MG 4 EV Urban: A small hatch with room for your whole day

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You’d be lying if you said you hadn’t got to the end of a day and, after accumulating multiple things throughout said day, you’re still finding things in your car that you were supposed to take inside last week.

We’ve all been there and done that. We all live busy lives. And we require multiple items when we head out for ‘a bit’, yet we also collect more along the way.

Meet the MG 4 EV Urban, which helps make sense of the busy lives we all live.

On the outside, it’s a small electric hatch that’s easy to drive around the city, but it has enough room inside to accommodate everything that comes with actually living with one.

Including, as I discovered, a very tall person with very long legs.

As expected, this smart, sensible city hatch slots naturally into the small hatchback category, and it’s the sort of car that gets you from A to B easily and without issue.

On the inside, it’s a different story. One with a few hidden secrets. Actually, it has 30 secrets – storage spaces, that is.

On the inside

At 186cm tall, I have a fairly immediate way of assessing a car’s interior and, in particular, its legroom.

Getting comfortable behind the wheel is one thing; finding out what’s left for the person sitting behind me is usually the more revealing exercise, and quite often I am left apologising – or, if I’m the one in the back, asking for the person in front to move forward.

So as part of the challenge of taking on the MG 4 EV Urban for a day in my life, I set the driver’s seat to my normal position, got out and climbed into the back – standard test procedure for me, really.

And, to my very happy surprise, I fitted. Behind my own driving position. Without moving the front seat forward. And I had room, too!

That might sound like a straightforward test, but when you’re my height, it’s a big deal.

My driving position takes up space, and being able to sit behind it comfortably made me reconsider how much room this hatch actually has. Looking at it from outside, I hadn’t expected the back seat to be such a strong part of the story.

Rear passenger room matters, especially when you’re picking up friends or taking colleagues somewhere.

The flat rear floor also helps by giving whoever sits in the middle one less thing to arrange their feet around. The MG 4 EV Urban feels well considered in the way it accommodates rear-seat passengers and the space they need.

But there’s more.

In the boot

Opening the comfortably sized 382-litre boot, I was already impressed with the amount of space on offer.

But then you lift the floor and find more room underneath. In fact, you find a whole extra 98L of space, taking your total boot capacity to a whopping 480L, which is massive for a small city hatch.

That extra compartment gives you more flexibility in how you pack your car. You can separate smaller items from the main compartment to make better use of the space available, and also feel secure when you walk away from the car that things are hidden.

It’s also a great space to store charging cables, which can get in the way if you’re using your own cables all the time. And, if you want or need even more space, fold the rear seatbacks down and you now have a mammoth 1266L to play with.

This also speaks to something I appreciate in an everyday car: the ability to hide a little chaos. Having somewhere to put things away makes the whole space tidier and feel more manageable. My day might involve three outfit changes and a shopping stop, but everything doesn’t have to be on display.

That thoughtfulness carries through to the whole cabin. The storage spaces feel considered, with places for the everyday bits and pieces you bring along. It’s easy to focus on the biggest space in a car, but the smaller ones earn their keep every time you get in. Having somewhere convenient for the things you reach for makes a difference.

Put it all together and the MG 4 EV Urban feels well suited to a day that keeps changing shape. You might head out with a work bag, add a passenger, then come home with shopping as well. Having room to accommodate those changes is what makes a car easy to live with over time.

More of everything

Its city-hatch proportions and clever storage solutions remain part of the appeal of the MG 4 EV Urban, but being able to park in tight spots and get around busy streets also matters.

Having room for people and their belongings is important, but not if that extra practicality compromises the things that make a car manageable and easy to live with.

The 54kWh version of the MG 4 EV Urban offers up to 405km of WLTP range, while the 43kWh version is rated for 316km, which is still plenty for a city car.

And both models pack plenty of punch, as well as all of the modern creature-comforts we’ve come to expect and require, including:

• Apple CarPlay or Android Auto
• 12.8-inch infotainment touchscreen
• 7.0-inch digital instrument cluster
• Wireless phone charging
• Heated front seats and steering wheel

The MG 4 EV Urban gets you moving, does the day job, and gives the things you carry somewhere to go.

For me, fitting comfortably said plenty. Finding that extra room under the boot floor sealed the impression: this small city hatch can fit a lot more into your day than you’d expect.

MORE: Explore the MG 4 EV Urban showroom