MG4 EV XPOWER REVIEW & PRICES

This is the MG4 XPower, and it’s a bit like a supermarket's own-brand vindaloo – packing plenty of heat at a value price.

It’s a car you’d consider if you’ve been waiting for the dawn of the electric hot hatch, but the higher-power variants of the Cupra Born or Volkswagen ID3 just don’t offer enough punch for you.

Not that the looks of the XPower would suggest it’s the exciting version – not a great deal of change has been made over the base MG4.

Orange brake callipers and new 18-inch wheels give the game away if you know what you’re looking for, as do a few polished trim pieces, but the bodywork is otherwise untouched. The stealthy vibe may appeal, but there’s a case to be made that MG could and should have done more to shout about the car’s performance.

Similarly, there’s very little difference inside compared with the standard MG4. Aside from some Alcantara seat and door inserts, as well as a touch of red stitching, there’s nothing to scream XPower here. Material quality continues to impress for the price, but a dull selection of colours and a basic design does nothing to add to the excitement the car’s power promises.

Drag race: Lamborghini Gallardo v MG4 XPower v Nissan GT-R

Also retained for the XPower is the 10.25-inch infotainment system, packed with sat nav along with support for Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. A few welcome quality-of-life improvements have been made to the software, as well as a basic ‘Track Mode’ app that gives you real-time access to G-force and acceleration data.

As with the base MG4, rear passenger space is impressive, with a decent amount of head and legroom even for taller adults. Boot space is also untouched at 363 litres, which is marginally behind the Volkswagen ID3’s 385 litres.

The big changes for the MG4 XPower lie under the skin. As well as more power for the rear motor, a second motor has been added to the front axle too, combining to produce 435hp and 600Nm of torque.

The result is 0-60mph in a mind-boggling 3.8 seconds (for context, that’s quicker than a Porsche 911 Carrera 4) and an increased top speed of 124mph. It’s not just the off-the-line performance that’s so impressive either, with a real gut-punching kick from 30-70mph too.

To help cope with that extra power, MG has made some mechanical tweaks as well. An electronic locking differential has been added alongside a torque vectoring system, which combine to manage how power is distributed to the wheels through corners.

The suspension is the same as the base MG4, though with new tuning for the springs and dampers.

Though the result is a car that’s certainly capable when you throw it through the bends, it’s not particularly involving. Dull steering makes it difficult to feel how much grip the front wheels have, and even the mechanical upgrades can’t hide the fact this is quite a heavy car. You may outrun a Honda Civic Type R or Hyundai i30 N, but you won’t have as much fun in the twisty stuff.

On top of that, because of the suspension tweaks, the MG4 XPower crashes over bumps in the road more so than the regular car, though otherwise remains pretty comfortable around town. At motorway speeds though, you do really notice the wind noise as well as a slight whine from the new front motor.

Official range figures from the 64kWh battery dip from 270 miles in the Long Range car to 239 miles for this sporty XPower model. A mixed driving route with the car for this test returned 2.9 miles/kWh, equating to around 185 miles of real-world range.

For stomach-churning, sports-car troubling performance at a value price, the MG4 XPower delivers big. That said, traditional hot hatch buyers may struggle to be won over by quite a muted driving experience beyond the numbers.

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Acceleration is hilariously punchy in a straight line, but the XPower doesn’t deliver on hot hatch driving fun in corners

In town

As with most electric cars, the XPower is easy to drive in town. If you make one of the buttons on the steering wheel your brake regeneration adjustment, you can easily cycle from heavy deceleration when you lift off the throttle, to none at all. You will have to dive into the car settings in the infotainment to switch to one-pedal drive though.

Using that mode does make slow-speed traffic much easier to drive in. The regeneration effect is pretty severe and you make smooth progress navigating in slower speed limits as you don’t have to touch the brakes. It’s a pain to activate so better to only use it when it’s necessary though.

Visibility is good on the whole, although some may find the rear window to be a bit on the narrow side. The XPower gets blind-spot monitoring to make sure you don’t miss cars, bikes or other traffic.

With the sportier setup than normal, the XPower doesn’t have the lightest steering, nor the tightest turning circle, but at 11.7 metres it’s more than good enough to get you in and around tight streets and car parks. The standard cameras and rear sensors help a lot too, with the rear sensors even telling you how far you are from an obstacle.

On the motorway

As is typical for EVs, the XPower’s efficiency on the motorway does take a hit. Doing so means the 239-mile claimed range does drop a fair amount on a long journey, so make sure you know the best chargers on your route.

You do get some wind and tyre noise at cruising speed, but getting there is no trouble at all. The dual motors give you plenty of kick in whatever mode you’re in, and if you choose to be in Sport mode, you’ll find that kick to be even more impressive.

Long-distance comfort is pretty good as well, with the cushioning in the seats keeping you comfortable even after long periods behind the wheel.

