OUR perception of driving a Chinese-made car has changed a lot in recent times following pleasant on-road experiences with several newcomers to the automotive scene.
The Chinese automotive industry has become highly capable of producing vehicles that could easily rivals its western counterparts in overall performance, at a competitive price to boot.
This was impressed upon us as we drove the MG5 sedan from the Klang Valley to Desaru, Johor and back over two days.
It completely erased our bad memories of driving “clones” or what are best described as vehicles cloned on automotive products from Japan, among other countries, but have different engines and suspension engineering.
These Chinese automotive people might not have completely foregone the cloning aspect but they are coming out with very credible and innovative home-grown products – body, engine and suspension system – that is astounding all and sundry.
The MG name might be familiar to those old enough to recognise it as a British brand but since 2005, it was acquired initially by Nanjing Automobile before SAIC Motor took over in 2007.
MG Malaysia is already known for its electric range in the MG4 and MG ZS that were introduced last year and is now turning to the non-electric range.
It started with the MG5 in early October and the car is already turning heads with its competitive price below RM100,000.
MG Malaysia is celebrating MG’s 100th year anniversary (it was started in 1924) by introducing a RM7,000 discount, making it an even more attractive proposition.
Being made in Thailand has a lot to do with the appealing price besides earning it an imported status.
In body styling, the MG5 has sweeping good looks with a dark bold grille section to add a touch of aggro.
The rear is clean and well detailed and SAIC ensured to highlight its British roots with a logo carrying the British flag.
The LED (light emitting diode) headlamps and taillamps supports the car contemporary character with a neat design, helped too by the stylish alloy wheels fitted with 215/50 R17 Maxxis Premitra 5 tyres.
The MG5 is powered by a four-cylinder 1.5-litre engine with VTi-T (variable valve timing intelligent tech) that is normally aspirated with multi-point fuel injection.
Power is decent at 114PS (83.8kW) and 150Nm of torque with an eight-speed iCVT (intelligent continuously variable transmission) channelling the engine output to the front wheels.
A newer MG5 with turbocharger was launched in China recently but it would probably be in a year’s time before that model gets here.
As it were, we enjoyed a robust drive with what was delivered by the engine and for quicker uptake of power to overtake quickly, we engaged Sports mode.
Doing that immediately selected a lower “gear” to capitalise on engine output for a reasonably quick surge of road speed.
It must be noted that the use of Sports mode is best when you want to tap engine output at the right power curve for a more engaging drive but you should revert to normal drive as soon as you are done with the overtaking.
Using Sports drive constantly means you are using the engine at higher revolutions and doing that means it is going to gulp more petrol.
In normal drive mode, the iCVT uses overdrive ratios on highways so that you could cruise at robust speeds but with an engine that’s less stressed and uses less petrol.
Being prudent in transmission use meant that we covered the Kuala Lumpur-Desaru run of almost 400km with sufficient fuel in the tank to spare.
We found the seven-inch instrument panel a bit wishy-washy in relaying information on engine and road speed.
It uses a dull red colour band that sweeps up on each side for the respective function with digital readouts as supporting information.
We found the dull red colour band too subdued to grasp what engine revs or road speed we were doing and our eyes focused more on the digital readouts.
The 10.25-inch infotainment display offers touchscreen activation for the respective function and is big enough for the GPS directional graphics.
As a driver, we were nicely pampered with electronic adjustments for the seat although the steering column is only adjustable for height and not reach.
For a car of this category, the MG5 comes with a sunroof although with the blazing hot sun overhead, we didn’t get to use it at all.
With a long wheelbase of 2,680mm, there was good interior room all round and we could vouch for that while being a passenger at the back.
The independent front suspension with MacPherson struts and a torsion beam rear appeared to be well tuned for ride comfort and handling.
It soaked up the bumps, ripples and dips, reducing the impacts substantially to make ride comfortable even at robust speeds.
The MG5 also took to sweeping bends at good speeds with minimal body lean and we would certainly love to check it out on our favourite winding stretches.
Road roar varied according to the tarmac surface but the noise was mostly low enough for us to make conversation without having to raise our voices too much.
Likewise, the body seemed aerodynamically efficient and wind noise was well managed, again even at high speeds.
And that meant we could catch our regular forty winks while taking our turn as a rear seat passenger.
The boot is deep and accommodated the luggage of four people easily (we had four on board on the drive back to KL).
The MG5 comes with a full suite of passive and active safety systems that include Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Rear Collision Warning, Blind Spot Detection and Lane Change Assist.
A 360-degree view camera comes standard and there is cleaner air too through the air-conditioning system as it has a PM 2.5 air filter.
If we had a bone to pick with the MG5, it is the air vent at the end of the central console for rear passengers.
The way it is designed, it could cool only one rear seat passenger effectively – either right, middle or left.
Nevertheless, the MG5 is a money for value buy with its feature loaded package and standard warranty of up to seven years unlimited mileage for the powertrain and engine!
