MG IM6 Review

Introduction

MG has been making great strides in recent years.

We perhaps shouldn’t forget that it’s lucky to be around at all, having survived the carving up of MG Rover twenty years ago.

It was taken over by the Chinese Nanjing Automobile Corporation in 2005, which itself was subsequently acquired by Shanghai-based SAIC Motor two years later.

It’s taken a while for MG to find its feet – but find its feet it most certainly has.

In part, it’s been driven by MG taking full advantage of the opportunities created by the rapidly shifting landscape in the industry, as the drive towards all-electric cars gathers pace.

The MG 4 EV arrived three years ago and was likely to be another average family car with an electric motor. That was until it wowed journalists (us included), raised expectations, and began a price war. With this car, MG proved it was possible to put a reasonably priced electric vehicle on the market without cutting any obvious corners.

MG soon followed with other cars, including the very impressive and gorgeous-looking Cyberster sports car.

And now, MG is ready to take on Tesla. Behold: the IM6 SUV.

Alongside the IM5 saloon, the IM6 is technically part of a sub-brand of MG – but this is supposedly a premium marque, so expectations are already high.

MG is promising advanced technology, long range and luxury – not to mention good looks, inside and out.

Has it succeeded? It has the track record to prove it can – so let’s take one for a ride and find out.

At A Glance

If you’re familiar with MG’s other new car, the IM5 saloon, then the IM6 will look instantly familiar.

Think of a Porsche Macan crossed with a Tesla Model Y, and you've pretty much got your IM6.

The front features boomerang-style headlights at the corners, while the sloping bonnet leaves little room for much else.

The rest of the front end is filled with carved cutouts, which look like air intakes, while a mouthy grille sits right at the bottom, sticking out its lower jaw.

At the sides, the bodywork is smooth, with pop-out door handles, while there’s a strip of black cladding on the lower part of the doors to accentuate more rugged, SUV-esque credentials.

Like the Model Y, there’s a significant slope in the roofline, while the rear sticks out significantly.

We're less keen on the back, which looks somewhat generic, with plenty of blank space and a large, darkened area spanning from side to side beneath the spoiler, housing a light bar.

Overall, though, it’s very nice to look at. It’s aggressive, sporty and attractive – and doesn’t look like an MG.

Speaking of which, there are no MG badges at all on the front, as IM is effectively getting its own branding (a bit like what Ford does with its Mustangs).

Key Features

The IM6 is available in three different models, but there aren’t any trim levels as such.

The equipment list is nearly identical across the range, with large 20 or 21-inch alloy wheels, a 26.3-inch one-piece infotainment touchscreen and driver’s display, satellite navigation, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, DAB radio and voice control.

Also included are a 10.5-inch secondary touchscreen on the centre console, a 20-speaker audio system, a 360-degree parking camera, a wireless phone charger, automatic LED headlights and taillights, and sequential indicators.

You also get power-folding door mirrors, rear privacy glass, flush door handles, dual-zone climate control, heat pump, panoramic glass roof, 256-colour ambient lighting, rain-sensing wipers, leather steering wheel and hands-free powered tailgate.

As if that weren't enough, the MG also includes heated and ventilated synthetic leather seats with 12-way driver and six-way front passenger power adjustment, as well as a four-way adjustable driver's lumbar support.

The only difference in spec is that the mid-range 100 Performance and range-topping Launch Edition models come with 21-inch alloys, as opposed to the 20-inch wheels on the entry-level Long Range model.

The Launch Edition, which, as the name suggests, is available in limited numbers, also gets air suspension, which the others don't.

In terms of performance, the Long Range version has a single motor propelling the rear wheels, outputting 407PS.

The Performance and Launch Edition models have dual motors and all-wheel drive, churning out 751PS.

Range & Batteries

All IM6s come with a 100kWh (96.5kWh usable) battery.

That's good enough for a range of 388 miles in the Long Range edition, and 313 miles in the Performance and Launch Edition versions.

Our test drive had us on course to achieve around 300 miles, which is reasonably good.

Performance & Drive

We're testing the 100 Performance model, which achieves 0-62mph in a remarkable 3.5 seconds.

That’s lightning quick – and beats Tesla’s old Model Y Performance (a new Model Y is here, but there's no Performance model yet).

It feels every bit as fast as it sounds, too, pinning you back in your seat when you floor the accelerator.

Admittedly, it feels excessive for a car of this type – the entry-level Long Range model's 5.4-second time is still very impressive and will likely suffice for most.

