The MG HS Plus EV has change into Australia’s top-selling plug-in hybrid in latest occasions, taking the crown from longtime PHEV chief, Mitsubishi.

MG offered greater than 1500 over the primary 9 months of 2023, accounting for a couple of quarter of complete HS gross sales. Clients are evidently open to being upsold – as long as the product is appropriate and the value premium deemed acceptable. 

Reflecting its total model positioning, the MG HS Plus EV can be Australia’s least expensive PHEV; accessible drive-away for beneath $50,000. That makes it a reasonably attractive proposition. 

There’s little question the HS Plus EV will find yourself being many individuals’s first style of plugging in a automobile and doing each day electrical commuting – particularly those that worth the backup of its petrol engine.

How does the MG HS fare vs its rivals?

View an in depth breakdown of the MG HS towards equally sized automobiles.

MG

HS

How a lot does the MG HS Plus EV Essence value?

MG advertises nationwide drive-away pricing for the MG HS Plus EV from $48,990 for the bottom Excite, as much as $51,990 for the Essence grade examined right here. That makes the PHEV variations $14,000 dearer than their equal petrol-only siblings.

Its closest apparent competitor is the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross Plug-In Hybrid vary marketed from $51,290 drive-away. However one other approach to have a look at the HS PHEV is that it prices about the identical as a Toyota RAV4 GXL Hybrid, which doesn’t supply any correct pure-electric mileage.

Now in the actual world, it doesn’t take a lot effort to discover a new or low-mileage demo HS Plus EV rocking a good low cost – trace, trace.

What’s the MG HS Plus EV Essence like on the within?

The inside does deliver fairly a premium really feel, belying MG’s often cheap-and-cheerful ethos.

There’s high quality leather-based materials – each actual and artificial – in every single place, ambient lighting, round knurled vents, and stable fit-and-finish. It’s handsome too. This automobile is reasonable for what it provides, however doesn’t really feel that approach from the within. 

The entrance seats with leather-based upholstery and suede-like inlays have numerous facet and under-thigh bolstering and look costly. They’re additionally heated and energy adjustable for each entrance occupants. The atmosphere is accomplished by the Essence’s full-length tinted sunroof, with power-adjustable material cowl.

It’s all laid out fairly logically inside, utilizing a big digital instrument cluster with fairly sharp animations located behind the reach-and rake-adjustable steering wheel. Forged your eyes to the left and also you’re introduced with a large-ish 10.1-inch centre show, beneath which is a financial institution of rocker switches.

On the plus facet the centre display shows a crisp overhead-view parking digital camera, has its personal sat-nav, plus Apple CarPlay and Android Auto cellphone mirroring, and a good six-speaker audio system. The format of the menus can be pretty easy, even when the digital pores and skin appears just a little cheesy. 

Nonetheless, it appears fairly sluggish at processing inputs, typically taking seconds to reply to contact prompts. This can be a minor irritation in relation to adjusting issues like driver-assist presets, however turns into infuriating if you’re attempting to make use of the local weather management menu or scrolling by radio stations. 

If MG hadn’t fitted the HS Plus EV with such a sluggish and glitchy infotainment system, it will be genuinely onerous to seek out any critical fault in right here in any respect.

The again seats are wonderful too, which is one thing we’ve famous as a typical attribute of Chinese language automobiles. At 194cm tall I had ample headroom (even with the opening glass roof) and legroom behind my very own driving place. The seats recline too.

Facilities embrace a pull-down centre armrest with a felt-lined storage space, two USB ports, air vents, damped seize handles with LED studying lights behind them, and equally premium supplies all through as these used up entrance – not one thing all automobiles can declare. 

Boot capability behind the powered tailgate is a reasonably modest 451 litres (down 12L on the petrol HS), increasing to 1275L with the again seats folded. There’s area for charging cables beneath the ground alongside the tyre restore package, and a pull-out cargo cowl is customary.

What’s beneath the bonnet?

