With all the (justified) hype around EVs such as the Business Car Award-winning MG4 and the Cyberster sports car, it’s easy to overlook that the best-selling MG in Britain is actually the HS SUV. Indeed, the HS was the seventh best-selling car overall in the UK this year to the end of July. However, the specific model that racked up all those registrations is no more, as it’s been replaced by the all-new HS we’re testing here.
Compared with the outgoing car, the new HS is 45mm longer, and 14mm wider, with a 45mm longer wheelbase, aimed at improving interior space. However, a more significant change for fleets is under the bonnet, where there’s the option of a new plug-in hybrid powertrain, which thanks to a 24.7kWh battery has an official electric-only range of up to 75 miles, and therefore incurs a company car BIK tax rate of just 5% (a pure petrol engine option is also available, while a conventional hybrid will also join the range in 2025). The PHEV isn’t only about economy either – a total system output of 307hp is enough to provide hot hatch-rivalling acceleration, while the powertrain also offers very good refinement – we also noticed road and wind noise was well suppressed at motorway speeds.
Despite this being a family SUV, the chassis isn’t overwhelmed by all that power – there’s a bit of roll in corners, but the HS maintains its composure at all times, not doing anything to undermine driver confidence.
Ride quality we would describe as reasonable, but no better than that – you notice when you’re on a bumpy road, possibly due in part to the 19in alloy wheels fitted to our range-topping Trophy-grade test car. Still, that’s not as annoying as the overly-keen driver attention alert system, which bings at you to ‘focus on driving’ for so much as a quick glance down at the speedometer.
Interior quality
Trophy spec also brings a well trimmed interior, with leather-style upholstery meaning this doesn’t feel like a budget product (though we’d recommend opting for the standard black trim rather than the optional tan). Adding to the sense of quality is a nice chunky steering wheel, while the dual 12.3in screens (standard throughout the range) look good. However, it’s annoying to have to go into the infotainment screen to adjust things like the temperature settings and drive modes, and we couldn’t find a way to adjust the stereo volume without using the (unlabelled) steering wheel control – although we were told our test car had some pre-production software so perhaps this will improve.
The benefits of the HS’s growth in size can best be felt from the rear seats, where the legroom is extremely impressive for the segment, and headroom – despite the new HS’s roofline actually being 21mm lower than the previous car’s – is also good.
A 507-litre boot is usefully large – and, in a welcome contrast with many rivals, is no smaller with the plug-in hybrid HS than with the petrol version.
Value for money
That’s handy, since the PHEV will certainly be the company car driver’s preferred choice from the range – the petrol may be £6k cheaper on P11D, but its CO2 emissions place it in the top 37% BIK tax bracket. As for the PHEV’s previously mentioned 5% rate, this is also lower than that applied to plug-in hybrid versions of rivals such as the Citroen C5 Aircross, Ford Kuga, Hyundai Tucson, and Kia Sportage – and the MG is also thousands of pounds cheaper on P11D than all of those. Therefore, while the new HS’s interior might not feel like that of a budget product, it’s hard to argue that it doesn’t still offer exceptional value for money.
Positive: Low BIK rate and P11D value, spacious interior, good refinement
Negative: Infotainment system could be more user friendly, annoyingly trigger-happy driver attention warning
Standard equipment: Automatic full LED headlights with follow-me-home function, rear parking sensors, reversing camera, electrically adjustable heated door mirrors, six-way adjustable electric driver’s seat, four-way adjustable front passenger seat, air conditioning, keyless entry, rain-sensing wipers, cruise control, , and dual 12.3-inch displays with sat-nav and smartphone mirroring, MG Pilot package (active emergency braking with pedestrian and bicycle detection, lane keep assist with lane departure warning, blind spot detection with lane change assist, driver attention alert, forward collision warning, rear cross traffic alert, door open warning).
Engines: Petrol: 169hp 1.5; Plug-in hybrid: 307hp 1.5
Equipment grades: SE, Trophy
Transmissions: Six-speed manual, seven-speed automatic, two-speed automatic
| Model | MG HS 1.5 T-GDI PHEV Trophy |
| P11D | £33,940 |
| Residual value | 47.9% |
| Depreciation | £17,493 |
| Fuel | £607 |
| Service, maintenance and repair | £2,572 |
| Cost per mile | 34.45p |
| Fuel consumption | 672.6mpg |
| CO2 (BIK%) | 12g/km (5%) |
| BIK 20/40% a month | £28/£57 |
| Luggage capacity | 507 litres |
| Engine size/power | 1,496cc/142hp with 209hp electric motor |
| Score | 8/10 |
