MG3 - Not shite it seems - now with excellent* video!

[dollywobbler]

Spurred on by the absolute slating MG Motors seems to endlessly receive, especially on here, I thought there was only one way I could really have a valid opinion. Get my hands on one. So I did.

 

That there is £10,200 of MG3 3Form Sport, with the two-tone paint chipping it over the £10k barrier. I thought that was quite a lot of money, so I was very surprised to learn that you need another four grand to get a base model Fiesta! WTF?!

 

Inside, it feels far more like a quality vehicle than you might expect, though some plastics are indeed a bit cheap.

 

To be honest, it doesn't really feel much worse than a Hyundai i10 I drove recently. Only the particularly nasty door handles let it down. It's got air con (not climate control) with tiny buttons, a stereo thing with Bluetooth, Aux input etc and I like the rubber mat under the central sliding cubby lid thing. Very Austin-Rover.

 

Time for a drive. I started by driving it all the way to Wigan in a horrendous storm. With hints of snow.

 

And you know what? It's a bonny wee car. The 1.5-litre engine is a bit of an oddity in this class/price, but it pulls pretty well. The gearing is very tall, so 60mph is reached in second gear (in a touch over 10 seconds). 70mph = 3000rpm, and most of the time, the engine is pretty much inaudible. 

 

It is quite a large small car, far larger than this 1999 Toyota Starlet.

 

Now here's some history for you. This is the second MG3. The first was simply a Rover Streetwise with MG badges. By coincidence, I managed to find a Streetwise to park next to.

 

The new MG3 is an entirely fresh design though. The only hint of its illustrious past is that rubber mat on the dash, and the rear wiper, which performs three sweeps before going intermittent. My dad's Montego estate did that, as did my Disco 1. HERITAGE.

 

It steers really nicely, rides far better than many competitors and is pretty comfortable for a 650-miles-in-three-days sort of a trip. Perhaps not quite as comfortable as a W124 Mercedes-Benz, but almost as peaceful. I'll concede there's a little bit too much tyre noise really.

 

The door pockets are a good size. There's a bottle of water beneath this orange juice carton.

 

Disappointingly, it only seems to achieve 42-43mpg in mixed driving. Mind you, the insurance group is apparently pretty low, and the base model is just £8300. I have no idea what an i10 would achieve in similar driving, but Fuelly puts it only a few mpg ahead of the MG3, which is disappointing given Hyundai claim 65mpg, to MG's 51.

 

It emphatically is not a cheap, shitty car though. This is nowt like the City Rover situation. The End.

[Cheggers]

Really nice mini review, proof that there are very few genuinely bad new cars.

 

Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk

[dollywobbler]

Really nice mini review, proof that there are very few genuinely bad new cars.

 

Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk

 

Thanks. And yes, things are a world away from the FSO, Skoda, Lada days. Unfortunately. What an MG3 will be like after 50,000 miles rather than 5000, I've no idea. I certainly wouldn't kick one out of bed based on this experience though.

[Cheggers]

It's odd, it looks big next to the Starlet but compact next to the Streetwise

 

Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk

[oldcars]

Nice review. I like the shape of these, not bland at all and stand out a bit. Like the cheaper Dacia, be interesting to see what they are like come first mot time.

[Bobthebeard]

I am just glad that the name MG survives TBH. Having gone through BL and BMW et al it survives as a marque. As an MG apologist I wish it well.

[alcyonecorporation]

If I've inferred the mood of this site correctly, shite protocol dictates you buy one of these when it's two years old and £500, surely? 

Neat looking cars, not badly made (in China, like iPhones, but not by Foxconn) but a bit lacking in the parsimony department - I tried a friend's and couldn't better 38mpg. Pretty poor for a 1500 hatchback these days. 

[Cavcraft]

Nice one DW, good to read an unbiased opinion from someone who's covered a few miles (as opposed to a two mile test drive) in one. 

[sierraman]

I sat in one a few months ago. Full of cheap shit plastics. Didn't feel tremendously well finished at all. Isn't it the K Series in another guise powering it?

 

Ditto for the Viva, again full of rough edges in the true spirit of the old one. Of the budget cars the best is the Skoda Rapid. Seems well put together...

[alcyonecorporation]

I sat in one a few months ago. Full of cheap shit plastics. Didn't feel tremendously well finished at all. Isn't it the K Series in another guise powering it?

