What is it?
You have to be pretty old to remember an MG Magnette. Any MG Magnette, in fact, because there have been several pre-war cars (some of them legendary), while post-war there were the fine 1953-58 ZA and ZB saloons, and after that the inferior Austin Cambridge-based, badge-engineered Farina-styled model. The last of those was built in 1968, but it’s the Z Magnettes that MG would like you to think of with this latest version.
Credible or not, what the two do have in common, besides a decent chassis, is that they’re four-door sports saloons, although the ZA would have been a little upmarket of today’s Magnette and an equivalent to today’s sporty BMW 3-series.
And yet it’s 3-series buyers that MG Motor would like to see considering this booted version of the MG 6 GT hatchback. But before you start sniggering, the plan is to snare buyers of used 3-series searching websites in the MG’s price range – which starts at £15,995 – when a cheeky banner ad hoves into view. That’s £400 more than you’ll pay for the hatch, for no good reason beyond MG’s BMW dreams, it would seem.
What's it like?
What you get for your money is quite a big car, both inside and out, that’s identical to the hatch bar its rearranged rear. So that means slightly vague throttle response from the turbocharged 1.8-litre motor until it starts to rev, with decently lively thrust emerging after that. However, at 5800rpm the gearlever in our car started to zizz, and the shift itself felt like you were snapping saplings.
Better, then, to think about the truly excellent suspension. The ride is supple and quiet, the car is keenly agile in curves, and if the feelsome straight-ahead promise of its steering isn’t quite matched by the quality of its mid-bend weighting, this is nevertheless an accomplished chassis.
Should I buy one?
Keen pricing and fairly generous equipment – though you wouldn’t call it plush – are further attractions, but running costs will be high because there’s no diesel. Which makes this four-door as uneven as its five-door sibling. But unlike many value-brand buys, the Magnette has a few strong attractions to counter those flaws.
Richard Bremner
MG6 Magnette TSE
Price: £19,995; Top speed: 120mph; 0-62mph: 8.4sec; Economy: 35.6mpg; CO2: 184g/km; Kerb weight: na; Engine: 4 cyls, 1796cc, petrol; Power: 158bhp at 5500rpm; Torque: 159lb ft at 1750-4500rpm; Gearbox: 5-spd manual
Join the debate
Re: MG6 Magnette TSE
Erm...it was designed in Britain by a British team of over 300 designers - ever heard of Ricardo? Well Ricardo 2010 in Leamington Spa designed the MG6, based somewhat on the chassis design of the Rover 75 - but really a totally new design from the ground up. That's Leamington Spa in England, not Shangai..!
Ricardo 2010 is now called SAIC UK Motor Technical Centre, and based at Longbridge.
In China the MG6 (and its sister the Roewe) is marketed as a British product, not as a Chinese product. Being 'British' in China still has perceived notions of quality, so the Chinese are very careful to maintain and build on the British link - arguably better at doing that than the British are of their own products..!
As has been said, many times in many reviews, the chassis is excellent and designed specifically for the UK, the only weak spot in this car is the limited engine range.
So far the UK design centre has been responsible for the quite considerable following:
New Large Car Platform
Roewe 550 – launched in China
MG6 Fastback – launched in China and UK
MG6 Saloon – UK
New Medium Car Platform
Roewe 350 – launched in China
Medium-sized MG
New Small Car Platform
New small Roewe
MG3
The Powertrain Development Programmes undertaken here in the UK to date include the following:
Medium Petrol Engine Family
Development of existing engine
1.8 litre
New Diesel Engine Family
< 1.9 litre
New Large Petrol Engine Family
> 2.0 litre
New Small Petrol Engine Family
< 1.5 litre
Transmissions
New manual transmission
New automatic transmission
New electric hybrid transmission
Re: MG6 Magnette TSE
LINKIE,MR OVERDRIVE; http://www.autocar.co.uk/News/NewsArticle/AllCars/248727/ What the MG6 does do, though, is drive well. And I mean really well. MG's head of chassis, Andy Kitson, admits the Focus has been the firm's benchmark for ride and handling. The MG6 has a rare blend of suppleness and poise. The steering is still hydraulic rather than electric, and apparently it's slower than the Focus's, but it doesn't feel it. Kitson says there's still a little work to do on the valves to alter the feel at straight ahead but it's not bad now. And once there's a little lock wound on, it's excellent. Then there's the ride. Hopping to and from a Focus reveals that the Ford's cabin suffers less vertical intrusion over bumps, but it's obvious this is the car MG has benchmarked. In its poise and agility I'd even say the MG6 is superior. It feels more neutral than the Focus, with a pivot point further forward; the Ford in comparison feels led more by its front. The MG grips tenaciously before eventually letting slip from the front first, and it changes direction superbly. It is comfortable, tool greater vertical inputs into the cabin aside, there's no crash, even over bad bumps. Fact is, the MG6 is already (and there's still tweaking to do) borderline best in class to drive.
Thank you for the link AND not forgetting to call me "Mr" Overdrive (always useful to make a good impression and you succeeded).
Yes, the tester does say that he prefers the driving dynamics of the MG. However, leaving aside the likelihood that a British badge will often get a helping hand from the testers (as I alluded to in my first post, a page or so back - what I can tell you, I'm a cynic), I remain sceptical. Why? Because even though the tester mentions "hoping to a from a Focus", this wasn't a head to head test, and it certainly wasn't a full test.
