Discussion
I'm interested in the general experience of running one. We test drove one briefly and were guardedly impressed but I'm interested in the longer-term aspects of running it - what's the range like on long motorway trips in cold weather and how quickly does it actually charge; Just how annoying is the charge port location once you get used to it; do the constant bongs continue to irritate or do you learn to ignore them;... that sort of thing.
If you have the warranty paperwork, I'm interested to know what it says about servicing. Does the car have to be serviced on schedule for the warranty to be valid (because every other service appears to involve doing nothing whatsoever but sitll costs about £200)?
If you have the warranty paperwork, I'm interested to know what it says about servicing. Does the car have to be serviced on schedule for the warranty to be valid (because every other service appears to involve doing nothing whatsoever but sitll costs about £200)?
Edited by kambites on Tuesday 10th March 08:35
kambites said:
I'm interested in the general experience of running one. We test drove one briefly and were guardedly impressed but I'm interested in the longer-term aspects of running it - what's the range like on long motorway trips in cold weather and how quickly does it actually charge; Just how annoying is the charge port location once you get used to it; do the constant bongs continue to irritate or do you learn to ignore them;... that sort of thing.
If you have the warranty paperwork, I'm interested to know what it says about servicing. Does the car have to be serviced on schedule for the warranty to be valid (because every other service appears to involve doing nothing whatsoever but sitll costs about £200)?
Longer motorway drives will never be the EV's best friend, and the ZS is no different. You do lose a bit of charge when just sitting at a constant 70mph for prolonged periods, although I have to say, it was better than the Audi e-Tron I had! I did a trip from my home in Surrey to the MINI plant in Cowley recently and the car wasn't at a full charge, but not far off, and was showing about 130 miles of range. It did the trip (of just less than 100 miles) and was empty when I got home. I did have a/c on and Bluetooth, but I'm not sure they would suck a lot of power out of it, so not a car I'd recommend for prolonged motorway use.If you have the warranty paperwork, I'm interested to know what it says about servicing. Does the car have to be serviced on schedule for the warranty to be valid (because every other service appears to involve doing nothing whatsoever but sitll costs about £200)?
Edited by kambites on Tuesday 10th March 08:35
Running around locally, however, the car has been excellent. I'm charging about once a week form a domestic 3 pin plug, and so overnight, it takes it back to full. I never get it much less than 1/4 (I never like running an ICE car less than 1/4 full to be honest) so overnight sees it back up to full.
The charge port location doesn't really bother me that much I have to say. I'm fortunate in having a 3 car drive, so just driving up to the garage door instead of usually reversing is all it takes. Its the same with using public chargers, you drive into the space rather than reverse. I drive lots of EV's so I get used to the various locations, and I can't really say any have been a problem. Do I like the charging port? No, I can't say I do! It creaks and never feels that substantial when I open it, and I wonder how difficult it would have been to just put it where the petrol cap is on the ICE variant!
I can't comment on warranty and servicing I'm afraid as I won't have the car that long to find out, and I don't have any paperwork with it. What I will say is that I was in the retail motor trade for 27 years and so have experience of warranties. Generally, any manufacturer will ask that you adhere to their servicing schedules to keep the warranty valid, and I have to say that is fair. Ok, you don't have oil and filters to deal with on a service, but there are still other fluids to maintain, and the labour involved ensuring that the car is as it should be when it is in for a service.
The "bongs".......! Yes, they are bloody annoying, and I see no way of turning them off, but I am now used to them.
All of that said, the car is excellent I feel. Its not pretentious, and it just gets on with doing a job, and doing it well. Its quiet, comfortable, practical enough for a small family, well equipped and really nice to drive. Its very refined too, with low wind noise and much better isolation form the road than some I have driven. Plus, MG's parent company SAIC has a tie-in with VAG in China, so lots of the switchgear is previous gen VW/Audi stuff.
