2020 MG HS Essence: Private Fleet Car Review

This Car Review Is About: The top of the range Essence from the mid-sized HS range. There are three trim levels starting with Vibe before moving to Excite. The HS is currently the biggest vehicle available from MG, with the smaller ZS (which includes an EV) and the petite MG3 filling out the range.

What Does It Cost?: In 2020 spec the range starts from $30,990 for the Vibe, $34,990 for the Excite, and $38,990 for the Essence. As of September 2020 there was a special edition Essence Anfield available at $40,690. Metallic paint is a $700 option.

Under The Bonnet Is: A turbocharged 1.5L four banger powering the front wheels via a seven speed dual-clutch transmission. Peak power of 119kW comes in at 5,600rpm, however peak toque of 250Nm arrives at a high 4,400rpm. That poses some drive problems. Economy isn’t horrible but could be better from the 55L tank. We finished on 8.6L/100km, with MG’s figures quoting 7.3L/100km for the combined and a rather high 9.2L/100km for the urban. Get out onto the highway and that drops, says MG, to 6.2L/100km.On The Outside It’s: Quite a looker with flowing lines, a curvaceous body, and Euro style blinkers. It’s a bluff nose yet not so that it’s unappealing. Overall it’s an appealing and attractive package. Wheels and tyres are appropriately sized at 235/50/18s with Michelin supplying the grippy Premacy 3ST rubber.

MG gave the HS a makeover earlier this year. Its given the whole vehicle a more 8ntegratwd appearance and one that somehow ties it in with its competitors. For example, front bumper mounted driving lights are fitted and more noticeable, the bluntness of the front end has been lessened, and those aforementioned curves really do bring visual goodness.On The Inside It’s: Very well specced in Essence trim. Both front seats are power operated, a true rarity. There is heating but no ventilation however for them. The driver’s display is a clever mix of analogue and LCD screen, with all four main information sources, being fuel, speed, rev counter, and temperature looking as if two integrated dials thanks to the smart design.

Mood lighting greets the passengers and this can be changed via the 10.1 inch touchscreen for a choice of 64 hues. The lights themselves appear in a strip across the dash and in the door handle recesses.The centre console houses a sliding vent switch that can provide, or not, cooling air for a small drink container. The gear selector is ergonomically placed however it’s a long travel from Park to Drive, a small but noticeable issue not found in most cars.

The touchscreen defaults to Audio, Navigation, and Climate Control sectors. There seems to be a trend against DAB as the Essence, the top of the line, doesn’t have it. That’s a shame as the overall sound presentation is very good.A niggle is the screen showing the current air-conditioning status in its own small sector at the top of screen. Touching this elicits zero response, with a push of the Home button, one of a half dozen or so located underneath and of a chromed hard plastic, required to show the default screens then select the climate control. However, a step or two can be saved as there are two temperature tabs which bypass the need for a Home button press, but tapping the screen’s own separate sector would be quicker.

Fit, finish, and the actual look are of an overall high standard with pleasing lines and soft touch materials. for convenience there are a pair of USBs for the rear seats, and a pair plus a 12V socket up front under a sliding cover.For the cargo area, access is via a powered tailgate that reveals a lip level floor. This is, unfortunately, at a fair height meaning a little more effort is required to load a weekly shop. Total capacity starts at 463L and tops out at 1,287L.

On The Road It’s: Where the MG HS Essence loses its lustre. Dual clutch transmissions work best with engines that have a broad torque spread. 250Nm from a 1.5L engine isn’t unreasonable but arriving at a high rev point, coupled with a large turbo, had the HS Essence confounded and out of sorts more often than not.

There’s the typical gap between Reverse and Drive as the cogs audibly move, and coming to a Stop sign has the gap between stopping and re-engaging Drive blow out to a sizeable and at times unsafe timespan. Hit the accelerator hard and then lift, and the transmission doesn’t change gear in response. It hangs on to the first or second ratio, and then when using the accelerator again, the transmission lost its nerve and simply didn’t know which ratio to look for.

The package is then at its best at highway and freely speeds. Noise insulation is high, with only the tyres noticeable in the audio sense. Overtaking acceleration isn’t fantastic and again its that ramp up to 4,400rpm for peak torque that intrudes. Having said that, it is a smooth and linear progression, its just not a rapid one. A dry weight of around 1,520kg also tips its hat to the cause.The brakes are the same; there’s bite but not quite as much as expected, with a need to press the pedal earlier than in other cars. That’s not to say they don’t work, there isn’t the sense of as much retardation for the same amount of pressure.

