MG4 EV: range, battery & charging
The MG4 offers superb range figures for the price
| Model | Range | Wallbox charge time | Rapid charge time |
| Standard Range | 218 miles | 8hrs (10-100%, 7.4kW) | 39mins (10-80%, 117kW) |
| Long Range | 270-281 miles | 8hrs 30mins (10-100%, 7.4kW) | 35mins (10-80%, 135kW) |
| Extended Range | 323 miles | 10hrs 20mins (10-100% 7.4kW) | 39mins (10-80%, 144kW) |
| XPower | 239 miles | 8hrs (10-100%, 7.4kW) | 35mins (10-80%, 140kW) |
Underneath the MG4’s eye-catching bodywork is an EV-specific platform called MSP (Modular Scalable Platform), and this will serve as the underpinnings for all sorts of upcoming electric MGs. It’s also used by the MG Cyberster sports car.
From launch, the MG4 was available in Standard Range and Long Range forms, but an even longer-legged Extended Range model is now also available, alongside a high-performance XPower variant.
MG4 EV range
The Standard Range MG4 starts at just under £27,000, for which you get a 51kWh battery and 218 miles of range. That might not seem like loads, but it’s further than more expensive EVs like the Fiat 500e or an entry-level Nissan Leaf can manage on a full battery.
Upgrade to the Long Range powertrain, which includes a larger 64kWh battery, and range increases to 281 miles for SE models, or 270 miles should you go for the range-topping Trophy model. Both figures are slightly longer than the range for a Volkswagen ID.3 or Cupra Born when fitted with a 59kWh battery, and for considerably less money.
The high-performance XPower model can’t go quite as far, though. It uses the same 64kWh battery as the Long Range, but MG says it’ll need to be plugged-in after 239 miles of driving – and in our experience, that’ll be closer to 200 miles if you make use of the power that’s on offer.
At the top of the MG4 line-up sits the Extended Range model, however, which uses a larger 77kWh battery. It’s priced in-line with small electric SUVs like the Jeep Avenger and offers a range of up to 323 miles.
We’ve seen superb efficiency from the MG4 range, with the Long Range model returning as much as 4.2 miles per kWh. Based on a usable battery capacity of 61.7kWh, that works out to a real-world range of 259 miles – within 4% of its claimed figure, without any real concession to hypermiling.
If you’ve got a bit more of a lead foot or do lots of motorway miles, the MG4 will return closer to 3.8 miles per kWh, which works out to a real-world range of 235 miles. Cold weather, as you might expect, affects battery performance; with an external temperature of around zero degrees, our car returned just 3.0mi/kWh. That equates to less than 200 miles on a charge.
Charge time
The Standard Range MG4 has a maximum charging speed of 117kW, while the Long Range models top out at 135kW – which is on par with the speeds you’ll get from the Volkswagen ID.3 or Cupra Born. That means if you plug the MG4 into a 150kW rapid charger, it'll take 39 minutes to top up the Standard Range model from 10-80% capacity, or 35 minutes for the Long Range version.
XPower and Extended Range models get even faster charging, with MG claiming these cars top out at 140kW and 144kW respectively. Find a fast enough public chargepoint and you can expect a 10-80% charge to take 35 minutes for the XPower and just under 40 minutes for the Extended Range due to its bigger battery.
Fully replenishing the 51kWh MG4 at home will take around eight hours from a 7.4kW wallbox, or 10 hours if you go for the 64kWh battery. While official times are yet to be confirmed, you can expect the 74kWh model to take around one to two more hours to charge than the 64kWh car.
