MG 5 what am I missing?
Discussion
Okay so on my challenge to find a replacement estate car for the aging Vauxhall Insignia I have come across the 1st gen MG5.
£15kish seems to get you a couple of year old, lowish mile example and I can sort of man maths my way into it. Looks like a right bargain.
Okay I have not seen one in the flesh yet and the new facelift model seems to be a big improvement, if I can get over the looks what else am I missing? Why are these soo cheap?
£15kish seems to get you a couple of year old, lowish mile example and I can sort of man maths my way into it. Looks like a right bargain.
Okay I have not seen one in the flesh yet and the new facelift model seems to be a big improvement, if I can get over the looks what else am I missing? Why are these soo cheap?
Because people will think you're a minicab / uber 
Seriously, we had one on a short term rental for 9 months, it surprised me - i was expecting it to be rubbish but it had:
decent sized boot
decent rear seat room
The drive was ok - reasonably fast off the line, less so at higher speeds but thats to be expected.
Balloon tyres so pretty comfy even if the handling was "safe".
Range was 250miles best, down to 200-ish when cold, dont know how this is affected by age/mileage.
Infotainment was rubbish - my wife got stuck once in Paris (she was actually in Birmingham), the auto high-beam was a bit dim witted and some of the interior is pretty low rent but on a VFM basis i thought it was fair overall.
And it would be the perfect bank job car (in black) - no-one could describe it to the police!
Seriously, we had one on a short term rental for 9 months, it surprised me - i was expecting it to be rubbish but it had:
decent sized boot
decent rear seat room
The drive was ok - reasonably fast off the line, less so at higher speeds but thats to be expected.
Balloon tyres so pretty comfy even if the handling was "safe".
Range was 250miles best, down to 200-ish when cold, dont know how this is affected by age/mileage.
Infotainment was rubbish - my wife got stuck once in Paris (she was actually in Birmingham), the auto high-beam was a bit dim witted and some of the interior is pretty low rent but on a VFM basis i thought it was fair overall.
And it would be the perfect bank job car (in black) - no-one could describe it to the police!
We have one a pre-facelift Long Range (61kWh battery).
In terms of value for money nothing comes close, looks wise its a Passat.
Interior is OK, purchased a Motorola MA1 wireless Android Auto adaptor which removes the infotainment 'problem'.
Cheap as chips to run, 12K miles covered at 4 miles per kWh, no issues with the car at all.
7 yr warranty too on the important stuff.
In terms of value for money nothing comes close, looks wise its a Passat.
Interior is OK, purchased a Motorola MA1 wireless Android Auto adaptor which removes the infotainment 'problem'.
Cheap as chips to run, 12K miles covered at 4 miles per kWh, no issues with the car at all.
7 yr warranty too on the important stuff.
Chap at work has got one a couple of months back as "his first EV to test the waters". He's now a convert and can't imagine ever going back to ICE!
They're a lot of car for the money I would say. Slightly "first gen" feel in some respects when I had a play, but nothing terrible. The infotainment system seems a bit dated, but Car Play/Android Auto takes care of that. Interior seems pretty good if not special, but assembled well. Plenty of space. No charging timer that I could find, or charge limiter - both of which seem like odd omissions but he's gone with Intelligent Octopus so that's taken care of. Performance seems perfectly reasonable if not interesting.
They're a lot of car for the money I would say. Slightly "first gen" feel in some respects when I had a play, but nothing terrible. The infotainment system seems a bit dated, but Car Play/Android Auto takes care of that. Interior seems pretty good if not special, but assembled well. Plenty of space. No charging timer that I could find, or charge limiter - both of which seem like odd omissions but he's gone with Intelligent Octopus so that's taken care of. Performance seems perfectly reasonable if not interesting.
Have done 9k miles in my pre facelift LR now.
Range seems to be between 200-250 miles depending on external temperature more than anything else.
Plastic leather style seats are just like old school vinyl and get red hot in the summer! Not helped by the glass being fully clear all round. I’ve got fitted mesh blinds in the back windows of mine (not tinted them as it’s leased) which helps.
Seats are comfy enough on long journeys but the left foot rest is a little high (as a 6’2” driver).
Boot is reasonable, similar size to my boss’s Golf estate.
As others say the infotainment is woeful but CarPlay saves it. Touch screen is proper old school needing a good prod. It does have actual dials for HVAC though, thank god.
Other niggles- no rear cabin light, Centre screen illumination is too bright at night even when fully dimmed & although you can turn it off you then lose navigational display.
Auto main beam is a pain, too many false triggers and every time it turns on or off you get a warning which obscures the speed display for 10 seconds.
Adaptive cruise is pretty good but the closest it allows you to get to car in front is still the ideal gap for a driving god to slot in to.
No charge timing on the pre facelift or access to app.
Overall I like it. It’s white goods driving really. No emotional attachment to it but it’s saved me a fair few £ over the thirsty v6 diesel Landrover it replaced.
Range seems to be between 200-250 miles depending on external temperature more than anything else.
Plastic leather style seats are just like old school vinyl and get red hot in the summer! Not helped by the glass being fully clear all round. I’ve got fitted mesh blinds in the back windows of mine (not tinted them as it’s leased) which helps.
Seats are comfy enough on long journeys but the left foot rest is a little high (as a 6’2” driver).
Boot is reasonable, similar size to my boss’s Golf estate.
As others say the infotainment is woeful but CarPlay saves it. Touch screen is proper old school needing a good prod. It does have actual dials for HVAC though, thank god.
Other niggles- no rear cabin light, Centre screen illumination is too bright at night even when fully dimmed & although you can turn it off you then lose navigational display.
Auto main beam is a pain, too many false triggers and every time it turns on or off you get a warning which obscures the speed display for 10 seconds.
