Are hatchbacks dead and buried?  No way!  With the incredible new MG4 EV now available across Australian MG showroom floors, the concept of driving a new hatchback in 2024 has just become a curious and rather appealing proposition. 

There is plenty of choice in the brand new MG4 line-up.  Five models from the base model (51 Excite) which costs a little over $40k (at the time of writing) right through to the top of the range bullet-quick MG4 XPower, with its price tag asking a bit over $60k.  If you are considering purchasing one of the most affordable new EVs in Australia and in 2024 that has decent bang-for-buck value, then the MG4 51 Excite is well worth a look and a test drive.  Make sure you touch base with us to see if we can get you a great deal. 

What lies beneath the MG4 base model is a 51 kWh lithium-ion battery pack that has new LFP (lithium–iron–phosphate) cathodes.  This cathode is said to be an improvement in EV battery technology, helping to extend the life of the battery, which is a good thing because when it comes time to replace the battery pack, it is not the cheapest item to replace.  The 125 kW of power developed from the MG4 Hatch 51 Excite’s electric system is plenty grunty enough, capable of sending you from a standstill through to 100 km/h in 7.7 seconds.  Torque is instantly available and as much as 250 Nm is available.  This makes use of a single electric motor that drives the rear wheels. 

WLTP figures give the MG4 51 Excite a healthy range of 350 km when new.  For an idea of what it might take to keep your new MG4 51 Excite hatchback ready for action, a 10–80% charge-up takes around 40 minutes at a 50 kW recharging machine.  Or, if you leave it on a wall charger at home overnight, then you should be raising the bar from 40% charged to 80%, allowing a reasonable 250–270 km range for the next day.  This is quite handy for urban dwellers who are able to connect up to a home charger. 

Rather straightforwardly, the MG4 Excite 64, the MG4 Essence 64, and the MG4 Long Range 77 are named according to the kWh punch of the lithium-ion battery pack.  Thus, the Long Range 77 can run for the longest time on one charge (reputed to be well over 500 km). 

Heading now to the top of the MG4 Hatchback tree, where the stunning new MG4 XPower is perched, and this model makes use of two electric motors (the others use one motor); one for the front axle and one for the rear axle.  The electric motor at the front packs 150 kW of power and 250 Nm of torque, while the electric motor driving the rear axle boasts 170 kW and 350 Nm of torque.  Now these don’t just work separately from each other while one of them is turned off.  They both work together to give a stunning 320 kW of combined power and a maximum of 600 Nm of combined torque, all in a sweet AWD package.  In all honesty, the MG4 Hatch makes a Tesla or Porsche Taycan look way overpriced, while also enabling it to outrun a VW Golf R with no problems at all and keep pace with a Tesla.  A 0–100 km/h sprint time of 3.8 seconds is plenty quick enough, while a 80–120km/h passing manoeuvre can take as little as 2.31 seconds!

With all this extra power, the MG4 XPower has to have a much larger set of brakes.  Electronic wizardry has also been enhanced to give a heap more traction and cornering ability.  Also, the driving dynamics and the underfloor platform has been strengthened and set up to cope with the much higher levels of cornering speed and straight line velocity that this racy EV is capable of.  Even the roll bars have been stiffened accordingly. 

However, despite the extra $20-odd k one has to hand over the counter for a new MG4 XPower Hatch, the step up in performance is huge and so is the exhilaration factor.  All things considered, this is not all that much extra money and you get bang for your buck. 

Out on the road, any of the new MG4 Hatch EVs provide excellent vision out over the front of the car.  As you go up through the models, you get more and more features added. The ride quality of the less extreme MG4 hatchbacks is good, tailored more towards comfort and thus riding quietly and sorting out even the worst bumps in the road.  Being rear-wheel-drive (RWD) electric vehicles (EVs), four of the five MG4 hatchbacks can get power from the rear wheels while ensuring that the job of steering is kept for the front axle only.  

All in all, even the base model MG4 is a well-packaged EV, with the handy fact that it is a five-door hatch (the powered tailgate is considered one of the doors) with practicality and good space for up to five occupants.  The flat floor gives excellent foot space throughout, and the well thought out boot dimensions offer 363 litres of cargo capacity with the rear seats up, expanding to 1165 litres when they are fully folded forward.  All the important infotainment features come with the software and are accessible via the prominent touchscreen featured in the middle of the dash.  Wireless smartphone charging and connection are also available.

The 2024 MG4 Hatch is a well-equipped EV, and even in base model form, has already gained an ANCAP crash test rating of 5 stars.  These EV hatchbacks also come with a 7 year/unlimited km warranty.

The new MG4 Hatch models include the:

• MG4 Excite 51 (125 kW, RWD,)
• MG4 Excite 64 (150 kW, RWD)
• MG4 Essence 64 (150 kW RWD)
• MG4 Long Range 77 (180 kW, RWD, over 500km range)
• MG4 XPower (320 kW, AWD)

For any more information on the new MG4 Hatch, for that matter any other new car, contact one of our friendly consultants on 1300 303 181.  If you’d like some fleet discount pricing (yes even for private buyers!), we can submit vehicle quote requests out to our national network of MG dealers and come back with pricing within 24 hours.  Private Fleet – car buying made easy!