MG4 in Australia

[Coulomb]

Does anyone know what happened to this servo. it was on plugshare had a 50kW DC fast charger but it looks like it is no more.

I hope it's still there!

I last charged there in November 2023, the last Google maps street view photo was in December 2023 and it was still there.

In Google Maps in terrain mode shows it as present but temporarily closed; I don't see why it would not still show up in Plugshare, though.

The reporter said that 30¢ per kWh is a bit high, but actually that's the very cheapest that you can fast charge at anywhere (other than the few free, totally subsidised charging at a very few places). There is a lot more than electricity that you are paying for, especially depreciation on an expensive charger, taking up valuable space that the servo is paying rates on, maintenance, Chargefox's fees, and so on.

It's a Tritium charger, and Tritium as a company are in all sorts of woes at present, so it may take some time for parts and/or a technician to arrive. Plus, I think the Queensland Electric Super Highway is administered by a government bureaucracy that may be short of resources for maintenance.

 

[Jamesrr]

Greetings!

We took a test drive in a MG4 64 Essence (AKA Trophy Long Range in the UK) last Friday. My wife had never driven an EV before and I have rented a Polestar 2 and Cupra Born for a couple of weeks over the last year.

After renting them and driving around country S.A. & the Gold Coast my interest was confirmed and we'll never be buying an ICE again.

My wife's VW Polo is up for change over time (warranty expires in 6 months) and so I've been looking at EV options. It's our "town" car so long distance & fast charging isn't the primary concern but it doesn't hurt... There's really not that many options in the cheaper 'small car' EV market ATM, most are catering for the large car/SUV requirement.

Realistic options were the GWM Ora, BYD Dolphin, Cupra Born, Fiat 500e & MG4.
Ora is just too weird looking. Dolphin was OK but very 'ordinary'. Born is great but quite expensive relatively. The Fiat 500e never got a look in as it's stupid expensive for a very small 2 door. MG4 looks a bit quirky but nice enough. The base model "51" is in our desired price range (up to $40K).

Then MG announce the $5-8K price drop. Now we're talking!

Sooo... let's test drive the MG4 64 I suggest. The 51 (like the BYD) would be fine for a purely town driven car charged at home, but with that price drop, the 64 with it's significantly enhanced range, energy efficiency and decent DC fast charging is now within the price range.

So off we go to the local dealer in Five Dock. They have an Essence for test driving... OK, not really interested in that high a spec, but all the driving characteristics are essentially the same so good enough to see what we think.

I was impressed. Drove just fine thanks. Good enough for me. Wife takes a drive. We explain it's just like an automatic car. Just drive it normally. You'll be right.
Yep, she loved it.

So we're back at dealer and say, yeah, that suits. We liked it. Can you get an Excite 64 in grey?
They say how about that Essence you just drove for $39,600?
Ahhh.... Hmmm. Then they say how much did you want as a trade in for that 2020 VW Polo?
Err, $13K ?
Done. I was going to offer you $12K but we'll do 13.

Give us 2 minutes I say. We go outside. My better half and I look at each other and go, hell yeah.

So 20minutes after coming back from the test drive we're signing the contract.

Picking up the car on Thursday.

Further reports to come as I we see how it goes!

 

[Wil Tryharder]

Welcome!
Congratulations you bought a great car, for a great price ?

 

[crc32]

So 20minutes after coming back from the test drive we're signing the contract.

Picking up the car on Thursday.

Congratulations!

To the most important question: What colour is the one you drove?

 

[Jamesrr]

Congratulations!

To the most important question: What colour is the one you drove?

Good question... Sorry team orange*.

White. That was the car they had to test drive so that was what colour we got

Grey was what I initially thought was the go, but I actually found the white with black trimming quite attractive in the flesh. Much better than the pictures I'd seen.


*Orange was not an option. If the car they had tried to sell us was orange there would have been very stiff resistance

 

[T1 Terry]

Congratulations on your purchase, my 64 Essence is white as well, I got mine for an even better price, $3,700 on road .... well actually, on gravel because it doesn't drive too good after a rather nasty meeting with what looks like a white guide post, put the R/H front wheel a tad out of alignment and the insurance declared is a stat write off .... so it was from a salvage auction

I recently bought a silver 51 from a Melbourne salvage auction, this one is a repairable write off, so the parts from the white one will be used to fix the silver one ... still gotta get it back to Mannum yet, by the time I pay for the transporter, it will have cost around 1/2 the after trade price for your 64 Essence .... not feeling so smug now

I'm sure you will enjoy driving your MG4 .... I'm hoping to join the ranks of the big grinner soon when I get mine on the road

T1 Terry

 

[crc32]

Good question... Sorry team orange*.