The power seems at odds with the car, partly due to its size, and even more so because of its weight, which is over 2.4 tonnes.

Around corners, the 100 Performance has plenty of grip and resists body lean better than we had expected. The steering is well-weighted, too, inspiring confidence when you go around a bend, though it’s not as precise as in the Model Y, which generally feels nicer to drive on twistier roads.

Tesla, for what it’s worth, has done a better job, with the Model Y feeling slightly nimbler and more agile in the bends.

But the difference is slight and, in a car like this, it probably matters very little – there is no getting away from the fact that you’re driving a large, heavy vehicle, after all – and no amount of expertise is going to be able to un-engineer the laws of physics.

Where the IM6 does show its strength, though, is in the ride comfort.

It's not class-leading, but it feels cossetting and absorbing, ironing out most creases in the road surface – all IM6s get active damping, which certainly helps.

In addition, the Launch Edition comes with air suspension, which raises the car between 20mm above and 50mm below the standard ride height. In fact, that's the only meaningful difference between the Launch Edition and the Performance model.

We haven’t tested this feature yet, but we imagine it'll only serve to improve ride comfort. Once the Launch Edition models sell out, it'll be interesting to see if MG offers this feature on the rest of the range.

Overall, straight-line performance aside, it's arguably a jack-of-all-trades and a master of none.

That’s possibly a little harsh, given its handling is reasonable and the ride comfort is a plus, but there are rivals that can beat it in each area.

Charging

The IM6 has a massive charging speed that's one of the best on the market right now – 396kW.

While you’ll struggle to find a charger capable of such speeds, if you can find one that can manage 350kW (though admittedly that’s still unlikely), MG says you'll be able to achieve a 10-80% top-up in just 17 minutes.

A 50kW public charger will achieve the same in around one and a half hours, while a 7kW home wallbox will perform a 10-100% top-up in around 16 hours.

Running Costs & Emissions

Given that the IM6 has zero emissions, it should be cheap to run despite the power at its disposal, especially if you’ll mainly be home charging it.

Road tax isn't the tax haven it once was, though, given that electric cars are now charged the same as any other car – £195 a year – although you'll get the first year for just £10.

It'll be attractive as a company car, as its low emissions mean it'll fall within the bottom band for Benefit In Kind tax.

Interior & Technology

The cabin of the IM6 certainly has the wow factor.

It’s fairly minimalist in terms of design, but it’s bathed in soft-to-the-touch, plush leather materials, with cheaper plastics hidden largely out of view.

The steering wheel has thumb indentations, as well as a slightly flatter bottom, though the roller switches on each side do look like they’ve been borrowed from Nintendo.

There is a little bit of silver trim to break up the darkness – notably around the air vents – but, in all honesty, the interior is illuminated mostly by the screens, which dominate the cabin. If you do want a brighter interior, then you can have white upholstery, which really looks the part.

The dashboard and centre console are merged together, the former sweeping around and diagonally downwards to join seamlessly onto the latter, creating a very cocooning environment for those in the front seats.

It’s a striking design, and one that’s created deliberately to house the lower 10.5-inch portrait screen, which is built into the centre console.

This will please tech boffins – it’s great to sit there and play around with all the settings – and the theory of being able to just move your hand a short distance to operate the screen.

However, when you come to move the car, things aren’t quite as rosy. Due to the position of the lower screen, you not only have to move your eyes far from the road ahead of you, making it difficult to glance at, but you also have to turn your neck so you’re not viewing the screen diagonally.

The icons are a bit on the small side, and the menu layout isn't especially intuitive. It’ll take some real getting used to, even if you’re a pro when it comes to navigating the back-ends of settings and systems on smart devices.

Really, a screen positioned like this is only worthwhile if you're going to put six or so large icons on the screen to easily navigate to menus. Using it to house myriad menus and settings doesn’t really work very well, although at least the entire system is very responsive.

Behind the steering wheel, there’s a single 26.3-inch ultrawide panoramic screen, which contains both the infotainment system and the digital instrument display. The infotainment system itself features pleasingly crisp, clear and modern graphics, and it’s nicer to use on the move than the distracting lower second screen.

But almost everything must be controlled digitally - even the air vents are positioned using the touchscreens – and, sure enough, so is the temperature and other functions of the climate control system.

Other nice touches include 256-colour ambient lighting and twenty (yes, twenty) speakers, which sound very nice.

The build quality appears to be good, as does the choice of materials. It’s a very classy interior.

