Batteries : MG4 SE SR versus Trophy LR

[HazardLights]

I intend to buy a Trophy LR because of the heated steering wheel, rear speakers, and faster DC charging speeds (although this may prove to be inconsequential in reality) however there is one thing that is niggling at me which I don't think will change my decision but I still would be interested in people telling me if my thinking is flawed which is are the batteries in the real world less different than they appear in terms of range.

So it's recommended to keep the NMC battery found in the Trophy between 20-80% but okay to charge to 100% if going a long trip. I am looking at this and thinking...

1. Daily local drives: battery choice is irrelevant although if operating NMC from 80-20% then LFP will need charged less often but can take more full cycles.
2. Long Drives: if doing 100-20% for NMC (Trophy LR) then LFP on 100-circa 7% gives the same range.

So the Trophy LR battery's advantage is that you could (at the expense of additional battery stress) run further by going below 20%. It doesn't look like there is a large advantage on battery of the Trophy's NMC LR battery over the SE SR battery. It looks like pros and cons that seem to suggest that a future improved LFP battery may end up in later MG4 Trophy LRs. What do you think? Is my logic flawed? Would removing the spoiler from the Trophy make things look much better? How about the SE versus Trophy tyres? Thoughts please...

 

[Tight Git]

Buy the one that suits what you want! I bought the SE SR and have done 32k miles with long 500 mile round trips every couple of months. I accept that it takes a bit longer to charge when away on a trip but that doesn't matter to me.

If you only keep the car for a few years you will never notice the battery degradation in either type.

There will always be something better just around the corner and if you wait for that then why not wait a few more years for solid state batteries to be available (possibly!).

 

[OriginalBigAl]

We got the SE LR which has the NMC battery , what swung it for us was that it could have 11kw 3 phase charging which might not be applicable to yourself. Otherwise ,as above.

 

[webhiker]

As I hear you (I'm certified 50% deaf!) you don't have a daily communte requirement. I also note you are in the UK, where I've learnt that the only thing worse than the public charger networks are the dealerships (I hope you can tell from the above that I comment in a humorous and sarcastic way! )
I own, with great pleasure, a 77kwh battery (equipped with 4 wheels and what have you)
If you need the long mileage on a daily basis, you are looking at the wrong battery (subsequently the wrong car). But if you need, as I, on a regular basis a long road trip, this is the battery to choose.
I have no daily commutes which requires more than a couple of Duracells, but when I need the car, I go looong. As we speak, I'm in the Swedish outback (but apparently within cell tower reach!). I'm 400km away from home, I do not know where the nearest DC charger is. For such journeys (which is fortnightly or so) I charge to 100% before I take off, let ABRP take care of the rest, and just enjoy the ride. One snag though, as I do not know the next charger, I ensure to arrive at 40%. If push comes to Shove, I can always go back to the previous charger.
So where does this takes us, well, when on the road, nobody in their right minds, charges to more than 80% (it's just a waste of your own time, let alone if somebody is queuing for YOUR charger). 80% of my battery will always takes me longer than 80% of a smaller battery, right? So that solves the road trip scenario.
How about the daily commutes? As said, if you need the long range commutes, neither the NMC nor the LFP will take you there. One doesn't have the range (full stop), the other should not be charged to that extent on a daily basis. Math may show you that one can juuuuuust clear the fence, but come on, can you do a staple chase every day?
If both can do it, and you don't need long trips, go for the smaller battery, which is always ready to serve you 100% (pun intended)

We got the SE LR which has the NMC battery , what swung it for us was that it could have 11kw 3 phase charging which might not be applicable to yourself. Otherwise ,as above.

You're so right. I missed that point. In my country 3 phase is a given ?

 

[PeteC]

If you are making a charging stop on a long trip and take both batteries up to around 80% (for etiquette of not taking too long on the charger rather than anything to do with battery health), the the NMC will take you further on your second leg. In reality, my Trophy charges quite quickly and is still taking over 50kW at 80% so we often find that it's got to nearer 90% by the time we've had our break. We chose the Trophy for the heated seats and other bits (and closed our eyes at the extra expense!), but we really appreciate its fast charging on our fairly regular 350 mile journeys to Scotland. Which is not to say that we couldn't manage the trip in an SR, as we obviously could!