 

Ditto for the Viva, again full of rough edges in the true spirit of the old one. Of the budget cars the best is the Skoda Rapid. Seems well put together...

 

Nae. 

 

It's an SAIC Small Gasoline Engine if memory serves. Not a K series. 

 

There's supposed to be a joint venture engine coming in conjunction with GM. 

Pity the turbo couldn't get through EU emissions regs. 

[sierraman]

I like the shite aspect of the MG3 in respect that it's a bit of an underdog but the name doesn't have good connotations for the general public does it? Probably would have done if they'd died out on the 1960's but the rubber bumper MGB or the MG Maestro is hardly held in high regard with people is it? (Might I add I like the MG Maestro, I'm just saying what the general opinion is of people old enough to remember the first time round)

 

It seems the be the thing now of bringing back the brands that really didn't have a very good name when they died out the first time.. Datsun, Dacia, MG etc...

[inconsistant]

Quality content, thanks for the good read. 

[Rod/b]

Glad you enjoyed it Wobs.

 

To be fair, though, MG Motors take most of their slating because on the one hand, they're run by a bunch of fucking amateurs, and on the other because the MG6 was a big pile of turds. I had one on hire for a month and it was just the most awful piece of shit you could imagine. Was a month old when I got it, and was literally falling apart.

 

That's not to mention their pretence of production at Longbridge - i.e. 20 odd blokes gluing the badges onto cars shipped in more or less complete from China.

 

Apparently the MG3 has an issue with the cam chain slipping and wrecking the engine too. So there's nice.

[dollywobbler]

Yeah, they really haven't done themselves any favours on the promotion or customer service front by the sound of things. Mind you, I know people who've had an utter nightmare with Skoda too, despite them regularly coming out tops for customer service. Luck of the draw?

 

Two annoyances having just nipped out to the shops. One, the stereo likes to randomly turn itself on when you start up. Sometimes. Didn't when I left the house, but did after I'd stopped for fuel. Secondly, the single reverse light is RUBBISH if you live in properly dark places. Like I do.

 

As for cheap shitty plastics. I've utterly realigned my view of said plastics after driving a City Rover. The MG doesn't feel an awful lot worse than its rivals.

[Cavcraft]

I sat in one a few months ago. Full of cheap shit plastics. Didn't feel tremendously well finished at all. Isn't it the K Series in another guise powering it?

 

Ditto for the Viva, again full of rough edges in the true spirit of the old one. Of the budget cars the best is the Skoda Rapid. Seems well put together...

 

I can honestly say that's not my experience. Being really fussy the plastics on the door pockets could be better (show up scuffs quite quickly) but the cabin is really nice on mine, very happy with it.

[RichL]

I'd be interested to see what parts prices are like.

 

Cheap new cars aren't cheap if they end up costing a fortune to run. Hyundai's are shocking for this, anything other than filters is mega £££.

[saucedoctor]

I'd be interested to see what parts prices are like.

 

Cheap new cars aren't cheap if they end up costing a fortune to run. Hyundai's are shocking for this, anything other than filters is mega £££.

 

Can't comment on prices, but parts availability seems to be very spotty. Dealer told me they had a 3 in for 6 weeks waiting for parts (gearbox I think). Also told me that body panels and bumpers are often hard to get. And they're a franchised dealer.

[sierraman]

It'll be even harder when they inevitably go bust. Again.

[Jim Bell]

I wonder what depreciation is like.  Not because it will ever effect me, but because it seems to be the kind of thing you say in threads featuring brand new cars. 

 

Its a lovely colour, and I'd like to rent one one day.

[sierraman]

Awful. Like Quentin Wilson said 'like falling masonry'

 

This is all good news though, give it 2 years and they'll be regular under a thousand quid fodder.

[robinmasters]

-5/10

 

No pictures of the cubby hole rubber mat. Many disappoints.

[egg]

Give it 15 years, and we'll be excited about giffer owned 20,000 mile barn find MG3s...see you in 2031 (if there's any petrol left)

[captain_70s]

Yeah, they really haven't done themselves any favours on the promotion or customer service front by the sound of things. Mind you, I know people who've had an utter nightmare with Skoda too, despite them regularly coming out tops for customer service. Luck of the draw?

Skoda are marketed and people know the name, they also built themselves a reputation of reliability that shook off it's "engine in the arse" reputation of the 1980s, not surprising given it had VW behind it.

