Competitively Priced MG5 To Drive Market

By Lee Pang Seng

IF THERE is one thing you have to take your hat off to, it is the Chinese automotive industry for the way in which it has developed in leaps and bounds over the past decade. It has come out with vehicles that could do things that were unimaginable before without sacrificing performance, quality and reliability.

And it’s no secret that it has taken the world by storm with its wide range of electric vehicles (EVs). It’s not lacking in the ICE (internal combustion engine) category as well with products that are just as impressive in what they could do against international peers.

MG is among the many Chinese automotive companies that haves impressed with their range of vehicles, both electric and non-electric. Having introduced its EV range – MG4 and MG ZS -in Malaysia over the past year, it followed up with its ICE product, MG5, in early October.

What has made the MG5’s entry to the market all the more impressive is a price below RM100,000 at RM93,900 (retail price). Furthermore, to celebrate MG’s status of a century in the automotive industry, MG Malaysia is giving a RM7,000 introductory rebate to drop the price below RM90,000. That makes the MG5 great value for money. What makes it more appealing are the five-year unlimited mileage warranty for the car and seven-year unlimited mileage for the transmission and engine.

To enlighten those who aren’t sure about its MG heritage, the brand has British roots that started in Oxford, UK in 1924. Its run in the automotive industry was hampered by a lacklustre performance in the early 2000s. By then, it was known as the MG Rover Group and the company was acquired by Nanjing Automobile Corporation (NAC) in 2005.

SAIC Motor Corp Ltd came into the picture when it took over NAC in 2007. The company was earlier known as Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation when it was founded in 1955. As it was better known by its abbreviated name, SAIC Motor became the preferred identity.

As the MG5 is in a market segment that sees thick and fierce competition among the national and non-national brands, this new player is certainly giving rivals a good run for the money. And it’s not short on looks, features and strong engineering to carry it through. This model is currently manufactured in Thailand and that gives it an ‘imported’ status as well.

Its wind-swept and sporty body design with complementary LED (light emitting diode) headlamps and a striking grille in black easily catches the eye. The rear with ducktail spoiler and equally good-looking LED taillamps holds its own too in drawing attention. Completing the visual impact are the rather flashy 17-inch Tomahawk alloy wheels that are shod with 205/50 R17 Maxxis Premitra 5 tyres. This is a Taiwan tyre brand that is made in Thailand in this case.

The MG5 gets its push from a 1.5-litre (1498cc) undersquare four-cylinder engine that has a long stroke 84.8mm configuration against a 75mm bore. It is fully a contemporary unit with double overhead camshafts and 16 valves with VTi-T (variable timing intelligent tech) although MG adopted the DVVT letters on the engine head cover, similar to that you see in Toyotas and Peroduas. It stands for Dual Variable Valve Timing.

As a normally aspirated engine with multipoint fuel injection, the engine output is reasonably good at 83.8kW (114PS) at 6000rpm and 150Nm at 4500rpm. An eight-speed iCVT (intelligent continuously variable transmission) with Sports mode directs the power to the front wheels. MG says this iCVT is tested for durability over 2.35 million kilometres and delivers a 97-per cent power transfer efficiently. Although MG recently introduced a turbocharged version of the MG5, that model would probably be introduced here only in about a year’s time and probably at a higher price too.

In the drive from KL to Desaru and back, we found the engine output sufficient for robust drives. We had three on board on the way to Desaru and four on the way back the following day. The MG5 is said to be among the biggest in dimensions among its peers in the class with an overall length of 4675mm, overall width of 1842mm and height of 1480mm. Its wheelbase is long at 2680mm.

We figured its kerb weight would be around 1200kg or thereabouts and for the people we had on board, the MG5 picked up speed quite quickly in a linear way. For a quicker uptake of speed, we found using the Sports mode by moving the gearshift to the right helped. The iCVT chose a lower ‘gear’ electronically so we could tap engine power at higher revs to pick up the pace for some quick overtaking.

We restored the iCVT to normal mode once the overtaking was done as we wanted to drive at a robust pace without the engine consuming too much fuel by working too hard. In normal drive mode, the iCVT would use overdrive ‘gears’ that allowed us to maintain a quick pace without the fuel readout showing a quick drop in mileage. Doing that in Sports mode, which meant driving in lower ‘gears’ to tap maximum engine power, would have drained our 45-litre fuel tank quickly.

