MG Comet EV – A Problem Solver?

What is an ideal city car? Is it the one with the most compact size or the one with the light steering or is it one with sufficient power and economy to manage the city traffic? Well, this list is never ending. But what if I told you there is a new model that checks all these boxes and goes beyond to protect the environment in doing so too!!

Presenting to you the new MG Comet EV, India’s cheapest and smallest electric city car. This tiny two-door is MG Cars answer to India’s most gruesome urban mobility problems. Learning from the short-comings of its predecessor (the Mahindra Reva), the Comet EV promises to offer more tech, features and range to its owners. In this story, we are going to look at the design, interiors, features and drivetrain performance of the new Comet EV and decide if it is worth the Rs 7.98 lakh (ex-showroom) price tag.

MG Comet EV: Exterior Design

The new MG Comet EV sits on a bespoke born electric platform sourced from SAIC. The Global Small Electric Vehicle (GSEV) platform allows for MG to package the car better liberating more room on the inside while maintaining a short overall footprint.

At first glance, one might call the Comet EV’s exterior design quirky. Featuring a tall boy appearance, the car gets a steeply raked windscreen along with a short bonnet which end well above the shoulder line. The block faced EV features a large blanked-off grille that houses the dual-chamber LED headlights and a new charging port with a glowing MG logo.

In profile, one can appreciate the compact nature of this four-wheeler. The bespoke EV architecture allows for the wheels to be pushed to the extremities creating tiny overhangs and long wheelbase. Key highlights towards the sides include tiny 12-inch wheels with aero-cover, prominent shoulder line and a large vertical rear window which drops below the DLO line allowing more light to enter the cabin.

Moving to the rear, we once again get to see a flat tailgate featuring a short wind screen and tiny LED taillamps. Other highlights include a roof spoiler, high-mounted stop lamp and large bumper with vertically stacked reflectors. Keen observers would also have noted the lack of a rear windscreen wiper, which MG has decided to entirely skip on this model.

Another new highlight on the front and rear of the Comet is the inclusion of a light bar that extends from mirror to mirror. These lights help amplify the width, creating a visually larger appearance for the model.

So overall, one may not fall in love with the Comet’s design instantly, but the look is sure to grow on you.

MG Comet EV: Interior

Unlike the exterior, the interior of the All-New MG Comet is more in sync with other mainstream hatchbacks. The first thing to notice when you step foot inside the cabin is the premiumness on offer.

The large glass panels along with the new grey and white colour scheme make the cabin airy which creates a sense of space on the inside. Despite the large glass area and the born electric platform liberating room, you sit close to the person next to you making the cabin feel narrow.

The narrow cabin is provided with seats that are large and accommodating with good amount of travel for both the base and the backrest. While the seats are large, the car completely skips on adjustable headrest and height adjust for the driver’s seat. In order to make up for this lack of height adjust, MG has set the driver seat base higher than normal making it difficult to find a comfortable driving position.

While the front seats offer enormous amount of room, the story at the rear is different.

Access to the rear seats is only allowed from the co-driver side door. To enter one needs to fold and slide the front passenger seats out of the way, liberating enough room to wiggle in. Once inside, the space on offer is better than the third row of many SUVs/MPVs. There is enough space in terms of headroom (thanks to the tall boy design), shoulder and knee room. While you sit knees up, it isn’t too shabby for the city run that this car plans to do. The 50:50 rear seat makes accommodating two full size adults easy, but one may find the lack of storage space and rear AC vents odd.

In addition, the company has also decided to skip on any closed storage spaces on the inside. The only storage options are the slim door pockets along with a recess in the dashboard and two cup holders in front of the AC vents.

While the born electric platform has allowed for liberation of more room on the inside it has severely impacted the boot space of the hatchback. The tiny EV now get only sufficient space to carry the charging cables and a laptop bag.

MG Comet EV: Features

In terms of features, the EV comes equipped with dual-floating 10.25-inch screens, one for infotainment and the other for the drivers instrument cluster. Other premium highlights include rotary knobs for AC control, twin-spoke steering wheel with iPod-like buttons, rotary drive selector and an AirPods case like key fob among others.

The touchscreen is large and vivid offering good off-angle view in harsh sunlight. The updated screen also gets good touch response and cleaner UI with customisable widgets for the home screen. The car also offers wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto among others for a seamless user experience.

The all-digital instrument cluster is carried from the Wuling Air and features a dark theme as standard. The large screen displays essential information like state of charge, range, speed and gear indicator. But a large part of the screen is occupied by the MG Comet icon which alludes to ADAS tech, which isn’t the case on the India model. MG could have designed the layout of the instrument cluster to display essential information better.

Other standard equipment on offer include a leatherette-wrapped steering wheel alongside keyless entry and go. Enhancing the functionality of the cabin, the new model also gets two luggage hooks in front of the central tunnel along with dual USB ports. The company has also neatly integrated a USB slot in the rear-view mirror for easy installation of a dash cam.

On the safety front, the car comes equipped with dual front airbags, ABS with EBD, tyre pressure loss indicator, ISOFIX mounts and a rear parking camera with sensors.

Overall, the MG Comet EVs cabin is a comfortable place for anyone who travels short distances within the city.

MG Comet EV: Powertrain and Performance

The first thing you notice when you sit inside the Comet EVs cabin is its tall driving position and large glass area. Ingress and egress is easy due to the tall-boy design and wide opening doors. While the view out is excellent, the lack of height adjust for the driver seat makes finding a comfortable driving position hard.

In terms of performance, the MG Comet EV comes powered by a 17.3 kWh Lithium-Ion battery pack that is rated for a claimed range of 230 kms. While the 42 bhp and 110 Nm performance from the single rear mounted motor is not electrifying, it is sufficient to chug along the city and in keep up with the slow-moving traffic. Despite its lacklustre performance figures, the car responds well to throttle input and picks up pace with ease. And for the occasional overtakes, the company has provided a drive mode selector with three modes: Eco/Normal/Sport.

The light steering and the small footprint make driving and parking an ease on congested city roads. While the agility of the car at slow speeds is commendable, its high-speed behaviour is best described as sketchy.  At speeds above 60 kmph, the four-wheeler feels floaty and risky to drive.

The car also offers a very harsh ride to its occupants at all speeds. The lack of support from the tiny wheels and the soft suspension sends jolts right to the cabin when going over bad roads, bumps and potholes.

Overall, the MG Comet EV is best suited for city driving at speeds between 40 to 50 kmph. Besides the EV also gets an accurate range indicator which in the real world returns a milage of around 200 kms on a single full charge.

MG Comet EV: Verdict

So having considered everything, the MG Comet EV makes perfect sense as the second car/ city car for any family. The tiny hatchback offers sufficient range for everyday errands along with class-leading tech that makes your drive a pleasurable one. While the Rs 7.98 lakh (ex-showroom) price tag might seem steep, it is a good principal investment as the car offers maintenance free ownership for 5-years and lowest running cost of Rs 150 for 200 kms driving.