MG ZS Hybrid+ - how London roads helped shape this car built in China

So now we know. It’s no coincidence that MG’s latest ZS, the value-for-money Hybrid+ rides so well over London’s potholes, its proliferating speed ramps, its broken road surfaces; it was - at least in part - developed here. For not only does MG UK have its UK HQ in London at Marylebone Road, it transpires that during the years-long development of the car, it spent extensive miles being evaluated and fine-tuned on a variety of different UK roads. And that included the capital.

It is sometimes possible to tell when a new car has spent time in the UK during its development. Our roads are so rough and ready, so potholed, so individual that if you simply imported a car tuned for smoother urban Chinese roads, for instance, it would soon disgrace itself.

The minute I pulled away at the wheel of the MG ZS Hybrid+ that I’ve now been driving for several weeks, it was evident that it was properly ‘sorted’. Firm yet yielding, it absorbed London’s lumps and bumps very nicely indeed. Out on the open road, I enjoyed opening it up and swishing around bends too.

Engineers are well aware of this potential pitfall, which is why MG called heavily on its small UK team, based at Longbridge, to help fine-tune the car before it went on sale in October here last year. Guided by ‘MG David’ (David Allison, Head of Product and Planning at MG Motor UK Ltd), the team liaised closely with HQ in China, culminating in a handful of successive development cars being sent over here, for testing, refinement and development.

As each one arrived, Mr Allison tells the Standard, it was an improvement on the previous one in many ways, including the driver interface, the way in which sign recognition and lane-keeping tech worked, the touchscreen’s definition, the way it steered, ride quality along the street, and so on.

Some of this can be done in computer/bench simulations (and had to be, during Covid, at times) but, as Allison says: “The roads are a lot different here - there’s no substitute for driving in a real road environment”, resulting in myriad changes to the new car, many of them facilitated by software tweaks. “The engineers at our Longbridge facility were in constant touch with the team in China throughout the process,” adds Allison. “We also have engineers who go to China regularly”.

Interestingly, feedback on how a car performs (from customers and in-house staff) continues throughout the car’s lifecycle, he says. Tweaks can still be made with firmware updates at the dealer, for instance, and all the knowledge accrued goes into the next model, too.

So what are the highs - and lows - of the MG ZS Hybrid+ that I discovered over a prolonged review? What might MG (eventually) consider improving, when and if the still-new ZS Hybrid+ finally gets a refresh?. Firstly, it’s the car’s packaging that is one of the most impressive features. For a ‘B’ size SUV it punches above its weight in terms of road presence and roominess, which is why MG hopes that customers hoping to downsize from a larger SUV might choose it.

Secondly, there are those driving characteristics; it’s rewarding and pleasurable to drive, responding nicely to the steering and with the suspension nicely tuned for all roads. Thirdly it genuinely offers great value for money, especially at £21,995 for the entry SE model.

It also looks good, performs well with plenty of assistance from the smooth 1.5-litre petrol engine self-charging hybrid setup and has a good-sized boot, complete with extra space under the boot floor for stashing odds and ends. Downsides? MG should have made it a bit quieter. Sounds levels are perfectly acceptable in town and at lower speeds but there’s too much road noise marring the peace on m-ways. This forces users to turn up the stereo, resulting in mushy sound quality. So better speakers would be good, too. It’s a pity that the steering wheel doesn’t adjust for reach as well as tilt; although I found a comfortable driving position, some might not.

While it pulls and accelerates very well, the three-speed automatic transmission sometimes holds on to a lower gear for too long, for instance while climbing even moderate hills. I really like the hexagonal steering wheel (it’s more grippy than a perfectly circular one), the vision out, and the height of the seat relative to the pavement (it makes getting in and out easier when you’ve cricked your back in the gym) and the high levels of equipment including Apple CarPlay. I liked to rely on my iPhone 15 Pro Max for navigation and access to maps, contacts, music and so on, making the MG home-from-home on the move. Above all, it’s easy and satisfying to live with.

Having debuted the ZS Hybrid+ last year, this year MG UK is focusing more closely on its EV range of cars, with two new models coming to market. But, it seems, there’s plenty of life left in petrol hybrids yet, especially ones aimed carefully at the UK market.