MG Cyberster driving report: This is how a roadster works
The small fabric soft top folds back automatically. The door swings up electrically, allowing access to the narrow cockpit. The seating position is surprisingly low for an electric car. Sport mode on, switch for propulsion to "D" and off you go, the first test drive in the new MG Cyberster on the legendary Goodwood circuit in southern England. The Cyberster accelerates to 100 km/h in a very brisk 3.2 seconds. The steering is direct, the Brembo brakes are snappy, and so it goes into the first bend. After just a few minutes, it is clear that this is a worthy successor to the crisp roadsters that MG once stood for.
The history of the MG brand began 100 years ago as a manufacturer of small, affordable sports cars. The Cyberster builds on this tradition: the brand's new flagship with 375 kW (503 hp) costs 60,000 pounds (approx. 69,800 euros) in the UK. This GT version has two engines, one on each axle. With pure rear-wheel drive and 250 kW (340 hp), the Cyberster is 5000 pounds cheaper. It then accelerates to 100 km/h in 5.2 seconds, which is not particularly fast in the electric age, but the pure rear-wheel drive has its own appeal: the rear turns into the bend a little faster than the more powerful all-wheel drive model.
It is not yet clear how much the Cyberster will cost in Germany. But the price will not be that far off. The Roadster is due to roll onto the German market in late summer on 19- or 20-inch wheels. It will face little competition there. Convertibles have become rare. They are even rarer with an electric drive. And there is no such thing as an electric roadster. Because the electric Porsche Boxster will not be available until next year.
Until then, the Cyberster shows what a roadster with electric drive can offer: pure driving pleasure. The Cyberster steers very directly, accelerates explosively out of every bend and keeps the driver in place in sporty, narrow bucket seats. The low center of gravity, due to the battery in the floor of the car, ensures little lateral tilt. That's the roadster!
The Cyberster was developed in Longbridge near Birmingham, one of the nuclei of the once great British car industry. The Cyberster was designed by the brand's London studio. Apart from the chrome-plated, octagonal brand emblem and the typical roadster proportions with a long hood and short rear end, little is reminiscent of its famous ancestors such as the MGA and MGB. In fact, the MGB was the best-selling sports car in the world at the time, with more than half a million units sold.
With the end of the MGB in 1980, the plant in Abingdon on the Thames was closed. The Cyberster is now built in Shanghai - and with surprisingly good quality: open-top cars tend to twist when cornering, as there is no roof to provide rigidity. Not so the Cyberster. It doesn't creak, no twisting disturbs the steering geometry, it is as solid as a Welsh castle.
Acceleration is accompanied by an artificial engine sound that unobtrusively competes with the airstream. If you prefer music instead, let the eight speakers of the Bose music system do the work.
It goes without saying that the Cyberster is only available with an electric drive: The 74-kWh battery promises a range of up to 507 kilometers according to the WLTP. The battery can be charged from ten to 80 percent in 38 minutes. Those are decent figures. The new MG offers pure driving pleasure without any exhaust fumes. This makes the test drive on the historic Goodwood race track even more impressive: you may miss the exhaust sound of a four or six-cylinder engine, but the fresh airflow under the southern English sky provides that pure roadster feeling. (aum)
More info for topic: MG Cyberster , Elektro-Roadster
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