The MG4 was the undisputed king of cheap electric cars. But with the arrival of the trendy Renault 5 and a sudden price hike for this updated 2026 model, is it still a great buy?
Read our full in-depth review of the MG4 and compare prices here: https://www.whatcar.com/
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In this review, we test the new MG4 to see if a major interior revamp has fixed the quality issues of the old car. We explain why the entry-level Standard Range has been axed (and effectively replaced by the MG4 Urban), find out how many suitcases we can fit in the boot, and reveal the SHOCKING results from our latest Reliability Survey.
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#mg4 #mg4ev #electriccar
Video chapters:
0:00 Intro
0:28 MG4 Background
1:27 What’s New?
2:21 The 2026 MG4 line-up
2:35 The Interior (BIG CHANGES!)
4:02 Rear Seats
5:00 Boot space
6:15 Battery Options & Range
7:07 Driving: Performance, Ride & Handling
8:23 Prices
8:50 MG’s Reliability Woes
9:30 The Verdict
The interior is much better, but MG came last in the latest What Car? Reliability Survey! 📉
Does that worry you, or is the 7-year warranty enough peace of mind?
A) Worries me: I'd buy a Renault 5 or Hyundai Inster instead. 🇫🇷
B) Don't care: The warranty covers it, and the range is great! 🔋
Let us know in the comments! 👇
The big question is if they addressed the most painful bugs of the older versions in the new one.
Endless trips to the garage for 7 years isn't fun or cheap either. Lost time, tow trucks and taxis also cost money.
Personally my main turn off from the previous version was the interior, which seems better now and a bit less murky.
Didn't the previous version start at 204 hp? Isn't 180-ish a downgrade?
It also sounds like MG needs to improve their software game.
I don't think I've ever seen an MG4 on the road lol
Reliability IS a big factor, the warranty may save you the cost of repairs but I'd rather not be in the garage in the first place. I wasn't a fan of the interior before and I was hoping the 'face-lift' was going to be an impressive step up but it isnt for me and a laggy screen is a real no-no in a new car.
How on earth is the R5, BYD Surf, Hyundai Inster even in this intro? Why is it since EV’s came along we seem to compare models on a price basis even if one is a city car size and the other a family car? It’s bizarre.
No mention of one of the original's major flaws – it's overly intrusive driver aids. You ought to cover how easy it is to disable those in EVERY new car you cover.
Watch 3p per mile become 10p then 20p and so on 😢
I don’t think many people will procrastinate and then finally say ‘it’s either the MG4 or Renault 5’.
The least reliable car in the What Car test. So why bother reviewing this Chinese piece of junk? BYD are also awful…..just ask my poor brother who bought two of them, one for his missus and both cars have been back to the dealership multiple times and now one is off the road for three months awaiting parts. Buy cheap, buy often as they say. Now to go out and drive my petrol car with its 800km range, that I can “recharge” in a minute at the pump, that I can use the air con or heating without cutting its range in half etc etc.
No, not better than an R5, but absolutely bigger all round and with the inevitable discounts and pre-reg prices, they will be much cheaper. Will tempt quite a lot of people just based on that.
Have you ever heard of aesthetics ,, looks dreadful, Renault 5 looks brilliant
Sorry but the Chinese designers have no idea
We've got an MG4. Door handle unlock buttons break (particularly if used during freezing weather) and get replaced under warranty. I wonder if that is the reason for the poor reliability scores. I'm not sure most cars even have such a button. Other than that our car has been great.
Entertainment screens in cars are dangerous… laggy screens doubly so.
Bad reliability bad dealer back up bad parts back up . government want you to drive a ev when has a politician told you the truth. buy a petrol car don't help the government they sure as he'll ain't helping you
Only appealing once they knock £10k off it like they have the old generation for the last couple of years.
If you read the MG "7 year warranty". Pretty much everything is 3 year warranty with a few things at 7 year just for the name. Pretty scummy behaviour imo
THAT'S the battery capacity this size of vehicle has to have! Nice. I'm still not taken by the design though. The front is OK, but not a fan of the rear, and overall the car looks like it's on stilts.
Utter unreliable heap of junk for those with zero motoring knowledge or inspiration. Embarassing review. Pathetic.
It is definitely an improvement on the previous infotainment, but it is still behind most of the competitors. In 2026 It needs to be a snappy OS with native navigation with route planning and other apps.
How is this a "small" electric car? Comparing it with the R5 seems odd
Doug, the original MG4 big draw was the drive, it was classed as "The drivers car of EV" which makes your initial point flawed. Secondly, comparing it to different size segment EV's (R5 is much smaller) its similar price but its a bit like comparing applies with pineapples.
On the MG side, still no heat pump ? So your extended range (74.7kWh battery) will be lucky to get 240 miles in winter, yes it really was that inefficient in the current model. Two of the biggest issues were always the 1.) Dealerships and 2.) software.
1.) There is little point boasting about a 7 year warranty if you are continually the worst of all manufacturers for accepting warranty claims and insisting its for the owner to pay. 2.) Software was always flaky. One can only hope the early versions have now matured.
The Good news : As of early 2026, Stellantis—the parent company of Jeep, Fiat, Opel, and Peugeot—is actively sustaining and expanding its diesel line up across various European models
The Fuel of the Gods is coming back
Owning a Renault EV I have had to suffer the catastrophic mess called the Renault dealer network. A five week wait before my broken EV would even be looked at and I had to pay up front for a simple search for codes, and trailer my car to them. My next car may be a Kia or BYD but I do not strike MG off the list as reliability can change. I am not sure bad dealer support can.
Good review but I wouldn't have one about me for 3 reasons, one tho' the car is cheaper to buy, at a starting insurance group of 27 it's 8 groups higher than my own car which means like all EVs it'll cost more to insure, 2 given the question marks over its reliability that doesn't sell it to me and 3 given the 3p a mile extra EV tax that the British government is inflicting on anyone that owns an EV as of 2028 it'd cost me more to run than my hybrid even allowing for the tax on fuel so all in all definitely not.
It’s still a no from me,good review though,cheers Doug👍.
I know your in the UK but really frustrating you only quote miles and hp, could you please also quote km and kW? Thanks
Xpower price reduction is very significant
Having “Long Range” and “Extended Range” is just ‘standard’ and “Long Range” with more words.