Mid-2023 availability seems likely for new model based on SAIC’s latest battery platform.

ELECTRIC car price leader MG, presently feeling heat from another Chinese make, has confirmed intent to release its latest, groundbreaking model.

Speaking to assembled media at the launch of the facelifted MG ZS EV today, MG Motor chief executive for Australasia Peter Ciao said the MG 4, an all-new electric hatchback, is on track to arrive here next year.

He cannot give a month, but thought it might avail to the same timeframe as applies to Australia, where pre-June availability has been promised, seems possible.

MG 4 is the first MG built on a new bespoke electric Modular Scalable Platform (MSP), which will be used as the basis for a whole future line-up of EVs ranging from hatchbacks to medium sports utilities provisioned by Shanghai Automotive (SAIC), the parent of the MG brand.

There’s no talk about pricing in this market, but if how it has placed in the only current right-hand drive market, the United Kingdom, has relevance here, the outlook is interesting.

In the UK it appears to start at just over $NZ49,000.

At that price it could be competition to the Atto 3, a compact crossover from another Chinese budget brand, BYD, that has been selling briskly since launch in August.

 The product push by BYD – for ‘Build Your Dreams’ – has so far been with the Atto 3 in its highest specification, the Extended, which has a recommended retail of $57,990.

With Government’s Clean Car discount of $8625 applied, this becomes a $49,365 spend.

From December BYD intends to have a cheaper edition, the Standard, that sits $5000 below the Extended for a full RRP $10 short of $53k, this dropping to $44,365 with the payback.

MG did well with the original ZS EV holding a sticker of just over $40,000 post-rebate and the facelifted model now rolling out positions as a $53,990 Essence and a new base car, called Excite, for $49,990, down to $45,365 and $41,365 with the rebate. The MG prices include on-roads that are additional to the BYD stickers.

MG doesn’t appear to see Atto 3 as a direct competitor for MG 4. Head office talk from the maker suggests it was created to take on the ID.3, which debuted Volkswagen Group’s electric platform, called MEB, in 2020.

ID.3 has since been joined by other Volkswagen-badged models, plus others with Audi, Cupra and Skoda badging. All are cited for New Zealand release, starting next year, but ID.3 is not going to be sold by VW NZ.

Instead preference is to make a sister crossover, the ID.4, the primary electric. However, Cupra’s Born, which is effectively an ID.3 with sportier styling, will be here.

MG says MG 4 is a generational step up from the underpinning and driveware used by ZS EV – and, of course, it is a wholly bespoke electric, whereas ZS is a conversion of a car that began life with a combustion engine and still sells in that form here. 

A 4287mm long, 1836mm wide and 1504mm high hatchback on a 20705mm wheelbase, it has 50:50 weight distribution and a low centre of gravity, offers a range of battery sizes and has even been designed to potentially allow for battery swap technology on future models.

The model presently comes in rear-drive forms. The entry with 50.8kWh battery mated to a 125kW motor delivers a driving range claim of 350km and a higher spec car, with a 61.7kWh battery driving a 150kW motor, has 450km range. The 0-100kmh times are 7.7 seconds and 7.9s respectively.

Soon there will be a high-performance MG 4. This dual-motor, all-wheel drive variant has outputs of 330kW and 600Nm and a claimed 0-100kmh sprint time of 3.8 seconds. It’s set for right-hand-drive as well, with the UK already confirmed as the first sales location.

In the UK there are two specification provisions, spanning an entry-level model badged SE and a stronger-outfitted Trophy.

The SE features a seven-inch digital driver display and a 10.25 inch infotainment scheme that features Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility. It has a four-speaker audio system and lots of driver assistance kit including emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, traffic sign recognition and lane keep assist. 

The Trophy gains extra driver assistance features including blind spot detection, a six-speaker audio system, satellite navigation, a 360-degree parking camera, heated front seats and steering wheels, a remote Bluetooth key, a wireless phone charger and a two-tone black roof. 

MG 4 is an international market descriptive. In China the car is known as the MG Mulan, in honour of the Chinese legend of Hua Mulan. That name is used in China because four is considered an unlucky number.

Updated ZS has been a slower starter than expected for NZ; the update was revealed a year ago and initially it was planned to come in July.

Supply of the original car, here since 2020, exhausted some time ago, however MG has nonetheless grown market share, from 2.1 percent a year ago to 3.2 percent at present. Remember, it only began to represent here in 2018. ZS EV’s arrival has been tied to announcement of a new brand slogan, ‘take charge.’

The ZS EV refresh brings with a new look and extra technology, including vehicle to load capability that enables it to power external electric devices.

The car arguably stands exposed by Atto 3, due to it coming with the smaller of two batteries MG announced for the upgrade.

The NZ market models run what MG describes as being a 'Standard Range' unit. This pairs a 51kWh battery to a 130kW/280Nm electric motor driving the front wheels for a 8.6-second 0-100kmh time, and 320km of claimed WLTP driving range.

That’s more range and better outputs than those meted by the original car, which had a 44.5kWh battery and a 105kW/353Nm electric motor, good for 263km of claimed WLTP driving range.

Yet it’s still a big step down from the ‘Long Range’ powertrain which raised considerable local market excitement when the Shanghai marque undertook the update’s international debut last October.

That upgrade, which avails in right-hand drive, the 72kWh battery with a 115kW/280Nm electric motor, delivering an increased driving range claim of 440km. It has the same 0-100kmh time as the 51kWh car. Today national manager Patrick Bourke suggested that battery might yet be considered. “Never say never.”

Atto 3 Extended has a 60kWh battery pack and the Standard has a 50kWh unit. Both models utilise the same 150kW/310Nm motor delivering a 0 to 100kmh time of 7.3 seconds. The Standard has a WLTP-rated range of 320km; the 60kWh model extends that by another 100kms.