MG4 vs ID3

[samitro]

Hi MG4 owners, do you have any experience driving VW ID.3? how do these cars compare?

I'm looking to buy a second hand secondary car for the family, mostly used in the city and I can't decide between the MG4 and VW ID.3.

MG4: I can get a 2022 basic/SE model with 10,000 km for roughly 22,000 EUR. I like the looks, the way it drives (only test drive) but very concerned about all the issues with quality and software.
ID.3: I can get 2021 model with up to 30,000 km for roughly 24,000 EUR, I drove the car for 6 months and was OK with it, no major concerns with quality here.

I live in Czechia but would be buying the car from Germany (more offers, bigger market) and while I read the MG warranty is valid in EU, I'm concerned that getting software updates from a resellers that didn't sell the car would be more difficult? Price difference is not a huge deal so it is not decinding factor.

Thoughts?

 

[Corindikev]

I have owned mine since September 2023 & have done 11,000km. It is a superb drivers car & the build quality is excellent. No rattles at all & I don't seem to get the wind noise from the wing mirrors others have complained about. The rear undertray became warped after 4000km but that was fixed under warranty in Australia.

Lane Keep assist is a bit annoying but then owners of many brands have the same complaint. Software is not as snappy as some brands but not a big issue. Mine is the higher specified model so has a bunch of features the SE model doesn't. Like any car, there are things that are good and not so good and there are features I'd like to see in software updates like the ability to store my custom settings as you can in a Tesla.

I realise safety features have to be there by default at startup but it would be nice to be able to select all my personal settings with a single selection.

The earlier models did not have One pedal driving so check this out when you test drive. I use it all the time in city driving. An excellent feature.

Go for a drive on a winding country road and you will find how planted it feels. It is a joy to drive in these conditions. There are not many ordinary cars that can match the handling for the price. Range is good, charging simple & up to 140kw on a fast charger & it has V2L which I've used several times.

I have a 7 year unlimited km warranty on car & battery & have no intention to sell during that time.

It hasn't won a number of Car of the Year and other awards for nothing.

 

[Lillemy]

I have only tried id 3. But I prefer MG 4 over it. Interior is better, controls/buttons are better. Looks are better.

Both are good to drive with RWD.

 

[Buster72]

I have only tried id 3. But I prefer MG 4 over it. Interior is better, controls/buttons are better. Looks are better.

Both are good to drive with RWD.

That is exactly my view as well.
I test drove the VW ID3 first and came away disappointed. The interior looked very basic and the driving experience was hardly inspiring.
And the price was quite excessive.

I had to wait a few weeks for the mg4. But within a few minutes of driving it, I knew it was exactly what I wanted. In my opinion it is significantly better in every respect and still think it is a fantastic car to drive and own.
Even if it was the same price as the ID3, it would still be superior.

 

[Rolfe]

I came from a Golf, a year ago. When I started to look around for an EV to replace the Golf (which was a great car) my initial thought was to look for an equivalent VW EV. But the price scared the pants off me, and I quickly realised from the reviews I watched that the pretty new MG4 was not just better value but likely to be the better car.

I've heard people moaning about the software and the LKA on the ID3 as well.

 

[Bam Bam]

I went for a nearly-new MG4 over an older ID3 for the same sort of price.

The battery on the MG4 SE should last much longer than the ID3, if that is a factor for you. It isn't only newer but the LFP chemistry lasts much longer.

But then I tend to see the car as a battery for cheap/clean electricity that gets me places when I need to go!

 

[turntoport]

as per Buster:- we owned a '22 ID3 and although it had that feel of VW 'solid' quality, the control screen ('infotainment'), heating/demisting and windows control were, well, crap. I believe vw have dumped that all-touch-capacitance control in newer id3's; just as well. The MG4 drives better, apart from the known relatively minor issues you've already described, it seems a really good value-for-money car (20k km)

 

[DaevM]

Have you priced up deals for the mg4 brand new locally ? I bought a new '24 reg SE LR on 01/03/24. Rrp £29k, got the deal for £24k and a reasonable trade in for my kia soul 30kwh.
Just a thought ?

