GWM Ora 03 - Range, charging and running costs

The electric range of the GWM Ora 03 Pure+ with the 48kWh battery pack is officially 193 miles, which is somewhat shy of the 218 miles the cheaper Standard Range MG4 can manage. That rival does have a larger battery pack than the 03, so it’s a given that the MG4 should go farther. The larger capacity 63kWh 03 Pro+ manages a more respectable 261 miles, but even this comes up short against the 64kWh Long Range MG4, or even the marginally more expensive 77kWh Extended Range MG4 with 323 miles of range.

We tested the 48kWh Funky Cat (which uses the same battery as the 48kWh 03 Pure+) in winter, and during our week of testing, temperatures frequently dipped below zero – the worst conditions for an EV, and especially one like the 03 that doesn’t have the option of a heat pump, which is a more energy efficient way of heating the interior of a car in cold weather. This resulted in a highly unflattering efficiency rate of 2.8mi/kWh. We calculated that the real-world range in cold weather would be 134 miles.

We’ll have to reserve full judgement on its efficiency until we can test it in warmer weather, but given that the MG4 we tried at the same time managed 3.1 mi/kWh (or an extra 57 miles on a fully charged battery), we anticipate the 03 will still lag behind its rivals. Those looking for greater efficiency should consider the Kia Niro EV. During our MG4 vs Kia Niro EV twin-test conducted in warmer weather, the Niro EV managed 3.9mi/kWh versus the MG4’s 3.5mi/kWh.

The charging speed for the 03 isn’t all that impressive compared with its rivals. A peak charging rate of 64kW is some way behind the 90kW the standard range MG4 can take. This means rapid charging from 10-80 per cent in an 03 (going from around 20 miles of remaining range to just over 150 miles of range) takes 45 mins, whereas going from 10-80 per cent charge in an MG4 takes a little over 30 mins. What’s more, the peak charging speed for the larger battery 63kWh 03 has only been increased to 67kW, so the same top-up will take just under an hour. The Long Range MG4 gets a much faster charging speed of 140kW, cutting its charge time to around 25 minutes.

A much more sensible way of charging the 03 would be to use a 7kW wallbox charger at home and take advantage of cheaper overnight electricity rates. It’ll take just over 7 hours to completely charge up a 48kWh 03 model from flat to full, while the 63kWh model will take 9.5 hours.

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Insurance groups

Insurance for the 03 starts in group 27 for the Pure+, the same as the MG4 SE Standard Range. Stepping up to the larger battery Pro+ increases this to group 30, which is above the MG4 SE Long Range in group 28.

It’s worth pointing out that both the MG4 and 03 will cost you more to insure than a petrol or diesel equivalent small car. A Skoda Fabia SE L 1.5 150 TSI (which actually gets from 0-62mph faster than the 03) is in insurance group 19.

GWM Ora, as a brand, has noted in the past that owners have had restricted insurance options when getting quotes. However, the brand has been working to improve the situation and reduce the time and cost of repairing their cars. As always, we’d advise you to shop around for car insurance and follow the advice in our handy car insurance guide to find the best price.

You can get personalised car insurance quotes fast with our comparison tool powered by Quotezone...

Depreciation

The Ora 03 maintains 51 per cent of its resale value over three years and 36,000 miles, which is just shy of the 52 per cent our recommended SE trim (in both Standard and Long Range forms) MG4 maintains over the same period. 

It is worth pointing out that MG4 in this trim is cheaper to buy than the Ora 03 in the first place, which is no doubt why there are some competitive leasing deals for the GWM Ora 03 to help maintain its desirability with people looking for an affordable way into electric vehicle ownership.

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