SAIC drive day 2019

MG eZS, HS, MG5, MG6, LDV G50, T60, EV30, and Roewe Marvel-X
Guangde, China

SAIC Motor (previously known as the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation), sold more than seven million cars around the world last year. Among the world's automotive giants, the Chinese firm is definitely a player.

Quite apart from the joint ventures SAIC has formed with General Motors and previously Volkswagen, the company owns iconic British brands such as MG, Roewe (née Rover) and LDV (Née Leyland DAF Vans).

While Roewe products are only sold in the Chinese domestic market, MG relaunched in Australia two years ago and has been enjoying untrammelled sales success in this market.

LDV, which is also known as 'Maxus' in other markets, has been operating in Australia since 2012. In 2018 the two brands combined sold more than 9000 vehicles in Australia.

Members of the Australian motoring press attending the hometown motor show in Shanghai were also offered an opportunity to test a number of difference models at the company's Guangde proving ground, about a four-hour drive to the south of Shanghai.

Among these vehicles were a couple of sporty small cars we unfortunately won't see here and a couple of electric vehicles – one a van, the other an SUV.

Sadly, our time assessing these vehicles was necessarily brief, but long enough to gain a positive impression of each. Here's what we learned...

A mid-size SUV that replaces the MG GS already on sale in Australia, the HS is due here before the end of 2019.

When it arrives, it will be badged GS, as the factory distributor has already invested time and money in awareness and recognition of the current model line.

The test for the HS was over a ride and handling course, combining country-road surfaces with some gentle bends, some patchwork concrete and some long, low frequency dips – to test the suspension's capacity to absorb such a bump at 120km/h.

Other than one instance of crash-through on a particular stretch of undulating bitumen, the ride quality was quite composed.

Dynamically, the MG HS is underpinned by a fairly communicative chassis, although the setup is tuned more for ride comfort than handling. That said, the SUV's roadholding is secure at speed.

In the 'Trophy' all-wheel drive specification, the HS produced brisk acceleration from its upgraded 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol four-cylinder, although the performance tailed off at higher speeds.

SAIC advises that the engine's performance has been lifted by 8kW to 170kW and by 10Nm to 360Nm, which should be enough to keep the MG's segment rivals in sight. The engine drives through a six-speed dual-clutch transmission.

Standard features in this level of trim include 18-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights, Alcantara-upholstered seats, dual-zone climate control, electrically-adjustable driver's seat, panoramic sunroof, six airbags, a 10.1-inch touch-screen, 360-degree cameras, keyless entry/start, adaptive cruise control and Apple CarPlay.

As far as could be deduced from the time on the track – less than 10 minutes in all – the MG HS feels refined and runs quietly.

With as much as 80 per cent of the vehicle's interior surfaces upholstered in soft-touch materials, and adjustable vents in the back for the kids, the MG HS (or GS) could win over some hearts and minds on a dealer test drive, especially with its more appealing design and the comfortable seats fitted to the flagship model tested.

Both the MG5 and MG6 are front-wheel drive passenger cars powered by a 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine. In the case of the MG6, the engine is turbocharged and produces 124kW and 250Nm.

A seven-speed dual-clutch transmission is bolted to the engine. The smaller MG5 is a naturally-aspirated car with a continuously variable transmission. Peak power is 88kW and torque maxes out at 150Nm.

Neither car is likely to be sold in Australia, since SAIC isn't currently building either in right-hand drive, although the local distributor wishes the company would build right-hook versions.

The MG6 tested on a bitumen test track marked out with witch's hats was a tidy handler and the steering, suspension and brakes all provided enough backchat to take the car up to the limits of its adhesion without provoking anything much more than mild understeer in tighter turns.

Brake pedal feel was good enough to allow the driver to feed in enough pressure to have tyres wailing gently without triggering the ABS.

By comparison, the MG5, subjected to the same test was similarly capable, and felt more agile changing direction, but the continuously variable transmission held it back in straight-line terms. There was a distinctly slow response to the throttle from a standing start.

Two electric SUVs tested on the ride and handling course provoked some raised eyebrows from the Australian journalists driving them. Not because they were sub-par, but because they were actually very good.

Don't be concerned by the comic-like 'Marvel-X' model name, the Roewe is a very cohesive design and works in a real-world sense. We didn't get to drive the car until the afternoon, but it was still showing remaining battery capacity sufficient for a range of over 200km by the time we drove it.

Quite a handsome-looking machine, the Marvel-X embraces frontal styling that appears to be an amalgam of the latest cues from Renault and Volkswagen, plus there are Porsche Macan styling details elsewhere.

The seats in front are softly-cushioned but well shaped and the rest of the interior – especially the tan-coloured leather of the test vehicle – recalls Porsche once more.

Although the Roewe SUV was well damped for the ride and handling course at SAIC's Guangde track, it was also softly sprung. That was possibly at the expense of dynamics, to a degree, but overall, the Marvel-X felt safe under brakes and cornering.

An electric motor producing 222kW and 665Nm bestows a performance advantage on the Marvel-X, with the eZS making do with just half that output (110kW and 350Nm). Yet both vehicles felt like strong performers in a straight line.

The Marvel-X presents something of a conundrum. With its zero-emissions powertrain and battery, combined with prestige equipment, fit and finish, it could be an expensive proposition in Australia, where the market just doesn't seem ready yet for a Chinese SUV priced around the top end for medium SUVs – even an SUV that could be possibly badged as an MG.

Like the Marvel-X, the MG eZS offers sprightly acceleration and performance that's easily exploited. The MG eZS is a small SUV that feels a little more prestigious than the norm, thanks in part to the sheer silence of its electric powertrain.

It doesn't seem like it would challenge the Mazda CX-3 or Honda HR-V for domination in the small SUV segment where cornering and braking are concerned, but nor is it far adrift from those two rivals. The MG rides well and doesn't run out of puff at touring speeds.

All the EVs we drove impressed , but the EV that was the most impressive, in relative terms, was the EV30 van.

It felt a little raw, but that's the nature of light commercial vehicles, and was quick enough in a straight line and fairly quiet once the pedestrian-warning sound had faded away.

Easy to drive (although conversion to right-hand drive may see the indicator stalk remain on the left side of the steering column), the EV30 offers a better driving position than the Renault Kangoo.

And it was dynamically competent, as far as could be discerned from a brief drive around a ride and handling track.

With a 35kWh battery on board, the EV30 is claimed to offer a range of up to 200km according to the NEDC standard, and the EV30 will haul a payload of 855kg packed into a space measuring 5m³. Output is rated at 85kW and 255Nm – enough to propel the van up to its top speed of 125km/h.

The EV30 is under consideration for Australia, but there's no launch date available as yet.