Should you buy one?

Probably not. The MG can be a canny buy if you can get a really good leasing or finance deal. And it is usefully practical and well-equipped, but it’s short on other merits. If you’re shopping at the budget-friendly end of the small SUV sector, the Dacia Duster, Suzuki Vitara and Hyundai Bayon are all more rounded, more satisfying cars to use, drive and own.

Moving up a notch or two on the price spectrum, we always recommend taking a look at the Ford Puma, Renault Captur, and Skoda Kamiq. They’re just really good all-rounders. 

What we like

The MG ZS has a lot of passenger and boot space for a car its size, it has a generous helping of standard features for the money and the warranty is reassuringly long. After that, though, we start struggling to come up with concrete reasons to buy one.

What we don’t like

The engines are short on power, refinement and efficiency. The interior feels cheap and dated. And it’s missing some safety features – such as autonomous emergency braking – that we take for granted in other small SUVs.