Legendary British automaker MG is making a comeback to South Africa after re-entering the country in 2011 and leaving again in 2016.
Now owned by China’s SAIC Motor, MG will arrive on our roads before the end of 2024, just in time for its centennial anniversary.
MG is currently laying the groundwork for its local network as it has already stated that it will have dealerships “ready to roll by the end of the year,” however, it hasn’t said much else regarding which models we can expect to arrive first.
After doing a bit of digging, we suspect that the MG 3, a relatively wallet-friendly hatch, and the MG 5, a mid-range sedan, may be among the upcoming roster of cars earmarked for our roads.
SAIC Motor currently owns the naming rights to these two models in South Africa as per the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission, and we could not find any trademark applications for other MG vehicles sold in global markets.
While these nameplates were trademarked all the way back in 2010, the company still produces up-to-date versions of these cars which it sells in regions like Australia, India, the Middle East, and the UK.
Hence, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that we will see the latest MG 3 and MG 5 driving on local roads in January 2025, but there remains a chance that it could also come up with a completely new badge for our market with which it will surprise us in the next few months.
What to expect
The MG 3 is currently on sale in four derivatives in Australia spanning two trim levels and two powertrains, one petrol and one hybrid.
The former features a 1.5-litre, naturally aspirated (NA) engine with 81kW and 142Nm on tap, mated with a continuously variable transmission (CVT).
The latter gets the same internal-combustion engine complemented by an electric motor that pushes its total output to an impressive 155kW and 425Nm, which is relayed to the front axle through a dedicated hybrid transmission.
It also boasts solid amenities as standard such as push-button start, a multifunction steering wheel, a 10.25-inch infotainment display with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 7-inch digital instrument cluster, automatic headlights with intelligent headlight control, and 16-inch alloy wheels.
This is on top of adaptive cruise control, blind-spot detection, lane-departure warning, lane-keep assist, forward-collision warning, rear cross-traffic assist, hill-hold control, a reverse camera, and autonomous emergency braking.
The MG 3 measures 4,113mm from front to back, 1,797mm from left to right, and 1,502mm from top to bottom, and boot volume with all five seats in place is measured at 293 litres.
Down Under, the hatch sells from a starting price of AU$26,363, translating to roughly R315,000.
The MG 5 is similarly sold in two equipment grades but this time they are not only separated by their luxuries but also their drive units.
The entry-level option gets a 1.5-litre, NA petrol motor and a CVT with the setup churning out 84kW and 150Nm.
Upgrading to the flagship sees a turbocharged version of this setup which sees its maximum potential jump to 119kW and 250Nm, and it swaps the CVT for a more capable seven-speed, dual-clutch automatic gearbox.
Like its smaller sibling, the MG 5 brings a decent array of luxuries as all models are at the very least fitted with keyless entry and push-button start, automatic headlights with intelligent headlight control, 16-inch alloy wheels, cruise control, a reverse camera, rear parking sensors, auto-hold brakes, a 10-inch touchscreen with smartphone mirroring, a 7-inch digital gauge cluster, a multifunction steering wheel, as well as a suite of assistance and safety systems.
The sedan retails from AU$27,143 in Australia, which at current exchange rates works out to R325,000.
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