Which to buy : MG4 or MG ZS both Trophy Long Range

[JuziWomble]

Personally I think that the higher ride height of the ZS EV wins out over the MG4 if you have any type of mobility issues now, or could be faced with in the future.
We are all getting older that’s for sure !.
You mentioned the difference in the charging speed between both models ?.
TBH - I would not regard this as a massive problem myself.
You have recently retired and this means that life has ( and should ) have take on different time scale / peace to now.
If you are conducting a longer trip and need to make a stop to allow for a toilet break / collect a charge, and you intend to use a rapid charger.
Then honestly by the time you have taken on some refreshments etc the car will have collected enough extra range for you to continue on with your journey.
Even on a 50 Kw unit I would suspect.
As somebody who has recently retired, I think the rapid charging speed concerns are a little unfounded to be honest.
I would be paying a little more attention to comparing both cars in other ways.
Space / comfort being just two examples.

Whilst I concur ... Having gone from an Leaf that couldn't hit 50KW on rapid - The Mg4 is a blessing for recharges in comparison - If we could have afforded AND if one was available at time of ordering it would have been a good debate between a ZS Trophy long range and the Trophy 4
To be honest I prefer the looks of the 4 but the higher ride height (ease of access) of the ZS - Hmm

 

[ashok198311]

I think we may have crossed lines here ?.
We need to clarify if we are talking the standard range ZS EV or the ZS EV long range.
We have the long range version and if I could only achieve a range of 128 miles and had 18% left when returning home, then I would be super concerned to be honest !.
In decent weather conditions an achievable range on mixture of roads ( not a constant 80mph on the motorway ) I would hope / expect to return around 250 miles of range on the one single charge.
You will NOT achieve this I’m the standard range model IMO.

Cool.. @Gadget Geek confirmed it is a LR and he said he got only 128 mole range in it on a cold day so that's why I am concerned about buying one..

 

[Gadget Geek]

I think we may have crossed lines here ?.
We need to clarify if we are talking the standard range ZS EV or the ZS EV long range.
We have the long range version and if I could only achieve a range of 128 miles and had 18% left when returning home, then I would be super concerned to be honest !.
In decent weather conditions an achievable range on mixture of roads ( not a constant 80mph on the motorway ) I would hope / expect to return around 250 miles of range on the one single charge.
You will NOT achieve this I’m the standard range model IMO.

It wasn't decent weather, and I had the heater on.

 

[Lovemyev]

Cool.. @Gadget Geek confirmed it is a LR and he said he got only 128 mole range in it on a cold day so that's why I am concerned about buying one..

I seriously would not challenge or doubt what @Gadget Geek is stating here.
If that was his actual returns in the absolute worst case scenario, then it must have been super super cold weather and poor driving conditions with the cabin heater naturally working very hard.
But remember not just EV’s are affected by these factors !.
If you had to make a trip in similar conditions, then you may have to factor in a charging stop.
But conducting the same journey in better conditions is totally different situation.
If you were making this longer trip on a very regular basis, right the way through the year in all weather conditions, then when considering your EV you have to factor this into your chose of battery pack size.
If the trip was only four times a year, then less so I guess.
Range is not really the issue here, it’s the lack of reliable charging infrastructure TBH.

 

[Ukchris]

Hi there,

My wife and I have just retired and visited our local MG dealer to look at their electrical cars.

My wife's initial option was the MG ZS Trophy Long Range. Reason being fit and finish over the MG4 Trophy Long Range, and height of ride and ease of getting in and out. The ZS was not in stock, and reported some months wait list due the factory being unable to meet demand. As the ZS was off the table at the time, we looked at the MG4 and took it for a test drive (lovely.. ). slight down side is the height off the road, but I placed a deposit on a cancelled order in grey, which is now at the dealer.

A couple of days ago I found out that the dealer had a cancelled order on the MG ZS LR Trophy in red (which we were inially interested in), and we have arranged a test drive.

We are looking to keep the car was long as its runs. So my question, and I would say minor concern is charging:

The MG4 as I understand is 135Kw and the ZS only 80Kw, like most cars it will be used for local runs and charged via our yet to be installed 7Kw wall charger. But we will include a number of runs up and down the country as we make the most of our early retirements. Question ?? Have owners of the ZS found the relatively slower charging rate to be an issue when out and about please?​

​

I know the ZS has its drawbacks regards handing and wallowing over the MG4, but neither of us are 'boy-racers' so it shouldn't be a issue, but I am just VERY interested in owners feedback.

