2023 MG ZS EV review: Australian first drive

MG Motor and its MG ZS EV has led the battle to claim the title of Australia’s most affordable electric vehicle. Launched in 2020, the MG ZS EV brought electric cars to the masses, with sharp pricing and a decent enough range for most urbanites.

Back then, the MG ZS EV was priced at a sharp $43,990 driveaway, undercutting its then main rivals by between $5000 to $16,000. Its range was rated at 263km, which wasn’t great in the context of electric vehicles, but certainly proved enough for most day-to-day uses.

Now, MG Motor has updated its popular electric vehicle, with a new facelifted 2023 MG ZS EV. The price has gone up by a grand (now $44,990 driveaway), but so too has the driving range, now rated at 320km (on the WLTP testing cycle) against the older model’s 263km.

Interestingly, back in March, MG Motor revealed pricing for the updated model at $46,990 driveaway (and $47,990 for the new – and top-spec Essence model) but has now wound those prices back.

Whether this is a direct response to the imminent arrival of the $44,990 driveaway (providing you live in Tasmania) BYD Atto 3, MG isn’t saying.

We asked, at the launch, but received only non-committal ‘It comes back to our core DNA of trying to offer the best value we can. And that changes sometimes with negotiations and things. So, we’ve been able to offer a better price to the market, and we’ve done that’.

Whatever the reason, Aussie buyers are the winners.

Updated features of the 2023 MG ZS EV include a new ‘closed’ grille, a sporty body kit, both designed to improve aero efficiency and thus range. Inside, a new 10.1-inch touchscreen – running a vastly improved operating system – is joined by an information rich digital driver display.

But the biggest change, certainly in the world of electric vehicles comes with a new, larger battery – 50.3kWh against the old model’s 44.5 – that sees driving range increase from a ho-hum 263km to a more palatable 320km. That makes the $1000 price increase pretty damn palatable, to our eyes.

The MG ZS EV is keen to hang on to its mantle as Australia’s ‘most affordable electric vehicle’. And with a driveaway price of $44,990 for the entry-level Excite variant, the ZS EV’s status, in its own words, as the country’s ‘best value electric vehicle’ remains intact.

Fellow Chinese brand, BYD, has launched its MG ZS EV rivalling Atto 3 small SUV for an identical $44,990 driveway, but with a catch. The Atto 3 claims to be priced from $44,990 drive-away – however, differences in government stamp duty and registration charges between states means this only applies in Tasmania.

In other states, the drive-away price for the entry-level variant is as high as $47,931. The price before on-road costs and government charges – which applies nationwide – is $44,381.85.

That leaves the MG ZS EV’s nationwide driveaway pricing at the top of the ‘affordable EV tree’. For now.

Standard equipment highlights include 17-inch alloy wheels, LED head- and tail-lights, a 10.1-inch touchscreen with satellite navigation, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as a decent, if not complete, suite of active safety technologies.

A second variant – range-topping – has been added to the line-up, the $47,990 driveaway Essence, which adds a panoramic roof, a six-speaker sound system, wireless phone charging, faux leather heated front seats – power-adjustable for the driver – and power-folding mirrors. Blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert complete MG’s suite of safety tech.

The cabin of the MG ZS EV is a pleasant place to spend time in. In the entry-level Excite model, the seats are trimmed in cloth with a pleasing pattern that breaks up the monotony.

Soft-touch materials abound, although the inclusion of harder plastics is also evident, especially on the door cards.

Everything is laid out nicely, the rotary dialler for drive selection falling easily to hand while the location of the touchscreen requires minimal body movement.

There are elements of the cabin design that appear familiar, most notably the Audi-esque air vents and overall design of the dash. That’s no bad thing.

Storage amounts to a pair of cupholders up front and some generous door pockets capable of swallowing bottles.

The steering wheel feels nice in hand, and its multi-function controls are easy to intuit and use.