Things I like:
Quick enough for day-to-day use
Refinement
Value for money
Spec ("my" one is the Exclusive)
Easy to live with
Range is fine for the general day-to-day and it is efficient
Quality
Brake regen is smooth and adjustable
Things I DON'T like:
Lack of climate control (its just a/c)
Seat doesn't offer tilt adjustment
"Fuel" gauge is difficult to see at a glance
Infotainment screen can be laggy
Lack of privacy glass (personal, I know, but I like it and can believe its not available even as an option)
"Creaking" charge port cover
Its only been 3 weeks, and I haven't undertaken many long journeys in this car, though a previous one I had for a week, seemed to do my office commute of 100 miles through the Sussex back roads fine. The exciting thing about electric cars is now we have a range of choice, depending on what we need. When they first came out, you had the Renault Zoe, Nissan Leaf, and for a lot more money, the Tesla Model S. We do get a little bit hung up on range too, whereas, we don't seem to bother too much about standby time of our mobiles, because we just plug them in overnight. I know that some people do need a car that can do ver 200 miles in one hit, and I get that, so an EV isn't for everyone. We went on holiday to Cornwall last year as family, and instead of taking my wife's Volvo XC60, I took a Kia e-Niro. It had to be charged at times, of course it did, but we just factored that in to our journeys and what we were doing. One day we took the train into the local town and left the car charging at the station. I didn't pay over the odds for parking in the town (nor did I have to jostle for a space), I was able to it and properly chat to my 5 year old daughter and look out of the window at the scenery, and I took another car off the small, narrow streets of St Ives.
Anyway, I'm waffling. The ZS is a good car. For the money, it is excellent, given that at this price you are looking at much smaller cars. If you spend more then you are looking at the likes of the Hyundai Ioniq (can't say I'm a fan of the full electric one), and then much more its the e-Niro and Kona E (both excellent, but should be for that price).
I hope that helps, but don't hesitate to ask anything else, and I have teh car for a bit longer, so lots still to come with it I am sure!
MrB. said:
Longer motorway drives will never be the EV's best friend, and the ZS is no different.
Whichis precisely why I asked; it's also a very difficult thing to test on a half hour test drive. For our usecase we need to be able to do a 200 mile round trip with a stop at exactly half distance, at which we would have access to a 50kw charger. So for practicality's sake we want a car which will do 100 miles on the portion of its battery which can be charged at a reasonable rate without causing excessive degredation (ie something like 80-10%), which means a real-world range or something like 130 miles. That seems to be right on the edge of the MG's capabilities in poor weather.
I could live with having to do an extra 10 minute charge on the way back, but I'd rather not have to.
Edited by kambites on Tuesday 10th March 10:17
kambites said:
MrB. said:
Longer motorway drives will never be the EV's best friend, and the ZS is no different.
Whichis precisely why I asked; it's also a very difficult thing to test on a half hour test drive. The problem is the car will be constantly using power to battle drag and rolling resistance. The only car I can think of that might be better at coping with bigger motorway journeys is the Mercedes EQC where you can adjust the brake regen to allow it to “coast” when you come off the power.
But that is £70k.........
MrB. said:
it was better than the Audi e-Tron I had!
Literally every other EV is! The Audi is by far the worst-in-class.MrB. said:
Spec ("my" one is the Exclusive)
What do you get in that? I'm not sure what the one I test drove was but it was quite disappointing, lacked almost any EV specific stuff and nothing like the equipment that Bjorn's car in Thailand has.For example is the sat nav EV aware? Does it have charging stations programmed in, range display, and route calculation that includes charging?
How about the SOC and health data? The Thai ones seem to have stats and history for energy consumption rates (Wh/km etc.)
aestetix1 said:
For example is the sat nav EV aware? Does it have charging stations programmed in, range display, and route calculation that includes charging?
No it does not (at least the one I test drove didn't). However, the built in nav system is pretty crap anyway and it supports Andriod Auto and Apple Car Play so you're far better off using a phone for navigation anyway. kambites said:
Whichis precisely why I asked; it's also a very difficult thing to test on a half hour test drive.
For our usecase we need to be able to do a 200 mile round trip with a stop at exactly half distance, at which we would have access to a 50kw charger. So for practicality's sake we want a car which will do 100 miles on the portion of its battery which can be charged at a reasonable rate without causing excessive degredation (ie something like 80-10%), which means a real-world range or something like 130 miles. That seems to be right on the edge of the MG's capabilities in poor weather.
I could live with having to do an extra 10 minute charge on the way back, but I'd rather not have to.
