Having barely celebrated its hundredth anniversary at the Rétromobile show, the former English brand MG, now owned by the Chinese group SAIC, is continuing its product offensive.
After having invested the European market with electrified SUVs (hybrid and electric) then the compact electric MG4 and the MG5 station wagon, the manufacturer is completing its range from below with a new MG3.
With a length of 4.11 m and a height of 1.50 m similar to that of the Renault 5 Electric, this new 5-door city car will be placed at the heart of the B segment.
M.G.
Its round silhouette surrounded by ribs (side and front hood) refers to the Hyundai i10 but the result suffers from a somewhat elongated nose.
The stern is more successful and the proportions are preserved with wheels located at the four corners of the bodywork.
M.G.
Like the other models in the range, the MG3 offers complete equipment with digital instrumentation based on a 7-inch screen and a multimedia system based on a 10.25-inch floating panel.
As standard, this city car includes GPS navigation, AppleCarPlay and Android Auto connection.
From the entry level, the equipment consists of automatic air conditioning, 4 USB ports, and a reversing camera with rear parking sensors.
Superior finishes add vegan leather upholstery, hands-free access, heated front seats and steering wheel, and 360-degree camera.
MG3
The originality of the MG3 is its Hybrid+ powertrain combining a 102 hp 1.5 liter 4-cylinder engine operating according to the Atkinson cycle and combined with a 3-speed automatic transmission, a 136 hp electric motor, a generator and a 1.83 kWh battery.
The system therefore offers a multitude of operating modes.
If the car's state of charge and speed permit, the MG3 can run on electric power.
In series hybrid mode, the 4-cylinder activates the generator which powers the electric motor to drive the vehicle.
In this case, at low speed, the battery can also recharge.
In another configuration, the MG3 runs on the combustion engine while the generator recharges the battery.
Finally, with parallel hybrid mode, both engines (thermal and electric) can be used to drive the car.
In this case, the driver has 195 hp at his disposal.
100 km/h is reached in 8 seconds and the top speed is 170 km/h.
The manufacturer announces a controlled consumption of 4.4 l/100 km, which corresponds to CO2 emissions of 100 g/km.