IM Presented by MG review: What the popular marque’s new premium brand is really like to drive

Re-establishing itself in Australia through models such as the ZS, HS, MG3 and MG4, it’s now time for ‘MG2.0’ – these new premium electric cars introduced under the IM Presented by MG sub-brand are the latest to expand the marque’s offering in this market.

The IM part of the name is from the premium arm of SAIC – MG’s parent company – as it begins to export its cars to markets such as Australia and the UK. For now, it’s offering the mid-size liftback sedan IM5 and the mid-size SUV IM6, with pricing starting at a keen $60,990 drive away. If you’re after a mid-size EV, should the IM range be on your test drive list? A brief taste at the local launch goes some way to answering that question…

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IM5 and IM6 pricing (drive away)

We had fairly limited time in the IM range at the local launch, but were able to gauge interior quality and user-friendliness of the technology. The vast majority of the cabin is covered in synthetic leather upholstery, from the comfortable seats to the dashboard and door tops. It all feels relatively premium, though it is obviously not real leather trim.

Centre of the cabin is a huge 26.3-inch display, which includes both the touchscreen and driver’s display. We didn’t get to use it for an extended amount of time, but it’s fully featured with wireless and wired smartphone mirroring, sat-nav, live services, apps such as Spotify and FM/DAB+ radio, though no AM radio.

Sitting below that is another touchscreen, which controls features such as the seats and HVAC system. Even from our brief testing, that second screen will likely cause distractions while driving as it takes the driver’s eyes away from the road and controls a lot of the car’s functionality. Plus, there is very little in the way of physical buttons inside the cabin, with almost all functions is controlled by the screens.

Rear seat space in both the IM5 and IM6 is healthy, and two adults will be fine, though they’re definitely not as spacious as equivalent Tesla models. Passengers will like the magnets in certain places in the cabin, such as on the back of the front seats, which will allow them to buy adaptors to hold tablets and other accessories. While the back seat features a lot of amenities, including heated seats, there is only one USB-C charging port.

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The boot of the IM5 measures 457 litres with the seats up (1290L with them folded), and between 646 litres and 665 litres in the IM6 with the seats up (1621-1640L with them folded). Both cars feature big-looking boots with a big extra storage section, though no spare wheel. Handily, both the IM5 and IM6 feature a front boot for extra storage.

There are three drivetrain options in the IM5 and IM6 range, with the entry-level Premium featuring a 75kWh LFP battery for up to 490km of range in the IM5 (450km in the IM6). That’s mated to a rear-mounted 217kW/450Nm electric motor, allowing for a 6.8-second 0-100km/h time in both the IM5 and IM6. The Premium models use a cheaper 400V architecture for a peak charging speed of 163kW and a 30 to 80 per cent charge time of around 20 minutes.

Step up to the mid-spec Platinum and a higher-rate 800V architecture is added for a peak charge speed of 396kW, which is one of the highest in Australia and allows for the same 30 to 80 per cent charge just over 15 minutes. The Platinum uses a 300kW/500Nm rear-mounted electric motor, which cuts the 0-100km/h sprint to 4.9 seconds for the IM5 and 5.4 seconds for the IM6.

The top-spec Performance adds a front-mounted second electric motor for peak outputs of 572kW/800Nm, enough for a 3.2 second 0-100km/h sprint for the IM5 (3.4 seconds for the IM6), which is just 0.1 seconds behind a Tesla Model 3 Performance and the IM5 Performance’s 268km/h top speed is 7km/h higher.

We spent only a short amount of time behind the wheel of the IM cars at the local launch, and will report more on them once we’re able to get them for extended testing. The local launch involved learning about the IM’s clever parking and crab walking functionality, as well as being shown the Performance variant’s ferocious sprinting ability.

On our brief test drive, the IM5 Performance was comfortable and very quiet. The smooth roads of the launch location provided little to judge ride quality on, but its speed ability is impressive for such an unassuming-looking car. IM claims that it’ll hit 100km/h in just 3.2 seconds (the IM6 Performance is a touch slower at 3.4 seconds) and like other EVs, it’s remarkably easy to do: just pop it into sport mode, press the brake, plant the throttle and you’re off. It’s absurdly fast and will easily make you feel sick if you do it repeatedly.

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The IM range is equipped with four-wheel steering as standard, which makes its low speed turning circle equivalent to that of a small hatchback, according to IM. In reality, it’s breathtakingly easy to manoeuvre thanks to the 4WS system, and feels quite nimble in low speed driving situations.