The steering, in a way, can also be held up to the same level. It’s very well weighted, there is the appropriate amount of heft and response yet there were times the front tyres gave the impression of scrubbing, or tucking under the wheels, in some conditions.

Freeway ride quality is great, but slow speed ride was 180 degrees from the expectation. Over smaller road bumps such as shopping centre speed restrictions, there was too much stiffness, and in the polar opposite, too much softness and wallowing when a more taut setup would have been expected.An interesting addition is the Super Sport button, a bright red look-at-me button located in the inner five o-clock part of the steering wheel.

What About Safety?: MG fits the HS Essence with a good safety package including one that more or less failed. There is Lane Keep Assist and a Lane Centre function. Day two and the HS flashed up on the dash a warning that it had failed. Yet, manual activation had the steering wheel vibrating as it should but the centreing facility was AWOL. Extra safet in the Essence is a 360 degree camera that activates when the brakes come into play and speed drops to around 20kph. The screen then shows two different views and these can be changed, whilst stopped, via the screen.Adaptive Cruise Control is standard across the range, as is Forward Collision Warning and AEB. Airbags number six and should the Essence get involved in a scrape, there is auto door unlock. Intelligent Headlamp Control reads the lights at night and will auto high beam if required.

What About Warranty And Service?: It’s good. Seven years warranty, with unlimited kilometres. That’s a rarity still in the marketplace. The MG website doesn’t indicate the service interval or costs think yearly or 10,000 kilometres. Capped price servicing doesn’t appear, yet, to be the sweetener.

At The End Of The Drive. In a way, the MG HS Essence is somewhat the antithesis of the porridge for Goldilocks. It’s not “just right”. The good news is that it’s not far from it. It’s not badly priced, for starters. It’s certainly not unattractive. It’s a good looker inside, and is well featured to a point. But to use that terribly well worn phrase: “at the end of the day”, it’s a car that gets driven and that’s the weak point. The suspension is arse about, and the way the driveline works wasn’t, for us, something we could live with.

Yet, for all that, the driveline isn’t far from being where it needs to be, and that’s good news for the brand. More on the HS range can be found here.

2020 Peugeot Expert SWB Diesel Auto: Private Fleet Car Review.

This Car Review Is About: Peugeot’s short wheelbase Expert van, also known as Standard. There is a long wheelbase version too. Diesel is the sole fuel source and the long wheelbase is auto only. Other than the basic white, there are four other exterior colours including Platinum Grey, Aluminuim Grey, Perla Nera Black, and Flame Red.

How Much Does It Cost?: Peugeot list this at $50,490 driveaway right now, but it’s worth checking the website and using your postcode to ensure your locality gives you the right price.

Under The Bonnet Is: A EURO5 2.0L diesel for the automatic SWB Expert. Peak power and torque are 110kW and a very handy 370Nm which is on tap from 2,000rpm. The auto is Peugeot’s EAT6 however we did see in the driver’s binnacle display a D7…There is a 1.6L and manual combination also available for the Standard. The auto is smooth and at times the only notice of change in ratio is the flicker of the tachometer’s needle.

Economy was 7.8L/100km from the 69L tank, with the Expert being driven unladen, and with under 1,000 kilometres on the clock. That’s not far from Peugeot’s own 7.3L/100km official figures. We should also point out that the naming system Peugeot uses (115, 150 etc) is for the horsepower, not kiloWatts.

On The Outside It’s: White, for the most part, and boxy, for the most part. Should one opt for the other colours, it’s a $690 option. The front is Peugeot’s family look including the fin insert in the headlight clusters, and it’s that nose that saves the Expert from being a box on wheels. There is also a solid black bumper with driving lights, with the rear sporting a small black bumper. Small black strips fit into creases on the flanks of the doors. Each end has parking sensors.

