MG4 EV is coming with more power than Audi RS3

31 August 2022

For some time now we’ve been asking for an electric 450 hp family hatchback with AWD, room for shopping, decent driving range and sensible price. Then last week, the Smart #1 Brabus came. And now, out of the blue comes the MG 4 Triumph Edition. Christmas came really early this year.

This MG 4 is actually called MG Mulan since it’s a Chinese market vehicle. Once it hits our shores, it’ll revert to the far less poetic MG 4. Until now it was only available with two motors, either 170 hp or 204 hp. Both mounted at the rear and happily spinning the rear wheels with 250Nm of torque. The stronger motor has an advantage of a bigger, 64kWh battery and a 450 km of WLTP range and with 8 seconds 0 to 100 kph sprint it’s not a slouch by any means.

But now there is a new king in town. Brace yourself - the new Triumph Edition has two electric motors with combined output of 449 hp. The 600 Nm of torque has the ability to snap the driveshafts or turn them into noodles if you’re not careful. Both numbers are higher than those of Smart #1 Brabus which for about a week was the king of the hot hatch kingdom.

What we have here, is an MG that sprints from 0 to 100 kph in 3.8 seconds. An MG that is quicker not only than a few Lamborghinis, it’s quicker and more powerful than BMW M3 (F80), it has more power than current Audi RS3, it is quicker and more powerful than Mercedes A45 AMG. An MG.

This little nugget of performance comes with the bigger 64 kWh battery, which according to the Chinese highly optimistic CLTC cycle, can deliver 460 km (285 miles) of range on a full charge. Optimistic is the operative word here.

MG understands that with great power comes great responsibility of stopping in time, the Triumph Edition comes with bigger brakes as a result. The job of keeping this true pocket rocket on the road is handed to 18” wheels wrapped in 235/45 Bridgestone rubbers, if that wasn’t enough there’s a torque vectoring in play as well to make sure this car is pretty much a point and squirt outta corner tool.

To finish it off, MG added sports seats and sports steering wheel, all wrapped up in Alcantara. There is the usual digital instrument cluster and the standard 10,25” central infotainment screen - not big enough to distract the driver from the road. The 360 degree camera system is useful when parking in tight spots but that’s where the equipment list ends.

The final piece of this status quo shattering puzzle is missing - the price. Oh but we can speculate - Smart #1 Brabus is priced at RMB 279,000 which is about $40,000 or €40,000. MG is nowhere near the Smart on the scale of brand value and recognition.

The MG4 with 64 kWh battery starts at around €30,000. The price for MG Mulan (4) Triumph Edition will be on this side of the €40,000. Most likely it’ll be around €36,000, which will make it the most powerful car in its price bracket. Sure it’s not an Audi, BMW or Mercedes or even a Smart but it’ll make mince pies out of all of them and leave a decent chunk of money in the bank. Now that’s a perfect Christmas present.

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