Thank you for any and all replies.
David

​

Hi, I have a zs se lr . I drove over to York to visit my son I charged my car up at a charge hub ultra charger just outside York, had a cup of coffee and car was charged to just over 80% by the time we got back to the car. I hope that bit of information will help. I must add that I am been very impressed with my zs since I took delivery last August

 

[daverobbo]

If you are not using the car for two weeks leave the to SOC at between 50-80%.

I had read on here about not leaving it too low but thanks for the info

 

[Eclectic]

I have ZS Trophy LR, and have just travelled Canterbury to Warwick Services, where we stopped for a break at 32%charge (213 miles) We started charging at just over 50kW, and dropped to 25kW when an ID3 shared the charger for 30 mins, then back up to 50kW again, so it would have been academic if we had 80 or 130kW charging. We had more than enough charge for the remaining 90 miles journey, and for a couple of days touring round after we arrived.

 

[Enquirer 62]

Going back to the OPs original comments, is there some confusion on the battery capacities. My understanding is that the MG4 EV long range has a 64 kwh battery giving a combined stated range of 281 miles whereas the MG ZS EV long range has a 71 kwh battery with a stated range of 273 miles. So not a lot of difference in range. We too are retired and the choice of the ZS EV over the MG4 EV was a no brainer when comparing ease of entry, comfort and good size boot. The 135 kwh 500 mile range may still be same way off for the average motorist but in the mean time enjoy the ZS EV

 

[jusher]

Hi there,

My wife and I have just retired and visited our local MG dealer to look at their electrical cars.

My wife's initial option was the MG ZS Trophy Long Range. Reason being fit and finish over the MG4 Trophy Long Range, and height of ride and ease of getting in and out. The ZS was not in stock, and reported some months wait list due the factory being unable to meet demand. As the ZS was off the table at the time, we looked at the MG4 and took it for a test drive (lovely.. ). slight down side is the height off the road, but I placed a deposit on a cancelled order in grey, which is now at the dealer.

A couple of days ago I found out that the dealer had a cancelled order on the MG ZS LR Trophy in red (which we were inially interested in), and we have arranged a test drive.

We are looking to keep the car was long as its runs. So my question, and I would say minor concern is charging:

The MG4 as I understand is 135Kw and the ZS only 80Kw, like most cars it will be used for local runs and charged via our yet to be installed 7Kw wall charger. But we will include a number of runs up and down the country as we make the most of our early retirements. Question ?? Have owners of the ZS found the relatively slower charging rate to be an issue when out and about please?​

​

I know the ZS has its drawbacks regards handing and wallowing over the MG4, but neither of us are 'boy-racers' so it shouldn't be a issue, but I am just VERY interested in owners feedback.

Thank you for any and all replies.
David

​

Hi Dave
Cannot comment on MG4 but can say I love my MG ZS EV LR TC. I have used a couple of Rapid charges since getting the car and a full charge on a 7 kw charge with no problems.

I am planning my first long run soon and feel confident this can be achieved with one charge stop (including coffee and cake).

As for the handling of the ZS, it is not to bad. I drive along a mixture of country lanes and A roads when going to work and the car is fine. But finally, still love the acceleration.

 

[bryer]

Yeah the MG ZS isn't designed to do a constant 80mph on the motorway. It's designed to sit between 60 and 70 and will go for about 240 miles at 80% charge in mild weather.

Yesterday with the temperature at 15 degrees, I did a 140 mile round trip with the air con running on the way to my destination and then the heater on my return home, 100 miles done on motorways at 65-70mph and I got home with 47% charge and 137 miles of range left.

Heck I've even done Colchester to Leeds on 100% and arrived with 25% with an average speed of 60mph in 9 degrees.

Trophy Connect LR here.

 

[adiel]

We own one of each of the cars you are considering. They are quite different vehicles so the choice you make depends on what you are looking for and how you use the car.

