MG4 Air-con & Under tray update

[Emgie 4]

I think ye are both right, the MG4 isn't cheap, but it certainly is compared to majority of the competition, and I believe is (mostly) a great EV car for the money - comfort, handling, performance, features and looks all stack up well against its competitors, unfortunately let down by a few issues that (to a lay person) wouldn't seem like major things to get sorted out, but have the potential to damage the brand name, not to mention piss off a lot of customers.
I have had cause to visit my dealer a couple of times with issues and couldn't fault them for their service, albeit some issues remain, but I put this back on MG, i.e; they have done several SW updates to module with only little improvements, they replaced my undertray but replacement only slightly better than original, have told me straight to put on an email ALL issues I have and they'll feed them back to MG as they believe it's only way action may happen - neither dealers or MG take any notice of what's said in forums, apparently.
Just again on price/value of MG4 for me personally it's the most I've ever spent on a car BUT it's also first new car I've bought, typically in the past I've bought 3-4 yo high milers for roughly half the list price, and let previous owner take the bigger hit on depreciation, and I think I've got good value, and usually same car as current model. When I decided to go the EV route because of the rapid rate of change with tech and batteries I thought new was way to go, and so far I am mostly happy with choice. We have to remember, new designs often brings niggles, though I too would prefer some quicker resolutions.

Sorry, I waffled on a bit there

 

[Corindikev]

I agree. I am reporting my under tray issue direct to MG & will supply the photo I took. I know that they are probably awaiting a resolution from SAIC but as someone said this problem has been around for a year and my June 2023 build has it.

 

[Kevin Smith]

My neighbour reported he could see something hanging below my MG4EV recently so my other half who was off to a funeral dropped into the Bristol Street Motors that have said they can service it (their neighbouring branch is an MG dealer (38 miles further away)). They removed this item which as you can see in the second pic has broken away with a small corner of a second plastic item from near the left hand rear wheel where it was hanging front to back. I see folks have warped and vibrating undertrays but has anyone had one shear and lose a chunk? The BSM garage were nearuseless: telling Mrs S thatchy don't know what it was but it's safe to drive and she'd have to go the extra 38miles if she wanted it fixed. I had to send her back in for the part as they didn't think to give it to her or look for a part number etc... there is no visible name or number in English or Chinese. The plastic seems to contain fibrous material so I'm thinking recycled though it could be some sort of GRP like stiffening? Any thoughts. I'm going to send the pic first but suspect 2 trips to the dealer will ensue; one for them to examine and the other to have any work needed...

 

[Nobbyplopps]

Ok, so have just had my MG in to get the undertray sorted finally.
Would you consider this fixed? To me there is still slight warping but it a lot better than what it was.

 

[siteguru]

Is the first pic the Before one? The second one isn't great but it's not bad.

This is mine:

 

[Nobbyplopps]

Is the first pic the Before one? The second one isn't great but it's not bad.

This is mine:

View attachment 22459

Yeah the 1st pic is before.

 

[fnegroni]

Is the first pic the Before one? The second one isn't great but it's not bad.

This is mine:

View attachment 22459

This is what mine looks like even though mine is a phase 1 SE SR. So it’s basically down to pot luck what you get.
I can only imagine an after market replacement at this point would be the only way to go if it never gets fixed by MG but would that invalidate the warranty?

 

[PJWey]

That's very promising.

My dealer said that the aircon wasn't faulty, and that so long as it couldn't be heard inside the car there was nothing to worry about. They said that there was no soundproofing on the fan itself so it would be heard outside the car, although not loudly, but inside the car the car's own soundproofing should take care of it. That accords with my own experience - I wouldn't have regarded the sound as alarming if it hadn't been for people on the forum talking about noisy aircon - so I'm content to leave it, knowing that they now have a record that I reported it as a possible issue.

My dealer told me that they have re-fitted the undertray to correct the problem. I am not 100% convinced by the body language here, but it's been so wet that I haven't actually crawled under the car to check yet.

I'm awaiting your experience with a replacement part to decide what to do if in fact it still isn't right, or the problem recurs. At least they have acknowledged that it's not a normal feature of the car. They said that they hadn't had any communication from MG about the undertray.

I do have other dealers within reach, but the one I bought the car from is only 23 miles away and so far I think they're sincere enough in their desire to help.

My MG4 has a deformed and cracked under tray. When I reported this to my local dealer, Hendy Bournemouth, they investigated and said it was impact damage!? But I have never hit anything and the tray has cracked around the centre front bolt simply due to tension from the warped shape. Also part of my dashboard isn’t clipped in properly. They said this is no issue. Rather frustrating indeed.

 

[Rolfe]

I'm still arguing with mine. Latest is, "these things break anyway, they're only thin plastic", "it's the luck of the draw what you get, MG won't replace it" and "why are you bothered about it anyway?"

