MG HS long-term test
Our sub-editor wants a spacious, comfortable and economical car for his long daily commute. Will he feel short changed by MG's bargain-priced family SUV?...
The car MG HS 1.5 T-GDI DCT Trophy Run by Chris Haining, sub-editor
Why it’s here To see whether MG's family SUV is a genuine bargain, or a car whose low price leads to too many compromises
Needs to be comfy and relaxing on a long motorway commute without costing the Earth on petrol; offer the practicality an action-packed life demands
Mileage 2133 List price £28,995 Target Price £27,689 Price as tested £29,495 Official fuel economy 37.2 mpg Test fuel economy 39.5 mpg
20 April 2025 – Close to overdoing it
Outside appearances can be deceiving when it comes to holiday apartments. Plenty of people have strolled up to the resort hotel they’ve booked, impressed by its sheer scale and charmed by the blue skies and swaying palms, only to find their room cheaply furnished, with dubious surfaces. They’ll want to spend as little time as possible inside it. Could the same be true of the imposing but value-priced MG HS?
Well, no. Far from it. When I first climbed up into my car’s electrically adjustable driving seat and surveyed my surroundings, I thought “well, this seems somewhere nice to sit while I wait for the M25 to start moving again”. My first impressions were of an interior much smarter than I’ve seen in any MG before, although the fact that my car is the range-topping Trophy variant no doubt helps here.
Trophy brings leather trim; okay, it’s synthetic, but it’s soft and comfortable to sit on, and doesn’t seem to be any stickier or sweatier in sunlight than the real deal. It isn’t confined to the seats, either; there’s swathes of the stuff. It swaddles most of the places where fingers routinely roam; the armrests in the doors and between the seats, the door pulls, the surrounds to the door handles, and all the way across the dashboard. And it’s all stitched together very neatly.
Plenty more catches the eye, too; there are details that, if not made from actual metal, do a darned good job of convincing you that they are. And in places where there aren’t bits of leatheresque material or metallic jewellery, surfaces – such as the door panels – are sculpted to be good to touch and interesting to look at.
Admittedly, things are markedly less plush below waist level. The bottom half of the dashboard and the lower sections of the doors are all made from hard, black plastic that’s rather less alluring to behold. Still, nothing I’ve applied pressure to feels at all flimsy. I'd say general interior quality is at least the equal of my previous Mini Countryman – a much more expensive family SUV.
No, there’s only one thing about the HS’s interior that I think spoils things: the doors and top of the dashboard are the embellished with pretend stitching that veers deeply into chintzy territory. Some might say that it adds visual interest, but when there’s already so much to admire, it’s a tacky garnish that detracts from the whole. Still, I won't let the naff artificial flowers in my sea-view apartment spoil my holiday.
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