Wheels are steel and at 16 inches in diameter not as big as expected. Rubber is from Michelin’s Agilis range at 215/65 in profile. Each side has a lightweight feeling sliding door, and the rear doors are barn-doors. In profile it looks much shorter than its 4,959mm overall length.On The Inside It’s: More car-like than van-like bar a couple of van necessities. There is a storage nook up on the top of the dash, and a pair in the front of it. Dials are analogue, the touchscreen features Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as there is no DAB, and it’s all rather quite nice to engage with.For the driver there is an unexpected feature: paddle shifts. Drive is engaged via a dial, not a lever, and a small button marked M allows for the paddle shifts to be used. Yes, they’re effective. Seating is for three, and comfortable with cloth coverings. The plastics are an easy on the eye mix of greys and blacks. Inside the cargo area is enough space for 5.8 cubic metres of cargo, with a height of 1,640mm, a length of 2,512mm, and width of 1,636mm. Peugeot says overall cargo weight is 1,300 kilograms. There is also what Peugeot calls a Moduwork module that’s located under the passenger’s seat, with an insulated storage box. Tiedown hooks aplenty are available including in the footwell for the passengers. For convenience there are also three 12V sockets. The spare is a full sized unit also. On The Road It’s: Also very car-like in ride and handling. The steering has a variable ratio for easy parking and enough heft for highway driving to feel cruising is its nature rather than a commercial vehicle. Although the rubber is specified for the type of vehicle the Expert is, there’s no shortage of grip and plenty of compliance across the varying road services. Getting into undercover parking is also easy thanks to the height overall and that superb steering feedback at most speeds, however it can feel a little twitchy at times. With 3.5 turns lock to lock it can be lived with.Getting underway is quick, with a twist of the key seeing the 2.0L diesel spring into life almost instantly. There’s plenty of go from there, and interestingly the diesel doesn’t exhibit any noticeable turbo lag. From a standing start or on the highway, the right foot is totally in command. Rolling acceleration is smooth in a linear fashion without being shove in the back in nature. It makes for a lovely driving style and of course would ease that potential for seeing cargo being suddenly shoved backwards.Actual ride quality is tuned, naturally, towards the commercial side of things but it really is surprisingly car-like in nature. McPherson struts are up front, and oblique wishbones hold up the rear, with absorption and rebound very quick in response and disappearing.What About Safety?: Again, it’s heading towards a passenger car with Video enable Autonomous Emergency Braking, Forward Collision Warning, and Blind Spot Alert. Driver Attention Warning and Speed Recognition are standard also. Airbags cover driver, passenger, side, and curtain areas.

What About Service And Warranty?: A very good five years or 200,000 kilometres for warranty of light commercial vehicles. Capped price servicing applies and is distance dependent.

At The End of the Drive. Peugeot, like many of its competitors, has cottoned onto the fact that endowing a van with car-like qualities is a good thing. This shows with the slowly increasing number of LCVs that can be purchased as a passenger van in some way.

The Expert is a very good ride in any case, with the tractability of the engine, that super slick auto, passenger car ride quality, and a non-van look to the dashboard itself. For those that like their vanilla with a bit of spice, the Peugeot Expert should be om the list. Check out the 2020 Peugeot Expert for yourself.

October Releases For Mazda BT-50 & BMW 4 Series.

Mazda’s completely overhauled their BT-50 ute and announced that sales will commence from October of 2020. Gone is the sharp and angular nose that featured and replaced with the family look that covers the brand’s SUVs. Mazda’s designers embody their vehicles with a language they call “Kodo” and this is now on the BT-50.

This features a three dimensional wing styling when viewed from the front, and there are striking

crease lines that sweep from the grille and headlights through to the wing mirrors. From the top, a line runs directly through the centre from nose to tail. The restyled bonnet covers a 3.0L diesel with 140kW and 450Nm of torque. Better economy comes from a weight reduction regime, whilst that torque enables a 3.5 tonne towing capacity and a payload of over a tonne.

Head inside and the cabin also has been refreshed, with a more family oriented feel for this commercially aimed vehicle. The seats have a higher level of support, crucial given the 4×4 capability of the BT-50, and the steering column is now telescopic as well for extra versatility. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto now feature in the enlarged touchscreen. Safety features have improved too, with Adaptive Cruise Control, Autonomous Emergency Braking, Lane Departure Warning, Blind Spot Monitor and Rear Cross Traffic Alert as standard.

Colour choices now include Gunblue Mica and Concrete Grey Mica. The blue has a deep lustre in some areas that contrast with lighter shades in the light, with the grey giving an industrial feel.

Pricing has yet to be confirmed.

October also sees BMW’s new 4 Series coupe ready for showrooms. It’s been stretched in three dimensions, had the suspension reviewed and revised, and is also slipperier through the air than the previous model.

