Performance & drive
What it’s like to drive, and how quiet it is
One of the weakest areas of the petrol-powered MG ZS is its sluggish performance, but the EV electric version is much quicker.
The 0-62mph sprint officially takes a very respectable 8.4sec, and you never feel like you need any more zip, even on faster A-roads. The fact that its Kona Electric rival is even quicker will probably have most buyers simply shrugging their shoulders.
The ZS EV is not particularly quiet on the move. A new motor has been introduced as part of a mid-life (2021) facelift, but that hasn't improved the amount of wind and road noise that’s generated at 70mph. In other words, this is not a refined long-distance car.
There’s better news in the one area where MG has excelled, even compared with most major makers of electric cars: the predictable response of the ZS EV's brake pedal.
You can easily judge how much pressure to apply if you want to slow down smoothly. The regenerative braking system in many other electrics wreaks havoc with that predictability, causing you to press the pedal too hard or not hard enough.
The ZS EV’s range is very competitive. The 68.3kWh battery version offers a range of 273 miles according to WLTP tests while the 49kWh model manages 198 miles. For some context, the e-Niro can manage 282 miles and the Renault Zoe 186 miles.
It’s worth noting that no electric car has yet managed to match its official WLTP range in our own real-world tests, which we’ll be putting the ZS EV through in the coming months.
What about its charging time? The ZS EV can take up to 76kW from a public CCS point, giving a 0-80% top-up in around 42 minutes even on the bigger battery car. That’s not bad, although some rivals – including the e-2008 and Vauxhall Mokka-e – are capable of sucking electricity out of an ultra-rapid charging station even more quickly.
