MG Motor UK ZS EV review

The electric motor is a 143bhp job, making 260lb ft from zero. That's enough to propel it at least as briskly as a small FWD crossover needs to go. The 0-62 is 8.5sec. It feels perky without being so quick as to trouble the comparatively unsophisticated front suspension with torque steer. Or endlessly invoke the traction control.

Acceleration is smooth and as blissfully free of interruptions as single-gear EVs all are. Albeit this one sounds slightly whiny. Still, it's far quieter than a combustion car.

The narrow tyres don't kick up much noise, nor the body through the air. And you won't be cruising fast because the top speed is just 87mph and if you go near that your range will melt like April snow.

Talking of range, in give'n'take suburban and part-rural driving our miles-to-go figure went down at about the same rate as our miles-travelled figure went up. That's what you want. With an official figure of 163 miles, you'd probably be comfortable doing 150 miles between stops. Plenty for day-to-day use.

Except on the motorway of course. The true range will fall, and service stations are 30 miles apart. So you'll want to stop after you've driven 120 miles. But rapid chargers get less rapid after your battery is at 80 per cent. So that leaves you with a range, even after charging, of 120 or so. Now to leave a 30-mile buffer, the next stop might only be 90 miles ahead of you.

The pack is liquid-cooled, so should be able to accept charge at its rated power even on a warm day. But the rated power is only 50kW, meaning 40 minutes for 0-80 per cent on a CCS charger. Or just over three miles a minute.

Ride and handling are tolerably good. It corners predictably and doesn't loll around. The dead steering is a disappointment, mind. A selector offers three settings of assistance, but none feels realistic. Another three-way selector (labelled KERS, amusingly) gives you a choice of three levels of foot-off coasting regeneration.

The suspension is quieter and smoother than many small crossovers, thanks to the the calming effect of the battery weight. But it could use more sophisticated damping.