Damian drives a MG5 EV Exclusive Long Range 62kWh 2021 electric car.

This is Damian’s third electric car, he’s owned the MG5 EV from new and drives 30,000-40,000 miles annually. The current mileage of the car is between 30,000-40,000 miles and he achieves 240 miles range from a full charge.

Why did you choose this electric car?

I owned a 2014 Skoda Superb Estate that I had from new and had covered 240,000 miles, so was looking for a new car that needed to be ULEZ compliant. I also own a Renault Zoe 22kWh so knew I wanted to go electric for my everyday work car.

Needing an estate car the MG5 EV was pretty much my only choice and was well within my budget of £30k. The equipment level on the Exclusive is very impressive for a ‘budget car’, even compared to my top spec Skoda. As I was able to have a 48 hour test drive, I discovered the ride comfort was excellent and was able to drive from Sussex to Luton and back on a single charge, while using the MG Pilot. This drive was far less stressful than when driving in a manual diesel car.

As I also drive in London a lot, electric means I do not pay the congestion charge, so another saving on top of the fuel cost savings. The boot space, although not as big as the Skoda, is still very generous and easy to load, and I rarely need to lower the rear seats.

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Positives – List 3 or more reasons why you love this electric car

• Simple controls with buttons
• effortless acceleration
• comfy on long journeys, even with 5 adults
• build quality is great, no rattles or squeaks at all
• suspension soaks up bumps in the road (including potholes) really well, while still cornering well
• Intelligent Speed Assist – great for when in areas where you are unsure of speed limits.

Negatives – List 3 or more things that you really don’t like about this electric car

• No frunk, not sure why MG did not fit one as plenty of space
• middle rear headrest limits view in mirror (I have it removed most of the time)
• dashboard illumination cannot be dimmed much at night, too bright for my liking
• factory fitted tyres are very hard rubber, so long lasting, but lack a bit of grip in the wet
• Intelligent Speed Asist detects 20mph limits as a fault and turns off.

Have you experienced any faults with the car? If so, what have they been?

No faults with the car

What are the standout technological features of the car?

MG Pilot – car is almost self-driving on motorways, so very relaxing to drive.

Surprise us! Tell us something people wouldn’t readily know about this electric car 

The keyless entry senses where you are standing, so if I am by the driver’s door, the boot will not unlock or vice versa. The whole dashboard can be set to kilometres when driving abroad, this allows the Intelligent Speed Assist to also help with speed limits.

What electric car(s) are you interested in next and why?

Not buying a new car for a long time but looking forward to seeing more estate cars.

Home charging unit – outline both positive & negative elements

Indra Smart Charger – this was supplied very cheap to us 4 years ago as we were on the Beta testing program.

• It is supposed to be a smart charger but in order for it to work with my cheap overnight rate, I need to switch the Solar matching off
• If I swap the car plugged in, I need to enter all the details of the car again
• I cannot stop the charge at a defined battery level
• Remote boost does not work when away from home
• I would not recommend this unit but I think they have a newer model out now.

Electricity supplier – outline both positive & negative elements

Octopus Go Faster 21:30-02:30 – really excellent supplier, allowed me to choose the start time so I can run other appliances on cheap rate.

What public charging networks would you recommend to others and why?

• Source London – brilliant if needing to park for awhile. They seem expensive but do include the parking cost, so are good value.
• PodPoint – mainly work well and the rapids are fairly cheap
• bp pulse – generally unreliable and not enough points at each location. Also no receipt unless a member.
• MFG – brilliant, always have plenty of points at their locations and are rapidly expanding
• IONITY – I avoid as expensive but generally work
• Gridserve – usually OK, reasonable price, just need more points at motorway services
• Shell Recharge – urgghh! Mostly do not work and not enough points.

Insurer – outline both positive & negative elements

Flow Insurance:

• online only but the portal seems really good
• certain changes can be made free
• they are backed by LV.

Please itemise (in detail) where you’re saving money owning & running an MG5 EV

• 38,000 miles driven in 1 year
• diesel cost assuming 62mpg and £1.50/litre = £4,173
• I spent £360 on electricity saving £3,813
• Servicing costs £300, Skoda would have been £600, saving £300
• Insurance similar
• Tax £0 saving £30
• Loan payments £5,028 v £0 for Skoda
• Skoda would have needed cambelt, water pump, new pads/discs, approx. cost £1,250 at Skoda
• New clutch and gearbox probably also needed at some point
• Total saving of new car v keeping old car = £365.

See other owner reviews here