How often do you do the journey? For our usecase we need to be able to do a 200 mile round trip with a stop at exactly half distance, at which we would have access to a 50kw charger. So for practicality's sake we want a car which will do 100 miles on the portion of its battery which can be charged at a reasonable rate without causing excessive degredation (ie something like 80-10%), which means a real-world range or something like 130 miles. That seems to be right on the edge of the MG's capabilities in poor weather.
I could live with having to do an extra 10 minute charge on the way back, but I'd rather not have to.
Edited by kambites on Tuesday 10th March 10:17
Worth asking owners on speakEV to see how these handle rapid charging/real world efficiency etc. to see how long you’d be hanging about at the charger!
You could also have a look at Bjorns 1000km video (presumably he summaries it!) - maybe there have been software updates since.
https://www.speakev.com/threads/bj%C3%B8rns-1000-k...
Edited by danp on Tuesday 10th March 11:48
kambites said:
aestetix1 said:
For example is the sat nav EV aware? Does it have charging stations programmed in, range display, and route calculation that includes charging?
No it does not (at least the one I test drove didn't). However, the built in nav system is pretty crap anyway and it supports Andriod Auto and Apple Car Play so you're far better off using a phone for navigation anyway. Charging is relatively good, although to be fair, I have only charged either at home or in the car park close to my office whilst I have been at work. Ihave used the fast chargers at local Shell stations, but not with the ZS yet.
MrB. said:
I just use Android Auto in the car.
How is AA? In some cars it drops out a lot (*cough*Renault*cough*) so it would be nice if they got it stable.And is the USB port in a sensible place? Again on certain cars designed for the LHD market they put it next to the screen so it blocks your view in RHD models.
aestetix1 said:
MrB. said:
I just use Android Auto in the car.
How is AA? In some cars it drops out a lot (*cough*Renault*cough*) so it would be nice if they got it stable.And is the USB port in a sensible place? Again on certain cars designed for the LHD market they put it next to the screen so it blocks your view in RHD models.
As far as the USB port is concerned, it has been well thought it in my opinion. Because there is no transmission per se, you have a lower storage area under the centre console where the USB port is, and then you feed the cable through a hole to the “upper” tray and the rubber mat closes around it, so its really neat. The downside is if you have a bigger style of smartphone (I have a Samsung Galaxy S10E, so not a problem for me) then the storage tray is too small for the larger phones when the cable is plugged in. Like I said, not an issue for the smaller style of phones, but those with XL ones might find that annoying. But then, you would just leave it down in the lower storage tray where the port is and control everything from the head unit.
kambites said:
danp said:
How often do you do the journey?
Not often, maybe two to four times a year. I could live with having to do a quick charge on the way home, but obviously I'd rather not. However at a conservative 3.5 miles/kWh the ZS should do around 150 miles, so even at a 30kW charge speed you’d only have to charge for about 40 mins (to go from 33% to 80%) which should give you plenty for the last 100 miles.
I’d personally not be worried about going over 80% at the rapid charger on these rare occasions (tho’ it’ll obviously start to taper) but don’t think you’d need to anyhow.
MrB. said:
Running around locally, however, the car has been excellent. I'm charging about once a week form a domestic 3 pin plug, and so overnight, it takes it back to full. I never get it much less than 1/4 (I never like running an ICE car less than 1/4 full to be honest) so overnight sees it back up to full.
Not specifically the MG ZS but for all electric cars in general I'd just like to find out a little more about the domestic 3 pin plug charging... You say you drive up to the garage and plug it in, I take it there is absolutely nothing special about this socket, then you leave it charge over night, unplug it in the morning and your car is 100%...Questions (stupid or otherwise):
1) Is the plug hot?
2) Do you worry about damage to your house?
3) Do you worry about damage to the car/battery?
4) Did you have your house electrics checked prior to plugging the car in regularly?
5) I'm not quite sure I understand your "situation" and if you wouldn't mind sharing, would be interested to know of the various electric cars you have had is it typical you; lease/PCP/buy and average length of ownership?
6) Do you think you will ever get a specific charger installed at home?
The reason I ask is I am lazy and ignorant, simply put you seem to have reconciled what I struggle with, have made the jump and are getting on with it. I live in a 70's house with a drive, the consumer unit seems to be a fairly new dual RCD thing and looks well installed and I believe the whole house was rewired at some point. However there have been some "modifications" to the various ring circuits over the years by the prior occupant, this includes the garage with the addition of various new sockets (where the car would be plugged in). I assume I am a fairly standard candidate/situation for electric car ownership.
