Did the Octopus Flux tariff not exist when this video was made? Because odds are most of the people advocating big battery installs are on that one, and the reason it makes sense is a large battery enables you to engage in arbitrage, for example based on the modelling I've had done the house I'll be renovating to a high standard of energy/thermal efficiency soon will have a maximum typical daily consumption of around 7-8kwh, so assuming I bought two of those Fogstar batteries for a 31kwh total capacity and using the Flux numbers for my region, the total cost to charge the battery to full every day during the early morning off-peak plus the standing charge would be £4.64 per day, while selling the unused ~23kwh back to the grid during the evening peak period would bring in £5.06. Let's say the battery lasts ten years without excessive degredation, that little daily excess would amount to just over ~£1.5k which should cover the install cost of the battery so call it £500 a year. That beats Standard in your calcs by a factor of three, and Track by almost double. It's a little above Go but remember that's a *no solar* install, just battery. With the 14.6p day rate Flux gives my area for export outside of peak times and given how cheap solar panels are these days, if the grid operator lets me put a decent size array on the property that should pay itself off fairly quickly and then anything produced by the solar is gravy that further offsets the battery cost.

£8.5k?! That's more like it! :) Amazing VFM. Finger's crossed it is a good one for you. What's the weird thing under the numberplate? At first I thought it was an aftermarket rear park sensor, but that would seem madness on a car of this age.

£8500 is a bargain. Throw in a bit more for a compatible EV charger and you're Intelligent Octopus Go ready ...

Still absurdly expensive to deal with the image Tesla comes with.

The issue is what is the likely long-term price of solar. Many thoughtful people think that power prices will become more volatile but generally lower in off peak periods. The battery option only becomes viable if you can spread your load to avoid peak hour periods. Investing in new kit has to be partly an act of faith. If you've got the cash and you think it will cut costs it's probably worth it. Your pay back calculation is good but doesn't make an allowance for inflation or power prices becoming more volatile. Grat video very informative.

Great video, I had a MG5 LR back in 2022. That version had mg pilot which was very good adaptive CC and lane centering. I noticed used car prices going up so bailed out of my pcp at near list value. I'm glad i did given the crash in prices. You got yourself a bargain. I decided to go back to a Prius phev as it better suited our familys use case 😊

Nice video, or should I say pleasant! I enjoyed the change in presentation style from your Heat Pump/Solar Videos and look forward to seeing more. Welcome to the EV world. 4 years in for me and never going back!

Just the question I was asking myself. Wife wants a 2nd Tesla, but currently can't justify the price for a 3mile commute.

What tariff are you going to go for to run your heat pump and charge the car in winter? This is the conundrum for me. Octopus intelligent go isn't compatible with every car or charger, plus the 18 hour peak pricing. Agile the cheap rates aren't guaranteed, again with a shorter peak. Tracker lacks an off-peak window for charging. So cosy?

Should have added that on the non electric seat they have height adjustment, is that not available on the electric seats?

Had no idea the price of these was so low! You're right... they are so darn ugly, but I love the practicality. We have a 2012 Volvo V60 so this would be perfect for us as our first EV (though we are hoping to get something a bit smaller - only two kids and a small dog). Looking forward to seeing how you get on with it and the changes you make. Nice one!

We just bought the same car. Really pleased with it. It just works. One thing that surprised me was the wipers when lifted collide with the bonnet and rub the paint off. It’s a minor issue I suppose. I think maybe the boot lip protection is aftermarket but a neat solution if you have a dog jumping in. Do wish I had tinted windows too. Great car though. I don’t mind its looks at all.

Lot of car for a bargain price. Very nice

I bought a Zoe about a year ago and I am very happy with it but I am now wondering why I didn't look out for a MG5, I like estates but had assumed it would cost a lot more.

In 6-12 months the cost of these battery systems is likely to drop by another 30%. Simply because the cost of LFP cells is rapidly declining, as the industry scales up. CATL is saying their costs on LFP dropped by 50% in the last 6 months. As that filters down into the retail market, we will see prices fall.

