This ride is guaranteed
MG is enjoying increasing success on the sales charts these days, with a range that includes the MG3 compact hatchback. David Thomson takes to the wheel.
What’s new?
It’s not often that Drivesouth gets to test a new car that actually predates the arrival of its parent brand in this country, but such is the case with this appraisal of MG’s compact hatchback, MG3.
Sure, the MG nameplate has had a presence here for decades, but until 2006 it was a British brand, able to directly trace its lineage to the sport cars company founded by Englishman Cecil Kimber in Oxford, way back in the 1920s. The demise of the MG Rover Group in 2006 saw the group’s assets, and rights to the MG name, acquired by China. These days it is part of the Chinese stateowned SAIC Motor Corporation, the world’s secondlargest manufacturer of pure EV cars.
The original MG3 was a close derivative of the Rover 25, but it was replaced in 2011 by SAIC’s allnew inhouse MG3, which has since been updated twice, most recently in 2018.
Then, in 2019, SAIC got serious about a revitalised MG presence in New Zealand and took a direct distribution interest here. Just one model — the MG GS midsized SUV — had been offered here previously. It was superseded by its successor, the MG HS, soon after the MG3 and MG ZS compact SUV had also been added to the Kiwi lineup.
MG’s subsequent rise in our sales charts has been rapid. Last year, the brand ranked 10th on this country’s newcar sales charts. So far this year it is running seventh, with strong sales for the MG3 and MG HS supporting the company’s leading seller, the ZS.
The ZS has capitalised on the dual appeal of pureEV and purepetrol options to power up the sales charts.
Some form of EV power may feature when the third generation MG3 is launched, but for now it is available solely with a petrol engine.
The mechanical set up is oldschool, deploying a nonturbo 1.5litre motor to deliver power to the front wheels via a fourspeed automatic transmission. With this combination, the MG3 cannot match the thrifty returns of equivalent small hatchbacks equipped with stateoftheart drivetrains. As a result, it is rated as ‘‘neutral’’ under the Government’s Clean Car Discount Scheme, attracting neither a rebate nor a fee.
Pricing is sharp enough mind, at $19,490 for the entrylevel MG3 Core, and $21,490 for the better equipped MG3 Excite, as tested.
That price is inclusive not only of all on road costs (including 12 months of registration) but also MG’s Seven Year Trifecta comprising seven years of warranty coverage, seven years of roadside assistance and seven years of Warrant of Fitness checks.
What comes as standard?
The MG3 Core sits on 15inch alloys, with a standard feature list that includes LED running lights, autoactivated Halogen headlights, fog lights, and rear parking sensors.
A 20cm centre colour touchscreen is homebase for an infotainment system that includes Apple and Android smartphone mirroring and a fourspeaker audio. The centre screen also serves as the display for the reversing camera, and phone connectivity can either be wired or via Bluetooth. Cruise control, singlezone airconditioning, remote locking, power mirrors and an engine immobiliser are standard fare.
While the second generation MG3 secured a decidedly average threestar Euro NCAP crash test rating in 2014, that rating expired in January 2021, and the post2018 facelift version has not been assessed under either the Euro or the ANCAP regime.
Six airbags are fitted, along with electronic stability programme, and antilock, emergency assist and corner braking control.
Ticking the ‘‘added extras’’ box for the premium MG3 Excite — as tested — brings an exterior body kit, 16inch alloys, a good quality sixspeaker sound system, and uprated upholstery, with artificial leather bolstering in conjunction with dark tartan fabric trim.
What’s it like to look at?
The MG3 is appealingly contemporary in its look, helped by a substantial 2018 refresh. The overall form is nicely proportioned, key crease lines are sharply rendered, and the black front pillars play a neat visual trick by making the roofline appear lower than it actually is.
Adorned with the famous MG badge, the nose and tail both manage to look interesting without being overly fussy.
Sitting on larger alloys and wider tyres, and with bodycoloured mirrors, side sill extensions and a neat rear spoiler, the MG3 Excite dresses up particularly well.
What’s it like inside?
The interior of the MG3 also benefitted from the comprehensive refresh in
2018, and that update — which introduced the colour touchscreen as well as new trim materials and a fresh dash design — continues to serve the car well four years on.
As expected at this price point, there is a preponderance of hardtouch trim surfaces on the dash and the doors, but everything feels durable and well assembled. Light trim colours above the waistline give the cabin a light and airy feel. Boot space is a classcompetitive 307litres, and this increases to
1081litres below the window line when the rear seats are folded down. The rear seats are split 60:40 for folding, and while there is none of the flexiseating cleverness seen on the likes of a Honda Jazz, the rear of the cabin is pleasant enough for a compact cityfocused car.
The front seats are comfortable and supportive, the driver’s seat set quite high, which aids visibility.
Adjusting for rake but not reach, the multifunction steering wheel is the standard MG unit also seen on the company’s other models. The rim is nicely sculptured and padded, while the spokes contain shortcut buttons for the infotainment system on the left, and cruise control on the right.
All the key controls fall nicely to hand, with buttons and other switchgear neatly grouped according to function.
The centre touchscreen’s menus and displays are not especially sophisticated, but techsavvy types will most likely use the smartphone mirroring functionality to deploy their own devices via the screen. Connectivity, whether wired or via
Bluetooth, proved quite straightforward on test.
What’s it like to drive?
Forget modern pushbutton start routines; to bring the MG3’s engine to life it is necessary to insert a key in the ignition barrel and give it a twist.
Initial impressions around town are of a handy, undemanding small car possessed of good visibility, nicely weighted steering and a responsive if unexceptional drivetrain. Ride quality was firmer than I had expected, with some jiggling over poor urban surfaces.
Heading out beyond city limits, motorway and highway driving is generally fuss free, though aural refinement is not a strong point. There is marked tyre roar traversing coarse chip surfaces, and wind noise from around the doors at speed.
Once settled into its stride, the engine is happy enough on a gentle 100kmh cruise, where it ticks over at 2500rpm in top gear. Motoring twoup, the gearbox will drop down to third even on modest hills, and on steeper stretches may even slip into what is admittedly quite a tall second gear. Being required to work rather harder in such situations, the engine becomes more vocal, though not unpleasantly so until it reaches the top end of the rev range.
The chance of an MG3 owner seeking out a winding back road for a bit of driving fun is probably quite remote, which is a bit of shame, because it is quite fun to thread through tighter twists and turns. To say the vehicle is imbued with sporting character would be going a step too far, but it has a wellsorted chassis and suspension set up that helps to maintain balance, and accurate and surprisingly communicative steering.
Push the vehicle too far, and it scrubs into quite progressive understeer, which is easily enough countered by lifting off the throttle.
Verdict
Honest, unpretentious, and a little old fashioned, but imbued with more style and dynamic sparkle than you might expect, the MG3 is by no means stateoftheart. However, it is a worthy small car, sharply priced and backed by a warranty and support package that is second to none.