2021 MG HS Core review

Pivot was the (rather annoying) catchphrase of 2020. Find new customers, learn new skills, grasp new opportunities, and no car-maker has exemplified this better than MG.

Once an iconic manufacturer of lightweight British sports cars, it’s now a Chinese-owned purveyor of cheap SUVs. Cheap has plenty of negative connotations – the number plate surround would prefer you thought of it as “value since 1924” – but it shouldn’t as MG has clearly happened upon a successful recipe.

Sales so far in 2021 (as of the end of June) are up 240 per cent over June 2020, a result that was itself up 55 per cent over 2019. The small ZS SUV is doing the bulk of the heavy lifting with sales up 433 per cent (not a typo), but the mid-size HS is doing its fair share with a 208 per cent increase.

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The MG HS Core kicks off the range at just $29,990 drive-away which undercuts, well, everything in the class and by no small margin in most respects.

Discount the manual price leaders that nobody actually buys and a Toyota RAV4 starts at $34,695 the Mazda CX-5 $33,190 and the Hyundai Tucson $34,500 (all before on-road costs). Only the about-to-be-replaced Kia Sportage ($30,690 + costs), likewise Mitsubishi's Outlander ($31,790 + costs) and Haval H6 Premium ($30,990 drive-away) get close.

At first glance, not a lot appears to be missing. The seats are fabric and manually adjustable but also supportive and quite comfy, while the steering wheel is adjustable for rake (up and down) and reach (in and out), although a little more reach adjustment would be nice.

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Credit to MG for including its Pilot active safety system even on this base model

A 10.1-inch infotainment touchscreen has smartphone mirroring and it is displayed quite large. This makes it look quite low resolution but it's actually very handy on the move, giving your fingers nice big targets to aim at. The screen also contains the HVAC controls, which is a bit of a faff, but there is a shortcut button to go straight to the screen you need.

Credit to MG, too, for including its Pilot system on even this base model, which in addition to six airbags includes active safety equipment like adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning with auto emergency braking, traffic jam assist, lane-keep assist, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert and auto high-beam assist.

The general interior is actually very impressive in terms of its design and materials. Soft-touch plastics on the door tops, leather-like linings for the dash, centre console and armrests with contrasting red stitching, circular air vents and faux-aluminium trim makes it look and feel anything but base model, though the number of blank buttons provides plenty of clues.

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Clear dials are complemented by a central digital screen, which displays the fuel and temperature gauges along with all manner of vehicle information that’s easily navigated using the steering wheel buttons. The wheel itself felt immediately familiar. It took a moment to figure out why, but eventually it clicked – replace the MG badge with a VW one and it could be from a Mk 6 Golf or similar. Not a bad thing, as it’s a comfortable thing to hold.

There’s plenty of inspiration from other manufacturers in the exterior styling, too. A Mazda CX-5 was clearly front and centre on the mood board, but there’s a smattering of Hyundai Tucson and Nissan X-Trail and the result is a safe, sensible shape that, helpfully, is extremely practical.

Hop in the rear and you’ll find a very bare-bones environment with no USB ports, air vents or even map pockets, though refreshments are at least catered for with cupholders in the fold-down centre armrest and door bins that accommodate a 1.5-litre bottle.

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While there isn’t much entertainment out back there’s more than enough space to create your own fun. My 180cm frame has vast head, shoulder, leg and foot room in each of the outer rear seats, which are nicely sculpted rather than just being a flat bench. The centre pew is hard and raised, one for short distances only, but otherwise the HS scores a tick for occupant space.

Boot space is competitive if not class-leading at 463L, matching the likes of the Mazda CX-5 (442L) and Kia Sportage (446L) but well behind the Honda CR-V (522L), Nissan X-Trail (565L) and Toyota RAV4 (580L). This expands to 1287L with the rear seats folded away, though they don’t fold completely flat.

Nevertheless, it’s a practical area. There’s no wet storage area but a small cubby hole on the right for trinkets and the area above the rear wheel arches has been sculpted out to eke out a little extra space. Obviously, at this price point, the tailgate is manually operated but isn’t too heavy.

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Before we get to how the MG drives, there is an elephant in the room that must be addressed. The rung above the Core in the HS range is the Vibe, which lists at just $1000 more but includes the following: a six-speaker stereo instead of four, a pair of USB ports front and rear instead of one in the front, illuminated glovebox, cooled front centre armrest, rear air vents and map pockets, removable luggage cover, leather steering wheel, synthetic leather seats, heated door mirrors and keyless entry. Whew!

The Core might be the cheapest model in the range but it’s difficult to argue that the Vibe isn’t where the true value is.

Both are powered by a 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine driving the front wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. It produces 119kW and 250Nm with claimed fuel consumption of 7.3L/100km. Over the course of almost 600km of varied driving my average was actually 7.0L/100km, though it does require premium 95RON fuel at a minimum.

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A look at the tachometer’s 6500rpm redline suggests a revvy little unit, but the gearbox changes up automatically at 5900rpm. There’s decent mid-range torque but the powertrain has plenty of room to improve in terms of refinement and, in particular, calibration.

The throttle is quite touchy, which gives a false impression of performance as pressing it further doesn’t really increase acceleration by a corresponding amount, the torque instead arriving in a surging wave.

Combine this with a somewhat erratic transmission tune that struggles to decisively pick a gear and progress can be quite jerky, especially when using cruise control. It valiantly tries to adjust its speed to bends and gradients but struggles to smoothly revert to the original speed.

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Speaking of electronic bugs, the rearview camera failed to engage one time – no great drama as it worked fine on every other occasion – but during a weekend away in regional Victoria the front camera and lane assist refused to work in very cold temperatures, possibly as a result of condensation obscuring its vision? The sensitivity of the driver aids is adjustable, though, which is helpful as they’re quite cautiously calibrated in the default setting.

The chassis is more resolved. The steering has some weight to it and is accurate enough, grip levels from the Maxxis tyres is acceptable and traction isn’t overwhelmed by the turbo torque, even in damp conditions. It could use greater body control, lurching slightly over larger bumps and can also be unsettled on poor roads.

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However, where the previous-generation HS trailed its competitors dynamically by a fairly substantial margin, the deficit is now small enough to be of arguably little consequence to the target market. Of greater interest will be the seven-year warranty, generous room and sharp pricing, though as we’ve established the extra $1000 for the Vibe is money well spent.

It’s easy to say spend more and get a better car but when ‘more’ equates to another 15-20 per cent, then budgets may not stretch. To that end, the lower end of the MG HS range has its appeal, but check out the new Haval H6 and outgoing Nissan X-Trail, too.