Written by Luke Wilkinson Published: 30 June 2023 Updated: 3 July 2023

Overview

MG built its reputation on small sports cars – and the MG Cyberster is being touted as a return to form for the brand, albeit with a modern, electrified twist. It’s a pure-electric, two-seat convertible car designed as a spiritual successor to the likes of the MGB and MG TF.

When it hits the UK market in summer 2024, it’ll become the only pure-electric roadster on sale, which means MG will have no choice but to pitch it against the industry’s best petrol-powered sports cars. However, its £50,000 starting price ensures it won’t be competing at the entry level. Key rivals will include premium German offerings such as BMW Z4, Porsche 718 Boxster and Mercedes-AMG SL.

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MG is owned by SAIC, which is China’s largest car manufacturer. Despite this, the company still has roots in the UK. MG operates a small engineering centre at the former Longbridge Mini factory – and the Cyberster was penned in SAIC’s Advanced Design studio in Marylebone, London.

But can MG pull the same trick it did in the electric hatchback market with the 4 and build another keen-driving car that can beat its established European competitors? We haven’t yet driven the Cyberster, but our reporters have seen the car in the studio – and the early signs look promising. Here’s everything we know about the Cyberster so far.

Performance specifications

The MG Cyberster will be sold with two powertrains. The long-range model will feature a 77kWh battery pack and a 314hp electric motor mounted on the rear axle. It’ll give the roadster a maximum range of 330 miles and a 0–62mph time of around five seconds. To put the latter figure into perspective, that’s about the same as the Volkswagen Golf R.

The high-performance Cyberster will be powered by a smaller 64kWh battery, which will make the car lighter and therefore faster. It’ll also have an electric motor on both axles for a combined output of around 540hp and a 0–62mph time in the mid-three-second range. Acceleration like that will thrust it into the same league as the likes of the Lamborghini Huracan and Aston Martin DBS.

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MG has promised that both versions of the car will be very well equipped (which they should be for £50,000). Whilst we were milling around the studio prototype, one of MG’s spokespeople told us: ‘There’s no point in doing an entry version. So, it’s electric doors, electric roof, all the screens and all the kit. It’s just a question of whether owners want to go really fast – or crazy fast!’

How big is the MG Cyberster?

Enormous – and MG’s press photos are deceiving. In pictures, the car looks about the same size as a Mazda MX-5, but it’s almost the same length as a Porsche 911. Its wheelbase is also more than 20cm longer than the BMW Z4’s and the whole car is wider to make enough space for the batteries.

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The batteries also make the Cyberster slightly taller than its rivals, as its cabin and body sit atop them. The gap between the bottom of the side skirt and the lower edge of the door betrays the thickness of the cells. However, MG’s designers have masked the Cyberster’s inflated proportions with a painted gloss black hoop around the cockpit, which tricks the eye into thinking the car’s beltline is lower than it is. Be honest – you hadn’t noticed, had you?

What’s it like inside?

Rather sporty and quite tech-heavy. You even get scissor doors, which are sure to appeal to survivors of the Max Power era of modified cars. However, MG stressed that the Cyberster we saw in the studio wasn’t finished and that there would be some changes before it hit UK showrooms. That yoke steering wheel, for example, probably won’t make it to Blighty.

The Cyberster has fly-by-wire steering, which means there’s no physical connection between the steering wheel and the front axle. Instead, the steering is controlled by servos, software and electric motors. A similar setup will soon be available on the Lexus RZ450e.

We’ve tried a prototype version of the RZ450e’s steering yoke – and we thought it would work well enough in countries with lots of long, straight highways. However, we reckon the system will be a hinderance on the UK’s windy B-roads. For that reason, we expect the Cyberster’s yoke will be swapped for a conventional circular wheel.

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However, that decision will have a knock-on effect for the rest of the Cyberster’s interior. The three screens, for example, have been designed to fit underneath the yoke. They’re set low and they wrap around the driver, which means the upper rim of a normal steering wheel will obscure them.

We’ll withhold our final verdict on the MG Cyberster until we’ve driven it, but our first impressions are encouraging. If this electric roadster can expand on the MG 4’s engaging driving experience, we reckon it could give Europe’s established EV makers something to worry about. We’ll update you as soon as we can get behind the wheel.