The second row is surprisingly spacious. Behind my own 173cm driving position, toe, knee and leg room were in abundance while headroom also proved generous.

The MG ZS EV loses some points for not having any cupholders in the second row, although new-for-this-update air vents are a welcome addition. The second row seats proved comfy too, not always a given in every vehicle we drive.

Stepping into the top-spec Essence model brings some niceties like a huge panoramic roof and faux leather seats contrasted with racy red stitching. The overall feeling is pleasing, like money well spent.

Boot space is rated at 359 litres with the second row in use. Those back seats fold away in 60:40 split-fashion to reveal a decent 1187 litres of load-lugging capacity. The boot floor too, can be shifted into a lower position to allow for easier carriage of bigger items.

A new 10.1-inch touchscreen, nicely integrated into the dash, anchors the MG’s infotainment system. It features in-built satellite navigation as well as Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring. DAB+ radio is standard too.

The operating system has been vastly improved, with sharp graphics and an intuitive menu structure that’s easy to operate on the move.

We found Apple CarPlay quick to integrate and switching between smartphone mirroring and the ZS EV’s native system was equally as seamless.

While the screen resolution remained crystal clear and sharp, the same can’t be said for the rear-view and 360-degree cameras which, while serviceable enough, offered grainy images. It’s a small letdown of an otherwise decent infotainment setup.

The entry-level Excite variant makes do with a four-speaker sound system, the top grade Essence model scoring a couple of extra speakers. Despite the meagre speaker count, both systems provided decent enough sound.

The new digital driver display provides a nice array of information – tyre pressure monitoring, trip data, energy consumption as well as energy flow (whether from the battery or back into it), all in a beautifully rich graphic display whose resolution and crispness mirrors that of the infotainment system.

Of course, a digital speedo and a power-meter, which again, displays whether you’re expending or harvesting energy, feature prominently. The top-spec Essence model scores wireless phone charging while a single USB Type A is joined by a USB Type C plug in the centre console. We like that MG is hedging its bets by offering both types of connections. Nice one.

Australia’s safety body, ANCAP, awarded the MG ZS EV a five-star safety rating back in 2019. That score should carry over into this 2023 face-lifted model, although an MG Motor spokesperson told Drive at the launch the manufacturer remained in ongoing discussions with ANCAP.

Back then, ANCAP scored the electric SUV 90 per cent for adult occupant protection, 84 per cent child occupant, 64 per cent vulnerable road user and 71 per cent for its safety assist systems.

MG’s suite of active safety technologies – dubbed MG Pilot – is comprehensive although only the top-spec Essence scores the entire catalogue.

Both models are equipped with autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping assist with lane departure warning, automatic high beam headlights, and traffic sign recognition.

But, only the Essence comes with blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert, the entry-level Excite missing out. That’s a bit of a mis-step in our book, where we believe potentially life-saving technologies should be standard across the range.

While we couldn’t fully explore the MG ZS EV’s full suite of safety tech over our short launch route, we did note the lane-keep alert was a touch trigger happy, flashing its warnings onto the driver display if you so much as even hinted at nearing the lane markings. Thankfully, alerts can be switched off, but that kind of negates the purpose of them in the first place.

Six airbags cover both rows of occupants.

There’s no doubt the MG ZS EV represents decent value, certainly in the context of electric vehicles.

Chinese challenger brand BYD is aiming to match the MG ZS EV with its recently-launched Atto 3 SUV, but as already pointed out, its matching $44,990 driveaway price is only for cars registered in Tasmania, the rest of Australia paying extra in stamp duty and other associated costs.

Of its other main rivals, the Hyundai Kona Electric starts at $57,429 driveaway while, if you can get your hands on one, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 gets underway at $71,900 before on-road costs.

That makes the MG ZS EV a bit of a bargain in the ever-expanding world of available electric vehicles in Australia.

