MG 4 electric car earns five-star safety rating in Australia

The 2023 MG 4 – Australia’s second-cheapest new electric car – has been awarded a five-star safety rating from the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP).

While the MG 4’s score is being published in Australia in 2023, it was tested in Europe last year under ANCAP and sister organisation Euro NCAP's 2020-22 test protocols – which were superseded by stricter standards this year.

The five-star result is the first for an MG under the 2020-2022 standards, as the Chinese car maker’s last model to be awarded an ANCAP rating was in 2019, with a five-star score for the petrol-powered HS SUV.

It also marks the second time an MG electric vehicle has earned five stars from ANCAP, after the ZS EV battery-powered SUV took top marks when it was tested against less stringent criteria in 2019.

Applicable to all MG 4 grades sold in Australia and New Zealand, the electric hatchback received scores of 83 per cent for Adult Occupant Protection, 86 per cent for Child Occupant Protection, 75 per cent for Vulnerable Road User Protection (pedestrians and cyclists), and 81 per cent for Safety Assist technology.

According to ANCAP, the MG 4 performed well across the Child Occupant Protection tests, taking full marks for dynamic side impacts while scoring high in the dynamic front impact and restraint installation criteria.

The electric hatchback also scored well for Adult Occupant Protection, taking perfect scores across the side impact, oblique pole, and rescue and extraction tests – though it fared poorly for far side impacts due the lack of a centre airbag which reduces the risk of front-seat occupants clashing heads in a crash.

ANCAP noted the MG 4 posted strong results for a majority of its safety assist systems – such as seat belt reminders, driver monitoring, and autonomous emergency braking (AEB) junction assist – while all other features scored well.

The MG 4’s Vulnerable Road User Protection score came through positive results for upper and lower leg impacts, plus its AEB forward pedestrian and cyclist detection systems.

The 2023 MG 4 is due in showrooms this month, priced from $38,990 plus on-road costs – $100 more than the BYD Dolphin, which became the cheapest electric-car in Australia three days after the MG’s pricing was announced.