Behind the restyled nostril grilles lie a pair of torquey 2.0L four cylinder petrol engines for the 420i and 430i models, delivering 135kW/300Nm and 190kW/400Nm respectively, and a six cylinder unit for the M440i xDrive that develops 285kW/500Nm. Transmission is an eight speed Steptronic.

Dimensional changes see the 4 Series Coupe lengthen by 130 millimetres and width increase by 27mm, and wheelbase has gone out to 41mm, to see a total length of 4,768mm, width of 1,852mm and a wheelbase of 2,851mm.

The interior has been revamped with a M-Leather steering wheel, acoustic glass for the windscreen, and a twin-screen layout for the driver and infotainment. This is the BMW Live Cockpit Professional, with a 10.25 inch control screen and a 12.3 inch driver’s display screen. A 4G SIM card allows for on-the-go access to the BMW Connected Package Professional. This allows the usage of digital services such as the BMW TeleServices and Intelligent Emergency Call,plus provides Real Time Traffic Information with hazard warning, Remote Services and Concierge Services. BMW have engineered in genuine flexibility here, with controls for the information activated via (and depending on the respective content) the iDrive controller, steering wheel buttons, voice control or BMW’s innovative gesture control.

Underneath the 4 Series lies, as standard, the standard M Sport suspension. Specifically for the 4 Series their is specially tuned lift related dampers. The Adaptive M Suspension can specified as part of an option pack.

Pricing starts from $70,900 (manufacturer’s recommended list price) for the 420i, $88,900 for the 430i, and a hefty $116,900 for the top of the range M440i xDrive

Peugeot 3008 GT-Line: Private Fleet Car Review.

This Car Review Is About: Peugeot’s rather cute 3008 mid-sizer SUV. There are three trim levels, being the Allure, GT-Line, and GT, a slightly odd naming choice.

What Does It Cost?: The GT-Line is one a drive-away special, at $49,990 plus an extras pack which includes a glass roof and special leather seats. The Allure and GT are also on a drive-away special. $39,990 for the Allure and $55,990 and the GT also includes the extras.

Under The Bonnet Is: A 1.6L turbo 95RON petrol four for the Allure and GT-Line, with a 2.0L diesel for the GT. Transmission for the GT-Line is Peugeot’s EAT-6 auto, a reworking of the torque converter style that feels like a dual-clutch transmission.Spin the engine out to 6,000 revs and peak power is 121kW. Peak twist comes in at just 1,400rpm, and there are 240 torques to play with. The Efficient Automatic Transmission six speed is a bit of a handful at zero velocity, just like a DCT, however is pretty usable when up and running.

Economy for the 1.6L four varies quite a bit. 9.8L per 100km for the city cycle, 5.3L for the highway, equaling an average for the combined of 7.0L/100km. We finished at 8.5L/100km for our mainly suburban cycle which really shows out the positives and negatives of a car’s drivetrain.On The Outside It’s: Not as big as it looks. It’s compact in length at just 4,447mm in length yet the curvy styling makes it look longer. Height is 1,624mm allowing for good headroom inside, and width is 1,826mm sans mirrors. The wheels are good looking machined alloys and grey painted with Michelin rubber for an overall size of 205/55/19.There is a powered tail-gate with a low loading lip making loading a week’s groceries a doddle, black polyurethane from front to rear, and a front end splashed with chrome for the grille & driving light surrounds. There’s also a strip above the moulding that links the front and rear doors. There is an alloy look plate for the chin of the front end. the headlights are slimline and feature the shark-fin insert Peugeot’s stylists have chosen to identify their SUVs. This is also the start of a strong line that draws the eye downwards to the alloy chin. It’s almost the same at the rear, with a signature triple “claw” look in the rights. It’s not unfair to say the 3008 is a pretty car with plenty of Gallic flair, yet it was invisible to many, with barely a head turned here and there. What does is the clearly define puddle lamp logo at night.On The Inside It’s: A true delight visually. The seats that come as part of the extras pack are jet black, white stitched, and have a thick diamond design. There are memory settings for the driver’s seat, and venting on a separate switch as the heating switches are up on the dash. Here also are switches, looking like aviation style activators, for the audio, navigation, vehicle settings etc, and they’re sinfully easy to operate. Front and centre is the 8.0 inch touchscreen, the hub for most of the 3008 GT-Line’s functions including aircon. It’s perhaps here that manual controls as an adjunct wouldn’t go astray as trying to adjust on the move is, like all touchscreens, a distraction. Audio is DAB equipped and the quality is superb.Peugeot go for that French chic look with a grey, almost denim feel, material that sweeps from the ends of the dash into the doors. The upper section draws a line that rolls around from one door to the other and encompasses the base of the windscreen. Right down the centre is a classy looking chromed strip that forms a “c” and also delineates the passenger’s section from the driver’s. It’s a scrumptious interior, it looks and feels fantastic, A visual feast is had in the driver’s binnacle and Peugeot call this the i-cockpit. This full colour 12.3 inch diameter screen can show a number of different displays, such as a pair of traditional dials (lit in a glorious golden bronze) or virtually nothing, and plenty in between. The smaller main touchscreen is the same, with a very tidy layout and doubling up on some of the features the tabs below activate. The centre console has a deep bin, accessed via bifold doors, plus the cup holders are illuminated in a soft blue light. This also lights up the rim of the glass roof. Unlike the dash display, which has the differing looks, the blue is the only colour available.

