Usually, when a new car is introduced, we get invited to drive that car abroad. And if we're lucky, they fly us out to somewhere warm.
However, because of the coronavirus, those events usually take place in our own country now. At the importer, or at a conference center.
MG however, has done things differently today. They've put their new car in a Christmas-lorry, and they drove to our office.
Another thing we can cross of our list. And it's the second car of the new Chinese MG. We already know the MG ZS EV in the Netherlands,
which is quite a common car nowadays. But what do you expect, it's a cheap electrical SUV. We Dutchies love that of course.
But this is the second MG in the Netherlands, the bigger EHS. And there's some logic behind that name. This actually is the MG HS,
which has been available in China since 2018. In Europe however, it's called EHS. That stands for Electric Hybrid SUV, because over here...
it's always a plug-in hybrid.
The HS, or EHS, is the bigger brother of the MG ZS. And you can see that, because they share a lot of styling elements. Especially at the front,
with that big grille. However, that's about the only distinctive feature MG offers. The rest of the design is actually a tad interchangeable
It all looks good, but it's not because of MG's own styling elements. If you try, you can actually spot different styling queues from other manufacturers.
The nose looks a little like a Mazda, this line over here resembles the Nissan Qashqai... I mean, it doesn't look bad, but it's not unique.
What is unique however, is the way it's sized. This car is at the top of its segment. In all measurements, it's around as big as a Toyota...
RAV4, even though you wouldn't really say so. Having said that, it's longer than a Kia Sportage, a Nissan Qashqai and even a...
Volkswagen Tiguan. That means it comes with a very big boot. It's not groundbreaking, but we shouldn't forget it's a plug-in hybrid.
That usually costs some space. This MG EHS has 450 litres of luggage space, which isn't bad at all considering its drivetrain.
It all looks very good as well. It has a double floor, which means you can store your charging cables underneath the floor.
There's a nice rolling screen over here and the bootlid closes electrically, as you can see right here.
On the rear seat, the EHS is incredibly spacious. I'm 1.84 m. tall myself, and I'm behind myself right now. And look at the space I've got left.
When it comes to the headroom, it's just as good. Despite having a glass panoramic roof even.
And there's nothing to complain about either when it comes to luxury. There's separate vents, a compartment for paperwork,
USB-ports and an armrest with nicely finished cupholders. You can even adjust the back rest of the rear seat, for a more relaxed position.
As a plug-in hybrid, this is the first modern MG in the Netherlands that has a combustion engine aboard.
In this case, the combustion engine is a turbocharged 1.5-litre 4-cylinder, producing 162 horsepower.
Also, there's an electric motor in the front, because this is a front-wheel drive car. In total, it produces 258 horsepower and...
370 Nm of torque. Good numbers, not only as dry numbers, but when you compare them with cars like a Peugeot 3008 Hybrid.
Or its PSA-brothers, because they all produce 225 horsepower in front-wheel drive-trim. So this MG has higher performance numbers.
The battery pack is bigger as well. It's got a 16,6 kWh-battery pack, but that doesn't increase the range by much. MG themselves say...
it can do 52 km on a single charge, whilst the French triplets can do 59 km on a single charge.
It's a difference, but it's not huge or anything. With 258 horsepower, the MG is nice and rapid.
MG themselves say it can do 0-100 km/h in 6,9 seconds, and when you put your foot down, it really is quick.
It packs quite the punch, but it feels kind of strange to accelerate. That's all because of the automatic transmission.
MG says it has ten gears, but they do note it actually has six 'real' gears with support from four electronic gears.
I have to look up how that works exactly, but it feels a bit unnatural. If you put your foot down, it's a mix of a CVT and a robotized...
manual gearbox, like we had in the past. It'll wait incredibly long before changing gear, so you'll remain at a very high RPM,
and when it changes gear it takes much longer to actually change gear than you'd expect from a modern automatic gearbox.
Especially if you say '10 speed automatic', you'd think of small gears continuously changing, but that's not the case in here.