On a twisty road

Where hatchbacks with this kind of performance usually perform best is on a twisty backroad. However, while the XPower has a lot of power on offer, the driving dynamics aren’t up to the same level.

The steering feels pretty vague at the best of times, so it’s not easy to know how much grip the tyres have, and although it does turn into a corner quite quickly, it never feels fun – something a hot hatch really should.

You’ll also find the suspension to be on the firmer side which means there's less body roll than you would expect for a higher riding hatchback such as this, but that can mean some bumps and potholes send a fair jolt into the cabin. You’ll also hear those noises echo around the cabin a little as well.

There’s ample room for most in terms of cabin storage and passenger space, but the boot could be bigger

For those in the front, the MG 4 XPower has more than enough room. You can easily get comfortable on the electrically-adjustable Alcantara and leather seats, while the steering column for the driver offers rake and reach adjustment.

Although the surfaces are quite dark, you have pretty large windows to make it feel light and airy enough – making it feel more spacious inside.

You’ll also find plenty of storage for all your things. You have a grippy wireless charging pad for your smartphone, cupholders below that are next to a bin with a sliding cover and there’s a useful space underneath the armrest.

The doorbins are a good size too, although as they’re unlined, you’ll find that metal bottles or keys can rattle around.

Space in the back seats

As with the standard 4, the XPower has a good amount of room for passengers in the back. Most adults have enough space, although taller people may find headroom a little tight.

There's a good amount of legroom, while the flat floor means you’ll have enough space to fit three sets of feet across the back.

The storage space isn’t too bad either, with doorbins, seat pockets and even a small area for your smartphone also on offer.

Boot space

While the 363-litre boot space is likely big enough for most, you’ll find that other high-powered EVs of a similar size offer more room. The Volkswagen ID3 and Cupra Born have 385 litres, but the Smart #1 Brabus offers a fair bit less at 273 litres.

The space itself is a useful shape, as it’s mostly square and you don’t have much of a load lip to lift things over. There are also small bins either side and a space under the floor, but not enough to keep your charging cables.

There’s little excitement in terms of the MG’s design and the infotainment can be glitchy, but the displays are clear enough

While the exterior design of the MG is sharp, interesting and – in a bright colour – cool to look at, the interior doesn’t quite live up to that level. Sure there are some cool angles and different tones, but you’ll find that it’s mostly black and dark grey surfaces with some small touches of red.

The higher levels of the cabin are covered in squishier materials that feel nicer to the touch than the scratchier plastics further down, while the leather steering wheel with gloss plastic trim pieces is nice to hold – but those bits of trim can smudge very quickly. With the two star buttons on the wheel, you can choose to switch between the drive and brake regeneration modes easily.

Mounted under the 10.25-inch infotainment touchscreen is the silver gear selector, which you press to engage Park and twist to switch between drive or reverse. It’s intuitive to use but you can find that there are times the car doesn’t respond and you need to give it a minute before the gear selector responds. It doesn’t happen often thankfully.

Coming back to the screen, it’s fairly easy to use, with day and night modes just like on a smartphone. It isn’t the most responsive and can be quite glitchy. You’ll find that it kicks you out of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto while you’re driving sometimes, and that means you’ll have to pull over to get it working again. If you use the infotainment system’s built-in sat-nav you’ll be fine, though.

The driver’s display could be brighter, but the graphics are easy to read and toggle through using the controls on the steering wheel.

From the 66kWh battery pack, the 239-mile claimed range isn’t the most impressive on the market. What we can give MG credit for is that you will consistently be near that figure when you fully charge it up, even when the conditions are on the colder side.

To achieve that mileage figure, you’ll need to average 3.6miles per kWh, which you can get pretty close to in normal driving conditions.

You can charge at up to 150kW on a rapid charger, meaning a 10-80% charge takes just 35 minutes, while doing a 10-100% charge from a 7kW wallbox takes eight and a half hours, meaning an overnight charge is simple

As an EV, you won’t need to pay car tax on the MG4 XPower until 2025, and for those looking for a good company car tax break, the MG sits in a low benefit-in-kind bracket.

The XPower comes with the same Euro NCAP rating as the standard MG4. That means a five-out-of-five-star score, with high ratings across the four parameters.

As standard, you get MG’s Advanced Driver Assistance Systems, which mean the XPower gets active emergency braking, lane keep assist, traffic jam assist, blind spot detection, rear cross traffic alert and adaptive cruise control.

You’ll also find airbags all around, ISOFIX points on the outermost rear seats, hill start assist, emergency brake assist and an immobiliser.

As the MG4 is still relatively new to the market, there isn’t much news in terms of reliability or major faults.

With each new MG, you get a seven-year warranty from the manufacturer, which is one of the best in the business and only beaten by Kia, Toyota and Lexus. You can also get roadside assistance and servicing.