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A week with an MG3 - Trilogy

Even has a full size spare wheel. :) Taken from SniffPetrol

Day 1: The MG3 has a nice key. This is important, it creates a good first impression. Its big brother, the never-popular MG6, has the most cacky, flimsy fob in history so it’s nice that MG has learned from this mistake and given its new small car a nice, substantial flick key. The good impression isn’t spoilt by the car itself which looks nice, in a generic, last-generation Hyundai sort of way. The flappy door handles are old fashioned but the alloys on this car have a matt inner bit, a polished outer face and proper, intricate MG badge. They look expensive. You can have your 3 plastered in all sorts of stickers and contrasty bits if you like. I probably wouldn’t. The only bit of the outside I don’t like is the exhaust, which is too small and rectangular to work as the design feature it strives to be. It’s reminiscent of a robot’s anus.

Day 2: A trip to Warwickshire. The MG is noisy on the motorway but the stereo isn’t bad at distracting you from this. It’s a very neatly integrated bit of kit, it has standard DAB and Bluetooth streaming, and at night a little illuminated red line marks its perimeter. All in all, a neat job. You’d say the same of most of the interior. Some of the plastics are hard but the design and texturing do their best to stop you noticing. The electronic temperature control display, based around a stack of blue and red bars, is groovy too. It’s different and it makes you feel like they’ve made an effort.

They’ve made an effort with the chassis too. This is a very amusing little car. The ride is firm but the damping feels grown up and expensive. The steering, which is needlessly heavy at parking speed and goes weirdly light in a straight line, gets better when you’re acting like a helmsmith. There’s even some sense of the grip and conditions being experienced by the front wheels. The MG3 has hydraulic rather than electric power steering which probably helps. The only weak link is the engine. It’s okay short shifting through town. It’s okay when you’re trying to burn off all its petrol in the countryside. But it feels tight chested and lazy in between those two extremes. It’s a car in which you need to change gear a lot. Fortunately, the gear change is pretty good. The MG website makes much of this car being ‘fun’. On this afternoon’s showing, they’re not lying.

<*** class="alignright size-full wp-image-7160" style="margin: 5px;" src="http://livesniffpetrol.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/MG3_2.jpg" alt="MG3_2" width="340" height="211" />Day 3: I need to collect A Big Thing from a nearby shop. Often when you put the seats down in a small car you see all manner of half-a***d trimming, lazily stapled into place. Surprisingly, the MG3 seems to be properly put together in places you rarely see. It feels like they’ve spent a few quid to make it more satisfying. It has damped grab handles too, and the electric window switches are on the door when the cheap option is to bung them between the seats so they don’t need moving for left- and right-hand drive. Even the cubby cover on the top of the dash has a nice texture and smooth action. It wouldn’t get kicked out of VW’s quality bed for badly designed f***ing. The only let down is the driver’s seat in this car which sometimes creaks.

Day 4: Britain is gripped by WIND CHAOS this morning. The MG3 seems to cope perfectly well with a firm breeze. Mind you, so do all the other cars on road.

Go over to my mate Gareth’s in evening. His 13 year old son has a look round the 3 and decides it would appeal to old people because the dashboard is simple. Later he decides it would actually be good for young people because you can have a phone dock on the dash and stickers all over it. He also points out that there’s loads of room in the back. He’s right on many counts.

Day 5: Queuing in traffic on the North Circular a dude in a beanie hat driving a new Audi A3 hoots at me from the next lane and signals for me to wind down my window. ‘I thought MG was gone?’ he shouts. ‘They’re back!’ I reply in a slightly-too-jaunty way. It feels like we’re stuck in the start of a very bad advert. ‘This is their new car,’ I continue, trying to bring my voice down an octave. The bloke cranes forward from his gangsta lean to have another look at the 3. ‘That’s looks a’ight,’ he says. ‘Yea, it’s a’ight.’ And with that, he is gone.

As it turns out, all is not a’ight with the MG3. The low tyre pressure warning light has come on. The cause turns out to be a ruddy great screw embedded in one of the front tyres. Damn.

