New MG4 EV vs used Hyundai Ioniq 5

The contenders

NEW MG4 EV Long Range Trophy

List Price £32,495
Target price £32,495

In range-topping Trophy trim, the new MG4 EV comes packed with kit and is still temptingly priced

USED Hyundai Ioniq 5 73kWh RWD Premium

Price new £41,945
Price today £35,000*

The Ioniq 5 is a practical electric SUV with space-age looks. But is it as good a buy as it sounds?

*Price today is based on a 2021 model with average mileage and a full service history and is correct at the time of writing

If you've watched The Equalizer, you'll have witnessed the title character's remarkable ability to even the odds in a fight. And here, a used Hyundai Ioniq 5 is doing the same.

You see, a new example of this electric SUV is significantly more expensive than our reigning Small Electric Car of the Year, the MG4 EV. However, at two years old, it's a different story.

Okay, the Ioniq 5 will still cost you more, but at around £7000 less than its price when new, the gap to the top-spec Long Range version of MG's electric car is within £3000.

So, is the MG4 still the car to choose, or would you be better off foregoing that new car smell and buying the Hyundai?

Driving

Performance, ride, handling, refinement

You get slightly more straight-line pace with the Ioniq 5, which is much heavier but also produces more power. At our test track, it managed a 0-60mph time of 6.9sec, versus the MG4's 7.3sec.

That said, both feel similarly quick to respond when you prod the accelerator, with their electric power making for instant get-up-and-go. There are more rapid electric cars out there than these two – you only need to look at Tesla Model S acceleration videos on YouTube to realise that – but you'll have overall straight-line performance that's only a slither behind the hot hatch crowd in either car, meaning even the MG4 feels more potent enough. 

As you'd expect, the Ioniq 5, being an electric SUV, is a lot bigger overall, with a whopping three-metre gap between the front axle and the rear one (the same as the Audi A8 luxury car). Meanwhile, its rival is similar in bulk to a traditional family car.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the smaller MG4 is significantly more nimble, and better suited to nipping around urban areas. Its firmer suspension helps too, making it feel much more planted, although it loses some of its confidence-inspiring composure if you start to push it on an undulating country road.

When you do the same in the Ioniq 5, it's even further outside its comfort zone. The soft suspension setup means the car's ride becomes bouncy at times – it's far from the sharpest tool in the shed. Its nose doesn’t respond all that quickly to steering inputs and when the car does agree to change direction, there’s plenty of body lean.

The upside is impressively cosseting comfort, and most bumps and road imperfections are smothered with ease. The MG4 takes the sting out of larger bumps, but can't match its rival here, and its ride fidgets more over smaller bumps.

It's a different story on a motorway. The smaller car suffers from much more wind noise, including a whistle around the door mirrors that you'll probably want to drown out by turning up the radio.

The Ioniq 5 doesn't ask that of you – not one bit. It's incredibly hushed at all times, with little wind or road noise. The peace is rarely disturbed until you're back on particularly bumpy urban roads, where there are occasional clonks from the suspension.

The Ioniq 5 fares better for range too. With its 73kWh (useable) battery, it can officially travel 298 miles between charges, while the MG4 and its 61.7kWh (useable) battery has a 270-mile figure. More importantly, their real-world ranges are 247 and 203 miles respectively.

Next: What are they like inside? >>

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