India’s First Electric SUV Could Be An MG!

Earlier this year, MG Motor announced that it will launch its first-ever product in India sometime in the first half of  2019. The Chinese-owned British marque also mentioned that it would kick things off with the ZS SUV, which has been tailored for India. However, Rajeev Chaba, president and managing director of MG Motor India, confirmed that the brand is planning on following it up with an electrified version of the ZS with the powertrain borrowed from sister company and Chinese luxury carmaker Roewe’s E RX5. After all, MG Motor is one of the leading EV manufacturers in the world and what better way to establish itself than by launching a halo product that highlights the company’s recent advancements in the field of electrification.

The electrified version of the Roewe E RX5 features a 48.3kWh battery that produces 115PS and 255Nm with a claimed range of 320km. This can be further expanded to 425km, provided it is driven consistently at 60kmph. The top speed is rated at 135kmph and it can be charged up to 80 per cent in just 40 minutes using a fast charger, while a full charge takes about 7 hours with a normal charger.

The SUV caught testing near MG’s manufacturing facility in Halol, Gujarat, multiple times, was likely used to check how the batteries and the motor hold up in harsh Indian conditions. The carmaker is said to be working on setting up charging stations for home or office applications apart from expanding the infrastructure needed to run EVs in two to three cities in the country as well.

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The E RX5 boasts of many other technologically advanced features as well. Back in 2016, Roewe partnered with Alibaba to launch the ‘world’s first smartcar’. It too was based on the RX5 and ran Alibaba’s YunOS operating system, allowing it to automatically pay for fuel, parking and tolls. At the preview event of the SUV, the Chinese e-commerce giant stressed that the YunOS smartcar was not about having ‘internet in the car’, but a ‘car on the internet’. It uses a cloud-based platform to share data with other cars on the system to make the driving experience a lot more enjoyable.

However, it remains to be seen if the YunOS and cloud-based interface make it to MG’s version of the electric SUV. But considering the fact that it will be the carmaker’s flagship product, it isn’t too far fetched to think so, especially when the Hyundai Creta-sized electric ZS is likely to cost around Rs 25 lakh. That would be an aggressive target for the fledgling car maker, but Mr Chaba expects local assembly and lower taxes for EVs could make the electric ZS a viable proposition. He expects the numbers to be well into the high triple digits on a yearly basis.

MG Motor isn’t the only carmaker planning to launch a flagship electric car in India. Earlier this year, Hyundai showcased the Ioniq sedan in both hybrid and electric guises as well as the Kona EV at the 2018 Auto Expo. Of the two cars, the latter has a better chance of making it to the Indian market. It offers similar levels of performance as MG’s upcoming electric SUV and is expected to cost around the same since it will be imported to the country via the CKD-route. Read more about it here. But, which one comes in first will be interesting to see. The MG electric-ZS is expected to arrive in the last quarter of 2019.