD Power reliability surveys of the time.
Speaking from my experience of the two cars I own now - a DS3 (3 Door old gen model) bought new in 2018, and a Maserati Ghibli bought new in 2015. The system in the French car is derived from a system originally and not surprisingly sourced from Citroen, who in turn sourced it from an Italian electronics vehicle supplier - Marelli, and although the system has been updated for my generation of car with different screen displays, it's fundamentally pretty unintuitive and the Sat Nav from the prospective of destination entry somewhere between difficult and downright garbage. All that said over time I have got used to its 'perculiarities' and even though the car has Apple car play, thanks to a combination of Siri and the controls round the steering wheel I persevere with it.
The Maserati uses a system derived from Chrysler's 'Uconnect' albeit adapted to appear like Maserati own system called 'MTC'. Its far from being the most sophisticated, but uses a Garmin Sat Nav interface, and whilst it doesn't have the fancy animated graphics of a system from perhaps a similar priced Mercedes it's dead easy and simple to use, and in five and a half years has always worked without any lag or issue. Whilst this system may be fitted in a Maserati, it's broadly similar to that you would find on any Chrysler/Jeep product with a much lower list price. So the point of this long and rambling comment is, as I say, it doesn't matter what brand of car you buy and at what price, the Infotainment system and its effectiveness is based on many factors outside of where the car was manufactured including China, and what the list price of that car was.
Given your concern as to where and who designed the infotainment in your MG ZS, imagine your shock if you had bought a Rolls Royce only to find the basis of the system was the same as you would find in a Mini, and as a result pretty rubbish to use!
Great video, it is refreshing to listen to a real user, I am tempted to buy one, just need to persuade Mrs.
It would be good to hire one for a week so I could try it out. Anyhow, thanks for the video
I would perhaps change the title, as it is misleading and puts people off from considering purchasing one. It’s like saying that a building will collapse when you have a bit of cement that is crumbling.
So how many more issues will you need to deal with in the future.
How long is a piece of string?
Nice video. That quick solution was so awesome.
Love my MG ZS EV. Stops you getting bored, with lots to learn. Octopus Go Faster can be 4.5p to 5.5p, 3 to 5 hours starting 8.30pm or half hour increments. Have fun.
I'm thinking about getting another EV and am considering the MG ZS EV. It's great for the price, but it's missing some features I really like on my Leaf Tekna, so I'm holding fire at the moment to see what 2021/22 brings. If all you have to worry about on you MG are the things you've mentioned it's no big deal in my opinion.
Exactly my point, thank you. It lacks a little in refinement but if you can put up with that, the cost versus spec and performance definitely checks out.
Thanks for the update.
Service departments are fully open so all you needed to do was ring up and get the clip ordered for free.
No way I pay for anything that needs replacing under warranty and technically you have invalidated the warranty by using non standard parts.
Gutted that the parcel shelf doesn’t have a warranty any more. There’s no way it was worth bothering the dealer for, not least of all because they’d no doubt have wanted to see it first!
As I said, service departments are operating normally and it’s the cars warranty you invalidated. They will use any excuse not to fix something expensive
@@stevenmoran4060 not even MG are stupid enough to try that one on.
i have octypus go to, absolutely brilliant . i heat the water and storage heaters on it and my electric car once i get one :)
I live near the Tesco in Cheltenham, not getting my EV until next week. Good to hear that Tesco is a good Pod Point charger.
Certainly is - I imagine the rapid charger there is quite busy though because there’s not loads in the area. The 7kW posts are welcome too - quite a few stores in the area with those now.
I'm confused...shouldn't the car be more efficient in the cold? The engine is cooled with more efficiency? Yeah, not sure.....
It’s all about the battery chemistry rather than being related to the performance of the motor.
Really helpful vid, thank you. We run 2 ICE vehicles at the mo and when my van dies the next will def be electric. Choice would be between a leased Niro or a ZS bought outright. Given the iffy infotainment and the fact that it has to be improved, I'm reluctantly leaning towards leasing.
soon you will start to use binary...
