Anyone help with these questions before I buy MG HS PHEV

Captin1234x

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Hello, always had an ICE car (not MG) up to now but want to try electric power. The new MG HS with its up to 75m range seems to fit the bill as don't think I am quite ready for full EV. I have some questions of the expert users here that I hope you can help with:-

1. When the battery is low I appreciate regenerative braking can out some energy back but one dealer told me that the engine can recharge the battery on the go. This sounds like a hybrid set up with plug-in on top. Hope someone can clarify!
2. Most of my days are spent doing <75 miles so hopefully run on electric. What sort of MPG can I expect if a did a long run say 300-400 miles?
3. How much are service costs, dealer was a bit vague? Think he also mentioned once per year or 15K miles for interval. Are there A/B services etc. He advised that as this car is not a year old he could not offer any service plans (weird).
4. Does the parcel shelf come out?
5. Does the car get software updates and how (over air!)? Do MG solve problems they hear about. E.g. am hearing on YouTuber that infotainment is non-intuitive, might they be able to fix that in software and would they?
6. Most people sound quite positive in this forum about their MG HS PHEV, curious of any other thoughts to consider before I make my purchase.

As I am buying privately I need to get best bang for my pound.
Cheers
 
Some answers based on what I know from researching the 2025 HS PHEV - Google the Roewe D5X - the sister car to the MG.

1. The 2025 MG HS PHEV is both a parallel hybrid and a series hybrid in operation. The ICE will charge the battery as well as having the option to charge from the mains (ie plug in). The ICE will also drive the wheels. It's extremely clever with two motors - one mainly to charge the battery driven from the ICE, the other to drive the wheels from the battery.

2. Range is dependent on the driver, road, speed, temperature - loads of variables. The mpg readout tops out at 99.9 mpg. I tend to use the EV mode only on <75 mile journeys. On longer journeys, I keep the EV for <40 mph sections and then aim to use up the battery by the time I get home. This normally works out at a perceived (by the car) mpg of 60-70mpg. But remember, when in EV mode it's all a bit of a guess and EV range is an approximate figure and is getting better with more miles on the car and with the warmer weather. I recently got 60 miles of mixed roads, with the last 17 mile journey of that recording 4.6 mi/kWh.

I have found that the ICE kicks in with under 6 miles to go. The car has two gears and I think it uses EV power to pull away, so must have some battery power at all times. That said, I have managed to eek out

3. No idea on the service costs yet. I will probably go with the service plan.

4. Parcel shelf is a retracting 'soft' unit and the whole thing can be removed easily - the ends of the bar that the shelf rolls up into, has sprung ends.

5. There is a facility to check for 'FOTA' for which I presume it means 'Free Over The Air' SW updates. I have no idea if it does do this but find it strange that mine has lost the power to read road signs at around 6000 miles when it was okay before that and that others have suffered the same issue and a SW update should fix it. Mine goes in the week after Easter. I wonder if there are minor FOTA SW updates and one of these has screwed the road sign recognition and requires a dealer SW upload to put it right.

6. Thoughts. Despite a couple of issues, the car is brilliant. I came from 55k miles in a Skoda Superb iV (PHEV) so I have PHEV experience. The range is great, as is the handling and ride, fit and finish. It's got really impressive performance, especially with the EV and ICE combined.
 
Thats really helpful, just ordered a new 2025 PHEV HS, difficult to find any "real life" reviews of living with the car. Bit of a leap into the unknown as not had MGs before or PHEVs, just liked the car when we drove it compared to Honda, Toyota and Skoda alternatives.......
 
Some answers based on what I know from researching the 2025 HS PHEV - Google the Roewe D5X - the sister car to the MG.

1. The 2025 MG HS PHEV is both a parallel hybrid and a series hybrid in operation. The ICE will charge the battery as well as having the option to charge from the mains (ie plug in). The ICE will also drive the wheels. It's extremely clever with two motors - one mainly to charge the battery driven from the ICE, the other to drive the wheels from the battery.

2. Range is dependent on the driver, road, speed, temperature - loads of variables. The mpg readout tops out at 99.9 mpg. I tend to use the EV mode only on <75 mile journeys. On longer journeys, I keep the EV for <40 mph sections and then aim to use up the battery by the time I get home. This normally works out at a perceived (by the car) mpg of 60-70mpg. But remember, when in EV mode it's all a bit of a guess and EV range is an approximate figure and is getting better with more miles on the car and with the warmer weather. I recently got 60 miles of mixed roads, with the last 17 mile journey of that recording 4.6 mi/kWh.

I have found that the ICE kicks in with under 6 miles to go. The car has two gears and I think it uses EV power to pull away, so must have some battery power at all times. That said, I have managed to eek out

3. No idea on the service costs yet. I will probably go with the service plan.

4. Parcel shelf is a retracting 'soft' unit and the whole thing can be removed easily - the ends of the bar that the shelf rolls up into, has sprung ends.

5. There is a facility to check for 'FOTA' for which I presume it means 'Free Over The Air' SW updates. I have no idea if it does do this but find it strange that mine has lost the power to read road signs at around 6000 miles when it was okay before that and that others have suffered the same issue and a SW update should fix it. Mine goes in the week after Easter. I wonder if there are minor FOTA SW updates and one of these has screwed the road sign recognition and requires a dealer SW upload to put it right.

6. Thoughts. Despite a couple of issues, the car is brilliant. I came from 55k miles in a Skoda Superb iV (PHEV) so I have PHEV experience. The range is great, as is the handling and ride, fit and finish. It's got really impressive performance, especially with the EV and ICE combined.
Absolutely excellent, thank you. This is info you just can't get anywhere else. Hope to get mine in next couple of months and very much looking forward to it.
 
I remain somewhat surprised that MG (UK) haven't pushed the tech side of the 2025 HS PHEV. The latest Chinese offerings are now far advanced from European etc PHEV from my studies.

When I was researching it before placing an order, I searched for the Roewe D5X DMH as it is essentially the same car.

The opening video here:


Shows some good graphics of the drive train etc. Further info can be gleaned by looking for Dual Motor Hybrid etc and the differences between Series Hybrid and Parallel Hybrid - two of the drive modes available on the 2025 HS PHEV.
 
I picked up my MGHS PHEV Trophy in December & am very pleased so far, minor gripes aside - the horn alert for keys left inside, mud trap running boards, touch screen use to open tailgate etc. Economy is excellent & it is no slouch.
I concur with Aerofurb's answers to your specific questions.
I picked mine up with a full tank, & service plan, have only refuelled twice, using it as an EV only, unless on long runs, when it sips petrol in HEV mode. ( previously had 2 Outlander PHEVs which still gave 50mpg on 300 mile plus journeys without charge, but this MG is way better.)
 
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