The MG 4 EV will be updated for the UK market in the coming months, but there are no immediate plans for it to get the same wide-ranging redesign that was recently revealed in China.
This was confirmed to Autocar by MG Motor UK product boss David Allison, who said the electric car will instead get an extensive interior refresh to mirror that of the new and technically related S5 EV crossover.
This includes higher-quality materials, bigger and clearer screens and a new array of console-mounted buttons that make minor operations quicker and easier.
Allison also said the 4 will receive that car’s new level-two ADAS.
Given the car is made in China alongside its home market stablemate, it will likely eventually adopt the changes introduced by that second-generation model last week. However when that will be is yet to be determined; a spokesperson said: "Whether the UK will take this particular vehicle and on what timeframe is something MG Motor UK is still considering."
Last week, the second-generation 4 EV was launched, growing in size to bridge the gap between the existing 4 and the S5.
It's 4.4m long, compared with 4.3m long for the first-generation model, and the wheelbase has grown by 45mm to 2.75m.
The new 4’s styling draws heavily on that of the Cyberster convertible, the smaller MG 3 hatchback, and S5 EV, with thin headlights up front and arrow-shaped brake lights at the rear end.
Filings with Chinese authorities state it has a single electric motor with 161bhp (down from 168bhp) and weighs in at 1485kg – a marked reduction from the current 49kWh car’s 1620kg.
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We don't need these made in China shit.
Phew, the current shape is a bit of a looker that sells well.
What I want is a plug-in hybrid that has ~100 miles of battery range (ideally a small capactor/'solid state battery' so it doesn't take much space, weigh much, etc.).
With:
An 150 HP ICE engine that drives the either the front or rear wheels.
And two small 50 HP electric motors that drive the other wheels, for a total of 250 HP.
No fancy transmission or linkages between the electric motors and ICE engine.
The car operates as a 2WD car, unless 4 WD is warranted (triggered by tire slippage, sharp acceleration, etc.) or activated (for example, if the car is stuck in snow, and I want AWD to get moving).
The electric motors serve as generators when power is not required of them (while coasting, breaking, recharging the battery, etc.). And, when their power is necessary, the directly drive their tires/axel. After all, electric motors and electric generators are the exactly same thing -- as motors they use electricity to generate movement, as generators they use movement to generate electricity. The 'transmission' linking the ICE and electric motors is the ground.
The car operates as an electric vehicle unless additional power (for acceleration, etc.), or AWD (for slippery roads, etc.), or the battery is below ~25%. If the ICE is necessary for power, traction, motive force, recharging the battery, it starts up.
How easy is that?
I don't think they make one off cars that sell for less than half a million pounds.
Why not flip your ICE spec: electric motors have way more torc than ICE motors. So go with an all electric drive train and battery. Then add a very small ICE motor and fuel tank (or fuel cell) to augment the range of the electric vehicle? Then you get all of the benefits of the electric car: sooth quick excelleration, quick drive, charging at home, very low maintinance costs, reliability and very cheap to run: with the ICE package there for just producing electricity? So zero gears, muffler etc. Litterly making an ICE engine as small as possible: maybe 300cc to keep the weight down.
As long as the car is AWD, I don't necessarily disagree.
However, the limit to what you're suggesting is that the battery needs to be large (and heavy and expensive), as the small engine would not be able to drive the wheels effectively once the battery is depleted.