I hate not understanding the risks or how people generally use/charge their cars and am at the stage of if it is too much trouble I'm not interested. In my mind so long as the wiring is intact then the car should be smart enough to manage it's charging so as not to pose a risk. I realise this is a very blinkered view and someone is going to say just get an electrician in to have a look, but genuinely I hate organising all of that and then the questions of is the person properly qualified or not etc etc (I have a broken mind and a natural distrust of professional advice, especially when you read what it is they will actually honour/insure/warrant).
I really just wish there was someone as daft as me who has been plugging it in for the last 2 years every night to a 30's house with no idea the state of their wiring saying it's fine don't worry.
I am not an early adopter or enthusiastic about the technology/what it represents. I do 12 miles a day, have a small family and think an electric car makes sense for me. I have this casual disregard for understanding how my phone charges and happily plug that in every night, why should a car be different and I am happy that in these regulated times someone much smarter is looking after the idiots (me).
Any insight/opinion you can give would help me no end.
Moonpie21 said:
Not specifically the MG ZS but for all electric cars in general I'd just like to find out a little more about the domestic 3 pin plug charging... You say you drive up to the garage and plug it in, I take it there is absolutely nothing special about this socket, then you leave it charge over night, unplug it in the morning and your car is 100%...
Questions (stupid or otherwise):
1) Is the plug hot?
2) Do you worry about damage to your house?
3) Do you worry about damage to the car/battery?
4) Did you have your house electrics checked prior to plugging the car in regularly?
5) I'm not quite sure I understand your "situation" and if you wouldn't mind sharing, would be interested to know of the various electric cars you have had is it typical you; lease/PCP/buy and average length of ownership?
6) Do you think you will ever get a specific charger installed at home?
The reason I ask is I am lazy and ignorant, simply put you seem to have reconciled what I struggle with, have made the jump and are getting on with it. I live in a 70's house with a drive, the consumer unit seems to be a fairly new dual RCD thing and looks well installed and I believe the whole house was rewired at some point. However there have been some "modifications" to the various ring circuits over the years by the prior occupant, this includes the garage with the addition of various new sockets (where the car would be plugged in). I assume I am a fairly standard candidate/situation for electric car ownership.
I hate not understanding the risks or how people generally use/charge their cars and am at the stage of if it is too much trouble I'm not interested. In my mind so long as the wiring is intact then the car should be smart enough to manage it's charging so as not to pose a risk. I realise this is a very blinkered view and someone is going to say just get an electrician in to have a look, but genuinely I hate organising all of that and then the questions of is the person properly qualified or not etc etc (I have a broken mind and a natural distrust of professional advice, especially when you read what it is they will actually honour/insure/warrant).
I really just wish there was someone as daft as me who has been plugging it in for the last 2 years every night to a 30's house with no idea the state of their wiring saying it's fine don't worry.
I am not an early adopter or enthusiastic about the technology/what it represents. I do 12 miles a day, have a small family and think an electric car makes sense for me. I have this casual disregard for understanding how my phone charges and happily plug that in every night, why should a car be different and I am happy that in these regulated times someone much smarter is looking after the idiots (me).
Any insight/opinion you can give would help me no end.
So, no, there is nothing special about the socket, it is a domestic 3 pin socket, however, let me be clear. I don’t charge the car every night from it, only when I need to, so its not taking on a load every night. I have to admit, I didn’t have the socket checked before i started doing it (perhaps naively on my part) and I never use an extension cable.Questions (stupid or otherwise):
1) Is the plug hot?
2) Do you worry about damage to your house?
3) Do you worry about damage to the car/battery?
4) Did you have your house electrics checked prior to plugging the car in regularly?
5) I'm not quite sure I understand your "situation" and if you wouldn't mind sharing, would be interested to know of the various electric cars you have had is it typical you; lease/PCP/buy and average length of ownership?
6) Do you think you will ever get a specific charger installed at home?
