A new, pint-sized MG city SUV is two years away from Australian showrooms, with a price likely to challenge sub-$25,000 rivals from Chery and Mahindra.
EXCLUSIVE
An even smaller – and likely more affordable – MG SUV is coming to showrooms within the next two years as the brand looks to topple Hyundai, Kia, Mitsubishi and more on the sales charts.
The Chinese car giant has confirmed it is working on an entrant into what the auto industry classifies as the ‘light SUV’ segment, home to the Toyota Yaris Cross, Mazda CX-3, Hyundai Venue, and more.
It will be more compact than the current ZS small SUV – which competes with the one-size-up Toyota Corolla Cross, Mazda CX-30 and Hyundai Kona – and is due in 2027.
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In turn, it is likely to be cheaper, but it remains to be seen how close it can get to the $22,990 drive-away of the old base-model ZS Excite, which lacked key safety features but was one of Australia’s cheapest new SUVs.
More than 50 per cent of MG petrol small SUV sales in 2023 – the final full year of the old model – were the cheapest ZS, leaving a hole in the brand’s showrooms to fill now the new ZS starts from $25,990 drive-away.
It will help MG compete with a wave of new budget-priced city SUVs in the market, from the Chery Tiggo 4 from China (from $23,990 drive-away) to the Mahindra XUV 3XO from India (from $23,490 drive-away).
“SUV light,” MG Motor Australia CEO Peter Ciao told Drive when asked to name a segment of the market the brand wants to enter.
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“Because until now, our smallest SUV is ZS. We need one more SUV [below] small.”
“[It’s] not [just a] discussion,” Ciao said, alongside confirming desires to enter other new vehicle segments, “we already have the plan. The models, they’re coming. Already decisioned [sic].”
The city SUV will be needed as part of MG’s plans to place among Australia’s Top Three best-selling new-car brands, currently occupied by Toyota, Ford and Mazda, ahead of Hyundai, Kia, Mitsubishi, Isuzu Ute, GWM and more.
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“The goal is Top Three. We want to cover each segment in this market. We have the resource,” Ciao said.
Asked when the ‘light’ SUV is due, Ciao said: “I think we’ll run it 2027. Because this car, we trust SUV will be more popular in the future, so we want to run.”
Ciao’s comments reflect the first global confirmation of an MG SUV below the ZS engineered for global markets, rather than Australia.
To develop a smaller vehicle at a lower price, MG will not take shortcuts on safety ratings, as Ciao said every future vehicle from the brand will be engineered for a five-star ANCAP score.
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“100 per cent. I say it’s a lesson learned, right? All the MG new models coming to Australia, we’ll only focus on five-star. No compromise,” the executive told Drive.
“What happened [before, we] can never can go back [and change it]. This season, I have had lots of meeting with Shanghai [head office] and I told them, ‘If next time you give me any car is under five, I will reject that. I only accept five-star’.”
It follows a four-star ANCAP score for the ZS small SUV, something Ciao told Drive the brand is aiming to address with upcoming safety upgrades for the vehicle – including additional airbags – that will be followed by a new round of crash testing.
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The light SUV is expected to be petrol-powered, rather than electric, to keep its price down. It remains to be seen if it will be based on the ZS or use different underpinnings, and if it will incorporate hybrid power.
Ciao cast doubt on the feasibility of a similarly-sized electric car MG is developing for Europe – dubbed MG 2 – for Australia.
“Because when you reduce price [you] must reduce the battery size, reduce the performance, reduce the body size, you know? But if you reduce too much, I’m not sure it is good for Australia,” he said.
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