2023 MG ZS EV Review - Nipped and Tucked

Chinese-owned British automaker MG unveiled their updated compact electric SUV in Singapore earlier this year.

The entry-level crossover was initially unveiled back in 2020, and was one of the first truly affordable electric vehicles that you could buy back then. It remained fairly competitive even till recently, despite having a smaller-than-average 44.5 kWh battery.

As other manufacturers jumped onto the electric bandwagon, the value proposition of the MG ZS EV started diminishing. Which is why a nip-and-tuck was needed to refresh the car and bring it up to snuff in a hotly contested market once again.

What has Changed?

As this isn’t an all-new car, the basic overall underpinnings remain unchanged. What has been updated though, is what you’d typically expect manufacturers to change in a mid-cycle refresh.

The car now sports an all-new front fascia. It gets rid of the Mazda-influenced front end and gains a sleeker, grille-less identity more in-line with its newer offerings. This design change also forced MG to relocate the charge port. It used to reside underneath the MG badge, but has now been moved slightly to the right.

There’s also a simplification of the front bumper. Gone are the complex curves of the old car, and you’d find a clean, sleek and probably more aerodynamic design. You’ll find the same treatment on the rear end of the vehicle, with the revised styling significantly modernising the overall looks of the car.

All of the lights have been restyled too, and they certainly look sleeker and more upmarket than the clusters of old.

Refreshed Interior

The interior remains relatively untouched for the most part. But the bits that MG did rework, have made a massive difference to the overall user experience. You’ll find a brand-new infotainment screen, with a UI that has clearly been ported over from their newer vehicles. There’s no wireless Android Auto, but the sensible location of the USB port makes it easy to plug your phone in.

This is a not-insignificant upgrade over the clunky screen of old. As the new screen takes up far more interior real-estate, MG migrated some of the air conditioning controls onto the touchscreen itself. A bank of physical buttons allows the user to have rapid access to regularly-used features.

But that is not the only difference on the inside. An all-new instrument cluster has also been fitted to the car. Where the old car relied on two large analogue gauges and a smaller digital screen to display your driving data, the new car uses a mix of an enlarged digital screen and two TFT displays to relay information about your state-of-charge, efficiency and of course, your speed.

Otherwise, the cabin remains unchanged. Though that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Being a crossover, cabin space is good, though the rear bench could do a definitely better job of supporting your legs.

Revised Powertrain Components

Remember what I said earlier on about how the old car was no longer as competitive as it once was? That’s because many mass-market electric city cars now come with 50+ kWh battery packs.

The outgoing MG ZS EV only comes fitted with a 44.5 kWh battery. As part of the refresh, MG manages to squeeze an additional 15% energy density into the pack, with the updated car now sporting a 51 kWh pack. This is good for a claimed range of 320 kilometres.

It sends its power to a front-mounted 133 bhp electric motor, which then drives the front wheels. Despite the deceptively low output, the car feels agile and spritely enough on the move. However, don’t expect this to drive or handle like a sports car, as the steering and suspension has clearly been set up for comfort.

Another change is also the increase in charging speeds. This new car will do DC fast charging at up to 100 kW. The old car would only do DC50. AC charging is unchanged at 7 kW. Expect a full charge via DC100 to take around 40 minutes, and AC7 to take 8.5 hours.

Nipped and Tucked

MG has done enough to make their entry-level crossover competitive again with this refresh. But that is only because the car it was based on had decent bones that they could build off of.

If you are looking for more range (and are willing to fork out more cash), there are other offerings out there that you’d be satisfied with. However, if you are after an honest, well-priced family crossover, the facelifted MG ZS EV certainly makes a lot of sense!