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electric, MG, Motoring

Electric MG bucks the trend

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MG5 Exclusive

By Bill McCarthy

NO-ONE can accuse MG of lacking ambition. Years after the brand’s disappearance and then return to British roads, it has moved on in leaps and bounds.

After a faltering start, the line-up is still limited but imaginative. This latest model, the all-electric MG5, targets the fleet market, which bucks the current trend for SUV/crossover vehicles, instead offering a repmobile-style estate car.

It is also an affordable electric option for larger families, with its impressive range, practicality and stowage space. It’s range would not be suitable for company drivers covering hundreds of miles a day, rather the local multi-drop urban work or commuting to and from an office or to visit clients, where the range 214 miles, would be more than adequate.

This alleviates one of the big problems with electric cars – range anxiety. The question of whether you can reach your destination, and if you can’t are there charging points available? Around 200 miles seemed easily achievable while living with the car.

There’s little to show the car is an electric vehicle apart from some discrete badging, the green strip on the number plate and the lack of tailpipes.

It offers smart styling, sitting low off the ground to attain better stability, ultra-low running costs, particularly with Benefit in Kind taxation for business users, just one per cent for 2021/2022 and a hugely attractive price. It starts from £24,495 (after the Government plug-in car grant), not forgetting the seven year warranty.

The vehicle is powered by a 115kW electric motor and delivers the instant, blistering acceleration associated with electric cars. Equivalent to 156PS, it can hit 60mph in 7.7 seconds.  It is a comfortable place to be and handles pretty much as well as any petrol or diesel estate and accommodates five people with relative ease.

The 52.5kWh Lithium-Ion battery pack can be charged from zero to 80 per cent in just 50 minutes using a rapid charger. A full charge at home using Type 2 fast charging can be attained in around eight and a half hours.

There’s little to show the car is an electric vehicle apart from some discrete badging, the green strip on the number plate and the lack of tailpipes.

It has a low slung profile and while it may not be the most exciting styling, the iconic MG badge on the black grille still attracts plenty of interest. The grille badge in fact discretely conceals the charging, point, swinging open to allow the car to be plugged in.

The interior feels like a much more expensive car, with a comprehensive list of standard equipment. It also has a more modern feel, with the usual gear selector replaced with a rotary knob and the instruments laid out in a clear, concise and logical manner.

There is plenty of head and legroom, even for rear seat passengers, while the front seats, on this Exclusive model are leather-style, heated and fully adjustable.

 To hammer home the point of the car’s value for money, even the ‘entry level’ Excite features electric windows all-round, air conditioning, regenerative braking, cruise control with speed limiter, an auto-hold electric parking brake, rain-sensing wipers and push-button starter.

This is together with 16-inch, alloys, remote entry with push-button start, air conditioning, four electric windows, electrically adjustable mirrors, cruise control, rear parking sensors and follow- me-home headlights. This Exclusive model adds rear camera, sat nav, silver roof rails, electrically adjustable folding heated mirrors, an automatically dimming mirror and satellite navigation.

The centrepiece on both is an eight-inch colour touchscreen and seven-inch TFT display. The touch screen controls navigation, infotainment through the six speaker system and DAB radio, and connectivity for smartphones.

In addition there are four USB ports, The TFT display gives a raft of driver information, particularly on the charging and range of the car.

The large boot area is accessed through a wide tailgate opening and offers from 464 litres of space up a spacious 1,456 litres, depending on the configuration of the folding rear seats.

It’s also packed with active and passive safety systems, with front, side and curtain airbags, electronic brake assist, ABS with EBD, twin ISOFIX points in the rear and hill start assistance.

Factfile

MG 5 Exclusive

Price: £27,540

Mechanical: 156PS,115kw electric motor driving front wheels via auto via transmission

Max Speed: 115mph

0-62mph: 7.7 seconds

Combined MPG: Range 214 miles (WLTP)

Insurance Group: 19

C02 emissions: 0g/km

Warranty: 7yrs/80,000 miles

electric, Peugeot

208 powers ahead

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Peugeot e-208

By Bill McCarthy

Peugeot has a proud record with small cars. The 205 GTi, which  became an icon of the British roads back in the 1980s, the most notable example.

