Looking for an SUV? MG ZS Pro is a must for every shopping list

“Why aren’t there more MGs on the road?” was my first question to my motoring colleagues after returning from a short trip to Kaapsehoop in Mpumalanga in their long-term MG ZS Pro SUV.

Now I’m no car expert – as I’ve told you before – but I know if something’s good and nice and worth the money I’m spending. So it was pleasing, and encouraging, to hear that there are quite a few MGs on our roads already. And with sales picking up we are likely to see many more of them in our neighbourhoods in the months ahead.

The MG ZS Pro is an updated version of the ZS, MG’s SUV range available in South Africa. The Chinese-owned British marque returned to Mzansi last year.

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It’s a supergood-looking car, as attractive as anything similar to it on the road. And anytime as impressive as the large numbers of Chinese cars now on the market. It’s certainly going to give them a run for their money in the coming months.

MG ZS Pro has space to boot

One of the first things that struck me about the ZS Pro was its boot space. Compared to many vehicles on the road now and even the big plug-in hybrids, where you’re required to drop the backrow of seats to maximise the boot space, the MG ZS’s boot size is really good. At 443 litres, three marathon runners were able to easily pack in all their gear, plus a few boxes and cooler bags of food, condiments and whatever else we needed for three days at a self-catering home among the horses in the hilltop retreat of Kaapsehoop.

Once closed, the back looks very much like the BMW X1 and X3. The flagship ZS Pro Luxury we drove also features silver roof rails, integrated indicator lamps on the body-colour side mirrors and rides 18-inch black and silver alloy wheels.

On the inside it’s also really plush. The soft touch dashboard and door trims with contrast stitching and perforated simulated leather seats are luxurious and stylish. There’s a bit of plastic as well, which looks a bit out of place in such a plush cabin.

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Lots of creature comforts

There’s everything you need from an infotainment system, the electronic parking brake is great and so is the hill-hold control and the sunroof is a big bonus. It’s got all the modern-day sensors to assist with reversing and so on, but an irritant is definitely the lane departure warning sensor that bleeps unnecessarily while the speed limit warning sensor drove me mad at times.

This “speed limit” function predetermines the speed limit on every road. Out on the highway it’s perfectly fine, but it can get very irritating in a 60km zone. It even beeped in some instances after I’d reached 30km on certain roads. These are minor issues, though they could put some people off.

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There is more than enough leg room in front and at the back and there’s definitely a feeling of spaciousness inside the cabin. I really liked the look of the automatic gear-shift and steering-wheel, which also felt good in the hands.

The 1.5-litre turbocharged engine sends 125kW of power and 275Nm of torque to the front wheels via CVT. Even with out full load, there was always enough power when in need of more urge on the open road.

Right car at the right price

Fuel consumption for our 800km round trip came in at a touch over seven kilometres per 100km, which is very commendable. After almost 2 000km, the overall consumption is 8.9L/100km.

The MG ZS Pro handled very well on the open road and while the dirt roads we drove on in Kaapsehoop weren’t bad at all, there were a few bumps to navigate and this MG handled them superbly.

I was super impressed with everything about the ZS. It retails for R431 500 and includes a five-year/200,000km warranty, a seven-year/unlimited-kilometre engine warranty, and a five-year/90,000km service plan.

MG have nailed it with the ZS Pro. It’s a fabulous car at a good price. For those in the market, give it a try, you’ll be pleasantly surprised. I was, and I can’t wait to get behind the wheel of the ZS again. Perhaps I’ll put myself in the market as well.