The powertrain combines a 90kW/230Nm electrical drive motor fed from by a 16.6kWh lithium-ion battery, with a 119kW/250Nm 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine with a 10-speed transmission. 

This EDU-transmission has six gears for the petrol engine’s drive and an digital drive unit with its personal set of 4 gears for the e-motor, which appears each uncommon and complicated for a PHEV.

The upshot is a system output of 189kW of energy with 370Nm of torque, promising a sprightly 0-100km/h time of 6.9 seconds. However not like the dual-motor Mitsubishi PHEV system, the MG HS is front-wheel drive solely, so watch out for wheelspin.

MG quotes a pure electrical vary of 63km on a cost earlier than needing to the touch the petrol tank, and a broadly logic-defying gasoline consumption score of 1.7L/100km on the mixed cycle (blame regulators, not MG). The 37L gasoline tank have to be stuffed with 95 RON premium gasoline, which is a draw back.

The Sort 2 charging port is on the rear-right-hand facet of the car and the gasoline tank filler on the rear-left-hand facet. The corporate additionally quotes a 1500kg braked towing capability, matching the RAV4 Hybrid’s declare.

How does the MG HS Plus EV Essence drive?

Most PHEVs will prioritise all-electric energy more often than not, till the battery is depleted, earlier than switching on the engine. The exception is if you happen to actually pin the accelerator or override the ECU by choosing a unique mode manually. 

However the MG’s default driving mode repeatedly faucets into petrol energy even with surplus battery cost accessible, to the purpose the place there was nonetheless some cost remaining after nearly 200km of driving, with the MG usually diving again into dinosaur juice.

The transition or handover between petrol and electrical energy isn’t overly in-your-face, however you may really feel the engine kick in if you happen to’re paying consideration, regardless of MG’s claims on the contrary. You too can inform if you happen to’re watching the nifty animated show within the giant digital instrument cluster, which I often did. 

This calibration, which sees you utilizing petrol and electrical energy above 40km/h nearly all the time, aside from when coasting, means the easiest way to consider the MG HS Plus EV is as a traditional hybrid with bonus EV vary thrown in. That is mirrored within the gasoline consumption I noticed of 6-6.5L/100km when leaving the automobile to its personal units. 

A RAV4 Hybrid will do higher than that, even with out the identical diploma of pure EV vary factored in.  

Nonetheless, as with all PHEVs, the car’s deserves all rely on the way you drive it, so don’t despair. Merely jabbing a button subsequent to the transmission prompts EV mode, whereby the car will certainly prioritise battery energy and hold the engine off for so long as attainable.

I managed 57km of electrical vary on an everyday commute of metropolis and freeway driving at 22kWh per 100km – greater than sufficient for a median work return journey for many individuals. That is one thing the RAV4 Hybrid, Haval H6 HEV or Nissan X-Path e-Energy can’t do: a full day’s driving utilizing zero petrol.

And at this level, even when you need to do a couple of extra miles utilizing the petrol backup, your journey will stay a extremely environment friendly one. You too can program the system to robotically retain a proportion of the battery’s cost in hand till you wish to use it; for instance if you happen to’re returning to city congestion.

In fact, folks usually overlook to cost their PHEV, at which level they’re designed to revert to one thing like a extra fundamental hybrid, utilizing regenerative braking to maintain the battery accessible at low speeds. Doing a drive loop this manner, my common consumption was 8.0L/100km.

That effectivity leaves a bit to be desired to be sincere, that means you really want to make sure the HS Plus EV is stored repeatedly charged to be price contemplating. It could be useful if MG was to can help you dial up the brake regen, which might deliver the added bonus of decreasing brake pad put on. 

The principle positives of the drivetrain are its real 50km-plus EV vary and its vital quantity of punch, with sufficiently fast acceleration to chirp these Michelin tyres and tug the wheel. It provides instantaneous response from its mixed turbocharged motor and electrical propulsion when overtaking. 

