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The MG4 XPower
Electric Car
by Julian Edgar
No technological change seems to inspire love/hate emotions like electric vehicles (EVs). Many people are
either intensely for them or intensely against. The truth is much more nuanced, as Julian Edgar describes
after nine months and 20,000km with his MG4 XPower EV.
H
aving been interested in car tech
for over 40 years, I’ve watched
the advent of EVs with fascination.
I first drove a Tesla 15 years ago and
was enormously impressed. However, especially living in a rural area,
I couldn’t see the worth of buying an
EV until about nine months ago.
Then, an EV was released that, for
the first time in the modern history
of electric vehicles, had a significant
advantage over any new internal combustion engine (ICE) car in existence.
That advantage was the price for the
level of performance!
With the release of the Chinese-made
MG4 XPower, extraordinary performance became available at a cost that,
in round terms, was about half that of
an equivalent ICE car. For $60,000,
you can now get performance that is
the province of ICE cars costing at least
$120,000. That is simply incredible; it
is the most significant change in cars
I have ever seen.
Of course, if the car itself were
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terrible, that apparent advantage
would count for nought. I went to a
dealer and drove the MG4 XPower
and was very impressed, so I bought
it. Now, nine months later, what do I
think of the MG4 – and of owning an
EV, generally?
The MG4 XPower
The venerable UK brand MG has
been owned by Chinese company
SAIC Motor since 2007 (although it
was initially acquired from BMW by
another Chinese company in 2005).
While the company maintains a small
UK design base, perhaps 95% of the
car is designed and manufactured in
China.
A mid-sized hatchback (some people say the car is small; it could only
be termed that in an era when very
large cars have been normalised), most
models of the MG4 use a rear-mounted
150kW electric motor and a 64kWh
400V lithium-ion battery pack. That
under-floor battery weighs 409kg.
Australia's electronics magazine
The sportier XPower uses a 170kW
rear electric motor and a 150kW front
electric motor, both of which are threephase, permanent magnet synchronous designs. Compared to the standard car, the XPower has larger brakes,
revised suspension and different interior and exterior trim. Its claimed
0-100km/h time is just 3.8 seconds.
That is phenomenally fast – as fast
as a Ferrari from a few years ago. The
XPower weighs 1800kg, which is not
particularly heavy in today’s terms.
As opposed to a hybrid car that
uses a combination of an ICE engine,
HV battery and electric motor, an EV
must be charged from mains power.
The time that takes depends on the
car itself and the charger to which it
is connected. With the MG4, the DC
charging power to the battery pack
can be up to 140kW, meaning that
a normal 10% to 80% charge takes
about 30 minutes (charging speed
isn’t linear).
Of course, that’s only when using
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The Chinese-built MG4 is one of the new breed of cost-effective electric cars currently available. This is the XPower
version, a very fast car priced about half the equivalent car with a petrol engine. The high-voltage battery is mounted
under the floor, with clever styling disguising the increased height of the lower edge of the doors.
a high-power charger such as those
found at highway rest stops, shopping
centres and the like. Using the provided AC charger (termed by many a
‘granny’ charger because it is so slow!),
it takes more than 20 hours to charge
the battery fully.
I use an aftermarket 3.6kW charger
powered from a dedicated 15A home
socket, which will charge the battery
to 80% overnight from a starting level
of about 20%.
Electric power is limited when the
battery charge drops below about 25%;
as the battery charge decreases below
that, the available power continues
to decline.
This caused us a problem only
once, when my wife was driving home
with a very low battery level and
had to climb a long highway hill. In
that case, the car would only achieve
80km/h, which was a bit dangerous
on a 110km/h road.
The official energy consumption
of the XPower is 19kWh per 100km.
That has proven accurate in summer
conditions, but the consumption is a
bit higher in winter – nearer 20kWh
per 100km. With a 64kWh battery, and
working from 80% to 10% capacity,
the range is about 230km.
Why only 80% to 10%? The manufacturer suggests using the battery
in that way under normal conditions
and only tapping into the full capacity
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when undertaking long trips. Using
the full battery capacity gives a range
of about 330km, but doing that frequently will degrade the battery prematurely.
The displayed battery range is very
accurate. Initially, I was fearful of letting the battery level get below about
15%. Judging the remaining range of
ICE vehicles based on fuel levels can be
hit and miss, so I thought the MG4 display might suddenly drop from 15%
to zero, stranding me by the side of
the road and requiring a flatbed truck
to get me home!
However, I now realise there are no
problems in running the battery down
to, say, 5% as the change in the predicted range corresponds very well
with the distance travelled.
As with all EVs, the MG4 uses regenerative braking (ie, it returns power
to the battery under braking). This is
achieved in two ways. The first way is
as you lift the accelerator pedal, the car
automatically starts to brake regeneratively, a bit like engine braking with an
ICE car in gear. The amount of regeneration can be seen on the driver display; it is seamlessly varied with the
right foot.
