The new 2025 MG HS might have an aggressive starting price, but it isn’t short on kit or quality

NOTE: This is an international drive review of the UK-market MG HS. The new HS will reach Australia in the second half of 2024, with pricing and specifications to be confirmed closer to launch.

MG has really been keeping us on our toes in 2024 with a new car blitz that’s included the simply excellent MG3 supermini – which our partners at Auto Express recently crowned as their Affordable Hybrid Car of the Year – and the long–awaited Cyberster sports car.

But while the all-new, second-generation MG HS might not capture the imagination the way a pure-electric roadster with scissor doors can, it’s more important for the brand. The outgoing model was MG’s biggest seller, and so far this year, has been among the top 10 best-selling cars in the UK.

It appealed to budget-conscious motorists by dramatically undercutting the competition in the very popular mid-size SUV class, and so does the new 2025 MG HS. Prices start from £24,995 ($47,332 AUD), which is only £945 ($1,791 AUD) more than its predecessor.

But more importantly, it’s about £5,000 ($9,468 AUD) cheaper than the most-basic Nissan Qashqai or Kia Sportage, and roughly £7,000 ($13,255 AUD) less than the opening price for a Ford Kuga or Hyundai Tucson. Cars much closer in price to the new HS are small SUVs like the Ford Puma, however, the larger, more family-oriented MG even manages to undercut that car’s £25,800 ($48,884 AUD) start price.

Like before, a generous standard kit list sweetens the deal. Entry-level examples feature dual 12.3-inch displays, sat-nav, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, LED headlights, keyless entry, a reversing camera, and 19-inch diamond-cut wheels.

Plus, every 2025 MG HS features the ‘MG Pilot’ suite of driver assistance tech, including active emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, lane keep assist, blind spot detection, and driver attention alert.

MG expects most buyers will upgrade from SE to Trophy trim though, as it only costs £2,500 ($4,735 AUD) extra and adds a wireless charging pad, an upgraded sound system, a 360-degree surround-view camera, dual-zone air-conditioning, a powered tailgate, and heated front seats with black leather-style upholstery as standard – or tan for an additional £600 ($1,137 AUD).

So value for money is still front and centre with the MG HS, but it’s stepped up its game in several areas. For starters, the new HS looks cleaner and more sophisticated than the last one, incorporating a full-width rear light bar, sharper headlights, and a whopper of a front grille – a styling cue shared with the MG3.

The interior is all new as well and definitely looks more modern. We were particularly impressed by the material and build quality, especially considering the price tag, as everything feels well screwed together, and most surfaces are covered with soft-touch or squishy materials. It’s only lower down on the door cards or centre console that you’ll start to find hard, cheaper-feeling plastics.

Technology has seen some definite upgrades. That being said, the large touchscreen and digital driver’s display are the same quality as those in other MGs, so resolution and loading times are below average for this class. We’re also familiar with the infotainment system, which does the job but can be tedious to navigate through and we expect most people will just bypass it using CarPlay or Android Auto.

To make the 2025 MG HS more practical this time around, MG has made the wheelbase 45mm longer and the car is 14mm wider than its already quite spacious predecessor. Even with six-foot-tall adults up front, there’s plenty of legroom for anyone similarly tall to sit comfortably in the back, plus they’ll have headroom to spare and space under the front seats to tuck their feet.

Alternatively, if you’ve got young children, the wide rear door opening will help when installing a child seat and there are two sets of easily accessible ISOFIX points back there.

A small detail we appreciate is that there are more storage cubbies in the new HS, including large door bins and a cavernous glove box.

Meanwhile, boot space has increased from 463 litres in the previous model to a much more competitive 507 litres – it’s ever so slightly more than you get in a Qashqai in fact, though still a long way off the nearly 600 litres the Sportage boasts. At least there’s no load lip to contend with when in the HS and, unlike with its rivals, boot space is unchanged for the hybrid versions.

The new 2025 MG HS is currently available to order with either a pure-petrol or plug-in hybrid powertrain, and there’s a full-hybrid version coming early in 2025.

The petrol model we’re driving here just has a turbocharged 1.5-litre petrol engine that produces 167bhp (125kW) and 275Nm of torque, which is adequate. The four-cylinder motor is mated to a six-speed manual gearbox as standard, but our test car has the optional seven-speed dual-clutch automatic.

Officially, 0-100km/h takes 9.6 seconds, however, the car never responded immediately whenever we hit the throttle, and trying to accelerate hard was met with about a second of latency. Then, once the engine gets itself together, it sounds strained, emitting a loud, rather gravelly note, as we slowly gain speed.

We had a similar issue with the brakes, as nothing happens until about halfway through the pedal travel, and we then had to apply a lot more force before the car started to slow down. Meanwhile, the steering in its ‘normal’ setting is quite heavy, so we much preferred the lighter ‘comfort’ mode. Even this was still slow and vague to the point that you’re guessing how much lock is required when going around a corner.

Taken as a whole, the petrol HS isn’t any fun on a twisty road. It’s much better suited to the motorway where, aside from a fair bit of road noise, it’s a reasonably quiet place to be – once the engine has settled down anyway.

The ride is on the firmer side, but not uncomfortable and it helps make the car feel stable for the most part, until you reach any uneven road surfaces when things become quite bouncy. Head into town and the HS offers a tall driving position and good view ahead.

Of all our issues with the driving experience, the biggest is undoubtedly the constant, nonsensical bonging and chiming caused by the various safety systems. Ironically, this gets so distracting that we ended up regularly looking down to see what the problem is, which activates a further warning that we should be paying attention to the road.

Switching the systems off is equally infuriating, as it requires going through menu after menu on the touchscreen. And even when you find the right page, the icons are so small it’s hard to press them on the move. In some cases, you then have to confirm you definitely want to switch off the feature.

Needless to say, we weren’t overly satisfied driving the petrol 2025 MG HS, however we also got a brief taste of the plug-in hybrid version and, almost immediately, it proved to be the far superior choice.

Power delivery from the 206bhp (154kW) electric motor is instant, making for effortless acceleration, and because the PHEV system uses a sizable 24.7kWh battery, the pure-electric range is a massive 75 miles.

It really felt like we were driving an EV because despite stomping on the accelerator in an effort to provoke the 140bhp (104kW) 1.5-litre petrol engine, it never made much noise. The addition of regenerative braking seemed to solve the brake pedal problem too, as it felt far more natural, and the transition to the physical discs was imperceptible.

The plug-in hybrid MG HS starts from £31,495 ($59,621 AUD) – another impressive feat of pricing, and not much more than our petrol-automatic test car. The forthcoming full-hybrid will hopefully split the difference between the PHEV and basic pure-petrol models, delivering a more refined and slick driving experience than the petrol. We suggest it’s worth waiting to find out.

VERDICT

Like its predecessor, the new 2025 MG HS will trade primarily on value for money, but not exclusively.

The aggressively priced mid-size SUV looks modern, the interior quality is impressive, cabin space is plentiful, and there’s loads of tech onboard – some good, some not. That said, we’d strongly recommend waiting for the hybrid models to arrive, rather than settling for the basic pure-petrol version we drove.

Ellis Hyde & Automotive Daily

What will the new 2025 MG HS cost in Australia?

Australian pricing will be announced later this year, but MG has confirmed the new HS will be backed by a 7-year unlimited-kilometre warranty and a fixed-price nationwide servicing plan.