Practical experience MG ZS EV: this is what owners think of their electric crossover

Sometimes an offer seems too good to be true and we can imagine that people had such feelings with the MG ZS EV. A spacious, electric crossover for less money than a comparable combustion engine car? When it was introduced, the offer was nothing short of unique. It also took some guts from buyers, as the ZS EV marked the reintroduction of MG in the Netherlands. Some surrounding countries have already become acquainted with the new MG.

Comfort and handling

Let’s start driving. The first thing many new owners notice is the speed of their crossover. “Driving itself is an experience if you have never driven electrically before,” writes one of them. “From 0 to 100 in 8.2 seconds is smooth, but the car feels even smoother. Especially at low speeds.” Even above 100 km / h, the MG still has something to crumble in the milk, the next driver experiences. “If you want to, you sprint away first at a traffic light and you keep up well on the highway, with quite a bit of power to overtake someone quickly, for example.”

The owner of the first copy is not afraid to measure his car. “The chassis is relatively weak, a bit bumpy and poorly damped. Despite the low center of gravity and good weight distribution over the axles, this is not a car to quickly take roundabouts or speed bumps.” His experience is also endorsed by the next two owners. “The appearance suggests that you can take a threshold with it, but you are really shaken up. I also find smaller bumps at higher speeds not very smooth” and “on thresholds I find the MG very jerky, otherwise very comfortable”.

Assistance and safety systems

Despite its price, the MG ZS EV is equipped with many modern conveniences, for example adaptive cruise control is standard on all versions. Owners are quite satisfied with its operation, although several drivers note that the system reduces speed even in gentle corners. “That could have been a little less strict” and “is absolutely unnecessary”, are the conclusions of unanimous owners.

The meddling of the lane assistant also led to annoyance in the beginning. “It’s set up so ‘safely’ that every time you might go over a line, it starts to ‘boink’. That noise is particularly loud and super irritating within a day,” said an irritated owner. “On a 30 minute ride, with all safety options on, we have 43 beeps and boinks counted.” Another owner was also annoyed by the noisy interference, but reports in July 2020: “The car spent a whole day in the garage for a major software update. This has solved my number 1 irritation, the needlessly large amount of beeps with piercing volume.” We expect that every ZS EV will now be equipped with this update, so that this annoyance is no longer on the table.

Space and sitting

The MG ZS is a spacious C-segment crossover, which translates to a decent amount of interior space. “The space in the interior is great!” says an enthusiastic owner on this point, “Both legroom, rear seat and trunk space are above average.” The next driver uses his ZS regularly at full capacity. “Our three children have more than enough room in the back. Absolutely love the panoramic roof. That can also be very wide open.”

People are also pretty good about the seats. The seating position is less pleasing, with several owners falling over the adjustability of the steering wheel. “Because the steering wheel is not adjustable in depth, you have to look for a good place”, is one such complaint.

Infotainment and controls

Users are clear about the infotainment of the MG ZS EV: don’t expect too much from this. “The infotainment system is downright slow and not logical,” writes the owner of a ZS from 2019, “When you make a call via Bluetooth, you are stuck in the screen, you cannot set a route or anything like that while calling.” He shares this experience with, among others, the following director. “Do I have any wishes? Yes, sure, a better infotainment system. This one is really slow for words, especially the built-in navigation.” Fortunately, the system supports a workaround: “I just work around it now by using Apple CarPlay.” Android Auto is also supported for those who don’t like apples.

One possibility that cannot be ignored is the climate control. Although the MG ZS EV is quite well equipped, owners must manually control the interior temperature and air conditioning. “The air conditioning is ‘old-fashioned’ with a rotary knob. You set this to red (warm) or blue (cold) and you have five blower speeds,” explains an owner. “It works fine, but you’re constantly adjusting the knob on a day when the sun is shining.”

Maintenance, breakdowns and repairs

The MG scores points in terms of reliability, with some joking that this is probably the first time in the history of this brand. Still, one reviewer has been stranded with a dead 12-volt battery, though he’s not the only ZS rider to have this problem. “That week alone, more than ten MGs had reported with an identical problem. As it turned out: the radio remained on without you seeing it, which drained the battery. MG immediately solved this with a software update and twenty minutes later I was driving home again.”

Despite its reliability, many owners report rattles and creaks when driving on poor road surfaces. The parcel shelf attachment is also made of fragile material, as this user experiences: “The attachment of the parcel shelf with a plastic clip is much too weak, it has already broken off twice.”

Consumption and driving range

The MG ZS EV has a battery with a net capacity of 42.5 kWh, which gives MG a driving range of around 260 km. “In practice with quiet driving, not too many highways (and otherwise really not above 120) then you get 220/230 kilometers”, an owner qualifies that value. “In the winter cold I would assume 200.”

That seems like a realistic estimate if you consider the experiences of another driver. “Having driven the MG ZS EV for almost a year, I have a reasonable idea of ​​the consumption. I am now at 18.2 kWh per 100 km including the harsh winter months we have had. Consumption in the winter, especially in the coldest period, was between 20 and 22 kWh.”

Those who like to run the battery completely empty will have to deal with a point of attention: below the 20-kilometer range, the car no longer indicates the remaining distance. “It disappears, after which you take a chance”, as one user experienced, “My wife had that once. She was 3 kilometers short and was therefore standing along the road with a completely empty battery. Then you start nothing.”

In conclusion, owners appear to be very satisfied with their MG ZS EV. They look at their purchase with a sober look and know the shortcomings in the field of infotainment, refinement and build quality. They gambled and won.