MG Astor Review, First Drive: A Possible Game-Changer For Morris Garages

The MG Astor is MG Motor’s fourth product for India. We have reviewed this new mid-size SUV for you and found some really interesting things. Have a read.

MG Astor Review: I still remember very well that when MG (Morris Garages) launched the Hector in India back in June 2019, it took everyone by surprise. Such a handsome-looking, feature-loaded, big SUV at a starting price as low as Rs 12.18 lakh (ex-showroom). That was quite remarkable! The Hector actually triggered the growth of MG, with the story being taken forward by the ZS EV and the Gloster. And now, MG is ready with the Astor, which marks the entry of the automaker into the country’s hotly contested mid-size SUV segment. This space already has some formidable vehicles like the Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, Skoda Kushaq, Nissan Kicks, Renault Duster and the newly-launched Volkswagen Taigun. When a field has competitors like that, any new entrant needs to have some USPs of its own. So what does the MG Astor has in store for you? I drove it at BIC (Buddh International Circuit), Greater Noida, to find out the answers.

MG Astor Exteriors

One glance at the MG Astor and you will realise that it is completely different in terms of design from its rivals. It is more European in its style. It belongs to the ZS family and has similar crossover traits. The front has a hexagonal ‘Celestial’ grille with MG badge prominently placed in the centre. There are full-LED ‘Hawkeye’ headlamps with nine crystal diamond elements and boomerang-shaped LED DRLs that double up as turn indicators. However, the fog lamps are halogen-based and not LEDs. The neatly-designed sloping bonnet has particularly sharp lines. The new mid-size SUV sits on 17-inch dual-tone machined alloy wheels. There are disc brakes at the front and rear as standard and they have red calipers. The side profile of the MG Astor is quite similar to that of the MG ZS EV, which is on sale in India. If you look carefully, you will find that the roofline is not exactly straight and slightly sloping towards the rear. The taillamps are LED units and have segmented lights. The taillamp cluster actually mimics the headlamp cluster. The tailgate has a prominent ASTOR moniker in all caps. Just to add a bit sportiness to the rear profile, MG has placed a couple of faux chrome exhaust vents towards the bottom of the bumper. Also, the MG Astor has a lot of badges, Brit Dynamic and AI Inside on the side, and ZS and ADAS on the tailgate, to be precise.

Overall, the MG Astor looks quite big as well. If you talk about dimensions, it is 4,323mm in length, 1,809mm in width and 1,650mm in height. Its wheelbase is 2,585mm long. Barring Kicks and Duster, the Astor is actually longer, wider and taller than Creta, Seltos, Kushaq and Taigun. However, it has the shortest wheelbase in the segment. While MG has not declared the boot capacity of the Astor yet, I feel it is easily over 400 litres, and one of the biggest in the segment.

MG Astor Interiors & Features

Step inside the cabin of the MG Astor and to be honest, you will be quite surprised by the ambience. It feels really really good. There are three interior themes — dual-tone Sangria Red, dual-tone Iconic Ivory and Tuxedo Black. The car I got for testing had dual-tone Sangria Red theme. MG has been quite generous with the use of soft touch materials. Be it the leatherette-layered dashboard or leatherette-layered door trims, the overall quality is excellent. The red upholstery is definitely going to attract a lot of customers. The seats at the front as well as rear are comfortable and have decent cushioning. However, the front seats are not ventilated. But the fact that the driver seat is six-way power-adjustable is a bonus. For reference, I am 5’10 and had no problem whatsoever while driving the car. I inspected the space at the rear with the driver seat adjusted to my driving position and found out that there was ample knee room and headroom.

The flat-bottom steering wheel has controls for audio and voice, among others. With perforations on either side, it is neither too big nor too small. It seriously feels good when you hold it. I particularly liked the MG Astor’s fully digital 7-inch instrument cluster. Hands down it is one of the best in the segment. Everything displayed on it is very clear and mind you, it shoots a lot of information, related to ADAS and other functionalities. But you won’t get confused. The speedo and tacho are completely digital. The vehicle boasts a 10.1-inch touchscreen infotainment system compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. All the important functionalities of the car, including ADAS features, are controlled from this HD unit. However, I just felt that the touchscreen could have been a bit brisker and more responsive. The Astor also gets a 360-degree camera, panoramic sunroof and segment-first heated ORVMs.

The MG Astor has an extensive list of safety features. It comes with six airbags, ABS (anti-lock braking system) with EBD (electronic brakeforce distribution) and BA (brake assist), TCS (traction control system), ESP (electronic stability program), HDC (hill descent control), HHC (hill hold control), electric parking brake with autohold, emergency stop signal and TPMS (tyre pressure monitoring system).

MG Astor Personal AI Assistant, ADAS & Digital Key

The MG Astor gets an industry-first personal AI assistant. There is a small robot placed on top of the dashboard. Just say “Hello Astor” and it will look at you and respond. This cute-looking, tiny thing can understand numerous commands, including more than 35 in Hinglish! It can even crack jokes and give you information using Wikipedia. All this stuff is done with the help of an onboard Jio 4G sim. On the whole, the Astor has over 80 connectivity features that can be operated via MG i-Smart technology. MG has also partnered with MapMyIndia for maps and navigation services. The Astor owners will have access to music of their choice via JioSaavn app.