 

[GaryMG4]

I've had my Trophy for 14 months now, I fell into the 'more toys' trap and was fixating on one longer journey I knew I would make soon after purchase. For my driving profile (8k miles, retired, day trips mostly < 100 miles) the SE would have been fine, I mostly home charge, have seen the odd 140KW DC but rarely use them. About the only thing I can cling to is that I do have a winter round trip of about 160 miles which I think may be borderline for the SR.

 

[HazardLights]

So where does this takes us, well, when on the road, nobody in their right minds, charges to more than 80% (it's just a waste of your own time, let alone if somebody is queuing for YOUR charger). 80% of my battery will always takes me longer than 80% of a smaller battery, right? So that solves the road trip scenario.
How about the daily commutes? As said, if you need the long range commutes, neither the NMC nor the LFP will take you there. One doesn't have the range (full stop), the other should not be charged to that extent on a daily basis. Math may show you that one can juuuuuust clear the fence, but come on, can you do a staple chase every day?
If both can do it, and you don't need long trips, go for the smaller battery, which is always ready to serve you 100% (pun intended)

Ah Copenhagen I must go off topic... so much good food including Restaurant Schønnemann and just look at this for art, science, engineering and craftsmanship....

You make a good point in that 80% of the NMC batteries is more than 80% of the LFP so for long drives the NMC batteries do have an advantage.

I've had my Trophy for 14 months now, I fell into the 'more toys' trap and was fixating on one longer journey I knew I would make soon after purchase. For my driving profile (8k miles, retired, day trips mostly < 100 miles) the SE would have been fine, I mostly home charge, have seen the odd 140KW DC but rarely use them. About the only thing I can cling to is that I do have a winter round trip of about 160 miles which I think may be borderline for the SR.

My car (like my wife's) does a little over 8000 miles per annum and I do a minimum of 4 short drives each weekday so any EV would have sufficient capacity for this. The battery in the end isn't the reason for the Trophy for me but the other features have upsold me to the premium model. In terms of long drives there are only a small number in a year. I will do a few mainly motorway trips of 120 miles each way a year, an annual spring trip to Manchester which is about 285 miles each way, and then maybe a long weekend away. Nothing that charging cannot deal with. More is better when focussing on the long trips, hence why the Extended Range is appealing but it is overkill for me.

I also live in a glen with localised weather which tends to be colder and get more snow and longer lasting snow than the surrounding area (including a hamlet 1 mile away from me just above the valley) so I will be facing cold battery conditions more than most but in the end as long as I am happy to charge either en route or at the destination then all of the MG4s have are fine.

I think the 80% of a big capacity is more than 80% of a smaller is probably the most pertinent advantage of the LR when considering long trips.

 

[Ian Key]

I intend to buy a Trophy LR because of the heated steering wheel, rear speakers, and faster DC charging speeds (although this may prove to be inconsequential in reality) however there is one thing that is niggling at me which I don't think will change my decision but I still would be interested in people telling me if my thinking is flawed which is are the batteries in the real world less different than they appear in terms of range.

So it's recommended to keep the NMC battery found in the Trophy between 20-80% but okay to charge to 100% if going a long trip. I am looking at this and thinking...

1. Daily local drives: battery choice is irrelevant although if operating NMC from 80-20% then LFP will need charged less often but can take more full cycles.
2. Long Drives: if doing 100-20% for NMC (Trophy LR) then LFP on 100-circa 7% gives the same range.

So the Trophy LR battery's advantage is that you could (at the expense of additional battery stress) run further by going below 20%. It doesn't look like there is a large advantage on battery of the Trophy's NMC LR battery over the SE SR battery. It looks like pros and cons that seem to suggest that a future improved LFP battery may end up in later MG4 Trophy LRs. What do you think? Is my logic flawed? Would removing the spoiler from the Trophy make things look much better? How about the SE versus Trophy tyres? Thoughts please...

The question to ask yourself is, if you didn't get the trophy would you regret not getting the toys that go with it?

The rest of the stuff in day to day driving doesn't make any difference.

 

[HazardLights]

The question to ask yourself is, if you didn't get the trophy would you regret not getting the toys that go with it?

The rest of the stuff in day to day driving doesn't make any difference.

A very good question.

There is one feature that I have never had in a car that would make an enormous difference to be and that is the heated steering wheel. For reasons the professionals have yet to figure out I have neuropathy and Reynaud's which means that for 10 months of the year the steering wheel is painfully cold to hold.