<*** class="alignright size-full wp-image-7161" style="margin: 5px;" src="http://livesniffpetrol.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/MG3_3.jpg" alt="MG3_3" width="340" height="211" />Day 6: I didn’t take the 3 home last night because I couldn’t be bothered f***ing about with the can of expanding foam in the boot. It’s only when a man comes to get the car I discover there is no can of expanding foam in the boot; the MG has a full size spare. I don’t know how they’ve crammed that in and left a decent boot. Actually, maybe I do. A lot of the engineering was done at Longbridge in Birmingham. Maybe they’ve still got the packaging manual they referred to for the Mini and the Metro. Unlike those cars, the 3 isn’t actually built at Longbridge though. MG was claiming part assembly in Britain but now says demand is such they’re bringing them in fully built from China. This isn’t a problem. In fact, it’s the future. Recognisable brand name + Western design and engineering + Chinese factory = profit. It’s a model that works in electronics and increasingly we’ll see it with cars. Knowingly or not, MG is ahead of the game here. And if the cars keep turning up feeling as simple but well made as the 3 then it’ll be fine.

Goodbye: The MG3 is gone. Shame. It’s a amiable little car. The engine needs to be more zingy, and indeed less thirsty, but the rest of the car is perfectly decent and capable of being cheerily entertaining when the mood takes you. I’d have one over a Micra, a Corsa, a C3 and many other second division supermini also-rans. If it was competing head on with big hitters like the Fiesta and the Polo it might be found wanting but it’s not because even this, the top model, is less than 10 grand. And for that money, it’s a very likeable bargain.

The car talked about here is an MG3 3Style. It has a 1.5-litre engine making 105 horsepower, giving a top speed of 108mph and a 0-62 time of 10.8 seconds. In this trim it costs £9999.

A week with an MG3 - DrippingSump

Nice piece Trilogy.

I am no MG fan-boy but this car would do for me. I love the inexpensive and uncomplicated ethic of this car. It is time to forget brand loyalty and go where the fun and good price is.

A week with an MG3 - oldroverboy.

Am actually waiting to get my hands on one for a week.. potential replacement for the cruze, like the looks, and first very short impression is that for a city car that could be used on occasional longer runs could be ok, but not judging after half an hour..

A week with an MG3 - Collos25

We had one for two weeks was nearly as good as 60s 1200 cortina with another disadvantage there are so few agents and none in mainland europe.A good buy if you want to be different but most people prefer a car as backed up by the sales figures.

A week with an MG3 - jamie745

I'm considering a Scirocco, if it's all the same to you I wont be adding the MG3 to the list.

A week with an MG3 - Trilogy

I'm considering a Scirocco, if it's all the same to you I wont be adding the MG3 to the list.

Fine by me Mr.747. I thought you were considering a Mondeo ST.

A week with an MG3 - Bobbin Threadbare

I'm considering a Scirocco, if it's all the same to you I wont be adding the MG3 to the list.

Fine by me Mr.747. I thought you were considering a Mondeo ST.

You know him well. Likes Mercs too

A week with an MG3 - jamie745

I posted about a Mondeo Titanium here a while ago, Trilogy has a good memory.

You know what I like. A big engine.

A week with an MG3 - Brit_in_Germany

Andy, more like a modern day Skôda Estelle, perhaps? Bargain basement transport for those who only wish to have some form of transport at the lowest cost and a reasonable expectation of reliability.

A week with an MG3 - Trilogy

Andy, more like a modern day Skôda Estelle, perhaps? Bargain basement transport for those who only wish to have some form of transport at the lowest cost and a reasonable expectation of reliability.

You're thinking of a Dacia.

A week with an MG3 - artill

I sat in an MG3 at the weekend, they had one at the NEC. Just from seeing it and sitting in it, i can say it looks OK on the outside, looks good inside, although the plastics do look a little cheap. However the seat was really good.

If i were in the market for a £10k supermini i would look one out and test it.

My gut feeling is it needs more poke to be an MG, (afterall its claimed 0-60 is about the same as the 1982 MG Metro, and things have moved on), but is probably a good cheap, and good value car

A week with an MG3 - daveyK_UK

Spotted one last week, looked good.