@@mach3k3000 Hi, "binary"?...... sorry I'm a bit slow today.
I'm amazed at all the high tech features you get on such a cheap car, you normally only find these things on cars costing twice the price, no wonder they are so popular
It’s certainly well equipped for the money, no doubt about it!
Well, I had a 22kwh Zoe with owned battery and changed to a Kia Soul EV with the 30kwh battery on an 18 plate. Very tempted by the latest Soul EV but think I will pass on the MG. Looks like value though.
Great update, good to hear the real life usage range especially with the cold weather effecting it
How strange? Mine came with the comfort 2 update and l had a further BMS update in September but l can't ac charge with the car unlocked?? But having said that it's a good package for the price. What l don't understand is why if SIAC went to the trouble of fitting an air conditioning unit why didn't they spend another 20 quid and install a heat pump? since the resistance heater reduces winter range by about 10% which is quite a lot on an already limited range. Anyhow send my love to wee Jimmy Mc Sturgeon. ☺️😉
It’s an odd one that - you’re not the first person I’ve seen say they’ve had the latest updates yet still can’t charge when unlocked. Definitely seems to be inconsistency in this area from MG and their dealers 🤔
O Dear, WINGING JOCK , yet Again
Oh dear, illiterate prick in the comments, yet again 🙄
Do you recommend a decently discounted 5k demo?
Depends how discounted we’re talking - I’ve seen pre-reg delivery mileage cars for £20,500 so it would need to be a fair bit cheaper than that still to appeal.
A single plastic clip breaking!!!!!
OMG, I'll cross the MG ZS off my to buy list.
Nice update, cheers.
Interesting to see how you’re getting on with it. Not an EV fan TBH, but happy to experience your joys and woes along the way. How’s the bargain basement EV going?
I’ve got the charger refurbished and ready to go back on. Really need to charge all twelve lead acid batteries fully before I put it back together though, so they’re balanced!
@@ModernHeroes excellent, looking forward to seeing it back on the road. Maybe do a back to back comparison with the MG? 🤔😁
heavy handed scotsman :D - surprised the clip broke usually its the string - seeing as you never touch the clip - thought the rav had gone long time ago?
Agreed - I’ve never seen a failure like that but the clips are very flimsy. Rav is a bit of a sore subject - sale fell through so it’s just sat around since 🙄
@@brianstevenson9967 they’re really very similar to the originals, so that says more about MG’s design than anything I reckon 😂
Thanks for the update. Pick mine up next week and i cant wait to start my ev life. Seems like bargain to me. Your reviews have helped my decision.
Thanks Angus - I hope you’ve seen my 9 month review now, you’ve made a good choice though I reckon! 👌
I would recommend the Kia e Niro 2 with the 32 kw battery. The price difference is about £5000 on a pcp or a lease the payments wouldn’t be that far apart. The Kia is much better built and will hold it’s value better and the dealer network is larger. I myself have the Kia e niro 4 with the 64 kw battery along with the bigger motor and love the car.
you might want to put a spot of grease as this will stop you scrapping the paint off, and will rust proof if you do
I've had the same problem with my Skoda Fabia after 6 months (no biggy)
Seems to be almost as much an issue for current Skodas as it is for MG - only other brand I seem to be hearing it for! You’re right though, it’s not a big deal, just frustrating!
I just spat my drink out... Problems aside, your car was only £20k new? I thought these were upwards of £25k new
Vic Young in South Shields are selling this spec for £20,500 pre-reg (and the lesser spec Excite for £18,950). I paid £22k for this one brand new unregistered and could’ve had an Excite for £20k at the time.