I suspect I may find there lack of rear speakers would drive me to visit a car audio place and get an upgrade if I bought an SE.

I have sat in an MG4 in a dealership and was aware that the seat lacked lumbar support but a cushion may fix that.

So in the end it is an expensive heated steering wheel plus some nice to haves which I won't fully itemise. On the minus side I have spent my driving life avoiding spoilers which seemed ostentatious and inefficient. I realise some people cherish them and wish them joy from their spoilers.

My wife thinks it is worth paying to reduce my pain. Probably because she has to listen to me ?

 

[Tight Git]

Think you are talking yourself into a Trophy! Just buy one or you will still be deciding this time next year ?

 

[Ian Key]

My wife thinks it is worth paying to reduce my pain. Probably because she has to listen to me ?

As someone who suffers with rheumatoid arthritis anything that reduces pain is usually worth the money.

I have sat in an MG4 in a dealership and was aware that the seat lacked lumbar support but a cushion may fix that.

Although I'm over 6 ft I've found a seat pad increases my comfort and the resulting slight increase in height now puts the slight lumber support in the right place.

https://amzn.eu/d/6BlJ7zE

 

[aitch]

It wasn’t the battery, it was the add-ons that hooked me, the heated steering wheel is a godsend in colder weather, I use the 360 view when parking all the time, the auto-folding mirrors are a must with our narrow streets. Having grandkids, the seats are wipeable, can’t believe the amount of crumbs they produce from nowhere.
The battery is a good addition when on long journeys as the speed of charging means it’s ready to go when we are when we stop on motorway services. That’s if we need to charge, did a 5 hour journey recently and never needed to top up on the journey.

 

[Kevin Smith]

We went SE SR as we do infrequent long trips and still have a dirty diesel workhorse but have now reversed roles with the diesel for concrete, furniture and short trips and whoever is going long takes the MG! We have to walk the dog at stops and never worry what we charge up to we don't wait around to hit 100% but might aim for 90ish if that means we can reach a home charging situation with one less stop... invest in a flask as otherwise coffee and cakes can cost more than charging (for a couple) (sorry the dog does not get cakes).

 

[John1941]

Well pleased with our Trophy ER. Got 411 miles range after home charge recently. See other thread for only problem so far (12v flat).
Minor irritation: narrow lanes round us so lane assist is a pain and prefer disabled. But when auto lights are on (preferred) if they switch on or off, lane assist becomes abled, most annoying.

 

[Romeo77]

Does that make sense to have 15 kWh at bottom that you will be fearing to use to not stress battery ?
Ok that NMC battery will give me another 15 kWh more from 100% to 20% vs 51 kWh LFP battery on long trips but how much mileage that will give ?
With 51 kWh battery we have 46.5 kWh usable (100-7%)
Well that will give around 100km more on charge cycle, faster charging speed that pluses, less cycles for NMC battery and less stable when overheated vs LFP
That not good if I plan to keep car for longer time.
Well i will prefer 51 kWh model, because LFP more stable (yes that type of battery not like to be charged when outside too cold because that may cause degradation but we have battery heater so that not problem) , i not fearing of low speed charging and more frequent stops to recharge

 

[nexia201]

I went fir the trophy long range fir the obvious extra range , i use mine as a taxi , and if i start at 3.00 am with spirited driving it will be 30% by 11.00 am so i go charging on the outside pillar (44kwh) by 35/40 min its already 80% , in less than an hour it stop at 97% , temperature here reach 38 deg c but battery is kept cool by coolant cooled by ac when charging . I have done 100,000 + kms in 1 year 6 months , and battery seem thesame as when i bought car , i also charge it daily to 100% at my garage at 6kwh .

 

[SueH]

If there's a medical reason for paying extra for a particular reason that seems entirely reasonable, but as someone who pays as little as possible for their cars the MG4 SE SR has been perfectly adequate for me, and just got back from Italy in it this last week. The car still cost 5 times more than any ICE I ever had!

I bought a cheap heated seat cover from a cheap German supermarket but haven't needed it in anger yet. On the long distance trip the issue was human tiredness more than charging, and that was with two drivers.

Most of the time my range is perfectly adequate for my regular patterns, so I don't see much point in carting a bigger battery around. Same with my last ICE car, I rarely brimmed it.