My house is exactly the same in regards to facing rotation. I'm going for 7 panels on the front and 15 on the back. With a 10kw battery. All in £6999. Sounds to good to be true. But still research to do in company

Great content buddy. I too have just jumped on a 72 plate MG5 FL LR Trophy and l am quite happy with the performance and think l bagged myself a bit of a bargain. Not to the same level you have :)

Vaillant are a boiler manufacturer I do have confidence in their product but I wouldn’t put them above Daikin who have been in the ASHP business along time . Personally my rule of thumb would be if yiur on gas stick with gas . Install is higher maintenance cost will be higher and uncertain regarding what potential costs would be .

The prices you're getting are what I was paying a year ago in Northern Ireland! This year in July my 2016 BMW 330e went up from £348 to £606!! That was with my current insurer 1st Direct who I've been with for years because nobody else can match them on price. The price comparison sites were even more eye watering. The cheapest on them was £848!!! What is going on?!!!

I actually really like the look of it. Especially vs the new version... But I like the look of the original Leaf. The 61kWh of this will be my next car. By next year, probably about 9-10k for it. You got the Exclusive too

So you will be considering a new tariff to compliment the house battery and car charging?

Accelerator like an on/off switch? Which EVs are you referring to and why not mention them?

An MG5 is the definition of sensible, and if that's what you want there's nothing wrong with it 😃

And I bought the ZS new in 2020 for much the same reasons; very practical car with the VW feel to the cabin (replaced a Passat) and whilst it wasn't the bargain that the MG5 is now, it did get all the discounts at a time when there weren't second hand EVs about. And the Press panned them but as you have found there really isn't anything to hate about them.

I'm seriously looking at the mg5 ev estate. I look foward to your next video on the real world range test. thank you for the great video. and hopefully the charge time to 80% from home charging if available.

Congratulations on your new car. Great amd very smart choice. Like you mentioned cannot be beaten in terms of features and practicality and price. Love it.

Not sure what the black bar was for on the rear door but it just didnt look right. Comes off easy enough. The MG5 version 1 had a few minor issues but was a great workhorse and very cheap to run. At that price you cant go wrong.. I now have an mg4 se with no regrets as my retirement car.

Interesting video, I will watch out for updates. I've had an Ampera or the last 7 years and am looking to change soon, the two EVs on my shortlist are this or an Ioniq 38kwh. Both are not the best looking cars but I'm not too fussed on looks, in fact I quite like the slightly retro look of the MG5.

I'd have one but I had a Volvo v40 (the old estate one) and I loved that car. It was just nice to be in and you could get loads of stuff in it. This is probably not as nice inside but an unassuming practical car for moving things and people about. No-ones going to steal it or 'accidentally' damage it in a car park and you probably aren't going to worry about minor battle scars anyway.

If you use a VW spare wheel you should use the VW bolts, whilst the bolt pattern is the same, I think the countersink in the wheel is a different angle.

We have the 62KWH excite without the 'toys'. Had it 15 months without issue. Only thing to watch for is the ,auto braking' on the collision avoidance system. Had it come on and catch me out, very aggressive....can be cancelled by pressing accelerator bizarrely. Love the car though, smooth. Average 4.25 mpk annually, upto 6 in summer and 3.5 in winter. Enjoy

The MG5 is a very sensible car. It looks a bit old fashioned, but it does the job for most people day to day and a great bargain. I have an MG4 and I'm happy with it. Cheap to run, reasonably comfortable and fast enough - but all EVs are kind of soul less to me. Cars are becoming about as exciting as washing machines, or fridges 😂. I get my fun from an older petrol car that I only use sparingly on sunny days....

Early reviews the MG5 called it 'quirky', with intrusive lane-assist, complex menus and a charge port flap that obscured the socket. The latter seems to have been fixed on yours, with the flap opening horizontally instead of vertically. Have you found anything that made you think MG isn't an experienced car designer? The big surprise for me (who has never driven an MG) was that someone coming from a Merc found a sub £10k Chinese EV good enough to buy. That's got to be a good sign for consumers, if not for some big European car brands...