The reason I ask is I am lazy and ignorant, simply put you seem to have reconciled what I struggle with, have made the jump and are getting on with it. I live in a 70's house with a drive, the consumer unit seems to be a fairly new dual RCD thing and looks well installed and I believe the whole house was rewired at some point. However there have been some "modifications" to the various ring circuits over the years by the prior occupant, this includes the garage with the addition of various new sockets (where the car would be plugged in). I assume I am a fairly standard candidate/situation for electric car ownership.
I hate not understanding the risks or how people generally use/charge their cars and am at the stage of if it is too much trouble I'm not interested. In my mind so long as the wiring is intact then the car should be smart enough to manage it's charging so as not to pose a risk. I realise this is a very blinkered view and someone is going to say just get an electrician in to have a look, but genuinely I hate organising all of that and then the questions of is the person properly qualified or not etc etc (I have a broken mind and a natural distrust of professional advice, especially when you read what it is they will actually honour/insure/warrant).
I really just wish there was someone as daft as me who has been plugging it in for the last 2 years every night to a 30's house with no idea the state of their wiring saying it's fine don't worry.
I am not an early adopter or enthusiastic about the technology/what it represents. I do 12 miles a day, have a small family and think an electric car makes sense for me. I have this casual disregard for understanding how my phone charges and happily plug that in every night, why should a car be different and I am happy that in these regulated times someone much smarter is looking after the idiots (me).
Any insight/opinion you can give would help me no end.
I work in the automotive press and run an electric car magazine, so the cars that I do have on occasion are press cars, and usually only have them for few days at a time. The MG I am running as a long term test car, mostly to report on how easy an EV can be to live with on a daily basis. I did a driving holiday last year in a Kia e-Niro for a feature too, just so that we can give people insight in to what these “normal” scenarios are like with an EV.
If I were to run a permanent EV as my car, however, I would install a 7kw wall charger at home, as that is more permanent and makes much more sense. Some manufacturers suggest the 3 pin cable is an “emergency use only” whereas some just see it as an alternative way of charging, albeit at a slower rate.
My car use sounds a little similar to yours in so much that I do the school run (local) and various small journeys with a weekly round trip of around 90 miles to my office (I work from home the other 4 days) to catch up with the team, so an EV fits perfectly with that.
And this is my stance on EVs. I don’t think they are here to save the world just yet, but for the most part, and EV makes an awful lot of sense for some people. I’m not evangelical about them, and I still have 3 other ICE cars in my household. Before, when EVs first came on to the scene, we saw them as environmental/fuel-saving devices that were going to be the enthusiasts nightmare, and to be fair, we only had a limited choice of the like of the Renault Zoe, Nissan Leaf and (for a lot more money) the Tesla Model S. Now, however, we are seeing the introduction of some cracking driver’s cars with electric motors; the BMW i3 is a fabulous drivers car. I have driven the new MINI Electric, and it delivers as much fun as a petrol Cooper S, and so is the world’s first hot hatch EV. The Jaguar I-Pace is a sensational car to drive, as is the Tesla Model 3.
And I’m not just talking about traffic light Grand Prix’s, but the handling, steering feel, brakes, chassis set-up. There are some genuinely fun cars powered by electricity you can buy that aren’t solely made by Tamiya.
But, I’m digressing from your questions. Yes, the cost of an electric car can be prohibitive to some, and I appreciate that not all people will have a lifestyle/need for a car that will suit an EV. Fine, we can still buy ICE cars for that. But, if you look into it, you might find that what you can buy, run and (dare I say it) enjoy might just be an electric car. I happen to think the MG ZS is a cracking piece of kit for the money. Yes, its still £25k, which is a lot, but what does tha relate to on a monthly payment that most people budget for? It’s a small, well-built, refined and easy to live with family crossover style car that does a great job of being just that; a car.
And go back to what I said initially. I don’t charge it every night. In fact, at the moment, what with a small family that is taking a lot of my time at present, I’m plugging it in barely once a week to “top it up”. When I do go to the office, the carpark around the corner has a public charger that I can plug it in to whilst I am in the office for a few hours. People need to stop thinking about refuelling electric cars like they refuel petrol or diesel ones. You don’t. You can’t. you alter your use of the car, and the times when it suits (ie, when you are at home asleep, or in the office, or in the cinema) you plug the car in to charge.
Get into that mindset, and an EV starts to make an awful lot of sense.
