MG Motor HS, eMG6, eRX5, Marvel X Driven

MG Motor is equipped with great resources to make a world class SUV for India

MG Motor, a.k.a. Morris Garages is a British sports car manufacturer which is owned by China’s biggest car maker, SAIC. Producing close to 70 lakh cars a year (in comparison, Maruti Suzuki produces around 15 lakh cars a year), SAIC is a massive automaker with separate joint ventures with GM and Volkswagen among many other commercial JVs. They are foraying into the Indian car market with the MG brand (Roewe is a sister brand) next year and we visited the company’s design centre, R&D centre, manufacturing facility and proving ground in China to understand the capabilities of the auto giant.

The company’s R&D centre has the latest technology and they do a crazy amount of tests to ensure longevity of vehicles and their parts. MG Motor UK has a technical and design centre, to keep the brand as British as possible. We saw the MG E-Motion EV sports car in person and it look gorgeous. The attention to detail on this concept vehicle is simply outstanding and it’s set to go into production in 2020. The MG plant we visited, produces close to 2.8 lakh units per annum. With MG sales increasing by 50% every year, SAIC has to add a new plant every year to fulfil demand.

The kind of investments being made on the MG brand shows their seriousness

But they say the proof of the pudding, is in the eating, so they took us to their Guangde Proving Ground which is the largest such facility in the whole of Asia. Developed in collaboration with GM, with an investment of Rs. 16,000 crores, the company can enable vehicle testing under 67 different driving conditions. This facility was an eye opener and to sum it in one word, it’s massive. We sampled MG and Roewe cars here.

eMG6 – This is a hybrid and the sedan looks quite attractive, it gets a notchback body style. Producing 228 PS and 622 Nm, the eMG6 is smooth off the line with great refinement to boot. It accelerates linearly, body roll is well contained although there is some roll and tendency to understeer at the limit with the steering having decent feel too. The interior is well laid out, there is a KERS button on the centre console and this car can go 53 kms on pure electric range alone. We drove this vehicle flat out and found the handling to be eager. The cabin feels nice with good amount of space at the rear.

MG HS – Moving on to the car which I personally was very inclined to drive, the MG HS is a Hyundai Creta sized SUV which draws power from a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine that outputs 231 PS and 360 Nm, mated to a 6-speed automatic transmission. Power delivery is linear, NVH is super and the cabin felt nice, albeit with a lot of influence from other cars like the side AC vents, infotainment screen, driver power window controls, switches around the gear lever, front seats, steering wheel and tachometer seem to be inspired from an A3, BMW 7-Series, Mercedes S-Class, Audi, Mercedes A-Class, Volkswagen and Aston Martin respectively.

Somehow, the design just looks right in spite of the inspiration and gives a very premium appeal to the cabin. Even the rear seat has good amount of space and the ride felt comfortable on the rough roads of the track where the company perfects the ride and handling balance of its vehicles. The exterior does look appealing but with some Volvo XC40 influence at the front. However the neat proportions give it good presence.

Roewe eRX5 – The electric version of the Roewe RX5 (Mazda naming?), we got to drive the eRX5 for a limited time wherein we could only test its safety systems. A simulation of snow conditions to demonstrate traction control and ABS wherein full acceleration on the slippery surface meant some torque steer but everything felt so easy and effortless as even on full throttle, it wouldn’t spin its wheels due to TCS kicking in and cutting power.

This was followed by a high speed slalom test wherein we witness the ESP working flawlessly on this car. I must admit, the eRX5 felt in control even when making quick turns around the cones. The interior of this car mimics that of latest generation Volvos with a similar tall infotainment screen and side AC vents. The range is good at 320 kms but the top speed is just 135 km/hr.

Roewe Marvel X – The latest car to be launched by the company, the Marvel X sits between the RX5 and the flagship 7/8 seater RX8 and is a pure electric vehicle. The spec sheet is impressive, the 52.5 kWh battery ensures the Marvel X goes from 0 to 100 km/hr in just 4.8 seconds with power being channeled to all wheels while the power and torque figures stand at 300 HP and 665 Nm respectively. It charges to 80% in just 40 minutes and the range is an impressive 500 kms.

The Marvel X is thoroughly impressive on multiple fronts, it drives very well too

Before you step inside, you have to open the door with the Jaguar F-Type style pop out door handles and once inside, you will be reminded of Porsche for the dashboard has a resemblance and the massive 14-inch infotainment screen will remind you of the Tesla Model X. As soon as I stepped on the accelerator pedal, I was pushed back in the seat, there is a kick in the pants feel and the Marvel X accelerates with great urgency, I was impressed. As I came around a corner, the steering felt the best of all the cars I drove that day, offering good feel, aided by the stiff suspension which felt a bit uncomfortable on the rough roads section of the track.

The Marvel X is a spacious car, it has good amount of interior room, even at the rear and the seats are well cushioned too. The 12.3-inch instrument cluster (where front camera display is there), crisp graphics, autonomous cruise control (which we sampled too) and a slew of other technologies in the Marvel X showed the tech muscle of SAIC. The car’s infotainment system was running AliOS (developed by AliBaba) and there was a drone mode too which is currently in beta.

So if I have to give a common theme to the latest MG cars, I would say they have good quality, the plastics are hard on the lower side of the dashboard, the design is attractive, there is good amount of space, performance is linear, NVH and refinement is simply outstanding, the ride comfort is great, handling is good and the equipment list is very generous. None of the cars we drove will be making it to India in the near future but shows the capability of the Chinese automaker. MG Motor promises us that the cars they will launch in India will offer great bang for the buck and after witnessing the company’s existing vehicles and operations, we firmly believe the company has everything in its arsenal to pleasantly surprise us when their first car for India, a C-segment SUV is launched in April 2019.