MG to back small, low-cost cars with reveal of new MG3

MG will reveal a next-generation version of its MG3 supermini at next month’s Geneva Motor Show, the firm has announced.

While many other brands are looking to move away from smaller cars, MG is committing to more affordable cars with its new MG3, which will replace what is currently one of the UK’s cheapest new cars.

Introduced in 2013, the current MG3 is by far the oldest car in the firm’s line-up, and is well overdue an update. This new supermini, which has only been teased in a post on X, formerly Twitter, shows a more striking front-end design inspired by newer MG models, but with a similar overall silhouette. It can also be seen undergoing winter testing while still wearing heavy camouflage.

While MG has been scaling up its electrification plans, the new MG3 is set to stick with regular petrol engines to help keep prices low.

It will join MG’s fast-growing line-up, with the firm registering more than 80,000 cars in the UK in 2023, representing a sharp 59 per cent increase on the previous year. It now sells more cars in Britain than Peugeot and Skoda, and with 38 per cent of its sales being EVs in 2023, doesn’t need to worry about the electric car targets facing many many mainstream manufacturers this year.

The MG3 is one of only a handful of major cars set to be revealed at this year’s Geneva Motor Show, which returns for the first time since 2019 following its cancellation last-minute in March 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic swept across Europe.

Many major car manufacturers, including the entire Stellantis group, have said they will not be participating at the Geneva show, which was previously the largest of its kind in Europe.