I've spent the last few years in continental SUVs. Audis, BMWs, the usual. Comfortable, refined, competent. And, if I'm honest, a little bit boring.

Then I bought an MG4.

Here's the thing nobody quite tells you about this car: it's fun. Properly fun. It's rear-wheel drive, it's punchy, it darts into corners like it actually wants to be there, and after years of wafting around in big German softness, the agility genuinely shocked me. Tight carparks, narrow roads, the stuff that's a chore in an SUV, the MG4 turns into a game. It feels less like a budget EV and more like a continental hot hatch that forgot to check its own price tag.

Is the interior full of hard plastics? Yes. Is the screen too small and the app a bit of a letdown? Also yes. We'll get to all of it. But none of it matters quite as much as you'd think, because every time I get in, I smile.

The tech & software

Let's be clear about where this car sits. Coming from Audi and BMW, the lack of polish in the native software is obvious. The infotainment is basic and the screen is on the small side. The companion app is the real frustration: park underground, as you do constantly in Singapore, and the car often can't find a signal, so checking anything remotely becomes a guessing game. When I want to look for an over-the-air update, it's genuinely easier to tether my phone's 5G than to rely on the car.

And yet. The stuff that actually matters is handled. Wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto both work flawlessly, and that's where I live day to day anyway, so the so-so native system barely comes up. Everything else is simple and perfectly serviceable.

The pleasant surprise is the driver assistance. MG has clearly been listening: the early, over-eager lane-keeping that this car was criticised for has been reined in, and what's left is genuinely good. The aids now feel on par with much more premium cars I've driven, and the traffic-jam assist in particular is a standout, exactly the kind of thing you want on a crawling expressway at 6pm. The regen is excellent too, with four modes so you can dial in the feel you like. There's a one-pedal mode; it's not as polished as Tesla's, but it's there.

The screen and the app feel built to a price. The safety tech feels like it wandered in from a far more expensive car.

MG4 interior: steering wheel, driver display and central touchscreen
The cabin: physical buttons on the wheel, the driver display and the central touchscreen. Image: MG (press).

The interior quality

The cabin is honest about what it is: utilitarian and functional. There's a genuinely nice steering wheel, a few soft-touch points, and then a lot of hard plastic. It doesn't feel as slick or as modern as some rivals, but there's an upside to that simplicity, real, physical buttons, especially on the wheel, and everything sitting roughly where your hand expects it. After a few too many cars that hide basic functions three menus deep, that plainness is a relief.

The seats are a leather-and-cloth mix; fine rather than memorable. The driver gets six-way adjustment, the passenger four. The one thing I'd beg MG for in this climate is ventilated seats, their absence is felt on a hot Singapore afternoon. It's a month into ownership and nothing squeaks or rattles yet, which is a good sign.

Practicality

  • Boot space is good for a hatchback, with a two-level adjustable floor. No frunk, but that's par for the price.
  • Two adults fit comfortably in the back; three will grumble. The rear seats fold for bigger loads.
  • Doors have normal, sensible handles, no gimmicks. After some of the nonsense the industry has tried lately, I'm grateful.
  • Big families will want more space; for daily shopping and the odd airport run, it's plenty.
MG4 in Volcano Orange, front three-quarter view
The MG4 in Volcano Orange. Image: MG (press).

Living with it in Singapore

Range is solid. A full charge shows 400-plus km, but because this is the 64 kWh NMC car, I keep it to 80% day to day and still comfortably clear 350 km, which is more than enough for how anyone actually drives here. DC fast charging means an emergency top-up is never a drama. I mostly charge at my condo, which is easy, efficient, and meaningfully cheaper than petrol.

And a special mention for the aircon, because it deserves one: it is god-tier. It genuinely blew me away how cold this thing gets. Even on the most brutal days I've never run the fan past 3 or 4 out of 11. In Singapore, that's not a footnote. That's a feature.

The verdict

I paid S$160,000 for this, brand new, COE included, and in today's brutal market, that's an absolute steal. Having lived with it, I can confidently say it's worth every cent. The MG4 is the definition of cheap and cheerful: you won't get there faster, and you won't get there in more comfort, but you will get there with a smile on your face.

It's the rare affordable EV that nails the hardest thing of all, the way it drives, and lets the cost-cutting fall where it's least painful. It isn't an iPhone on wheels and it isn't a plush family cruiser. It's something better than its spec sheet suggests. It's got soul.