That has continued with the latest 208 and particularly the e-208, the first all-electric car in the Peugeot range. It is already challenging the best on the market as more and more people start looking at electric cars seriously, battery range improves and charging infrastructure widens.

It needs to be good as it is up against challengers like the Honda E, Corsa-e, Renault Zoe and Kia e-Niro and MINI electric.

It features an electric 50kWh, 136bhp powertrain with a claimed 217 miles range (WLTP) from a single charge. While never working on a full charge, three-quarter charge showed a range of 161 miles, there was never the range anxiety associated with earlier electric cars and I always felt there was power to spare.

 The firm recommends using a wallbox charger, so the car comes with a Mode 3 Type 2 cable as standard, which will charge the vehicle in 7.5 hours with a 7kW charging point. There is also an optional facility for a booster charge cable which will give 80 per cent charge in around 30 minutes at certain charging points. The standard three-pin plug connector can take up to 14 hours for a full charge.

The latest 208 is a very stylish car and while the  e-208 is essentially the same as its combustion siblings, it adds some neat little touches to distinguish it, including body coloured chequered front grille, a bespoke ‘e’ monogram and a clever innovation to the signature Peugeot Lion badge, which changes colour from different angles. This version also featured gloss black wheel arch extensions, and a diamond black roof. 

Prices start at £28,100 for the Active model, rising to more than £33k for the the GT driven here.

The inside, which features the latest ‘3D i-Cockpit’, has a real premium feel, with high-end soft touch finish to dash and doors and neat chrome touches, piano-style control switches and heated, leather-trimmed front seats on this model.

It is dominated by a new 10-inch colour touchscreen and Connected 3D Navigation with Tom Tom live updates available, and controls major functions in the car like connectivity and infotainment.

 The central console houses a a nifty little drive selector and the car features the now familiar compact steering wheel.

This GT specification is exclusive to the electric car and includes front and rear parking sensors and 180˚ reversing camera, 17-inch alloys active and ambient interior lighting.

Safety features include cyclist and pedestrian detection, full LED headlights, automated parking, adaptive cruise control, lane and blind spot assistance.

 On the road, in true electric style, it is very nippy indeed, the instant torque powering it to 60mph in just under eight seconds, after which acceleration slows considerably, before reaching a top speed of just over 90mph, where permitted.

 It handles well, feeling stable and assured, even if the GT suspension and larger wheels make it feel firm, sometimes uncomfortable over poor road surfaces.

As with all electric cars, you are constantly monitoring the range and the regenerative braking. It is selected via the B on the gear lever, and puts charge back into the battery as it the car slows. It also means you are inclined to drive more economically to maximise power recovery.

But when the power is needed, however, it is instantly on tap.

Being a relatively small car, space is at a premium. But both head and legroom is decent for front passengers, but is more cramped in the rear.

As a hatchback, it also pretty practical with boot capacity ranging from standard 311 litres, stretching the 1,106 litres with the rear seats folded. In addition there are number of stowage areas and compartments.

 For easy of charging, customers can also download the MyPeugeot app, which will allow them to manage their vehicle charge remotely, precondition the temperature of the vehicle and receive ‘e-Coaching’ on how to benefit most from their vehicle. 

 As a first all electric effort, this is an impressive debut and should set a high standard across PSA brands. It also looks good by not falling into the trap of making electric power look slighty weird.

Factfile

Peugeot e-208 GT 136

Price: £33,150

Mechanical: 136bhp, 50kWh electric motor driving front via CVT auto gearbox

Max speed: 93mph

0-60mph: 8.1 seconds

Range: 211 (WLTP)

Insurance group: 31E

CO2 emissions: 0 g/km

Warranty: 3yrs/60,000 miles