Aside from the obvious spec differences you are aware of like charging speeds, which are only relevant when using EV rapid chargers that output more than 88 kW otherwise both cars charge at a similar speed, my observations would be:

• Ride quality - MG4 is better
• Ride height - ZS is better
• Ride position - MG4 better
• Long journey comfort - It's very close but I prefer the ZS marginally but the MG4 is still extremely comfortable
• Features - A draw since there are pluses and minuses for both cars relative to the other
• Efficiency - I still maintain, based on my real-world usage of both cars, the ZS is marginally more efficient than the MG4. I think this may change with subsequent software updates and tuning by MG. ZS has been around a bit longer so has had more time to be enhanced by software updates.
• Space - cabin space feels bigger in the MG4 but more boot space in the ZS

Feel free to ask me any specific questions you might have, and I will share my opinion.

On the range conversation, I regularly do 300 and 450-mile largely motorway round trips in a single 24-hour period and I have never achieved less than 200-miles of range at 100% battery level in both cars. The ZS yields a few more miles but does have a bigger usable battery capacity and I feel it is a little more efficient than the MG4.

I generally drive at 65-67 MPH indicated on Motorways and my average trip speed tends to be around 50 MPH.

 

[CliveHG]

In December 2022 we drove our brand new MGZSev se longrange from Alton Hampshire to Oakhampton Devon. 160 miles with 40 miles left. It was about 1 degree C, so heater running. We averaged about 50 mph for whole trip. We "Fast" charged at our hotel.
Recently with 11 C temperature we have achieved 4.5 miles per KWhr. at average 30 mph. Always full use of brake regen when I can.
Hope that's helpful.

 

[Jymbob]

The Charge Yard, Windsor Road, Slough. SL1 2EG. It's well hidden, you have to drive up what looks like a service road to the Tesco Express, but there's a nice little hub tucked away with canopies as well.

I can confirm this is a great little charging spot and I'm looking out for similar places when planning longer journeys now, although when we used it the cafe was closed and we had to make do with snacks from Tesco and cheekily using the loos at the Premier Inn next door!

 

[Ingo Wilson]

I was a very happy, early adopter, of an ZS EV Exclusive which I sold at near purchase price after 3 years. Range anxiety led me to try a MG4 Long Range as dealers weren't taking oderes for the ZS EV and I was impressed with the handling and styling and took delivery of one last November. I soon realised that I'd make a big and expensive mistake which cost me £5K after 4 months and 2K miles. I'd ordered the SE LR but even the Trophy would have forced my sale of this ghastly car. Its cheap and nasty with lots of hard plastics, little storage, very cramped and so badly engineered that even midgets would trip into and out of the car. The gloomy black roof trim matched how I felt about the MG4. I was fortunate to px it for a near new, showroomcondition, ZS EV Trophy LR at £30K. What a joy going back to a really decent ZS EV. The LR lives up the claimed range (+/-285 miles) and it sounds as though you're trying the short range version which i wouldnt go for. Just a thought, how about the MG5 LR?

 

[Martin]

On the subject of ZAP-MAP. I use PLUG-SHARE, they seem to show a lot more rapid chargers. Just look at mid Wales, zap-map show it almost bereft of rapid chargers, whereas plug-share show quite a few. I live near Exeter and can think of 6 or 7 that I have seen up and running that are not shown on zap-map.

 

[DBedford]

Switched our order to a MG ZS LRT. No sunroof or privacy glass, but we will still be able to in and out if it in 5 years time ? and yes the back seats are not like sitting in a coal mine.

Thanks all.

 

[Kithmo]

We own one of each of the cars you are considering. They are quite different vehicles so the choice you make depends on what you are looking for and how you use the car.

Aside from the obvious spec differences you are aware of like charging speeds, which are only relevant when using EV rapid chargers that output more than 88 kW otherwise both cars charge at a similar speed, my observations would be:

• Ride quality - MG4 is better
• Ride height - ZS is better
• Ride position - MG4 better
• Long journey comfort - It's very close but I prefer the ZS marginally but the MG4 is still extremely comfortable
• Features - A draw since there are pluses and minuses for both cars relative to the other
• Efficiency - I still maintain, based on my real-world usage of both cars, the ZS is marginally more efficient than the MG4. I think this may change with subsequent software updates and tuning by MG. ZS has been around a bit longer so has had more time to be enhanced by software updates.
• Space - cabin space feels bigger in the MG4 but more boot space in the ZS

Feel free to ask me any specific questions you might have, and I will share my opinion.