Not really that much into SUV but the MG ZS EV - or the many reviews of it on RUclips - got my attention and I ponder trading my Renault Zoe R90ZE40 for a top-trim MG ZS EV. The infotainment gets bad marks in every review I've seen so far (except for one perhaps) and indeed reminds me of one of those units I got on eBay for my former Smart 451 to bring multimedia, free-hands phone and sat nav to the car. It was cheap and kind of awful (based on Windows CE) and I even had to get the nav software on ebay (i-go 8 or some such). I was quickly reminded of this when I noticed the "launch time" required to bring up the navigation function on the MG ZS EV - quite similar to what I had back then. Ok, using Apple CarPlay would be new to me because the Zoe lacks both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, so I know this only from hearsay. Given that the brand MG is a new brand - despite SAIC being a auto maker for quite a long time - I wonder what the long-term quality of the car will be. Overall finish and build quality is supposedly good, like panel gaps and so. More important to me would be its resistance to corrosion and the durability of parts like shocks, control arms, electrical wiring and connections and so on. If I get me one of these MG ZS EV, I'll probably lease the car for three years and give it back. Other things that I find a bit disappointing is single-phase AC charger and - according to other RUclipsrs - somewhat unpredictable DC charging speed. So yes, I think I'll go and enjoy some other videos from your collection about this car as I'm really interested in owner's opinion / experience versus probably paid opinions often to be found when a brand and / or new vehicle is introduced to the market. Thanks for this honest review (the "falling apart" was limited to that clip :-) )
This is by far the cheapest EV in Australia, just arrived at the end of 2020. That and it being an SUV means it should sell pretty well this year.
Definitely. As I say in my video, it represents good value. They’re selling well over here too!
Lets see how they hold up in Aussi conditions. I think I would go for a 2nd hand Kona or Ioniq. 2014 Tesla Model S here with 290000km on the clock, which hold up very well. But great to see something affordable appearing on the market.
@@moestrei Model S, nice. How many kms are you getting from the battery after almost 300,000kms? I see Model S's come up occasionally on the 2nd hand car market (actually test drove one 2 years ago but didn't go ahead with the purchase in the end) but they are still fairly pricey and I do wonder about those 7 year old batteries.
@@yggdrasil9039 Depends on the speed and conditions (i live in hot and hilly inland) but its around 355km. Bought it 8 months ago for $50k. Drives and looks almost like new inside / out. I was told this car (P85+ Signature) is the first Tesla officially registered in Australia.
@@moestrei I know that car. I saw it on the web for a long time and was dreaming that $60k would somehow magically appear in my bank account so I could buy it. Wow congratulations, you got a good price too. 355km range is pretty awesome for 50k. Better than a brand new Ionic which costs $53k and does 311km. I was watching another Model S on car sales for $61k recently but I think it just got sold as it's disappeared. That also looked like an awesome car. Great for longer trips as it's very roomy inside. Less good for narrower streets in Sydney though. The design of the Model S I think is the best out of all the Teslas.
Wrong about the e-Niro. The e-niro 39kWh is the equivalent mileage of the MG zs. That is around £5000 more.
Didn’t even know there was a smaller battery version - cheapest new/nearly new on Autotrader is £29,595 though.
Or you can get 64kwh model for as low as 24-25k now with not a lot of miles...
@@paulf3353 where? None on Autotrader at that kind of money anywhere in the country.
@@ModernHeroes AH sorry, I mixed with kona 64kwh, which is pretty much same thing
MG evs are nice but quality must maintain then consumers would be satisfied.
Rubber trim mallet is the recommended tool
20.000? Here they cost 30.000 35.000 and a private lease prive of 450 per month.
The prices of ev’s still making me mad. They want everybody to be green and electric. But they ask ridiculous prices for the most normal cars. If they want average families to stepping over to the ev word than do something with those stupid prices
Its not as clunky to use as the Toyota Rav4 system. So i thing people get hung up to much on in car infotainment,
I wish i had a cd player in my rav4
Some one on youtube has found rust on their MG ZS Ev under the front
floor
I can't understand the focus that RUclips reviewers put on finding the ideal pubic charging conditions. When is life ever ideal?
