MG4 EV - Range, charging and running costs

The entry-level MG4 SE model has a 49kWh battery and can cover up to 218 miles (according to the official WLTP figures) on a single charge. Upgrading to the SE Long Range version adds a larger 64kWh battery and boosts the range to 281 miles, while the top-of-the-range Trophy Long Range is a little behind, offering a claimed 270 miles before you need to plug in.

The Extended Range, with its larger 77kWh battery, extends your driving radius by over 50 miles to an impressive 329 miles. With the additional weight of four-wheel drive and its larger tyres adding extra rolling resistance compared with the skinnier wheels of regular MG4s, the 64kWh MG4 XPower manages only 239 miles.

The regular MG4 has proven itself to be pretty efficient during our own testing, returning up to 4.2 miles per kilowatt-hour of energy when we first drove the top-spec Trophy Long Range model, which equates to a real-world range of 259 miles – just 11 miles shy of the car's official range. 

We’ve also pitted the same version head-to-head against a Kia Niro EV. While the Kia managed to return 3.8mi/kWh, the MG4 got 3.5mi/kWh, and we expect you'll get closer to this figure if you do a lot of motorway miles or spirited driving. Like all electric cars we've tested, the MG4 is not impervious to cold weather, managing 3.1mi/kWh during our twin test against the Ora 03 (formally known as the Funky Cat) in the winter. Although the Ora 03 only mustered 2.8mi/kWh in the same conditions.

Longer journeys shouldn’t prove to be too much of a chore, because the MG4 has a maximum charging speed of 150kW. That means if you plug any MG4 into an ultra-rapid charger capable of 150kW speeds or faster, and a 10 to 80 per cent top-up will take just over half an hour in the base SE and SE and Trophy Long Range cars. Even the Extended Range with the largest battery size isn’t much slower, with a 40-minute charge time from 10 to 80 per cent.

If you’re transitioning to an all-electric car for the first time and have off-street parking, it would be sensible to invest in a wallbox home charger so that you can charge your car overnight. A standard 7.4kW home wallbox will take just over nine hours to fully recharge the 49kWh battery in the base MG4, 11 hours for the Long Range MG4's 64kWh unit, or close to 13 hours for the MG4 Extended Range with its 77kWh unit.

Insurance

As a result of higher purchase prices and increased repair costs, all-electric cars can often attract more expensive insurance premiums than petrol and diesel models, and the same is true of the MG4. The 49kWh SE model is in group 27 (out of 50), while the 64kWh SE Long Range and Trophy Long Range versions are in groups 28 and 29, respectively. The extra power of the MG4 Trophy Extended Range increases this to 33, but that’s nothing compared with the group 40 rating for the high-performance XPower.

If you want a small EV that’s cheaper to insure, look at the Fiat 500, which starts in just group 16, or the Renault 5, which starts from group 18 for the Urban Range Evolution, and goes up to group 22 for the Comfort Range Techno trim.

Depreciation

According to our expert resale value data, after a typical three-year ownership period or 36,000 miles, the MG4 will retain between 41 to 43.5 per cent of its original value. Our preferred SE Long Range hangs on to the most value, while the Trophy Extended Range loses the most. 

In comparison, the Vauxhall Corsa Electric maintains 30 to 35 per cent of its value over the same period, while Renault 5 maintains 49 to 50 per cent. The BYD Dolphin does slightly better at 51 per cent.

To get an accurate valuation for a specific model, check out our valuation tool...