Now to the most important feature among them all. The MG Astor has ADAS (advanced driver assistance system) with 14 autonomous level 2 features, which are managed by AI technology, six radars and five cameras. This is just awesome. I mean, you get ADAS in cars of higher segments. But with MG, nothing is impossible. It had loaded the Hector back then. It has treated the Astor is a similar manner now. The ADAS includes lane assist system (lane departure warning, lane departure prevention and lane keep assist), speed assist system (speed warning, manual and intelligent), rear drive assist (lane change assist, blind-spot detection and rear cross-traffic alert), forward collision prevention (front collision warning, automatic emergency braking and automatic emergency braking – pedestrian), intelligent headlamp control and adaptive cruise control. I extensively tested Astor’s ADAS features and liked them very much. All the features were responding in the manner best-suited to the driver’s needs and I was left pretty impressed. The speed assist system read the traffic signs having speed limits very well. The lane assist system identified the lane markers on the road pretty quickly as well. Even the adaptive cruise control worked quite smoothly.

MG has introduced a segment-first digital key for the Astor. In case you lose your physical key or forget it somewhere, you can easily unlock/lock and start your car through the digital key feature, which is available in the i-Smart app and is operated via Bluetooth. What if someone steals your smartphone and tries to unlock your MG Astor using the digital key? You need not worry. After you lock your car, just disable the digital key. When you will use it next, it will first ask for a password, as it is password-protected. Just for safety purposes, do not share your digital key password and lose your phone at the same time.

MG Astor Engine & Transmission

The MG Astor has two engine and three transmission options. There is a 1.5-litre VTi-TECH naturally-aspirated petrol engine that develops 110PS of maximum power at 6,000rpm and 144Nm of peak torque at 4,400 rpm. This mill can be paired either with a 5-speed MT or a CVT automatic. Also available is a 1.3-litre Brit Dynamic 220TURBO petrol engine that produces 140PS of maximum power at 5,600rpm and 220Nm of peak torque at 3,600rpm. This motor can be had with a 6-speed AT torque converter only.

I drove the MG Astor with a 1.3-litre Brit Dynamic 220TURBO petrol engine mated to a 6-speed AT torque converter. However, I want to clarify that my time behind the wheel was limited to just four laps on the race track of BIC. As of now, I will share my initial impressions. I will say that it is an easy-going engine even though it is a turbocharged unit. Initially, there is a lag but the engine comes into its character after crossing the 1,800rpm-mark. Once the turbo kicks in, the sailing is quite smooth. Reaching triple-digit speeds is an easy task. However, I did not push the engine to its limits as I did not find it wise to do something like that with a mid-size SUV on a race track! Talking about the transmission, the 6-speed AT torque converter is slick. The upshifts and downshifts happen quite quickly. This engine and transmission combination will not really let you down if you are looking for a more relaxed drive at decent cruising speeds.

MG Astor Ride & Handling

Like I said earlier, I drove the MG Astor on the race track of BIC. Its suspension system is not very stiff. Although some body roll was evident on the track, I feel that on normal city roads the Astor’s ride is going to be very smooth and comfortable. Even when I was testing the ADAS system, I felt that the car absorbed the bumps on the roads pretty well. The cabin was not rattled even once by any irregularity on the road. Absolutely nothing channeled into the cabin that should have worried me! In city conditions and on highways, the MG Astor, with its ADAS features and ride and handling, will be an absolute pleasure to drive.

The MG Astor’s steering wheel has three modes — Urban, Normal and Dynamic. The Urban mode is basically meant for driving in city conditions. The steering feels a bit light in this mode, making it easier for you to drive in normal/heavy city traffic and helping you out while parking the vehicle. In the Dynamic mode, the steering feels heavy and more sporty. The Normal mode is in between the other two with slight modifications, being not too light or too heavy. Unfortunately, the steering doesn’t have telescopic functionality. You can only tilt it.

MG Astor Price Expectation

I believe MG should launch the Astor at a starting price of Rs 9 lakh (ex-showroom). The top-spec trim is expected to be priced close to Rs 16 lakh (ex-showroom). But in my view, the starting price is very crucial for the Astor. Even its base variant will have decent features, including a touchscreen infotainment system compatible with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Introducing the Astor at Rs 9 lakh (ex-showroom) starting price will mean that MG will have its arsenal full to not only mount a charge in the mid-size SUV segment but threaten the compact SUV players as well.

MG Astor Verdict

The MG Astor looks stunning, is loaded to the gills with features and packs a decent punch when it comes to specifications. If you want a comfortable drive for yourself and your family members, go for this car. I think all this is more than enough for you to have the Astor in your garage. The cherry on the cake would be if MG launches it at a starting price of Rs 9 lakh (ex-showroom).