MG5 EV - 10 Reasons to Avoid in 2024

[@bill_heywood]

I don’t disagree with anything you said in this video. But on the other hand you can get a brand new, facelift, SE Long Range for £19,495. That’s a 37% discount and it’s from an MG main dealer. So you get a real 205 mile family EV with a practical boot and full 7 year warranty for less than £20k. At that price you could forgive it an awful lot

[@UpsideDownFork]

Exactly! That's why I bought one.

[@alibro7512]

OK, I'll bite and respond 1. The looks are not terrible, that's the best I can say but the face lifted model is more modern so it's a bit unfair to pick on this car as it's no longer available. 2. The steering doesn't bother me at all and I'm coming from a C Class Merc. 3. The sound as standard is terrible but if you tweak it by boosting the low and mid it becomes bearable. But yes it could/should be better. 4. Agree the screen is too low for a satnav, I prefer to mount the phone on a magnetic phone holder in the air vent and forget about Android Auto which I struggle to get working anyway. 5. The car was WAAY better than I expected when I first drove it so being a bit dated doesn't bother me. The fact lane keep assist etc is a choice to select rather than unselect negates this issue completely for me. 6 and 7. 100% agree, the lack of a method to control or check charging remotely is a pain but as with issue 1 was somewhat sorted with the face lift. 8. You'r defo being picky here, I haven't had a sun roof in 20 years and while I would have liked one it's a luxury I don't need. 9. You're head is nowhere near the roof, what is the problem? I'm 6ft too but for me the short seat base is a bigger issue, having said that the seats are pretty comfortable. 10. The rear is more comfortable with more room than my old (2012) C Class estate and is pretty much the same as every other car in it's class. You're being unfair comparing it to a Model Y which is far bigger and twice the price. Things you didn't mention The analogue Speedometer is terrible and really difficult to read as for some unfathomable reason they decided to calibrate it to 150mph. This wouldn't be such an issue if the digital speedo didn't disappear every time you touch the cruise control. There are so many warning bongs that about random stupid things that the car is crying wolf wolf all the time. If there really is an issue it will be lost among the nonsense. There are two amber warning signs (one a warning triangle) in the dash about the fact the speed limits might change. NO KIDDING SHERLOCK!!!!! I've never driven on a road where that wasn't the case but MG felt it necessary to put two amber warning lights in the dash!!!!! Even though the car has multiple ways to warn you of speed limits half the time it has no clue what the speed limits are. On the motorway near me it flashes a speeding warning when I go over 60mph??? If I forget to take my keys with me I get no warning when I open the door and get out. When I remember about the keys and open the door to get them, the car bleeps like crazy at me. It's like rubbing salt in the wound of my stupidity!!! If you put the car into Drive too quickly after turning it on it gets totally confused, the High Voltage contactors don't close leaving it thinking it is in Drive but without any power. The only way out is to turn it off and on again. The design of the infotainment system is godawful with so many stupid design ideas I don't know where to begin except to say the default screen is the most ugly I've ever seen. The auto dip headlights are unreliable which results in me having to monitor them the entire time. Often I go to dip the headlights when the car didn't, only to find it dipped them a millisecond before me, so I put main beam on blinding oncoming traffic instead. People must think I'm deliberately flashing my lights at them when I'm just fighting with the car to get the headlights dipped. There are other things I could complain about but I had a similar list of complaints about my old Merc so the MG is not alone in being imperfect. For the money I paid it was decent value and it got me into the world of EV's so overall I'm happy.

[@UpsideDownFork]

Lots of good points here! I forgive it all of it's issues because of the price. Some of the things you and I mention may be deal breakers for prospective buyers. At this competitive price point, hopefully most buyers will overlook this superficial stuff and focus on how much of a fundamentally great car it is. My specific issue on #9 is that perhaps I have a long torso and my eye line is obstructed by using the visor. I feel like i'm sat slightly too high to use the visor but low enough that I still need a visor. I don't know, i'm nit picking really but it does bug me. The whole seating set-up just isn't right.

[@JK-vn3oh]

I’ve had my 71 plate mg5 lr for 3 years. It’s not the greatest ev out there but at the price I paid I didn’t expect it to be. I’m happy enough with my car. It’s been largely hassle free cheap motoring which is ideal. The seats are more comfortable than my wife’s Volvo xc 40 on long journeys. The mg pilot is fantastic. It’s smooth and comfortable to drive and quick off the line if you need it to be. I’ve never used the cars sat nav, instead I use apple CarPlay and google maps. Lots of space and good in the snow with the all weather tyres. This will do me another few years without any problem.

[@UpsideDownFork]

Thanks for commenting!

[@CarlosFandango1975]

2 years owning my lr pre facelift and i wont be going back to ice cars. £22k brand new. Bought a £10 wireless carplay adapter and it makes the technology future proof. Biggest downside is the lack of an app

[@UpsideDownFork]

Thanks for commenting!