(Apologies for going waaaaayyy off topic, but hopefully, I brought it back!)
Edited by MrB. on Wednesday 11th March 16:41
MrB. said:
I work in the automotive press and run an electric car magazine, so the cars that I do have on occasion are press cars, and usually only have them for few days at a time. The MG I am running as a long term test car, mostly to report on how easy an EV can be to live with on a daily basis. I did a driving holiday last year in a Kia e-Niro for a feature too, just so that we can give people insight in to what these “normal” scenarios are like with an EV.
If I were to run a permanent EV as my car, however, I would install a 7kw wall charger at home, as that is more permanent and makes much more sense. Some manufacturers suggest the 3 pin cable is an “emergency use only” whereas some just see it as an alternative way of charging, albeit at a slower rate.
(Apologies for going waaaaayyy off topic, but hopefully, I brought it back!)
No, thank you for the response.If I were to run a permanent EV as my car, however, I would install a 7kw wall charger at home, as that is more permanent and makes much more sense. Some manufacturers suggest the 3 pin cable is an “emergency use only” whereas some just see it as an alternative way of charging, albeit at a slower rate.
(Apologies for going waaaaayyy off topic, but hopefully, I brought it back!)
Edited by MrB. on Wednesday 11th March 16:41
I want to be lazy and just top up when needed using the 3 pin as I really don't think I'd need anything more. But then as you research you see the 7kw chargers mentioned and recommended (even by yourself who doesn't use one at home) with the benefit of an installer telling you how suitable your home electrics are and I spiral out of control making it a dilemma that it shouldn't be.
To your point I think the electric cars being offered today and I guess in the near future are making strong cases for themselves and appealing to the likes of individuals like me who want somewhere nice to sit and be proud of. Sorry much as I actually don't mind the style of the leaf and I am sure it is comfortable and accomplished I don't really want to have one. I am glad there is increasing choice and I am strangely looking forward to when I make that leap for my daily.
Thought I’d bump this thread rather than starting another.
Anyone else with experience of these? It’s rather tempting on paper - currently available for £20,297 for the base Excite model and £21,890 for the fancier Exclusive.
I think a lot of reviews focus on the “it’s cheap for an EV” angle - what is it actually like comfort and refinement wise? Does that pleather laden interior rattle and creak like other budget cars or not?
Anyone else with experience of these? It’s rather tempting on paper - currently available for £20,297 for the base Excite model and £21,890 for the fancier Exclusive.
I think a lot of reviews focus on the “it’s cheap for an EV” angle - what is it actually like comfort and refinement wise? Does that pleather laden interior rattle and creak like other budget cars or not?
Toaster Pilot said:
I think a lot of reviews focus on the “it’s cheap for an EV” angle - what is it actually like comfort and refinement wise? Does that pleather laden interior rattle and creak like other budget cars or not?
I would imagine it depends what you compare it to. The driving position isn't very adjustable so whether it's comfortable will depend on your shape. The drivetrain is obviously quiet but there's a fair bit of suspension thump and a bit of wind noise which are all the more noticeable because there isn't the drone of an engine to mask them.
No idea about interior rattles, the one I drove was brand new.
It's... a budget car. I guess it feels somewhere between, say, a Dacia and a Skoda in terms of generally interior ambiance. If you're expecting the perceived interior quality of a Golf or even a Focus you're probably going to be disappointed. The sunroof on the Exclusive makes it feel much nicer inside, especially from the back seats.
Edited by kambites on Thursday 10th September 22:36
Toaster Pilot said:
Thought I’d bump this thread rather than starting another.
Anyone else with experience of these? It’s rather tempting on paper - currently available for £20,297 for the base Excite model and £21,890 for the fancier Exclusive.
I think a lot of reviews focus on the “it’s cheap for an EV” angle - what is it actually like comfort and refinement wise? Does that pleather laden interior rattle and creak like other budget cars or not?
Where did you see these prices?Anyone else with experience of these? It’s rather tempting on paper - currently available for £20,297 for the base Excite model and £21,890 for the fancier Exclusive.
I think a lot of reviews focus on the “it’s cheap for an EV” angle - what is it actually like comfort and refinement wise? Does that pleather laden interior rattle and creak like other budget cars or not?
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