I don't dislike the MG range, obviously with a car of this budget price it's not going to be perfect, if I was in the market for an electric vehicle I would consider one of these. The technology is a bit much for an old fart like me, the screen on the dash, I probably wouldn't use it mainly because it would probably be too complicated for me, being short, the driver seat height would probably be fine for me. As most of my driving is motorway driving, I don't have access to off road parking so I wouldn't be able to charge at home, I work nights so even if I had access to off road parking, I wouldn't be able to take advantage of cheaper electric rates and the infrastructure in the area where I live is very poor, if I could afford to buy an electric vehicle, it still wouldn't be as cheap to run as my little diesel. That said, I think MG are producing some nice cars, even though they are way too expensive for someone like me, they are still cheaper than the competition

Well done, and perfectly placed to spot a bargain , the MG5 looks to be the comfy sized family car. With your solar PV and all the other trimmings it should cost near nothing to run, a real bargain. I went for the MG4 a few weeks ago, more of a 'lady magnet' I thought; others may have recognised it better though with the words 'late mid life crisis' appearing frequently 🤔

I’ve also gone estate (admittedly different end of the spectrum with an ID7). If this was my budget, I’d be going for something like this.

Dealers didn’t like them either it would seem. My dad tried to get more information on these when they came out, but he said the salesmen at first were now where to be seen, and when they did didn’t know much about it.

A great buy. Some would say the depreciation on Chinese cars is bad, but the best depreciation beater is to pay less in the first place as you have. Now you can have EV I would be interested on you take of the tariffs. Just moved from Octopus Intelligent Go to E.on Next Drive.

You’ve got a bargain at that price, gutted I didn’t wait 18 months before buying mine now. Btw If you change the tires from the terrible oem ones you’ll get the grip you need on faster pull away and reduce the noise significantly.

Well done!, same issue not much £ managed to bag a tesla model 3 long range for 15.8k loving it.

Great choice. At that price you really can't go wrong. I like physical buttons and a normal interface instead of driving a game console.

I bought mine 2.5yrs ago and so far 40k miles. Love going on trips with the dogs, range is great, ride is excellent. Some quirks..android rarely works, rear boot open warning only triggers after you are going 30mph (lol) and front lights at night about are really dim, so eat your carrots. Overall, love it, looks tatty but 5 yrs left on warranty and is a great dog truck..

It's a very capable car. I do like the power available in sport mode. Ride is very good, not a rally car by any means but doesn't pretend to be. Infotainment is not great, but overall a very nice EV.

Oi! I’ve been looking for that car for 6 months! How you get it for such a great price? I’d have snapped that up right away.

The wheels and the ride height let the car down. They should have down a lower version with sporty aero and tasty wheels to appeal to a younger market

Interesting video, I didn't realise the tie up with VAG. I've no plans for an EV, but something like this would suit me if my 15 year old Tiguan gave up. A few years back I replaced the wheels on my Tiguan, it made it look like a lot newer car.

Can this do V2H? If not then I don’t understand that you didn’t go for one that is, like the Nissan Leaf for example. You do work from home, no?

I was looking at an older MG5 as my shortlist along with an ID3. I was looking at the exclusive(or is it premium?) as it had the panaramic roof but what put me off it was the lack of mobile remote features for charging but still a lovely looking car. The id3 I didn't like the short bonnet, and I ended up with my leaf. The only downside of the leaf is the foot hand brake, but I went for a n-connecta(tekna has electric brake I know.). I still like the look of the MG5 though and I think the bits you don't like are very small points and will do you until you can get the Tesla you wanted for under 25k.

The MG EV range seem to be fairly well thought of from what I understand. Spare tyre a bonus these days too. Not personally ready for a EV yet, hanging on to our 2 diesels for another 4-5 years, lots of EV price carnage to come I believe 😊

Great review thanks 👍 did you buy through trade or auction for it? I'd be tempted at £8500 but all the retail ones are around £11000