Chinese Corolla rival revealed

China’s answer to the Mazda3 and Toyota Corolla broke cover ahead of its Beijing motor show debut this week, revealing a confident new design, loads of modern tech toys and a pair of small petrol engines.

Roughly the same size as a Corolla, one of the best-selling cars in history, the sleek new liftback measures 4675mm long and 1842mm wide and although it’s not yet available in right-hand drive, MG’s Aussie distributor

Expected to be powered by a pair of 1.5-litre engines, the top-spec turbo (129kW/250Nm) and entry-level naturally-aspirated (89kW/150Nm) powerplants are likely to be hooked up to manual and automatic CVTs.

However, the 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine variant is offered with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission in other MG vehicles sold in China.

Inside, the MG5 gets a premium look and feel with a large central touch-screen infotainment system, leather seats, a digital instrument cluster, multi-function steering wheel, push-button engine starter and a sunroof.

It’s not yet clear what safety systems the new MG5 will offer.

MG, formerly a British brand started in 1924, was snapped up by SAIC, one of China’s biggest auto companies, in 2007 and since then it has set about rebuilding the brand by experimenting with an array of different models.

MG Australia currently sells three models including the MG3 city-car, which is priced from $16,690 and is currently the top-selling vehicle in its price-sensitive segment.

The MG ZS small SUV, which was recently joined by the upmarket MG ZST, and the MG HS mid-size SUV have both grown their market share.

MG has experienced strong sales growth in a sluggish market and is growing its dealer network and investing heavily in new product.

While the MG5 is unlikely to arrive in Australia any time soon, the Euro-styled new small car signals the brand’s intent to continue evolving its design language, which is also mirrored in the facelifted MG HS.

MG has just launched a very different looking MG5 in the UK, which is essentially a re-badged Roewe wagon. This vehicle is an EV-only proposition for now, its 52kWh battery delivering a circa-340km range and its electric motor generating a modest 115kW/260Nm for propulsion.