The negatives, apart from its gasoline use when the battery is low, are the system’s propensity to over-rely on petrol energy when it needn’t, even together with car start-up. One upside of hybrids is how silent they’re very first thing within the morning, so it’s odd to listen to the MG PHEV noisily flip over within the driveway, presumably to heat up the battery.

When it comes to charging, MG says a house 7kW wallbox on single-phase will recharge the 16.6kWh battery in 5 hours. Nonetheless, you too can use an everyday previous three-prong socket and cost it in a single day, making it far simpler to stay with if in case you have a driveway.

In case your power plan prices 30c per kWh of electrical energy (about customary the place I stay), then you may recharge the battery for about $5.

The HS PHEV weighs 1775kg, or 225kg heavier than the petrol-only mannequin. It makes use of MacPherson strut entrance and multi-link rear suspension and speed-sensitive electrical energy steering. 

When it comes to driving dynamics MG has achieved an affordable job with the setup, providing up a usually snug journey high quality that solely sometimes verged on being just a little harsh over the odd bigger pothole or growth joint. Noise, vibration and harshness ranges are additionally good. 

Whereas it’s not precisely a sports activities SUV, it stays comparatively composed in corners at common speeds and has good high quality tyres. The brake pedal really feel can be comparatively well-judged.

The motive force-assists embrace blind-spot detection and a lane-keeping support with steering inputs. The latter system labored properly on freeway curves and stays in no matter setting you final used upon every restart, so you may hold it off if you happen to desire. 

The adaptive cruise management system, managed by a small stalk under the left-hand-side indicator, prompts the devices to show a selected menu, in which you’ll be able to verify which distance setting you’re in.

What do you get?

HS Plus EV Excite highlights:

• Roof rails
• LED daytime working lights
• Rain-sensing wipers 
• Tyre restore package
• Rear parking sensors
• Proximity key and button begin 
• Auto-dimming rear-view mirror
• Twin-zone air-conditioning
• Heated entrance seats
• Powered driver’s seat
• 12.3-inch digital cluster
• 10.1-inch touchscreen
• Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• Satellite tv for pc-navigation
• 6-speaker audio 

HS Plus EV Essence provides: 

• 18-inch alloy wheels
• Michelin tyres
• LED headlights, tail lights
• Powered tailgate
• Electrical heated door mirrors
• Panoramic glass sunroof
• Ambient inside lighting
• Metallic pedal caps
• 360-degree parking cameras
• Powered entrance passenger seat
• Two-tone part-leather seats

Is the MG HS Plus EV Essence protected?

Crash take a look at organisation ANCAP awards the common MG HS petrol 5 stars (2019) nevertheless the Plus EV PHEV is sadly unrated – what offers?

Normal security options embrace:

• 6 airbags 
• Autonomous emergency braking (AEB)
• Adaptive cruise management 
• Lane-keeping aids
• Blind-spot monitoring
• Rear cross-traffic alert
• Visitors Jam Help

How a lot does the MG HS Plus EV Essence value to run?

MG provides a extremely aggressive seven-year limitless kilometre guarantee on each car and battery, with roadside help supplied.

Service intervals are too brief when it comes to distance (if not time interval) at 12 months or 10,000km. MG caps customary service pricing at $279, $399, $279, $456, $279, $1084 and $279 for the primary seven providers.

Automotive insurance coverage prices differ throughout petrol, diesel, hybrid, and plug-in hybrid automobiles, that means it’s sensible to match quite a lot of quotes earlier than signing on the dotted line.

CarExpert’s Tackle the MG HS Plus EV Essence

The MG HS Plus EV prices much more than the petrol-only model, has the identical poor infotainment system, isn’t practically as gasoline environment friendly because it claims to be, and lacks AWD as an choice.

However it additionally provides nice efficiency and usable each day EV vary at a worth level aggressive with common hybrids.

This truth, to not point out the spacious and plush inside and the seven-year guarantee, is what’s making it a well-liked bridge to all-electric driving for 1000’s of Australians.

Some tough edges, however inarguable worth, particularly if you happen to can choose up a reduction.

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