 

In comparison MG has barely any dealers and the marketing is hilariously bad at best and utterly wank for the most part, so nobody can really tell if they are well built or reliable because so few people have bought them. I've still never seen one in the metal despite the fact they've been selling the fuckers for years now. The fact they are worth about £5.97 after they' trundled off the showroom floor probably doesn't help their sales, most people I know who have them are serial MG Rover enthusiasts replacing their rusted out 25s...

[RoadworkUK]

I drove an MG3 at Millbrook... and thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact I can't think of a modern car that better recaptures the feel of the small, nimble, nippy cars I grew up on.

 

The interior plastics were perfectly acceptable for the price of car; some of the interior aspects felt a bit, well, hollow, but nothing like Dodge Caliber levels of build ineptitude. I'm not wild that it has an MG badge attached to it, but it really is a thoroughly decent little thing. I'd like to spend more time with one..... though ideally it would belong to somebody else.

[Timewaster]

I wouldn't worry egg.

The ladybird book of oil I had when I was a kid says we will run out of oil in 1980.

[egg]

Maybe we did and maybe everything since has been virtual reality. Sometimes I hope so 

[twosmoke300]

Not cheap enough in my opinion . As said above the parts availability and prices will make this a dear car in the long run .

Will be like my mate and I choice of dirt bikes . He bought an Ajp for 4K new and me a Honda for 5.6k

His has fuel injection etc and better spec on paper but after 6 months of use it feels tired and horrible to ride . Gear box bearings are noisy - suspension bearings seizing up - misfiring etc etc . Really needs to be more like 2k to make it worthwhile .

I hate to think what his is worth now .

[Timewaster]

I think it is the total lack of anything MG about it that irks people.

 

It would be like bringing back Spangles only this time they were peppermints.

 

(anyone born after 1980 can Google Spangles).

[Noel Tidybeard]

Spurred on by the absolute slating MG Motors seems to endlessly receive, especially on here, I thought there was only one way I could really have a valid opinion. Get my hands on one. So I did.

 

That there is £10,200 of MG3 3Form Sport, with the two-tone paint chipping it over the £10k barrier. I thought that was quite a lot of money, so I was very surprised to learn that you need another four grand to get a base model Fiesta! WTF?!

 

Inside, it feels far more like a quality vehicle than you might expect, though some plastics are indeed a bit cheap.

 

To be honest, it doesn't really feel much worse than a Hyundai i10 I drove recently. Only the particularly nasty door handles let it down. It's got air con (not climate control) with tiny buttons, a stereo thing with Bluetooth, Aux input etc and I like the rubber mat under the central sliding cubby lid thing. Very Austin-Rover.

 

Time for a drive. I started by driving it all the way to Wigan in a horrendous storm. With hints of snow.

 

And you know what? It's a bonny wee car. The 1.5-litre engine is a bit of an oddity in this class/price, but it pulls pretty well. The gearing is very tall, so 60mph is reached in second gear (in a touch over 10 seconds). 70mph = 3000rpm, and most of the time, the engine is pretty much inaudible. 

 

It is quite a large small car, far larger than this 1999 Toyota Starlet.

 

Now here's some history for you. This is the second MG3. The first was simply a Rover Streetwise with MG badges. By coincidence, I managed to find a Streetwise to park next to.

 

The new MG3 is an entirely fresh design though. The only hint of its illustrious past is that rubber mat on the dash, and the rear wiper, which performs three sweeps before going intermittent. My dad's Montego estate did that, as did my Disco 1. HERITAGE.

 

It steers really nicely, rides far better than many competitors and is pretty comfortable for a 650-miles-in-three-days sort of a trip. Perhaps not quite as comfortable as a W124 Mercedes-Benz, but almost as peaceful. I'll concede there's a little bit too much tyre noise really.

 

The door pockets are a good size. There's a bottle of water beneath this orange juice carton.

 

Disappointingly, it only seems to achieve 42-43mpg in mixed driving. Mind you, the insurance group is apparently pretty low, and the base model is just £8300. I have no idea what an i10 would achieve in similar driving, but Fuelly puts it only a few mpg ahead of the MG3, which is disappointing given Hyundai claim 65mpg, to MG's 51.

 

It emphatically is not a cheap, shitty car though. This is nowt like the City Rover situation. The End.

hands up who's now waiting for the video blog with subtitles?

[twosmoke300]

Maybe a good car to buy on pcp? Any good deals ?