Adaptive cruise is pretty good but the closest it allows you to get to car in front is still the ideal gap for a driving god to slot in to.
No charge timing on the pre facelift or access to app.
Overall I like it. It’s white goods driving really. No emotional attachment to it but it’s saved me a fair few £ over the thirsty v6 diesel Landrover it replaced.
Cleevely EV use these for their mobile EV mechanics, doing something nuts like 60k miles pa (or maybe even more). They have one which has shown v low battery degradation at 90k+ miles and they are insanely pleased with them
Search for James Kate and Florence on twitter and you will find loads of info. They have a youtube channel too
Search for James Kate and Florence on twitter and you will find loads of info. They have a youtube channel too
Thanks guys. Coming from a 2013 Insignia I am sure any Infotainment will be an upgrade to what we currently have.
Doesn't have to be sporty or anything as we have the Z4 for the weekend. It's purely going to the Mrs Community nurse car doing about 20k per annum. She doesn't get a car allowance just a crappy pence per mile rate so it's not enough the stretch to a more premium EV and I wouldn't want to due to the mileage she will be putting on it and the effect that would have on resale The maths nicely works for a 15k car though and she will be in something modernish less likely to break.
On autotrader white with tinted windows seems to be the best looker. Either that or they have taken very flattering pictures! I think next step is to go and see one in the flesh
Doesn't have to be sporty or anything as we have the Z4 for the weekend. It's purely going to the Mrs Community nurse car doing about 20k per annum. She doesn't get a car allowance just a crappy pence per mile rate so it's not enough the stretch to a more premium EV and I wouldn't want to due to the mileage she will be putting on it and the effect that would have on resale The maths nicely works for a 15k car though and she will be in something modernish less likely to break.
On autotrader white with tinted windows seems to be the best looker. Either that or they have taken very flattering pictures! I think next step is to go and see one in the flesh
The DAB radio works well, it’s just the interface that’s rubbish, a bit like a cheap Android phone from 15 years ago. The satnav is like so many inbuilt ones and just seems so counter intuitive to use if you are used to Google or Apple Maps or similar. I only use it when I’m somewhere with no signal and I need nav to find my way, as soon as I can I switch to CarPlay.
(On the DAB note, the antenna is the bottom couple of ‘wires’ on the rear screen so it looks like the demos yet is faulty!)
(On the DAB note, the antenna is the bottom couple of ‘wires’ on the rear screen so it looks like the demos yet is faulty!)
ZesPak said:
Mikebentley said:
God it’s ugly though. It looks like a 1990s Mitsubishi or Toyota.
Isn't it this car?
It basically looks like an altered passat to me.
jimmytheone said:
And it would be the perfect bank job car (in black) - no-one could describe it to the police!
ThisIt's possibly the most vanilla car ever produced, but in many ways, I think that's its appeal. It may do nothing particularly well, but it also does nothing particularly badly either which for many people (especially taxi drivers) will be enough to make it quite appealing at that price.
Honestly, when price is considered, it's probably the most... fit-for-purpose white-goods family EV on the market right now. Doesn't mean I'd ever want one though.
Honestly, when price is considered, it's probably the most... fit-for-purpose white-goods family EV on the market right now. Doesn't mean I'd ever want one though.
Someone mentioned the boot size, and whilst it claims to be an estate it's really not much volume. Upto the boot cover, as most manufacturers measure.
MG5 - 464 litres
VW Golf Estate - 611 litres
Vauxhall Astra Estate - 540l
Pug 308SW - 660l
So if it suits your needs then go for it, but don't expect a huge boot. And you can't use a roof rack. The early standard models had roof rails for aesthetics only.
MG5 - 464 litres
VW Golf Estate - 611 litres
Vauxhall Astra Estate - 540l
Pug 308SW - 660l
So if it suits your needs then go for it, but don't expect a huge boot. And you can't use a roof rack. The early standard models had roof rails for aesthetics only.
kambites said:
It's possibly the most vanilla car ever produced, but in many ways, I think that's its appeal. It may do nothing particularly well, but it also does nothing particularly badly either which for many people (especially taxi drivers) will be enough to make it quite appealing at that price.
Honestly, when price is considered, it's probably the most... fit-for-purpose white-goods family EV on the market right now. Doesn't mean I'd ever want one though.
Exactly that, bought as a tool for a job at a very competitive price. i can't believe anyone would buy it with their heart!Honestly, when price is considered, it's probably the most... fit-for-purpose white-goods family EV on the market right now. Doesn't mean I'd ever want one though.
In some ways its a similar buy to a Dacia but with less charm
Mikebentley said:
ZesPak said:
Yes that’s the badger. The exterior styling looks like a mish mash of 90s estate cars. As cheap EV transport I get it. Just not for me. Just make it a single slight curve from front to rear.
We have a few of there’s on our taxi fleet
Prefacelift and before the price increases 24k brand new
Soulless white goods all the spec you really need or want and so far utterly reliable
There’s some kicking about north of 100k now with absolutely no issues
Only issue and it’s an us issue rather than the car is the range is 200-220 miles in a full charge
And the cost of charging from public charging is horrendous now
Fine if the the drivers have home charging and only
Do local work for a shift but v expensive compared to diesel if doing airport work or any distance jobs
If you have home charging and don’t do 60k+ a year their a great car
Prefacelift and before the price increases 24k brand new
Soulless white goods all the spec you really need or want and so far utterly reliable
There’s some kicking about north of 100k now with absolutely no issues
Only issue and it’s an us issue rather than the car is the range is 200-220 miles in a full charge
And the cost of charging from public charging is horrendous now
Fine if the the drivers have home charging and only
Do local work for a shift but v expensive compared to diesel if doing airport work or any distance jobs
If you have home charging and don’t do 60k+ a year their a great car
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