Ps - love it ?

 

[samitro]

Have you priced up deals for the mg4 brand new locally ? I bought a new '24 reg SE LR on 01/03/24. Rrp £29k, got the deal for £24k and a reasonable trade in for my kia soul 30kwh.
Just a thought ?

Ps - love it ?

That is a great deal, I have checked locally and no good deals for brand new, barely 5% discount.

Thanks all for the inputs, I have made my mind and getting an MG4, deciding now if before or after FL and whether SE or the luxury which is the trophy I guess. Offers I have so far

1- SE 2022/beginning 2023 before FL - 21K EUR but that does not have even alloy wheels, demonstration car with 10,000 KM.
2- Luxury end 2022 before FL - 24K EUR, demonstration car with 8,000 KM
3- SE end 2023 after FL, for 24K EUR, demonstration car with 3,000 KM, this already comes with alloy wheels and one pedal drive

 

[Tight Git]

Given your options I would choose 2 (and I'm an SE SR owner!).

 

[Corindikev]

Agree but see if you can get the OPD software upgrade thrown in.

 

[samitro]

Thank you, good point about OPD. One of my conditions is to upgrade the car to R59 and I can ask about OPD as well.

 

[siteguru]

If the car didn't come with OPD from the start then there is currently NO software upgrade to apply it to earlier cars. You can ask but I can 99.9% guarantee that the end result will be "Sorry".

 

[samitro]

I see, thank you. And do you know if OPD came with the FL mid 2023 or even earlier cars?

 

[siteguru]

If the car has a rear wiper then it's a model year 23 version so should come with OPD. No rear wiper = no OPD.

 

[samitro]

This means OPD came with the FL and can't be added by software as you mentioned. Thank you

 

[samitro]

Given your options I would choose 2 (and I'm an SE SR owner!).

It is actually my preferred option so far, a pitty as I wanted the LFP battery. Unfortunately, I could not not reduce the FL SE version to anything below 23,800. So it is a FL SE verion with OPD vs Luxury before FL one year older and without OPD.

 

[tsedge]

It is actually my preferred option so far, a pitty as I wanted the LFP battery. Unfortunately, I could not not reduce the FL SE version to anything below 23,800. So it is a FL SE verion with OPD vs Luxury before FL one year older and without OPD.

I would choose the newer car with OPD from the start. And I speak as a Trophy owner. The second phase cars are better.

 

[Seaton91]

Had base ID.3 for 3 years. First EV, really liked it other than daft window switch.

Have had MG4 XPower for 3 months. Love it- got lucky to not be hit by the lemon tree that others have experienced. If you get a chance to take one out for a test drive and put your foot down, you might find yourself convincing yourself to get one (like I did!)

 

[unbornidentity]

My first EV was an ID.3, followed by a Cupra Born.

To drive the MG4 feels like something in between the two. I didn’t have any reliability issues with the ID.3 but loads with the Born (wish i never swapped to it), which is basically the same car in a Spanish frock.

If I had a Time Machine then I’d have got a MG4 in the first place. The interior is nicer than the ID.3 abut it’s not quite as good to drive as the Born.

The main reason, apart from being much better value for money new is the safety systems on the ID.3 and Born were bloody horrible. Both of them just loved slamming the brakes on erroneously. I would be nervous driving on country lanes for fear it would do an emergency stop for foliage at low speeds. Both repeatedly slammed on the brakes when passing parked cars, or if a pedestrian was walking as if they might not stop to cross the road. I even had it do a full emergency stop because someone that had already past me got close as they turned into a parking spot. I thought they had crashed into me but nope, just another automatic emergency stop.

Done 4000 miles in the MG4 and hasn’t happened once.

Don’t know about the ID.3 since later updates but the Born software was riddled with bugs. The MG4 software on my MG4 is far less buggy.

My MG4 is the SE and I’m glad about that as seems a bit simpler on the driver assistance front. I’ve read others complain about similar problems on the Trophy.