Automobile Review | First Drive: MG Comet EV is fun to drive in city

PUNE: The British marquee, owned by Chinese car giant SAIC, has introduced a new, funky urban electric hatchback called MG Comet EV which is boxy, tall and upright.

This spacious Comet is definitely disruptive with its unconventional looks and design, all set to woo a wholly different kind of buyer. It is a crazy city centric car and the company has taken a big gamble on it. Will it work?

The Exteriors:

Undoubtedly, the MG Comet EV is the smallest car in India at just 2.9m long, 1.5m wide and 1.6m tall, and with its tiny 12-inch wheels pushed out to the corners, its wheelbase is 2,010mm. In a way, its shame somewhat reminds you of the Tata Nano. But its design is premium, attractive due to its generous use of chrome, contrasting colours and lots of LEDs – in the headlamps, tail-lamps, wing-mirror indicators and distinctive light bars at the front and rear. In fact, the lighting looks especially premium thanks to the high-quality elements within each projector unit. Even the MG logo lights up.

The two-door car is also a bold departure from convention. The charging port is in the nose, there is no front boot and on the tailgate is MG’s now-ubiquitous ‘Internet Inside’ badge. The car comes in four colours: the metallic grey, black and white, and the Apple Green. All do come with black pillars and roofs but you may also choose from MG’ catalogue of styling and decal packs to your liking, which are pretty good.

The Interiors:

Inside, it is spacious and the seats are set high and are comfortable.

The dashboard is tiny and pushed far back against the base of the large windscreen, liberating a huge amount of space between it and the driver. The glasshouse is massive, letting in a lot of light and giving a superb view out.

The car provides no central storage but just two small bag hooks that fold out from under the dash. There is also no glove box, just a shallow shelf, and between the seats, there is a narrow centre console housing the window switches, handbrake and drive selector. However, the door pockets are huge and extend far enough back for the rear passengers to use them too. For the back passengers to get in, you have to swing open the large door, and slide off the front seats. But once seated, the space is quite decent, even for tall passengers, but it is only meant for two as the car provides no third seat belt. There is no boot space at the rear except a slim slot behind the seats which is good enough to place in the charging cable and a laptop bag.

The Comet is well equipped, with the likes of connected car tech, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a leatherette-wrapped steering wheel, and keyless entry and go. You can even unlock the car with your smartphone. But there is no wireless charging, auto climate control or auto headlamps, which are features that would have fit with the Comet’s upwardly urban appeal. On the safety front, there are two airbags, ABS with EBD, a tyre-pressure loss indicator, a rear parking camera and sensors, and ISOFIX child seat mounts.

MG Comet battery and range:

The MG Comet uses a 17.3kWh prismatic cell lithium-ion battery sourced from Tata Autocomp, which allows it a claimed range of 230km on the MIDC cycle. The car gets 10-80 per cent charged in 5 hours and 100 per cent in 7 hours. This figure is at the Comet’s max charging rate of 3.3kW on a Type 2 AC fast charger, which MG can install at your home or office. MG Comet’s power and torque outputs are 42hp and 110Nm, respectively.

You can start the Comet by simply depressing the brake pedal for two seconds, and switch off by getting out and locking the car. You can also use the emergency ‘off’ switch hidden under the dashboard. Once you start, the car moves smoothly. The car provides three drive modes – Eco, Normal and Sport, and of course there is a discernible difference between them. Eco can feel a bit too suppressed for the cut and thrust of Indian traffic, so you might want to use Normal for most situations. On my test drive, the fastest I could go was around 80 to 100 kph which was a smooth drive whenever the roads were empty. I must admit, the steering is nice and light, allowing for easy manoeuvrability around town. Driving around the city is fun and smooth through potholes and speed breakers even as it occasionally thuds through.

Should I buy it?

Essentially, the Comet is a limited city use EV for the first-time car buyers as well as those owning one in their garages. The Comet will be used to either commute alone, or with a spouse, drop and collect kids to and from school, and go to movies with two or three friends. The car is not meant for long trips on highways. With ease of parking, manoeuvrability, low running costs (MG claims Rs 519 a month), an attractive introductory starting price of Rs 7.98 lakh, and a funky appeal, Comet has all the ingredients to open the purse strings.