After a week of testing the MG MG6 here are my experiences testing the car.
Day 1 – First Impressions of the MG6
I have previously driven the MG3, so felt prepared for the MG6. I had made the obvious decision in my head that the MG6 was just going to be a longer MG3 with a bit more room inside. As soon as the car arrived I got straight in and took the opportunity to push all the buttons and test everything out, just like a kid would do with a new toy.
I like the look of the car. It has its own style and stands out – especially in red, it looks fresh compared to the alternatives. I was oddly attracted to MG’s silver and red badge on the back of the car, and from the front I liked the grey accent line that goes over the top of the lower grille – what might seem like relatively small things really struck me.
Day 2 – Exciting Drive
The MG comes from the MG facility in Longbridge, Birmingham. Taking the car out for a car shoot in the city centre of Birmingham felt like the MG was playing a home game of football. Myself, our resident photographer and 2 videographers set on our way to shoot the car on a rainy evening.
We set the car up for shoots in a couple of fairly busy locations in Birmingham. Shooting at night-time and looking to do something a bit different with the car, Ross Jukes set the car up for some long exposure shots. Below you can see the glossy paint work of the new MG6 looking super reflective whilst backing onto the skyline of the UK’s second city.
We then moved onto a second location to setup the car for a few more shots, but not long into our shot the rain got a bit too much and we had to call it a night. I found out during this evening that even on a horrible wet and cold night the MG keeps you feeling insulated and warm. The front seats were nicely heated leather and the heaters did a great job whilst we were jumping in and out of the car.
Day 3 – MG Reputation
After a bit of time with the car I found myself starting to think about MG’s reputation. In 2005 the MG brand was sold off to the Nanjing Automobile Group, a Chinese company, and I wonder to myself if this affects how MG are now perceived as a car manufacturer by the public. After having the car for only a couple of days, I had soon found out that people were interested to know who made the car now, it was almost always the first question I was asked. Some people look at it as a bad thing when others are just happy to see the brand that started in England all the way back in 1924 live on. Personally, I’m not bothered about the ownership of the group or where the parts are made as long as the product is good, and I don’t think anyone can argue that the car isn’t good value.
Day 4 –Is it Practical?
Carrying out normal day-to-day tasks with the car we have on test is a great way to find out how practical the car is. What I have learned about the MG6 is that it is, with no doubt, a very practical car. There are many reasons for this: the rear passenger space in the car is very generous, making it very comfortable in the back even for the largest of adults. The boot space is enormous and it is very easy to get large objects in and out. Even from a driver’s perspective there are lots of little spaces to store your things, the door pockets and glove box are a good size and it also has a cup holder in the right location not affecting your gear shifting. Overall, living with this car, to me, was very easy.
Day 5 – Long Journey
Friday was a great opportunity to really test out the car on a long drive while we made our way to and from an event in North Wales, approximately 150 miles and 3 hours each way from Birmingham. We set off around 10am, excited to spend some time with the car and keen to see how we felt after spending such a long, solid period driving.
On the motorway the car was great; the torque from the engine gave great pulling power on the motorway and made overtaking a dream. Traveling such a distance I was quite pleased with the punch the 1.9-litre diesel engine packs.
On the trip there the aspect that stuck out the most was the comfort of the car. The heated leather seats, for me, made a huge difference. It is also worth mentioning that the steering is weighted very well and feels great on the motorway, but also when you get on to the twisty roads.
We arrived at our destination 30 minutes early and thought that we should make the most of the seaside whilst we were there. This was one of my favourite shots, took by the sea. The red MG stands out very nicely from the blue skies and we even have a token fishermen in the scene to keep it looking authentic.
The car is very good value, but there were two things that bugged me. One was the gearshift, which didn’t feel as smooth as I would have liked, and the other was the amount of turbo lag the car has at low speeds. This meant that sometimes moving off I would stall the car, unless I gave a few more revs than I would usually to get the power up.
Day 6 – Photo Shoot
We took the car for what is starting to become a trademark early Saturday morning shoot. But we were challenged by the weather yet again. We set the car up in a multi-story car park sheltered from the miserable rain, and I was pretty happy with what we managed to capture. The MG6 certainly looked very special in this environment and has a laboratory feel to it with the leading lights towards the car.
As the sun was coming up we took the car to the top floor hoping for a nice sunrise. Sadly the clouds were too thick and we were left with a dull and damp looking day. Not all was lost though as the car still looked great in this environment and with a bit of water on the car, the already glossy paintwork has a bit of an extra gleam to it.
Day 7 – Summarising my week
Being honest, I’m very privileged to be able to drive lots of fantastic cars and my expectations for the MG6 were pretty average. But I was wrong. The car actually delivers all the driver needs from the car well and with the TL model it even delivers some of the nice driver extras, like sat nav and heated seats. After spending a week with the car I can’t think of another car that provides the same number of features for the £17,995 asking price.
Highlight Video
Supplied By: MG
