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In our line of work, we meet a lot of locals who come up to us and ask about the car we are photographing. It's usually a young kid or a curious 40-year-old individual who engages in quick conversations about the price, its origin, and nowadays, its range. Rarely, though, do we ever strike up a conversation with a middle-aged woman out on a grocery run about how many people you can fit in the car.
Well, it happened during one of our excursions on the MG Comet EV. The sweet lady was genuinely curious about this odd little car that was hogging up her walking space in Bhaktapur. We explained how it was an EV, that was strictly meant for the city and could accommodate 4 passengers… while travelling with 5 passengers on a drive that took us well out of the city limits.
The MG Comet EV had been with us for a couple of days, and during that time, we extensively traveled around the city. Which is why we decided to take it out of its comfort zone. All in all, we managed to explore Changu Narayan and Bhaktapur and took it onto some steep climbing action to the hills of Budhanilkantha. We must confess that we took the Comet EV to places that might not be advisable for a tiny city car.
Before we get into that, we want to talk about the appearance of the MG Comet EV. It’s a quirky little thing. As opposed to the sleek, streamlined designs sweeping the majority of the automotive world for years, the Comet sports a noticeable tall boy design. In some ways, it is reminiscent of the Kei cars you find in Japan. The LED headlamps are bold and the LED pilot light strips that run across the front and rear demand attention. The Comet has no intention of blending in. That is part of the reason why it manages to turn so many heads on the roads.
Also immediately evident, is the fact that it takes up very little real estate. The MG Comet EV measures in at a length of 2,974mm, a width of 1,505 mm, a height of 1,640 mm, and a wheelbase of 2,010 mm. For quick reference, it measures 190mm shorter in length, 155mm wider, and 12mm shorter than the Tata Nano. The wheelbase is 220mm shorter than the Nanos. So, now we’ve established that the MG Comet EV is a small boy. Ironically, it was handed the task of accommodating 5 overfed auto journalists with pending New Year’s resolutions to lose weight.
Surprisingly, we managed to squeeze in. We must emphasize that the MG Comet EV is a 4-seater, so you get 4 seats and 4 seat belts. You would have to be a moron to move around with more passengers. It is not something we suggest you try at home. Nevertheless, for the sake of testing the limits of the MG Comet EV, the 5 of us muscled our way into the cabin. It was a tight fit. We took this opportunity to test out the ability of the Comet EV to tackle steep inclines. We found a slope with the meanest gradient and stopped mid-climb, only to start crawling up it again. It passed the test with flying colours.
With 4 passengers though, life is much easier. It is far from a spacious cabin, and you’d be a fool to expect it to be. Still, you get enough knee and headroom for all passengers. The driver isn’t rubbing up against the front passenger too much and the rear passengers have enough room to shift about and reach for the snacks. Getting into the back seat though poses a few issues.
The more evident issue is that you need to fold and slide the front seats forward to access the rear seats. While it is a fairly simple manoeuvre, it begins to get tedious if you’re running errands and need to get in and out of the car multiple times. A less evident issue is the fact that the side doors are significantly longer, so if you are not mindful about not parking too close to another vehicle or wall, you’ll find yourself in a tight spot when they swing out.
When you think about it, these are only minor inconveniences. The lack of height adjustment for the driver seat though, is a more glaring problem. Because the front seats only get a fore and aft adjustment, taller drivers will notice that the IRVM obstructs their vision when driving. There is no way to avoid it, even when you slide the seat back.
In terms of fit and finish, the MG Comet EV is fairly decent. They don’t feel cheap, especially in the higher variant (Play), which gets a combination of white plastic and grey fabric upholstery. It is most definitely going to get dirty very soon, but for the time being, it fared well. Additionally, the top variant of the Comet EV includes a 10.25-inch touchscreen with Android Auto & Apple CarPlay, supplementing the 10.25-inch MID Display available in both variants.
The touchscreen unit, once again does not feel like a cheap aftermarket addition. The display is crisp and responsive. We had very little trouble with it. The steering controls on the other hand were a pain and they were not functioning as they were supposed to. The speakers though aren’t anything to write home about.
Overall, there aren’t too many creature comforts in the MG Comet EV apart from this. You get controls to adjust your rear-view mirror on the top variant along with two bag hooks and USB charging ports placed under the A/C controls.