I don't know what kind of RUclips reviewers you've been watching but I've never heard anyone talk about trying to plug their EV into their pubic region, nor do I think it would be ideal for anyone! :O
Falling apart seems a bit harsh
You bought it?
Dude electric cars are so much better between generations. Especially at the lower end.
I'm leasing my facelift Ioniq for 310 a month average over 2 years 12k miles per year. Octopus even gave me 8000 miles of electric free.
Whatever works for you - leasing doesn’t work for me, so I’m quite happy.
@@ModernHeroes do you remember when smartphones came out and the difference between an iPhone 4 and a. 3gs was a vast?
That's electric cars at the moment.
Looks like you live in Insworth.
I don't but thanks for this ever so slightly creepy observation 😳
@@ModernHeroes Sorry that should have been Longford.
Still no, still weird.
It's true you can pay £15000 more for a better infotainment system. 🙄
Guess you didn’t actually pay much attention to what I was saying but ok.
Plastic clip broke!!car falling apart!!!wow headline news
5 mins of my life ill never get back
Excellent. Glad to have had an impact.
Tomorrow wake up five mins early
Two days my ZS parcel shelf clip broke
It’s a pain isn’t it! The clips I used seem significantly stronger (despite being cheaper!)
@@ModernHeroes
I kept my ZS for a year and a bit and moved over to Honda. both are not EV.
I was very unhappy with my dealer experience with MG. When i asked them to put a clip on at its first service they said the car has to be booked in for a whole day to do that and sticky door handles. As there is only one dealer in the Southampton are. I decided to change cars. As i could see problems ahead if a clip and sticky door handles needed an all day job, meaning i have to waste a day in Southampton, when it could of been done while serviced as requested a month before service . The attitude of the sour faced customer service guy did not help.
@@JoePeddie some of the dealers are definitely leaving a lot to be desired. Not the first person I’ve heard had bad experiences in Southampton sadly. Looks like I’m a bit better served in the Midlands, but it’s a sorry state of affairs if you’re lumbered with the useless ones.
@@ModernHeroes
I would of kept it for 3 years and moved to an EV, but that was not to be. I have a Civic 1.0 SR. Loads of kit brand new and got it for £17800, Same sort of price but a far better looking car, better build quality , more kit and it has a bigger boot, that has come in handy. Yesterday i managed to get a 3 seater outside bench in it. Plus i have a dealer on my door step in the New Forest that has a very good reputation.
I got my car from Reading brand new and registered it with my local dealer
@@JoePeddie rented one of those Civics not so long ago, it was pretty good! I don’t think the ICE ZS looks like particularly good value for money versus the competition, if I’m honest.
When all is said and done You get what you pay for .
This was like watching paint dry 😴
Aww, thanks! 😘
🙏🏽🙏🏽
£20,000 car?
MG ZS EV
....yes?
Almost Land Rover levels of unreliability.
over £5 for a tiny bit of plastic
i do better mileage than you 3 is dam poor my ioniq 28kwh can do more miles than your 50 kwh one.
there are ev vans that do better. in miles.
how about rust the petrol version if this car has high amount of rust and there was a poll on mg zs ev site.
if you take it the battery and drive train are made by some on else that have higher standards so there off the shelve items not made by MG
There are lots of people that get better efficiency than me from lots of different cars, both ICE and EV. I’m not particularly concerned.
「どうやってやるの？」、
Wipe the screen :-)
It's the overriding reason I would not buy one of these cars. I have zero confidence in Chinese build quality......... the residuals will be a shocker too, most likely.
一
Stop buying rubbish Chinese cars!
😂 oh look, another ignorant xenophobe. Quelle surprise.
Kia paid you to say this nonsense dint they ?
😂 I’ve had some stupid comments on here but this one is definitely up there.
Dint they? How about didn't they.