MG Motor covers the MG ZS EV with a seven-year, unlimited kilometre warranty, including the battery, while service intervals are a generous every 20,000km or 24 months, whichever comes first. The first three scheduled visit to the workshop will set you back $268 each while the fourth – 80,000km and eight years – asks for $807. Additional scheduled services, thereafter, are priced at $268 per visit.

Comprehensive insurance runs to $1955.97 per annum on a comparative quote from one of Australia’s leading insurers and based on a 35-year-old male driver living in Chatswood, NSW – insurance estimates may vary based on your location and driving history.

MG claims the ZS EV will expend 17.3kWh of energy per 100km. That’s an improvement over the older model which was listed at 18.6kWh.

Our test loop at launch returned indicated consumption numbers of 16.8kWh (Excite) and 13.6kWh (Essence). That’s a decent return against MG’s claim and to be sure, we weren’t hypermiling by any stretch, and the conditions included city traffic, a bit of highway motoring and tootling around some suburban backstreets.

MG says the ZS EV can be recharged to 80 per cent on a 50kWh public charger in around 54 minutes while a 7kW home wallbox can do the job from 0-100 per cent in around eight hours. MG supplies wallboxes for the home – priced at $1990 for 7kW and $2090 for an 11kW charger, both prices excluding installation costs.

With a new 50.3kWh battery array powering a single synchronous electric motor sending drive to the front wheels, the MG ZS EV’s numbers add up to 130kW and 280Nm.

That’s good enough to propel the small SUV from 0-100km/h in a claimed 8.2 seconds. Our test launch didn’t allow for a proper acceleration test, but there’s no denying the ZS EV feels light and nimble.

Moving away from standstill is pleasingly brisk, while on-the-move acceleration is also typically responsive.

Three drive modes alter energy consumption and driving characteristics while also messing about with range. Eco is the most frugal yet by the seat of the pants, doesn’t affect around town performance one iota. Normal is as a Normal does while Sport adds just a hint of zing from behind the wheel.

We spent the bulk of our time in Normal, a pleasing and unflustered tune that is at once spritely yet comfortably easy to live with.

MG Motor claims it has refined its suspension tune with revised spring rates and dampers. The result is a ride that is pleasingly supple without being overly soft. It is, in a word, comfortable, with minor road rash proving no obstacle while larger hits – such as speed humps – do little to upset the ZS EV, the small SUV settling back on to its haunches with poise and purpose.

Road noise too is kept to a minimum. MG Motor says it has improved the acoustic deadening with this updated model and it certainly remained quiet and comfortable in the cabin. A bit of wind noise at higher speed is to be expected and without an internal combustion engine burbling away to help mitigate the passage of air, it’s amplified a touch in the cabin. But, it remains at a level that is comfortable and acceptable.

Three levels of energy harvesting feed electrons back into the battery pack. From mild to aggressive, the system begins to harvest energy as soon as your foot comes off the accelerator. But, even in its most aggressive, this is no single-pedal driving machine, a touch of the brakes needed to come to a complete stop.

Still, it works well in maintain battery charge as evidenced by our launch drive where battery levels were maintained, or even increased, depending on the driving conditions.

Overall, our launch drive proved reasonably frugal on energy, as evidenced by our consumption figures which proved better than MG Motor’s claim.

Those looking to dive into electric vehicle ownership but without the $70k to $100k most mainstream models seem to ask for, will be well served by the MG ZS EV.

In electric car terms, its $44,990 driveaway price remains within reach of a lot of buyers while its improved driving range could be enough to tempt those previously hesitant at anything with less than 300km on the energy meter.

Unless you value leather seats and a huge sunroof, for our money, the entry-level Excite is the pick of the two-ZS EV range, offering the same performance and range as its more expensive sibling.

It’s a shame the Excite doesn’t score the full suite of safety technology but backed by a seven-year unlimited kilometre warranty, including crucially, the battery, the MG ZS EV is, for now, the most affordable electric car money can buy in Australia. And that’s no bad thing.