The second way regenerative
As with many modern cars, instruments and most controls are via LCD screens.
The centre is a touch screen; the buttons below it are the only buttons on the car!
Australia's electronics magazine
October 2024 55
The environmental footprint
One reason many people are for or against EVs relates to the environmental
footprint. There is so much information (and misinformation) on this
topic. However, major peer-reviewed studies show that the total lifecycle
environmental footprint (including building the car, running it and disposing
of it) is less for an EV than an ICE car.
That is the case even when the EV is charged mainly from coal power.
However, hybrid cars can be very close depending on the exact power-generating
mix. But for me, some of this debate loses the wood for the trees: it’s far better
for the environment to ride a bicycle or take public transport. Or even to retain
the old ICE car and use it only for short trips.
braking occurs is when the brake pedal
is pressed. That increases the level
of regeneration over that achieved
by lifting your foot off the accelerator pedal and, if the brake pedal is
applied harder, the friction (conventional) brakes also help to slow the car.
Regenerative braking is so effective
that the disc brakes become slightly
rusty from a lack of use and can squeak
a little when applied. One hard braking
event then cleans them again.
The stand-out feature of the XPower
is its amazing drivetrain. With 600Nm
of torque, the XPower is extraordinarily strong, linear, refined and
responsive. The only ICE car I’ve
driven that comes close to its effortless performance is a twin-turbo V-12
Mercedes and, of course, the XPower
is much faster.
We’re talking about a wave of torque
that just hurls the car forward, making driving situations like overtaking
on country roads ridiculously easy.
The drivetrain is the most impressive
I have driven in 35 years of professionally testing cars; it makes my Porsche
981 Cayman engine and transmission
look positively agricultural.
The ability to ‘play a tune’ on the
accelerator pedal, seamlessly moving
from immense power to braking, is
simply wonderful. It’s a delight I enjoy
every time I get into the car, whether in
city stop/start traffic or driving down
a twisty country road.
The design and build quality of the
MG4 are excellent. The paint is very
good and panel margins (gaps between
adjoining panels) are consistent. Even
when delving under the plastic covers positioned over so many of the
mechanicals, the engineering and
build quality look good.
You must search hard to find deficiencies, but an example is the stitching on the underside of the head
restraints. It looks as if the person
operating the machine was looking
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the other way at times!
The interior of the car is quite minimalistic; some would call it plain.
There are the two displays, a short
row of buttons, a charging pad for your
phone and not much else. To some
people, it looks cheap and nasty; to
others, it is sleek and modern. I fall
midway between the two camps – I’d
like to see more control buttons and
bigger screens, but otherwise, the interior austerity doesn’t concern me.
Regarding the screens, the central
unit measures 10.25 inches (26cm),
but unfortunately, the screen behind
the steering wheel is only 7 inches
(18cm). With the small font that’s often
used, the latter can be hard to read
at a glance, although familiarity has
improved this.
Nearly all the controls are operated
through the central touch screen, with
only seven physical buttons provided
below it. The central screen can be
slow to react, especially when the car
is first started, and accessing controls
that in other cars would be a simple button-push away can become a
clumsy dance of fingers.
However, two of the steering buttons
are programmable so, for example,
some of the heater/air conditioner controls can be accessed through a steering
wheel button and then adjusted via a
steering wheel toggle.
The air conditioner uses a high-
voltage electric motor to power the
compressor and it works extremely
well. Heating is by a resistance heater
rather than using the air conditioning
system as a heat pump. Interestingly,
in some overseas markets, the MG4’s
heater does use the air conditioner;
they must not think it ever gets cold
in Australia!
The seats and steering wheel are
heated; these work very effectively,
and I tend to use these functions rather
than the cabin heater itself.
Where the technology fails – and it
Australia's electronics magazine
utterly fails – is in some of the driver
assistance systems. The Lane Keeping
Assistant is the worst. It is so bad that it
needs to be switched off; otherwise, it
beeps and yanks on the steering wheel
at every imagined driving misdemeanour. On unmarked country roads, it
is positively dangerous.
Frustratingly, it cannot be permanently disabled but must be switched
off every time the car is driven.
Another technology that is below
par is the active (radar) cruise control. It’s almost as if the system was
not recalibrated for the greater performance of the XPower, as it tends to be
too heavy-handed with both acceleration and braking. Certainly, any competent driver can be much smoother
than cruise control – in this regard,
even a 15-year-old Holden Commodore is much superior.
Other MG4 users have additionally reported autonomous braking for
phantom events; however, luckily, I
have not experienced that.
Hopefully, MG will release software
patches to solve these problems. These
require a dealer visit as no over-the-air
updates are available despite the car
having a 4G connection.