As it were, we made it to Desaru from KL, a distance of almost 400km with fuel in tank that was good for another 80km. And it was the same story on the drive back. Being prudent in transmission use helped us in getting good fuel mileage, even when driven at a robust pace.

The engine didn’t make too much noise when revved up and good firewall insulation significantly reduced engine roar into the passenger compartment. In fact, the MG5 has good noise insulation all round. The road roar varied with the respective road surfaces and the lower audible notes over good tarmac surfaces was fully enjoyed. Likewise, the aerodynamically efficient body led to less air turbulence over the respective areas, even at robust speeds. We could conduct almost normal conversation all round.

We liked the way the suspension worked too; the MG5 is independently sprung all round with MacPherson struts in front and a torsion beam design at the rear. The damping performance came across as well tuned for ride comfort, stability and dynamic drive. We felt this most as a rear seat passenger; we could feel the car running over bumps, ridges, potholes and rumble strips but were nicely cushioned from the harsh impacts.

During the few times the MG5 was driven through sweepers, mostly mild ones that allowed quick speeds, the body lean was well checked. We believed the MG5 would impress us too along our favourite winding roads but we would leave that for another day. On the highway, it hugged the road at robust speeds and that boosted our confidence in driving it fast.

As a driver, we are well pampered with electric adjustments for our seat that covers the usual features in reach, height and seatrest rake although lumbar support is manually selected. The flat-bottom leather-wrapped steering wheel was only adjustable for height but it has steering controls, including that for cruise control. The handbrake is the electronically actuated type that frees up a fair bit of central console space.

As rear seat passengers, we enjoyed good legroom given the rather long wheelbase. And for our 165cm height, headroom was good although we did wonder if taller people might have the head brushing against the roof here. However, we found the rear air vent a bit restricted in providing cool air; the way it is designed, we could direct air effectively to only one person – either right, left or centre.

What we also found a little impractical was the seven-inch instrument cluster for the driver. The speedometer is on the left and tachometer on the left. It employs a red band to sweep up to indicate the respective information but the colour is too dull and a bit difficult to read to grasp the information. Thankfully, there are digital readouts for the respective information and which we used more of that for a less stressful drive.

To the centre of the dashboard is the 10.25-inch high definition multi-info display with touchscreen access to the respective area, such as the radio stations and air-conditioning settings. It is angled towards the driver for easier reach and use.

Its range of features stands it from the crowd - power sunroof, black leather seats with red accents, 360-degree view camera, air-conditioning system with PM 2.5 air filter and three USB ports, two in front and one at the rear.

The MG5’s range of passive and active safety features is quite extensive. Apart from the usual, there are the Lane Change Assist, Blind Spot Detection, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Rear Collision Warning and Take Me Home Light. There is no spare tyre though but a tyre repair kit is provided as standard.

In luggage space, the 40-litre boot accommodate the travel bags of four people (for the return drive) easily. If we wanted more space, we could lower the 60:40 split rear seatrests accordingly to achieve the space required.

After our impressive drives with the EVs from China, the MG5 was a welcomed change for the non-EV segment. For sure, its attractive price would gain many buyers for whom the MG5 would meet most of their motoring needs handsomely.

Specifications

MG5	Standard
Price	RM93,900
Max Power (PS) / rpm	114 / 6,000
Max Torque (Nm) / rpm	150 / 4,500
Engine Type	DOHC 4 Cylinder 16 Valve VTi - TECH
Injection Type	Multi - Point Fuel Injection
Displacement (cc)	1,498
Fuel Tank Capacity (L)	45
Bore x Stroke (mm)	75 x 84.8
Compression Ratio	11:5
Steering Mechanism	Rack and pinion, electrically controlled (EPS)
Turning Radius (m)	5.6
Front Suspension	Independent MacPherson Strut with Stabliser Bar
Rear Suspension	Torsion Beam
Front Brake	Ventilation Disc Brake
Rear Brake	Disc Brake
Parking Brake	Electronic Parking Brake with Auto Hold
CVT 8 Speed Automatic Transmission	8 Speeds
Gear Ratio	2.453 - 0.396
Reverse Gear Ratio	2.58