They're quite big steps really, and that feels relatively unnatural. However, that's something you mostly feel when you're putting your foot down.
But you aren't doing that all day, hopefully, so if you're just driving around calmly, it won't be that bad.
However, it'll still be in higher revs more often than I'd like, which stands out even more because the engine is pretty loud.
It's not like it's constantly screaming, but there are cars available that are quieter than this.
So when it comes to refinement, there's room for improvement. The transition between electricity and combustion engine is incredibly smooth though,
so when the engine turns on, you're more likely to hear it than actually feel it in the drivetrain.
The MG is very comfortable as well, with nice and soft springs. Whenever you drive over a speed bump,
it all processes the movement smoothly. Only whenever you encounter short and rapid imperfections, you'll feel you're driving over them.
Again, something that can be improved. However, because of the soft springs is that it heaves pretty badly in corners. You do have to hold...
on in faster corners. I do have to admit the steering itself isn't bad at all. There's enough counter-pressure and it's not too light.
That way, you can feel what's happening underneath your wheels. Also, you can easily tell the MG isn't meant for sporty driving.
You might've seen it already, but I'm pretty high up here. Not that that's necessarily bad for an SUV, but I'm very high up relative to the dashboard...
and the steering wheel. The steering wheel has a different position than we're used to nowadays as well. So it kind of gives you the feeling you're on...
top of the car, which most SUV's don't have anymore nowadays, because they have lower seats.
That's not the case in this EHS, and it's not the case either in the already-known MG ZS EV.
What goes for the exterior of the MG EHS, goes for most of the interior as well.
It all looks very good, but it's not really groundbreaking in any way. A big difference between this dashboard and the dashboard in the ZS EV,
is the position of the screen. In here, the screen is all the way up top with the vents beneath it, whilst the screen in the ZS EV is below the vents.
I prefer it this way, because it's easier to reach this way and it's easier to look at from a drivers position.
When it comes to resolution, the screen looks very good. However, the system could've been faster if you ask me.
It all takes a tad long before it reacts, and we're used to quicker systems these days.
It's supported by a digital instrument cluster, which is another difference with the ZS. It's entirely digital and it's slightly bigger than the central...
when it comes to inches. What it adds, is a very good question, because the speedometer is always on the left whilst the 'power gauge' is...
on the right, which shows you the amount of power you're using. In the middle however, you can adjust the displayed information.
That's very handy. What's handy as well is the compatibility with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Also, this car comes with a TomTom-made...
own satnav-system, which is good stuff.
Outside of the digital world, it comes with very good gear. This is the Luxury-version. Just like with the ZS, you can choose between...
two trim levels. The Comfort and the Luxury. This Luxury comes with a panoramic roof, artificial-leather seats, heated seats,
and the digital features I already mentioned. It also comes with driving aids like lane assist, adaptive cruise control, LED-headlights,
so there's not a lot to wish for. Even the interior feels good. Everything you see looks and feels very soft.
Also, they've put some effort in several gimmicks. The electronic gear lever for the automatic gearbox for example, or the artificial-leather...
on the dashboard, or even those extra stitching on the door panels. They didn't need to do that, but they've done it anyways.
It still looks fun, just like the mood lighting. That's adjustable in sixty colors I believe.
Despite all that effort, the interior isn't on par with the dashboards of the established manufacturers.
I've been thinking all day why I think that's the case, and it's all kinds of small things.
The materials used in the middle console for example, some ergonomic mishaps, or even the font used for the letters on the buttons.
It sounds stupid, but those are details that make very clear that this car is cheaper than most other cars in this segment.
But the question is if the interior matters. It's expected to be a lot cheaper than the average plug-in hybrid competition in this segment.
Unfortunately, at the moment I'm driving this, I don't know the prices yet. The moment you see this video however, the prices should be known.
You can see that price in the frame right now. I'm going on my gut on this one, so I think it's going to have a very competitive price like the ZS.
It might even be quite cheap. And that's going to be the biggest selling point of this MG. A lot of car for not a lot of money.