Editor’s note: given that some vehicles have been remotely ‘bricked’ or
had features removed after purchase,
I think that is a good thing.
The good and the bad of EVs
At this stage, and especially in rural
and regional Australia, EVs do not
make for a persuasive case for many
users. More than anything else, the
issues are range and charging infrastructure. Basically, for long trips, EVs
are terrible.
Sure, the web is full of EV discussion groups where people claim that
long trips are not only possible in
EVs but are, in fact, delightful. Just
stop every 2-3 hours for 30 minutes
of charging, and since those stops correspond to when you’d want a break
anyway, what’s the problem?
The reality is different. First, you
must find a high-speed charger –
and compared to ICE fuel pumps,
they are as rare as hens’ teeth, especially off main routes. Then, the charger needs to be available. Many are
broken, while others already have
EVs plugged in. Imagine how long a
fuel fill would take if every ICE car
required half an hour at the petrol
pump!
siliconchip.com.au
The XPower uses both front and rear electric motors, giving all-wheel drive.
This is the view under the bonnet. Its build quality is excellent overall.
The MG4 has a phone app that can
remotely check the battery level, lock
or unlock the car and turn on the
heater or air conditioner. Here, it is at
63% charge, charging at 2.7kW on its
way to 80%.
The XPower sits a bit higher than a traditional hatchback due to the underfloor battery pack. It helps to keep the centre of
gravity low.
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Australia's electronics magazine
October 2024 57
Yes, you can do it, but taking an ICE
car with a decent range (these days, all
ICE cars) is vastly less stressful. On
a long trip, the ICE car is also much
quicker. Having tried it a few times,
I now rarely take my MG4 on trips
over 300km.
Next on the downsides is the financial uncertainty. People often quote
the meagre ‘fuel’ cost of an EV versus
an ICE car. And, especially if charged
from a home PV solar system, the running costs will indeed be a lot lower.
However, the major cost of buying a
new car is depreciation – the amount
the car loses in value each year.
At this stage, it very much looks like
EVs will have fast depreciation – that
has been the case in markets that are
more mature than Australia in terms
of EV penetration. There are several
reasons why.
First, as technology rapidly
improves, people value the older EVs
less highly. Second, battery life. While
the manufacturer often guarantees EV
batteries for a set period (eg, seven
years), the fine print shows that the
guarantee is typically for 70% charge
retention. Multiply the worst range by
0.7, and the real-world range of many
EVs is likely to become marginal without any real recourse.
And what if the battery degradation
is even greater than 70%? The reality
of older used EVs in Australia, like the
Nissan Leaf and Mitsubishi MiEV, is
that these cars often have a range that’s
now as little as 70-80km. Yes, they use
older battery technology – but they are
real examples of older EVs. Most ICE
cars still run just fine after 7-10 years
(as long as they’re maintained) and
don’t lose range.
Also, EV proponents often overlook the purchase cost. As the MG4
XPower demonstrates, in the expensive car market, EVs are now more
than competitive with ICE cars. But
what of those who are less wealthy?
A competent second-hand ICE car can
be bought for well under $10,000. No
such alternatives currently exist for
EVs.
As for the good aspects of EVs,
they require almost no maintenance.
I was initially sceptical of this, but my
MG4 XPower has not seen the inside
of a workshop in its first 20,000km.
The first scheduled service interval
is 40,000km – for most people, that’s
every three years! In terms of convenience, that is a major plus.
Driven hard, I don’t think the tyres
on my car will last more than about
30,000km, so it will be a tyre shop
that I first visit.
Another positive is that, depending
on your use, an EV is very convenient.
Plug it in each night just like your
phone, and it’s ready the next morning. No visits to petrol stations; just
unplug and go. And, as discussed, the
cost of charging an EV can be very low,
especially if charging during the day
from solar panels or using a low offpeak overnight tariff (where available).
I’ve already discussed driveability.
Truly, no ICE car can compete with the
superb flexibility and throttle control
that EVs have. Some people suggest
that EVs are rather uninvolving and
aren’t fun to drive – I think that is just
balderdash.
So where does that leave us? I love
the MG4 XPower. It’s a car that is practical, a joy to drive and gives me performance unmatched by anything at
its price. As for EVs in general, I think
that at this stage, they’re perfect for
some and quite unsuitable for others.
If you’re relatively wealthy, live in a
city, have PV panels (and especially
a storage battery) and commute daily,
they are perfect.
However, if you’re not very wealthy,
take many long trips and don’t have
a home charging facility with at least
3.6kW, steer clear for now.
If you’re listening to people discussing EVs and they say, “EVs are
fantastic!” or conversely, “EVs are
terrible!”, remember that they’re both
likely to be wrong. The truth is much
SC
more nuanced.
The XPower uses larger brakes and orange covers over the brake calipers. The brakes are strong but with regenerative
braking, they are seldom needed!
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Australia's electronics magazine
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