MG has already established itself as one of the go-to brands for people with a tighter budget who are looking for a new EV. And now MG is aiming to up its offering by bringing the tri-motor Marvel R SUV to Europe.

MG is calling the Marvel R a ‘new generation battery electric vehicle’ and looks to be gunning for brands such as Hyundai and Kia, and even VW with its ID.4. It will come with on-board tech, range and performance that is broadly on-par with other mainstream rival cars. Moreover, it’s easily the best-looking MG to have been revealed thus far.

Design and tech

We sincerely hope that the MG Marvel R is a sign of things to come from the brand. There’s nothing intrinsically wrong with its current EVs (which are essentially re-badged Chinese market cars), but they don’t exactly get the heart pumping with their dynamism.

The Marvel R employs MG’s ‘Evolution’ design language and is characterised as ‘Tech Style’. Fluffy design language aside, the front and rear ends with their distinctive lighting and grilles/vents are very contemporary. We think the shape of the nose and headlights could well become a distinctive feature of future MGs.

It’s a bit bigger in all dimensions than the MG ZS EV at 4674mm long, 1919mm wide and 1618mm tall, whist there is a generous 2800mm wheelbase. The boot isn’t massive at 357 litres but fold the seats down and there’s 1396 litres to play with, plus a 150 litre frunk.

Inside, things are equally positive. The multi-function steering wheel, 12.3 inch digital instrument cluster and very large 19.4 inch floating touchscreen help to give it a premium look. The car comes with MG Pilot advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) so we suspect there is at least some level of autonomy available. Finally, vehicle to load (V2L) can supply 2500W of power for external use, so you could theoretically mow the lawn by plugging into the Marvel R.

Powertrain and charging

Unfortunately, MG hasn’t given us any specs for the battery in the Marvel R, however, it is promising a range of around 250 miles – less than the 64kWh Hyundai Kona Electric and Kia e-Niro, but not by much. It will charge to 80 per cent in 30 minutes using DC fast charging and has an 11kW on-board AC charger.

We usually associate tri-motor with Tesla and its stupidly fast models. In the case of the MG Marvel R, the tri-motor setup offers a still impressive 284bhp and 490lb-ft of torque meaning a very sprightly 0-62mph dash in 4.9 seconds. It should nail quite a few cars to 30, too, as this takes just 1.8 seconds. Top speed is 124mph, whilst all this power enables the car to tow a maximum of 750kg.

Price and availability

Prices for the MG Marvel R are TBC at the moment, but there is a catch when it comes to availability: at present MG is resisting selling the car here in the UK. It seems that the plan is to use this more modern, higher-spec car as a way of tempting mainland European buyers away from more mainstream manufacturers and establish a foothold in the market. Here in the UK, MG has done ok since its relaunch, so there’s less of a need to bolster its position.

We really hope they do decide to bring the Marvel R to the UK. It will sell and it will inevitably elevate the MG brand along the way.