[@malcym3394]

Maybe a better title would be "MG5 - 10 reasons to go for the facelift version" I agree with the auto-dip. The facelift still has issues. Otherwise, I don’s have the other drawbacks in my facelift. Small car? Mine only JUST fits into most car parking slots …

[@UpsideDownFork]

Yes, some things are definitely resolved but the facelift still has the same stereo, same poor seating position and it introduces some new annoyances. I'm just nit-picking anyway, at a fundamentally great car!

[@malcym3394]

I only listen to voice, so maybe don't stretch the audio system. I don't find seating a problem, although I would prefer cloth trim to be a 'downgrade option'. Otherwise, a few annoying things about the infotainment system - but it's night and day compared to pre-facelift.

[@UpsideDownFork]

@@malcym3394 Yes, the cheap fake leather is naff. Cloth would be preferable. I poked around the facelift and pre-facelift back to back and personally didn't find a night and day difference at all. I'd like to pick and choose a few things from both to make my preferable package!

[@johnwisener3802]

Great explanation on the steering in eco mode at high speeds, very fidgety. I had the facelift model for a while as courtesy car while they uncovered a really random fault with my MG5 lr (22) and despite the bigger wheels it actually rides better for me, more settled. Facelift is actually a really nice car but you can't permanently have lane keep assist off permanently or turn the speed limit warning off with switch of a button. Strange how making a car look more like a Hyundai than a Volkswagen is suddenly a good thing. In terms of things i would add, the auto wipers are terrible, as are the auto headlights and for me, the heated seats are massively underpowered. Could just be my car or what I'm used to but it isn't very hot ever. Great video, nice to see a bit of content on the MG5. One of those cars that flies under the radar but it's particularly good to drive, especially for the money, even compared to other electric cars

[@UpsideDownFork]

Thanks! I agree 👍

[@janhenkins]

Yup, I agree that the radio is totally pants. I was quite spoiled with the Bose sound system in our '14 model Leaf Tekna. I'm not sure what to do about this, although to me that is less of a bug-bear than the lack of app. I'm working on a possible solution for that, since I have purchased an OVMS box for my MG5. I did the same for our Nissan Leaf after Nissan decided to kill off their 2G/3G-based Nissan Carwings service (which was barely usable, but you could see charging stats at the very least) by installing an OVMS box, and that surpassed all my expectations. The OVMS platform supports the older Nissan Leaf models perfectly, but support for the MG5 seems to be a bit patchy at the moment. Once I have that going again (I had to remove it for a long trip) I will do a bit of a write-up about the experience and share it if there is any interest.

[@UpsideDownFork]

Oh, nice! Definitely interested in updates on this!

[@robinallen7356]

My personal annoyances : 1. The steering. I want 'urban' steering when slow and 'normal' steering when at speed. They missed a trick by not just making it auto-adjust more according to speed. As I have a short-range model, I have a pointless extra lever on the centre console that does nothing. That lever could have been a power-steering weight control. Big opportunity missed. I usually end up driving in 'normal' just because of the steering twitchiness, and then switching into 'eco' whenever I turn into a housing estate. Otherwise 'eco' steering at 60mph bends can be a little too twitchy. It lacks the feedback to know what the tyres are doing. 2. Unable to charge on Tesla chargers. (I read that this is fixable, maybe partially under MG warranty or maybe not, maybe at a reduced cost, depending on exactly which serial number charge control unit is under my bonnet, but I'm not up to date on the latest of what is possible and what is needed to fix it). Quite annoying as ANY dc charger manufacturer apart from Tesla can cope with charging my MG, but Elongated Muskrat's 'open to all' Tesla chargers refuse to charge it - so the problem isn't just the car, it's mainly on Tesla for not supporting what other charger manufacturers CAN support. 3. Having to press 'Android Auto' and disconnect and reconnect my phone 5 times to get it to work. And general slowness of the touch UI. 4. Random 'turn it off and turn it on again' moments to fix the screen or reset android auto or whenever it decides to forget to close the HV contacts. 5. I agree on the seat height. There's a fine line between being sat too high, not having visibility past that huge rear view mirror mount vs being sat low enough to see but hearing screams of "Owww! My TOES!!" from the back passenger. I quite like the seat height. The SEAT is in the right place. It's the height of the floor and the mirror that are the (unsolvable) problem. But I knew what I was getting into when I chose it. I didn't want the ZS 'SUV' - style of car. I want something I can reach to put bikes or roof box on the top, and wanted something tall enough for long legs in the back. So the height had to be the compromise. 6. The charging speed. It's not bad. It's good enough. Could be better. I don't need 250kW charging. If it was just 50% better than mine is, I'd be happy. Averaging 3.5mi/kWh is not bad, especially after ragging it around France at 80mph into headwinds with a massive roof box on the top. Although there have been advancements, even the newest cars aren't THAT much better on efficiency and range unless you're willing to rip a massive hole in your wallet. And 50kW or 250kW charging doesn't make a massive difference by the time the kids have filled up at McD's, so it's only an issue on the very long multi-stop holiday trips. Overall it's a car I like. And YES, I DO still like the VW Passat look of the front grille. It will take another couple of years before I learn to like the new 'plastic fantastic' styling of the modern front grilles.