White. That was the car they had to test drive so that was what colour we got

Grey was what I initially thought was the go, but I actually found the white with black trimming quite attractive in the flesh. Much better than the pictures I'd seen.


*Orange was not an option. If the car they had tried to sell us was orange there would have been very stiff resistance

I drove past a white one parked by the side of the road about an hour ago and thought it looked pretty good; and that's coming from team black.

 

[salty]

James. Nice motor you're getting. ??

 

[Shocky]

I think white is the best colour, black trim features really compliment it. Suits the design of the car.

White. That was the car they had to test drive so that was what colour we got

 

[wattmatters]

I know what's good for me and left the colour choice to my wife. Turned out it was a model the dealer already had in stock so no waiting.

 

[Jamesrr]

Well this is very amusing... Our dealer rang to say they've made a.mistake. sold us the wrong car. They thought it was an Essence 64 but no. It's a 77 Long Range
They're going to honour the deal still, so we really got a bargain!

 

[Coulomb]

They thought it was an Essence 64 but no. It's a 77 Long Range

They need better badging to prevent this sort of thing. More so when you've bought a high spec car and aren't sure if you got what you paid for.

But I guess you're not complaining too hard! Welcome to team long-range.

 

[Jamesrr]

But I guess you're not complaining too hard! Welcome to team long-range.

Not too hard

The 77 was never in our consideration. This is for our "town" car, not our country/ long distance touring car.
I chose the 64 over the 51 because of the vastly better energy efficiency and charging speed but even then I was only interested in the "Excite 64", not the upmarket version.
Then with the deal they offered for the "Essence 64" we drove, we couldn't turn it down.
Now it turns out we've got the top of the range for just a smidge more than what I was going to pay for the "basic" 64

No ... Not complaining much!

 

[salty]

Well this is very amusing... Our dealer rang to say they've made a.mistake. sold us the wrong car. They thought it was an Essence 64 but no. It's a 77 Long Range
They're going to honour the deal still, so we really got a bargain!

WOW, result! ??

 

[clayton4115]

Not too hard

The 77 was never in our consideration. This is for our "town" car, not our country/ long distance touring car.
I chose the 64 over the 51 because of the vastly better energy efficiency and charging speed but even then I was only interested in the "Excite 64", not the upmarket version.
Then with the deal they offered for the "Essence 64" we drove, we couldn't turn it down.
Now it turns out we've got the top of the range for just a smidge more than what I was going to pay for the "basic" 64

No ... Not complaining much!

If there were not too fussed about the mistake it goes to show how much margin they are making on these cars! you signed a contract for a 64 so they could have still re-ordered a 64 but they ordered a 77 from China and willing to stick with it, good deal for you!

 

[Jamesrr]

If there were not too fussed about the mistake it goes to show how much margin they are making on these cars! you signed a contract for a 64 so they could have still re-ordered a 64 but they ordered a 77 from China and willing to stick with it, good deal for you!

We're actually considering offering to go halves with the difference. Neither of us feels very comfortable with the situation ethically.
I agree they could say that they'll provide a 64 Essence as the contract says.
We need to sleep on it.

 

[salty]

We're actually considering offering to go halves with the difference. Neither of us feels very comfortable with the situation ethically.
I agree they could say that they'll provide a 64 Essence as the contract says.
We need to sleep on it.

Don't sleep on it. Just accept it. They know about the mistake, not yours, there's, and have said they'll honour it. It's not like you're trying to con them. Accept a bit of good fortune. It doesn't come around that often. Plus if it was the other way round, would they have to sleep on it, very much doubt it. ??

 

[wattmatters]

We need to sleep on it.

Offer to have their display window tinted and throw in a new welcome mat.

 

[glend14]

I had a call from a Sales guy at Central Coast MG, at Tuggerah, NSW. As I was on his contact list, he rang me to offer me a blue 2024 build MG4 51kWh car that he has available. It is priced as the Special currently on, $30,990. Apparently the guy that was buying it failed his credit score and they were looking for an interested buyer. So if anyone is interested, ring them. Central Coast MG at Tuggerah. Car is available immediately.

 

[T1 Terry]

We're actually considering offering to go halves with the difference. Neither of us feels very comfortable with the situation ethically.
I agree they could say that they'll provide a 64 Essence as the contract says.
We need to sleep on it.

Sure you just aren't worried about the blue and red flashing lights appearing behind after stealing such a great deal, go with the win and with a smile on your face, I'm guessing, as long as the after sales service is good, you will be recommending this dealership for yrs to come .... so maybe a good investment on their part as well ..... should I send you a PM with my number in case they want to do a similar deal? I have an EB Fairmont I could trade for the $13,000 part

T1 Terry