Practicality & Boot Space

It's easy to find a comfortable driving position in the IM6, thanks to powered seat adjustment for both front seat occupants, although there's more adjustment functionality available for the driver.

You feel relatively high up, providing you with a decent view of the road ahead, and the top of the screens doesn't encroach into your view out of the windscreen, helped by fairly thin front pillars.

The rear windscreen doesn't extend all that far down (although, at least there is one, unlike in the Polestar 4) and, due to its rounded edges and much thicker rear pillars, it'll heavily obstruct your over-the-shoulder visibility.

Thankfully, front and rear parking sensors are included as standard, as is a 360-degree parking camera. One-touch park assist automates parking the vehicle, aided by four-wheel steering, which can crab the car into tight spots.

The front seats are reasonably comfortable, but there’s not much side support if you’re the type to be taking bends at speed.

At least there's plenty of headroom and legroom available, and despite the cocooning feel created by the merged dashboard and centre console, there's plenty of space in which you can stretch out.

Despite the sloping roofline, there are no issues with rear headroom – and, in fact, a combination of a tall rear seat occupant sitting behind a tall front seat driver still just about leaves enough legroom in the back.

Three adults in the rear won’t be particularly comfortable for long journeys, but it’s doable, so three kids in the rear won’t be a problem at all.

Boot space measures a reasonably good 665-litres, which is more than most rivals, though still considerably less than you’ll get in the gargantuan boot of the Tesla Model Y, expanding to 1,640-litres with the rear seats down.

They only fold down in a 60:40 configuration, though, rather than the more versatile and convenient 40:20:40 split you'll find in the Tesla.

There’s more underfloor storage, too, which will be useful for storing charging cables, and a 32-litre ‘frunk’ (front boot) is also provided.

As for interior storage, there are plenty of spaces to store things, including a large cubby in the centre console.

Safety

The IM6 hasn’t been safety tested by Euro NCAP yet, but there should be few concerns here, as no MG tested since 2017 has scored fewer than four stars.

The last to be assessed, the MG S5 EV, which was tested earlier this year, earned a five-star rating, scoring 90% for adults, 82% for children, and 78% for safety assists.

A couple of other MGs crash-tested in 2024 also scored similarly.

There are lots of safety gadgets, including automatic emergency braking, a tyre pressure monitoring system, rear cross traffic alert and braking, forward collision warning, and driver attention alert, including a fatigue monitoring system.

Also included are lane keep assist with lane departure warning, auto lane change, intelligent lane change, intelligent speed limit assist, traffic sign recognition, blind spot detection, and adaptive cruise control.

Options

There is no options list on the IM6 – MG has included just about everything, bar the kitchen sink, as standard.

There’s a choice of body colours, with the final list still to be confirmed.

Our test car came in blue, while we expect white, black and dark grey to be some of the other shades on offer.

Rival Cars

The IM5 is definitely trying to tempt drivers away from the Tesla Model Y.

Alternatively, there are also the VW ID.4 and ID.5, and the Skoda Enyaq.

The Kia EV6 and its cousin, the Hyundai Ioniq 5, as well as the Polestar 2 and 4, are also worth considering.

BYD offers the Sealion 7, while fellow new brand XPENG has recently launched the G6.

At the premium end of the market, the Audi Q4 e-Tron may also be worth a look at.

Verdict & Next Steps

The MG IM6 is a very tempting car that threatens to shake up the all-electric SUV leasing market.

Its straight-line speed is simply stunning, and its handling is reasonably impressive for a car of its size, even if it lacks the cutting edge of a true performance SUV.

Add that to range and charging speeds that beat the competition, as well as superb practicality, and it seems we’re on to a winner.

However, an entry-level Tesla Model Y is actually cheaper and offers even more practicality, while the IM6’s rear windscreen is small, and its touchscreen-based interior, while snazzy, isn’t convenient to use on the move.

We’d personally opt for the entry-level Long Range version, which has everything you need, including more than a sufficient amount of performance.

The odd weakness aside, this is a very good effort by MG.

However, the failure to undercut Tesla will likely be its biggest downfall.

Where to next?

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**Score based on Select’s unique meta score analysis, taking into account the UK’s top leading independent car website reviews of the MG Motor UK IM6

**Correct as of 01/09/2025. Based on 9 months initial payment, 5,000 miles annually, over a 48 month lease. Initial payment equivalent to 9 monthly payments, or £3,955.05 (Plus admin fee) Ts and Cs apply. Credit is subject to status.