The MG IM5 has 400+ miles of range, charges super-fast and costs less than £42k – but is it better than a Tesla Model 3?

The Tesla Model 3 is an absolutely brilliant car. It’s one of the most efficient and longest-range EVs you can buy, is packed with tech, very practical, and remarkably affordable. It’s the mid-sized electric car benchmark that everything else is judged against.

Cars like the MG IM5, for example. This is MG’s flagship EV, and it’s a really interesting one on paper. It goes almost as far as the Model 3, charges much faster, has even more standard equipment and a good chunk of extra power.

I’ve spent plenty of time in both cars, doing long trips cross-country as well as tackling the rural roads round where I live and the cramped streets of my nearest city. And despite the Tesla’s general excellence, I think it has a bit of a fight on its hands with the IM5.

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Take the price tags, for example. The Model 3 starts from less than £38,000, which is great value, though the version you really want is the Long-Range, Rear-wheel Drive Premium which comes in at £44,990. But the IM5 undercuts that, with a Carwow price of £41,888 for the comparable Long Range model. It’s also slightly cheaper to lease.

How do the stats stack up? Let’s take a look…

As you can see, the two cars take rather different approaches. The IM5 takes more of a brute-force approach – it has a huge battery, lots of power, and charges really quickly. The Model 3 has more modest stats, but makes more of them – it gets a longer official range from around 80% of the battery capacity, which is very impressive.

Will you see those figures in the real world? Of course not – but during my time in both cars, I’ve tested out their long-distance efficiency. On a mixed route, I got about 320 miles from the MG and 360 miles from the Model 3 – a bigger gap than the figures suggest, and another demonstration of just how efficient the Tesla is.

The IM5 charges much faster. A 10-80% top-up takes just 17 minutes at a suitably powerful public station, where the Tesla takes ten minutes more for the same percentage.

That probably won’t make too much of a difference to you in the real world, though – Tesla’s fantastic route-mapping and easy access to the Supercharger network more than makes up for that deficiency, while its greater efficiency means you won’t need to stop so often in the first place. There aren’t as many public chargers that can deliver the 400kW the MG needs for top speed, either.

The extra acceleration on tap might just sell the IM5 to you. It feels really muscular, and if the 407hp model isn’t quite perky enough for you, there’s a Performance model with a borderline-ridiculous 751hp. The Model 3 Performance has just 460hp and costs more than £10,000 extra, though it’s actually marginally quicker from 0-62mph.

To drive, both cars have their advantages. The IM5 is a great motorway cruiser, with soft forgiving suspension, though it can feel rather clattery around town. It’s also surprisingly manoeuvrable because all variants get four-wheel steering, giving it a tighter turning circle than the Model 3 despite its larger dimensions. Visibility is pretty appalling, though, especially out of the tight rear window.

The Model 3 is just more enjoyable to drive, though. Better visibility and more natural-feeling steering means it’s a more fun round town or on a country road, and though the suspension is a bit firmer than the IM5’s it’s far from uncomfortable. If you want the best car of this size to drive, I recommend a BMW i4, but between these two the Model 3 is best.

The cars’ interiors both have massive touchscreens as their defining features, but otherwise could hardly be more different. The Model 3 takes minimalism to the extreme, with the screen controlling absolutely everything. It looks clean and modern, and the software is among the best in the business, but it can be frustrating using the display for such basic functions as selecting Drive and Reverse.

The IM5 has a more conventional feel – its huge display runs across the top of the dash, combining driver information and infotainment, and there’s a separate touchscreen in the centre for things like the climate controls. It also has Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, which the Tesla does without. The software’s not nearly as good though – there are lots of confusing menus, and some instances where it’s been pretty poorly translated from the original Chinese.

The same minimalist-vs-maximalist comparison comes with the seating, too. The Tesla gets simple seats with artificial leather upholstery, covered storage and plain, clean surfacing throughout. The MG has huge quilted armchair-style seats that you sink into rather than sit in. The effect’s actually quite nice, but it’s more of an acquired taste than the Tesla.

Both cars are evenly matched for passenger space, and in both cases the rear seats are impeded by a high floor – for me at 6’2, that means my knees are much higher than is comfortable. The Tesla has more boot space, with a 594-litre boot and 88-litre front boot – the MG has just 457 and 18 litres respectively, but it does have a hatchback opening as opposed to the saloon-shaped Model 3. That means access for loading larger items is much better.

So what’s my verdict? Well, I think the IM5’s a really impressive effort for the price. With Carwow discounts, the Long Range model is fantastic value, superbly well-equipped and decent to drive.

But I’d rather have the Model 3, with its better software, greater efficiency, and superior driving experience. The MG may have some superior stats, but the Model 3 is the better all-round car.

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*Savings are made up of the maximum dealer discount off RRP – subject to dealership, location and trim. Prices correct at the time of writing.