Storage options are limited. You get big door pockets with multiple compartments to keep your stuff and there are also two cupholders on the sides next to the A/C vents. There’s no glovebox but you do get an open recess on the dashboard. We would not make the mistake of storing our phone there twice. The rear passengers can use the seatback pockets of the front seats for storage.
Boot space is also pretty much non-existent. With the rear seats up you get barely enough space to store your charger. The rear seat is split in a 50:50 ratio and can be folded as per requirements for more storage space.
Driving the MG Comet EV is as easy as pie, one of the benefits of a tiny car. Step in, turn the key, switch the dial knob to Drive mode and you’re off. You get to choose driving modes (Eco/Normal/Sport), although we usually find ourselves sticking to Eco Mode most of the time. There is very little difference between eco mode and Normal mode. While sport mode is peppier, we did not find the need to resort to it too often.
You’ve got 42 BHP of maximum power and 110NM of torque, which is ample for the car. When you’re driving the Comet, you’re not planning to go anywhere too fast. Even if you do decide to speed things up, you should err on the side of caution. Driving at high speeds is not confidence-inspiring. You can push the Comet to go fast, but we just don’t see the sense in it. Must we remind you that this is a tiny, tiny car with very little crumple zone? On the bright side, because of its small stature, the MG Comet EV is an absolute escape artist when it comes to getting out of tight spaces and even weaving through narrow alleyways. Similarly, parking is a breeze.
There is barely any bonnet up front so the visibility of the road is great. The A-pillars are thick and the quarter glass does little to help. But it’s still not much of a bother. The steering wheel is also placed at a decent height. The only nagging shortcoming is the placement of the IRVMs.
You also get brake regeneration and three settings to choose from Light, normal, and heavy. On heavy regeneration, you can feel the system working. If you’re feeling stingy about your battery, then this is the mode you want to choose. However, for a more seamless driving experience, we would stick to light or normal.
Truth be told, there is very little chance that you will find yourself being conservative about the battery. The company claims a range of 230kms, but realistically you’re looking at a number that is closer to 160 to 180kms. Charging is only possible through an AC charger, no fast charging here. This means you will need 5 hours to go from 10% to 80% of charge. You need to remain mindful of when you charge the Comet EV, you don’t want to leave home with a fast-depleting battery. But if you’re at 100% you’re good for the day, even if you decide to put some kilometres in. Provided that you use the Comet EV for in-city driving.
We managed to put in over 225 kms between the two vehicles we tested. In total, we had to charge 3 times, once from 8% and twice from around 25% to 35% battery availability. We noticed during our time with the MG Comet EV that it struggled to climb up a particularly steep slope. Peculiarly though, we had managed to get up it earlier without too much issue, but with the battery draining below 25%, the Comet EV was acting very reluctant.
Also worth mentioning is our experience on our uphill climb on one of the hills of Budhanilkantha. It was one of those hills that exclusively consisted of steep climbs and tight turns. Although the MG Comet EV is capable of tackling this terrain, it is important to remember that momentum is your friend.
Ground clearance, which comes in at 165mm never really caused us any issues either. We will confess to taking the Comet to places that might seem inadvisable for a tiny city car...however, the MG Comet did not complain once. The short wheelbase also helped with overcoming obstructions on the roads.
In the 5 days that we spent with the MG Comet EV, we fell in love with it. We did not drive it fast. We did not attack corners with it. We drove it slowly. We commuted from one place to another with no real motif. When we encountered other Comets we smiled and waved at each other. We stopped by roadside tea shops and sipped tea, then drove up to a monastery on a hill. It was a wonderful experience and giving the keys back was not fun.
However, it is important to acknowledge that realistically, the MG Comet EV is a second car for the home. And, strictly a city car at that. It isn’t for large families. It isn’t for long road trips. It's amazing at navigating traffic and squeezing into tight parking spots, but it isn't too comfortable rubbing shoulders with highway hooligans on open roads. It is not a high-tech EV that is ages ahead of its time.
The MG Comet EV is a simple city car that works well for your daily needs, ideally for a working professional who needs a car to get you to your office and back. On the weekends you can take it out shopping, but you’ll have to fold the rear seats down to fit anything larger than milk packets in the boot.
The price tag is also pretty reasonable. With a starting price of Rs.17.99 lakh and topping out at Rs. 20.99 lakh, it provides respectable value, especially with the MG badge that promises a fair deal of reliability and after-sales service.
And for those that have a hankering for attention, this little bugger will get you plenty of it from all demographics.