On the range conversation, I regularly do 300 and 450-mile largely motorway round trips in a single 24-hour period and I have never achieved less than 200-miles of range at 100% battery level in both cars. The ZS yields a few more miles but does have a bigger usable battery capacity and I feel it is a little more efficient than the MG4.

I generally drive at 65-67 MPH indicated on Motorways and my average trip speed tends to be around 50 MPH.

I'm very surprised that the ZS, with the aerodynamics of a brick, is more efficient than the 4, could this be something to do with the final drive gearing or the motor power I wonder ?
Also the ride quality, do you mean comfort, I would have thought from the various reviews saying the 4 has sharp handling, that the ride would be better on the ZS ?

 

[DBedford]

I'm very surprised that the ZS, with the aerodynamics of a brick, is more efficient than the 4, could this be something to do with the final drive gearing or the motor power I wonder ?
Also the ride quality, do you mean comfort, I would have thought from the various reviews saying the 4 has sharp handling, that the ride would be better on the ZS ?

The MG4 is for me a far better to drive than the ZS (being rear rather than front wheel drive) and very slightly better ride. But having both for only a 3/4hr test drive we (my wife and I 66yrs) need to take the complete package in account?.

 

[MoDolph]

We have an MG4 trophy but did have an order for a zs at one point.

As somebody else mentioned, the MG4 is bigger for the passengers but has a much smaller boot.

It's ok for me to get in and out of but I'm 37. If I was older it might be a concern.

If you enjoy driving the MG4 is better as it is more responsive and has better suspension. If you just drive A to B you probably won't notice.

When it comes to range they will both be similar at low speed but if you like driving at 70mph the 4 will have the advantage. Cruising at 75mph with the heating on you'll get ~170 miles from the 4.

Charging is much better on the 4 but it depends how often you envisage having to do it. The 4 will go 10%-80% in ~25 mins whereas the zs will take 45-50 mins. Twice a week this would be huge but once a month I wouldn't worry about it. There is also cost to consider as the rated range suggests a 15% higher consumption for the ZS. Charged at home on a cheap rate this isn't to bad, but at today's rapid charger cost this could also be a consideration.

 

[sandra54]

Hi there,

My wife and I have just retired and visited our local MG dealer to look at their electrical cars.

My wife's initial option was the MG ZS Trophy Long Range. Reason being fit and finish over the MG4 Trophy Long Range, and height of ride and ease of getting in and out. The ZS was not in stock, and reported some months wait list due the factory being unable to meet demand. As the ZS was off the table at the time, we looked at the MG4 and took it for a test drive (lovely.. ). slight down side is the height off the road, but I placed a deposit on a cancelled order in grey, which is now at the dealer.

A couple of days ago I found out that the dealer had a cancelled order on the MG ZS LR Trophy in red (which we were inially interested in), and we have arranged a test drive.

We are looking to keep the car was long as its runs. So my question, and I would say minor concern is charging:

The MG4 as I understand is 135Kw and the ZS only 80Kw, like most cars it will be used for local runs and charged via our yet to be installed 7Kw wall charger. But we will include a number of runs up and down the country as we make the most of our early retirements. Question ?? Have owners of the ZS found the relatively slower charging rate to be an issue when out and about please?​

​

I know the ZS has its drawbacks regards handing and wallowing over the MG4, but neither of us are 'boy-racers' so it shouldn't be a issue, but I am just VERY interested in owners feedback.

Thank you for any and all replies.
David

​

I had a ZS long range on order for a very long time and took a test drive in the MG4 as I could potentially get that quicker. It was nice to drive but I just knew it wouldn’t suit me, boot too small ( need space for the dog ) too low to the ground position . I’m in late 60’s and wanted a higher driving position that would be easier getting in and out of. I’ve now had my long awaited ZS for 6 weeks and I’m very happy with it so far. I drove 169 miles to get the car home from the dealership and had 45 miles left in the charge. It was a cold, snowy day so I had heater on and radio, for most of the journey.