MG cars, which are distributed in Ireland by the Frank Keane Group, bounced into the Irish market a few years back with their fully electric MG4 and MG EV which quickly became very popular with Irish taxi drivers. Taxi drivers know a bargain when they see one.
I’m not a big fan of electric cars; I think life is too short to spend hours waiting for a car to charge. But I love hybrid cars where you can see the range gradually increase if you drive at steady speeds of approximately 75kmh.
That was my experience last week as I headed from Dublin to Athlone, a road with very few hills to climb on the way to the heart of the midlands. I kept an eye on my speed and found that if I stayed below 80km I used very little petrol and often saw the range increase.
The official fuel consumption figure for the ZS is 55.4 miles per gallon. I know that’s ‘old money’, but you don’t hear many people saying “you will get 50 or 60 kilometres per litre from this model” – well apart from presentations!
MG cars tend to come in eye-catching colours like Volcanic Orange and Dynamic Red. Last week my test car came in lovely shade of Blue, the official colour was Brilliant Blue.
The ZS has now got a make-over and the new version is slightly bigger than the previous version and is also sharper and more refined than the first version. It now has an attractive front grille with LED lights while at the back you also get LED lights.
In the hybrid version, the electric motor provides power for the wheels most of the time, enabling it to perform like a full electric car at low speeds, with the petrol engine kicking in when it feels the need to do so.
The 1.5-litre petrol engine combined with 100kW electric motor and a 45kW generator all combine to give you 194 brake horse power. That means you won’t be left floundering when the traffic lights turn green.
Inside, on the dash, everything is very simple and well laid out. The 10.25-inch infotainment screen is not too big and the volume control buttons are located under the screen. The lever to active the automatic gearbox looks a bit like the lever used in airplanes or on the Luas trams where you slide the lever back for more power. And plenty of slave controls on the steering wheel.
There are a few cubby holes in the cabin to stores phones, notebooks, drinks etc. And the boot, with 443 litres of space is a decent size. If you need more space to carry bulky items, the space increases to 1,457 litres when you leave down the back seat.
I liked the slightly high driving position and there is very little road noise. You get three driving modes, normal, sport and eco.
Prices start at €28,995 and there are three trims to choose from: Essence, Excite and Exclusive. The Exclusive version that I drove will cost you €33,995. Road tax is €190. There is a seven-year or 100,000km warranty.
While sales of new cars in February were down 15% compared to the same month last year, sales of electric cars do continue to rise. In February 2,524 electric cars were registered compared to 1,8546 in February 2024, but I still think there is less worry with a Hybrid car and this MG ZS hybrid certainly offers good value for money.
