MG Motor UK HS review

Good enough but no more. That’s the short answer. But there’s lots at play here, not least when MG folk hint that the HS range may become purely hybrid in the relatively near future.

For now, the base petrol engine is powerful enough for pottering around but harder work when you need a bit of speed down a slip road, especially if you’ve gone for the optional DCT. Unless you simply must drive an automatic, we’d advise saving £1,500 and staying manual; the auto brings an extra layer of lethargy to the power delivery (belying a mere 0.2sec deficit in 0-62mph time) and simply takes too long to stir into action out of junctions or roundabouts. Not least because there’s no kickdown button beneath the accelerator pedal and its Manual and Sport modes do little to lift its vigour.

The manual feels a minor revelation afterwards, its nice, pert ‘knob (not unlike a Porsche’s, oddly enough…) offering a short throw and the opportunity to get on top of the powertrain, to really make use of the torque even if you’re not revving the thing out. Which we doubt you’ll feel inclined to anyway. The simplistic digital instrument display buries the rpm readout in a rather meek way – and places curious prominence on displaying the gear the car wants you to be in, rather than the one you actually are. The MG Cyberster has a chintzy but fun octagonal ‘rev counter’ in its display – despite the fact it’s an EV – so it feels stingy that a similar line of code can’t migrate to the 12.3in digital display in here.

It's just one of many areas where the HS feels dynamically standoffish. Carry a little eagerness into corners and you’re greeted with copious tyre squeal and top-heavy body roll, with zero communication (or, indeed, interest) coursing through its steering wheel. This is a car to mooch around in, that much is evident. It rides well enough, however, its lack of precision beside its multitudinous rivals ensuring it’s softer and more forgiving over speed bumps or broken tarmac. When a Qashqai feels peppy alongside it, though, you get an instant vignette of where this car sits. Pile ‘em high, sell ‘em cheap…

What about the PHEV?

Now this is much better. While it carries 275kg over a DCT-equipped petrol, it drives at least as smartly – perhaps more so – vindicating MG’s decision to allow it a bespoke chassis tune this time around. Its 305bhp power output is a little OTT for its remit and the limitations of its sole driven axle are clear in its modest 0-62mph time alone. In reality you’ll be left red-faced as the front tyres comically chirp out of junctions with stronger throttle inputs.

But once you’re underway it’s sprightly, smooth and you’ll barely hear an engine that’s reasonably vocal in the pure ICE cars. It often favours range extension over direct propulsion, melting away into the background. Comfort, Normal and Sport drive modes are hidden on the touchscreen alongside two levels of brake regen and the choice of EV or hybrid driving. The car remembers your preferences when you turn it off and on again, too. All told it offers a more sophisticated and less miserly experience than the pure petrol car, even if its calibration could be tidier.