We were also able to test the IM range’s self-parking ability: once a spot is chosen and start is pressed, the car completely takes over the driving and thanks to the four-wheel steering, can put you into tighter spots than you imagined. It’s not just for parallel parking, however, as it can also do perpendicular and will happily pull you out of a spot as well. It’s an impressive system to use, and is quite easy to select from the lower touchscreen.

The IM range is covered by a seven-year/unlimited km warranty with seven years of roadside assistance if serviced with MG – if not, a five-year/unlimited km warranty applies – with the battery covered by a separate eight-year/160,000km warranty.

The IM range’s service intervals are once-yearly/every 20,000km (whichever comes first) and five years/100,000km of servicing costs $2815 for the Premium and Platinum and $3015 for the Performance.

Verdict: Should I buy an IM by MG?

While we’re yet to fully experience them, our first taste of the IM by MG range suggests that another worthy electric car manufacturer has entered the Australian new car market. As you’d expect for a brand under the MG name, IM goes hard on the value equality of its products and considering that each model features four-wheel steering, a long range, good performance, excellent charging speeds and a long list of standard equipment, we think they’re quite good value.

A lot of question marks remain over the IM range such as the ride and handling, real world efficiency and how easy the buttonless interior is to interact with at speed. But based on our first taste of the IM by MG range, they’re definitely worthy of consideration if you’re after something like a Tesla Model 3 or Model Y, or BYD Seal range. We look forward to further testing the IM by MG range soon, and will bring you the full review then.

IM5 and IM6 Premium standard equipment

• 19-inch (IM5)/20-inch (IM6) alloy wheels with a tyre repair kit
• Four-wheel steering
• Dusk-sensing automatic all-LED exterior lighting
• Rain-sensing automatic wipers
• Keyless entry and start
• Hands-free electric tailgate
• Head/auto-folding mirrors that drop in reverse
• Panoramic glass roof
• Laminated glass, rear privacy glass
• Synthetic leather upholstery
• 12-way electric driver’s seat
• Dual-zone automatic climate control with rear vents
• Heated and ventilated front seats, heated outboard rear seats and steering wheel
• 26.3-inch display incorporating the central touchscreen and driver’s display
• Wireless and wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• Satellite navigation
• Live services with MG’s iSmart app
• Wireless phone charger
• 2x USB-C charging ports
• 20-speaker sound system
• FM/DAB+ digital radio
• Selectable driving modes
• Automatic parking (including one touch parking, kerbside, pulling out and reversing the last 100 metres)
• ‘Crab walk’ functionality
• Nap and night driving modes
• 256-colour selectable ambient lighting

IM5 and IM6 Premium safety features

• 7x airbags
• Autonomous emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian, cyclist and intersection assistance
• Adaptive cruise control
• Lane keeping assistance
• Adaptive lane guidance
• Blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert (with braking)
• Traffic sign recognition
• Driver attention monitoring
• Door open warning
• Front, side and rear parking sensors
• 360-degree camera
• Tyre pressure monitoring

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Specs

Models: IM5 and IM6
Price: From $60,990 drive away (Premium), $69,990 D/A (Platinum), $80,990 DA (Performance)
Battery: 75kWh LFP (IM5 and IM6 Premium) or 100kW NMC (IM5 and IM6 Platinum and
Performance)
Claimed range: 655km (IM5 Platinum), 575km (IM5 Performance), 490km (IM5 Premium)
555km (IM6 Platinum), 505km (IM6 Performance), 450km (IM6 Premium)
Peak charging speed: 153kW (IM5 and IM6 Premium), 396kW (IM5 and IM6 Platinum and
Performance)
30 to 80% charge time: 20 minutes (IM5 and IM6 Premium), 15.2 minutes (IM5 and IM6 Platinum
and Performance)
Drivetrain: Single rear motor: 217kW/450Nm (IM5 and IM6 Premium) or 300kW/500Nm (IM5 and
IM6 Platinum), dual motor: 572kW/802Nm (IM5 and IM6 Performance)
0-100km/h: 6.8 seconds (IM5 and IM6 Premium), 5.4 seconds (IM6 Platinum), 4.9 seconds (IM5
Platinum), 3.4 seconds (IM6 Performance), 3.2 seconds (IM5 Performance)
Top speed: 200km/h (IM5 and IM6 Premium), 220km/h (IM5 Platinum), 235km/h (IM6 Platinum),
239km/h (IM6 Performance), 268km/h (IM5 Performance)
Dimensions (L/W/H/WB): 4931/1960/1474/2950mm (IM5), 4904/1988/1669/2950mm (IM6)
Boot space: 457 litres (seats up), 1290 litres (seats folded) (IM5), 646-665 litres (seats up), 1621-
1640 litres (seats folded) (IM6) plus 18 litre (IM5) or 32 litre (IM6) frunk
On sale: Now