Passenger space in the rear is more than adequate for leg and head room, whereas shoulder room is ideal for two adults, three being a tad squeezy. However two ISOFIX brackets make for no problems for the family. Aircon vents are a nice touch too are are the rubber studded alloy pedals and the slightly awkwardly located smartphone charge pad.The cargo space is decent enough for most people at 591L, and increases to 1,670L with seats folded. Underneath the cargo floor is a space saver spare. There’s some extra cargo space here if needed but more for smaller items.On The Road It’s: A very enjoyable drive, but. That “but” is the DCT feel to the transmission. The drive selector is a pistol-grip style with a button on the right hand side to unlock before a rocker back or forth for Drive or Reverses. park is electronic and situated on the far top end. From Start the transmission takes a few moments to engage when moving from Drive to Reverse, and vice versa. Coupled with the turbo lag it’s not always the best combination, especially when trying to get across an intersection.

Highway driving through the gears shows that it’s a slick, swift, smooth, and quiet change, but also leaves the driver wondering why the eight speed hasn’t been fitted for better economy. Manual changing is available via the paddle shifts on the column, and Sports mode is typical in that it does little more than hold gears longer. There’s a typically linear turbo response, with an easy progression forward, and only occasionally does it feel that 240Nm wasn’t enough. It’s no sink you into the seat rush, but it’s not a sports intended SUV either. Steering is rapid in response, with only a hint of numbness on centre. Having the smaller wheel brings in its own feeling, with a sense of a lesser need to expend energy, but without losing that sense of touch as well.

It’s the same with the suspension. It’s not quite as well tuned as the RAV4, for example, but nor is it excessively soft or lacking in composure. It absorbs most normal road irregularities well enough, and rebounds a little more than one would expect. Not that it ever threatened to lose a modicum of composure, however, but in the ride stakes it’s been left behind by the latest as this is a design nudging four years old in a retail sense.However it doesn’t mean that some aspects of the 3008 GT-Line’s tech should be ignored. It was one of the first to have traffic sign recognition and its GPS tie-in with speed-zones was 100% in a location and change of limit sense. The reverse camera was crisp in detail, with the screen showing plenty of definition and without the “fish eye” distortion seen elsewhere. One touch windows have a “pinch” function, that automatically lowers a raising window if the pressure sensor detects and arm/leg/head where it shouldn’t be.

What About Safety?: The screen also shows a 360 degree camera view, parking assistance is standard as are front and rear sensors. Blind Spot Alert, AEB with camera and radar sensing, auto high beam On/Off, and Lane Departure are standard also. Airbag wise it lacks only a driver’s kneebag. On the road the sensors also indicate the forward distance alert, ensuring a driver is visually aware that they may be just that little too close to the leading vehicle.

What About Warranty And Service?: Five years is the warranty, along with unlimited kilometres. Servicing is 12 monthly in cycle, or 20,000 kilometres for the 3008. The pricing as of August 2020 was $471 for the first major service, $786 for service 2, $471 for service 3, $799 for service 4, and $484 for service 5. Prices were obtained here.

At The End Of The Drive. Peugeot has had a strong presence at times here in Australia, and at others it seems to slip under the radar. The 3008 is one that deserves a little more love as it’s a stunner inside and out, especially with that black seat trim. pricing has always been a hiccup, and even at just on $50K it may be easily overlooked. That would be a disservice as there is plenty of value with areas such as the safety system being of a high level, the sheer feel of the cockpit, the soft ambient lighting that adds class, and the (for the most part) easy to live with drive-train. Book a test drive here.