[@UpsideDownFork]

Thanks for sharing! I hope these contributions will be helpful to anyone considering purchasing this great car.

[@decimal1815]

Biggest negative for me: *no heated steering wheel*. Even the new(er) top-spec Trophy doesn't. I can cope with driving in a cold car, never use the heated seats, but a freezing cold steering wheel is unbearable. Obviously I live in a colder climate..

[@UpsideDownFork]

Yes! I think this is just beginning to be an issue here!

[@l33ggy]

Have driven mine 45k miles over 2yrs 4 months just can’t agree with you. Only issue is the info system otherwise it’s fantastic value for money and running costs are minimal. Travel up to 200 miles in any given day and only used a public charging station twice!!

[@UpsideDownFork]

@@l33ggy totally agree that it's fantastic value for money and running costs are very low 👍

[@ianmoss20102010]

They have seem to have address a lot of your points with updated version

[@UpsideDownFork]

Yes, a couple of the points have been resolved but the biggest criticisms of the car remain. Also worth noting that the facelift version introduces a couple of other different issues that would bug me.

[@Umski]

The main plus for me would be that it's one of the few estate style EVs albeit I know it's not the biggest - in a few years it could have been a contender in the sub £10k bracket - the lack of full width rear seat could be a deal breaker with kids however...

[@UpsideDownFork]

Agreed. They are already popping up under £10k regularly but sell quickly. The rear seat is a squeeze with 3 kids but it works for now.

[@anthonydevono8833]

The only issue I would be worried about is getting warranty work done on it as I’ve owned a ssangyong and I know what waiting for parts etc is like I’m assuming that Mg are no better

[@UpsideDownFork]

Hopefully I won't have to find out but I'll be sure to update over the next few years.

[@SimonRGates]

If I did the same thing for my ID3 the first 7 points would be the software... then the sound, the looks, and the drive modes.

[@UpsideDownFork]

Ouch. That's definitely more of an issue when there's a lack of physical buttons.

[@terrymackenzie6784]

I went to test drive this car and didn't take it out as for a short person I couldn't get the seat into a reasonable position, but they did have then new MG4 and that was just great but the black headliner and poor internal lighting means you can't see anything when it's dark and as you say you can't compare the sound system with the Model Y but its double the price :)

[@UpsideDownFork]

That's interesting, I would have suspected the opposite. The seat feels like it was designed with short people in mind!

[@keithoneill6273]

Most of the issues you raise don't overly bother me. Ironically, you don't mention the one thing that does bug me with mine: the somewhat wallowy/jittery ride on poor road surfaces, of which we have a fair few near me!

[@UpsideDownFork]

Thanks for commenting! I find the ride good. Some have commented that the Bridgestone tyres play a part in an unsettled ride on these and swapping to Michelin or Hankook equivalent is supposed to improve the situation?

[@keithoneill6273]

@@UpsideDownFork Thanks. I do have the original Bridgestones. They have a bit of life left yet, but I'll keep your recommendations in mind. Also, I always drive in Eco, so I'll experiment with Normal to see if that improves things.

[@mickhursey4802]

Did you not test drive first? It’s a bit daft to. Up an MG and then wish it was a Tesla! I’ve had two MG5’s and for the money I absolutely love them I’ve had the same model as yours, and currently I have the face lift version. Yes, it’s old fashioned and doesn’t have all the whizz bang tech of other manufacturers so the answer of course is to spend another 10k plus and buy a car you do want.

[@UpsideDownFork]

I'm not sure if you watched this video or any of my previous videos about this car? I love our MG5!

[@nicksmpsn6546]

I like, and prefer, a black headliner.

[@UpsideDownFork]

I knew you had to exist! Otherwise why would these companies keep doing it!

[@markosborne7311]

Why didnt you buy a Tesla model Y? You would have enjoyed the insurance costs!

[@UpsideDownFork]

😂

[@liamglynn-it5ut]

Keep it simple No friles

[@markthomasson5077]

…but agreed, the E-up etc where you plug in you phone is for me

[@UpsideDownFork]

There's a lot of satisfaction in well executed simplicity.

[@adrianflower3230]

Don't forget your own audio degradation as you age, it wont be anywhere near as good as when you were younger 😅😅

[@UpsideDownFork]

Ha!

[@michaeledwards8079]

If it is so bad sell it and buy a tesla, trouble is they are north of 40 grand and yours is only worth 10K

[@UpsideDownFork]

@@michaeledwards8079 I didn't say it was bad. Listen to the first 30 seconds again 👍