Thinking about going to another dealer, for this and other reasons.

 

[Corindikev]

I don't understand why the MG bulletin with the simple fix in Australia can't be done in the UK. I posted the before and after pics on another thread somewhere but here they are again FYI. There are 3 bolts and washers and a plastic bar. Originally I thought it was steel but when I checked it is definitely plastic. Total cost of materials would be less than $20.00.

 

[tsedge]

I don't understand why the MG bulletin with the simple fix in Australia can't be done in the UK. I posted the before and after pics on another thread somewhere but here they are again FYI. There are 3 bolts and washers and a plastic bar. Originally I thought it was steel but when I checked it is definitely plastic. Total cost of materials would be less than $20.00.
View attachment 25927View attachment 25928

Materials yes but then there's the labour then times the number of people who already have one (which is many thousand in the UK).

They don't want to do anything they don't absolutely have to which is a mistake if they want to move from a budget brand to a quality one.

I'm still arguing with mine. Latest is, "these things break anyway, they're only thin plastic", "it's the luck of the draw what you get, MG won't replace it" and "why are you bothered about it anyway?"

Thinking about going to another dealer, for this and other reasons.

Sounds like a dealer doing the best they can knowing MG won't pay for a replacement.

I do get the "why are you bothered about it anyway?" comment, this has never been an issue that I cared about. But I rarely say that these days as it seems to make lots of people angry when I do.

I agree that those who do care should get a proper fix or replacement.

 

[siteguru]

I'm not that bothered about it. I've simply made my dealer aware of the issue (pre-sale and post-sale) and about the potential fix, so that if anything does happen then they can't claim they didn't know about it - so I'd be demanding a warranty fix.

 

[Rolfe]

I don't understand why the MG bulletin with the simple fix in Australia can't be done in the UK. I posted the before and after pics on another thread somewhere but here they are again FYI. There are 3 bolts and washers and a plastic bar. Originally I thought it was steel but when I checked it is definitely plastic. Total cost of materials would be less than $20.00.
View attachment 25927View attachment 25928

My dear chap, I sent them your photos at the time I booked the service.

 

[Rolfe]

Sounds like a dealer doing the best they can knowing MG won't pay for a replacement.

It sounded to me like a dealer fobbing off a customer. While standing right next to a banner going on about how a happy customer was their dearest wish. MG have supplied replacement undertrays to dealers who have actually requested them.

 

[Corindikev]

Supplying a complete replacement undertray is a whole lot more expensive and complicated than a plastic bar with 3 bolts & washers. The fix was completed in under 10 minutes.

 

[Rolfe]

I'd be happy enough with that.

 

[DaevM]

Just had a response from dealer regards undertray sag and there rnquiry with MG.
"It's not an issue, you can't see it, it doesn't impact on performance or anything else for that matter - get over it".
Well, that's me told and the dealer totally agrees with my view of MGs customer service.

 

[OriginalBigAl]

Just had a response from dealer regards undertray sag and there rnquiry with MG.
"It's not an issue, you can't see it, it doesn't impact on performance or anything else for that matter - get over it".
Well, that's me told and the dealer totally agrees with my view of MGs customer service.

Response, in that case why do SAIC bother to put one on? And it does impact on the appearance or lack of it , of the perceived quality of SAIC products. If this is crap , what else is crap? And other brands of car, electric or other do not have these problems even on cars half the price, and if its not an issue why am I so pissed off about it.? I'm surprised that you have actually had a response and they have not said ,no one else has complained!

 

[DaevM]

My view precisely.
There was a hint of an implication that she was about to say they said no-one else had complained about it but she veered off at the last minute, obviously remembering that I'd told her about a thread on a very popular MG EV forum where lots ( and lots) of owners were stating it had occurred. In fact I think they used the word feature in describing what was happening. So, it's a feature, not a fault. Begins with an 'f' I suppose, just like some other words I could think of to describe them.

 

[OriginalBigAl]

Within days of collecting mine, which had slight warping (about 15mm) I fixed it myself, details on an earlier post, Sept 23. On pick-up I pointed it out to the dealer who showed no concern whatsoever, and at another dealer when I again pointed out a undertray on a model they wanted me to sign for the dealer and head mechanic got quite agitated almost angry when I said it was not good enough and needed changing. The profit margins must be that tight that dealers do not want to be involved unless sanctioned by MG and MG either Europe or UK don't want to go up against SAIC who remain stumm and stay disengaged because they have their yes men in place. Apart from a few common niggles this up to now is the only visible fault on mine but it still grinds away in the subconscious and makes you think if they can't be bothered with this will they care or be uninterested if there are other issues. I think there is also a problem with us the customer, people who lease know they don't own the car and think "it can go back in three years" whereas owners who probably care a bit more are now a smaller minority and their clout is diminished. It's the classic "divide and conquer".