MG has unveiled the facelifted ZS EV facelift globally, and before you mistake it for a Tesla, let us assure you that it’s really an MG. We get why you would mistake the MG ZS EV for a Tesla though — out goes the ‘celestial’ chrome grille seen on the soon-to-be-launched Astor, and instead it gets a body-coloured grille housing a charging port, which is now placed slightly to the right of the grille, as opposed to the centrally-located charging port on the existing model. MG will offer the facelifted ZS EV internationally in two variants — SE and Trophy. There will be a 72kWh long-range variant first, followed by a 51kWh variant will also be added to the lineup internationally next year
We’ve already covered a lot about the design of the MG ZS EV facelift, but there are a few more aspects left. Aside from the fully-covered grille, the MG ZS EV facelift also gets new LED headlamps with DRLs, a redesigned rear bumper, and a new design for the alloy wheels.
It’s under the skin where the real changes have taken place. The MG ZS EV facelift will be offered with a 72kWh battery. For reference, the existing ZS EV has a 44.5kWh battery. The MG ZS EV facelift will get an onboard AC charger which will provide 7kW fast charging with Type 2 and CCS2 standards. There will also be a 76kW DC fast charger. The AC charger will take up to 10.5 hours for a full charge, while the same on a 100kW rapid charger will take just 42 minutes.
Talking about the range, the long-range 72kWh variant gets a claimed range of 439km on the WLTP cycle, while the 51kWh variant will get a claimed range of 318km on the WLTP cycle.
In terms of interior and equipment, the MG ZS EV gets a new 10.1-inch tablet-style touchscreen infotainment system compared to the 8-inch system on the existing ZS EV. Additionally, there’s also the MG iSmart system connectivity system, along with a new instrument cluster and wireless charging. The rest of the interiors remain unchanged.
MG hasn’t made any official announcement regarding an India launch, but given the launch of the Astor, we expect the MG ZS EV facelift to make its way here sometime in 2022. If launched, we can expect a hike from the current price tag of Rs 20.99 lakh (ex-showroom) of the existing ZS EV.
You can click here to read our take on the MG Astor that's going to be launched very soon.