What are the running costs?

The MG4 EV is incredibly good value to buy. Not only is it thousands cheaper than similarly sized rivals, but it has also more standard equipment and is much cheaper on a PCP and PCH leasing, too. As an EV, it will be Vehicle Excise Duty-free until 2025, and also benefits from lower-rate BIK for company car drivers.

According to the official WLTP test figures, the entry-level 51kWh SE Standard Range car gets up to 218 miles on a full charge, rising to 281 miles for a 62kWh SE Long Range before dipping back down to 270 miles for the Trophy Long Range.

The 77kWh Trophy Extended Range version tops the (non XPower) line-up and can go a claimed 328 miles between recharges. Our experience of the Long and Extended Range models suggests it should prove similarly efficient to the Born and a little ahead of the Megane E-Tech, with a real-world range of 270-280 miles in summer months.

The MG4 will charge at 7.4kW from a home wallbox, or up to 135kW (117kW for Standard Range models) on a rapid public charger – the latter giving a 10-80% charge in around 35 minutes (40 min for Standard Range). The charge point is also ideally positioned where you’d find the fuel filler flap in most cars, instead of on the nose – so you can reverse park in charging bays, the safer option.

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Servicing and warranty

MG offers one of the longest warranties in the business, matching the Kia Niro EV’s seven-year cover. Only Toyota and Dacia can beat this with their 10-year warranties – assuming you always get your car serviced at a franchised dealer.

Reliability

MG’s reputation for reliability isn’t faultless, but then neither is Cupra, Renault or Volkswagen’s. We’re hearing lots of stories of owners suffering from niggling issues associated with variable build quality. The main ones being poor fit and finish, infotainment issues, and charger problems.

In addition some parts supplies have been a problem – particularly bespoke MG sensors. Your friendly local MG dealers and that seven-year/80,000-mile warranty make things much more palatable, and on the whole, the smaller family-run businesses work harder to get to the bottom of any issues owners have been encountering.