Dealer network and as a result market exposure will be its biggest problem.

A week with an MG3 - oldroverboy.

Spotted one last week, looked good.

Had a longer drive in one yesterday, aircon control buttons very small and fiddly, not coming easily to hand, had a good drive, Town, A road dual carriageway, bit of motorway, tried heavy braking, steered well, was lively enough for me, but not sure about those seats and the instrument dials look "small" for me.

Digital display on dab radio (low down) hard to see. Afterwards, getting back into the cruze felt much better.

Although I am welcome to have one for a whole day. (and was offered attractive trade in, 0% pcp deal too)

Would be ok if i really wanted one.

Think I'll pass on this one.

SWMBO moving towards volvo, would be s40/60 for me, naturally petrol, decision looming.

Edited by oldroverboy. on 24/06/2014 at 10:30

A week with an MG3 - Avant

"....getting back into the cruze felt much better.'

Very perceptively, you put your finger on the ultimate 'test' following a test drive. If you're happier back in your own car, you don't want what you've just driven. Or - as I felt getting back into my Octavia vRS after trying a 3-series Touring - not being able to see clearly what one would be getting for all that extra money.

There does seem to be quite a shortage of reasonably well-equipped, comfortable small/medium cars which give you a 'feel-good factor' and help you to relax. Triumph used to do it with the 1300 / 1500 / Dolomite, and the Rover 214 / 216 was pretty good too.

Maybe Volvo and Audi get the nearest to it currently? Others may have suggestions. Volvo are generally thought to make the best seats in the business: clearly Youngrovergirl likes her comfort!

A week with an MG3 - Ed V

Why not a V50 if I may ask?

A week with an MG3 - oldroverboy.

Why not a V50 if I may ask?

Off to the ovlov dealer as i write.

A week with an MG3 - skidpan

We looked at the V50. Some good deals and a very nice car indeed but if you think you are getting a Volvo estate think again. The boot space is not great by estate standards and rear leg room was tight.

There are better estates for less money.In comparison our 60 plate Ceed SW is huge.

But the new Skoda Ocatvia estate would be my choice today, or a Seat Leon estate if I could find a decent dealer.

A week with an MG3 - daveyK_UK

Agree.

V50 estate is cramped in the back and the boot is small compared to other similar size estates

A week with an MG3 - oldroverboy.

Geuss what...

Unless I want a new car no petrol volvos available but "your mileage will be ok with a diesel if you do regular long trips"

I think not!

Why should I have to make a regular drive of xx miles especially if it is not in my plans...

Edited by oldroverboy. on 25/06/2014 at 21:17

A week with an MG3 - Avant

That surprised me, so out of interest I looked on the Volvo website for used V40s and V50s - and nearly all of them are diesel. This may be because unlike some other makers, Volvo don't charge much more for a new diesel than for the corresponding petrol.

I don't know what your budget is, ORB, but you might get better value from a nearly-new SEAT Leon or Kia Ceed, if they're comfortable enough. Nearly-new Audis and Volvos seem to have held on to a lot of their value. Skidpan and Mrs Skidpan have one each of these, and he often says how happy he is with both.

A week with an MG3 - 72 dudes

Nicely balanced report, Trilogy.

For me the MG3 just looks too dumpy and nasty inside.

ORB, I have an immaculate S40 for sale, that rare combination of diesel WITHOUT a particulate filter, fine for short journeys.

A week with an MG3 - oldroverboy.

Nicely balanced report, Trilogy.

For me the MG3 just looks too dumpy and nasty inside.

ORB, I have an immaculate S40 for sale, that rare combination of diesel WITHOUT a particulate filter, fine for short journeys.

2 comments.. your s40 too old probably...

I didn't think the interior was too bad, see my comments but didn't like the red MG motifs on the seats,

And for Avant, can afford a nice new car but 64 next time around so will find the car to enjoy and use long term, and then if i get too fed up will not bother driving except for occasional hire.

Edited by oldroverboy. on 26/06/2014 at 19:16