Additionally, the tester's reference Focus was the previous version (quite old nh this and as I said before, the latest Focus, while not quite as Sharp before, is far more rounded dynamically. I guess we'll only know how good this MG is dynamically when the final production version is tested against its rivals. But I doubt that in an objective and impartial test it will outdrive the best of the Europeans, especially those with the independent rear suspension.
Thanks again for the link.
Re: MG6 Magnette TSE
So you'd be happy with a 70% car would you?, it may indeed handle well but at what cost?,if i was paying between £15 and£18K for a car with what i wanted on it, i'd want it to look like it,i'd want value for money,i don't want iffy plastics, and for the sake of a couple of centimeters a deeper valance at he back to hide the exhaust box, and when you come to market with a product your kind of proud of you don't want it compared to a car three older,it makes the MG sound as if it's behind the times.And lets be clear on this, i don't hate MG's new or old,what i can't tolerate is not getting value for money,besides my humble barge of a 5 series would leave it for dead twisty road or not, oops!!!! sorry dreaming Again!
Peter Cavellini.
Re: MG6 Magnette TSE
i take it,you are aware that the mg has independent rear suspension....one of the reasons that the mg handles so well.....its a development of bmw's z axle....
and,may i direct you to evos test of the new mg6,it was awarded 4 stars,primarily for its handling and ride....but then,that is a proper car enthusiasts mag.
Re: MG6 Magnette TSE
i don't hate MG's new or old,what i can't tolerate is not getting value for money,besides my humble barge of a 5 series would leave it for dead twisty road or not, oops!!!! sorry dreaming Again!
So you consider value for money important. I would have thought that a new car with all the kit thie MG6 has for the money is good value. Unless you bought used a 5 Series BMW is not value for money.
What appears to be a common complaint is the acknowledged lack of a diesel engine and iffy plastics.
This is reported in Autocar drives as being equally apparent on VW Golf & Jetta, Ford Focus, Vauxhall Astra and others.
I suspect Peter Cavellini's real complaint is he doesn't like anything other than a "humble barge" 5 Series BMW.
Re: MG6 Magnette TSE
Still not a complete car, handle it may do, a developement of the BMW Z-axle too,but as i've stated minutes ago it needs to up the interior to be the real deal!
Peter Cavellini.
Re: MG6 Magnette TSE
it may indeed handle well but at what cost?,if i was paying between £15 and£18K for a car with what i wanted on it, i'd want it to look like it,i'd want value for money,i don't want iffy plastics
Was interesting to see that the VW Jetta Autocar road tested this week was priced £10 above the MG Magnette. With the VW being by far the more complete car and with a much better finish I have to agree with Peter that the MG does not represent good value. That said it's pretty, has rarity value and isn't to shabby a drive. There's a lot of potential with in this car and onging developement could deliver something very very good. It's not the right car at the right price yet but if they get it right I can see myself in one one day.
Re: MG6 Magnette TSE
Still not a complete car, handle it may do, a developement of the BMW Z-axle too,but as i've stated minutes ago it needs to up the interior to be the real deal!
@Peter Cavellini,
I take it this quote from Autocar on the VW Jetta road test would put you off that as well?
"The quality of the interior materials is mixed, however. On the upper surfaces the additional thought given to European versions of the Jetta is evident; there are the soft-touch, heavily rubberised plastics and chromed dials that car makers can’t afford not to have on a vehicle in this class. Look lower down the cabin, though, and there are obvious signs of cost-shaving brittle plastics."
Or this quote from the MG6 Road test
"The abundance of buttons takes some getting used to, particularly in conjunction with the colour screen that functions as a sat-nav and multimedia interface. It’s an excellent standard feature, but the graphics on this screen are evidence that the MG is not quite up to class standards inside. So is the oddly designed handbrake, whose shiny plastic and awkward shape make it less than pleasant to hold."
Not that much difference really is there?
Re: MG6 Magnette TSE
i take it,you are aware that the mg has independent rear suspension....one of the reasons that the mg handles so well.....its a development of bmw's z axle.... and,may i direct you to evos test of the new mg6,it was awarded 4 stars,primarily for its handling and ride....but then,that is a proper car enthusiasts mag.
Yeah, I know about the multi-link rear suspension. My point (not made very clearly, admittedly) about the European rivals, like the Golf, Focus and Giulietta, which have independent rear suspensions, was that they'll be pretty hard to beat, more so than others like the C4, Megane etc (exc. the hot hatch versions).
I also read the Evo article. Evo is a great read, but it does give 4, 4.5 and 5 stars to an awful lof of cars. Nevertheless, despite being sceptical, my intention is not to be deliberately negative about the Chinese MG. Who knows, it might indeed turn out to set new dynamic benchmarks for the class. We'll find out soon enough, I suppose.
Re: MG6 Magnette TSE
"The quality of the interior materials is mixed, however. On the upper surfaces the additional thought given to European versions of the Jetta is evident; there are the soft-touch, heavily rubberised plastics and chromed dials that car makers can’t afford not to have on a vehicle in this class. Look lower down the cabin, though, and there are obvious signs of cost-shaving brittle plastics."
I regularly hired Golf class cars for business trips. An observation I've made is that if you're unlucky enough to find yourself in a Golf S rather than a Match you'll notice a very low rent interior (plastic steering wheel is awful). The Match is a much nicer place to be but then so is the new Astra and old Focus (Match has the edge though it would be interesting to see how the new Focus fairs).
I'm not saying VWs are poor, it's just they are not as good as the hype would have you believe.
