Business Action | April / May 2021
April / May 2021 issue of the independent North Devon-based business magazine covering news on business and enterprise in the area. This issue announces the finalists in the Business Action North Devon Business Awards 2021 plus features on electric cars, businesses participating in the Government's Kickstart scheme and our Business Activists answering your business questions. And there's news of businesses of every size and sector from the communities across North Devon.
April / May 2021 issue of the independent North Devon-based business magazine covering news on business and enterprise in the area. This issue announces the finalists in the Business Action North Devon Business Awards 2021 plus features on electric cars, businesses participating in the Government's Kickstart scheme and our Business Activists answering your business questions. And there's news of businesses of every size and sector from the communities across North Devon.
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My priorities as a driverare<br />
differenttowhattheywerein<br />
my20sandmyenvironmental<br />
considerationshaveovertaken<br />
manyotherconcerns.<br />
FordecadesIhavelikedthe<br />
conceptofelectriccarsand,<br />
whileunderstandingthatall<br />
transportplacesdemandson<br />
theenvironment,hopethat<br />
electricvehicleswillenableus<br />
toreducetheseconsiderably.<br />
Withthisinmind,the<br />
invitationtotestdrivetheMG5<br />
EVSWexcitedme,becauseit<br />
wouldbemyfirstexperienceof<br />
drivinganelectriccar.<br />
Simple controls<br />
WhenTimBlight,who<br />
managesBlights’carsales,ran<br />
throughthecontrolswithme,<br />
theyseemedalmosttoosimple.<br />
Anacceleratorpedalanda<br />
brakepedal,andlargeknob<br />
withN(eutral),D(rive)and<br />
R(everse)settings.<br />
TimmademadesureI<br />
realisedthat,onceinDrive,the<br />
caracceleratedswiftly.AndsoI<br />
setoffonmyown.<br />
WhiletheMGEVSWlooks<br />
andfeelsjustasyouwould<br />
expectofacar,drivingit<br />
definitelyfeelsdifferent.<br />
Accelerationisbothinstant,<br />
withnolagafteryoupressthe<br />
pedal,and,withnopausesfor<br />
gearchanges,continuous.<br />
Regenerativebrakingkicks<br />
inwhenyouliftyourfootoff<br />
theaccelerator,whichmeans<br />
thatthecarslowsofitsown<br />
accordandrequireslessuseof<br />
thebrakepedal.Regenerative<br />
brakingusesthedrivemotorto<br />
regenerateelectricityandslow<br />
thecardown.<br />
Whilemytestdrivewas<br />
necessarilylimitedatthistime<br />
duetorestrictions,Iwouldbe<br />
interestedinalongerdriveto<br />
experiencedifferentconditions,<br />
suchasmotorways.Thiswould<br />
testtheMG’sthreedrivemodes<br />
–Eco,NormalandSport–<br />
whichenableyoutochoosethe<br />
modemostsuitableforyour<br />
journeyrequirements.There<br />
arealsothreelevelsof<br />
regenerativebrakingto<br />
improvebrakingandoptimise<br />
batterychargeusage.<br />
Charging and range<br />
Aswellasspeed,chargingtime<br />
andrangearemanypeople’s<br />
topconcernswhenconsidering<br />
electriccars.<br />
Electric Avenue<br />
The MG5 EV comes to North Devon<br />
MG5 EV controls: well laid out and easy to use. Photo: Robert Zarywacz<br />
Iwassurprisedtolearnthat<br />
youcanchargetheMG5EV<br />
SWbypluggingitintoan<br />
ordinarythree-pinsocket,<br />
althoughitwilltake18hoursto<br />
reach100%.Afasteroptionis<br />
toinstallahome7kWfast<br />
charger,costingaround£400,<br />
thatwillreducethisto8.5<br />
hours,whilepublicrapid<br />
chargingpointscansupplyan<br />
80%chargein40–50minutes.<br />
Afullchargewillcarryyou<br />
for214milesincombined<br />
conditionsor276milesin<br />
urbanenvironments.<br />
The MG5 EV as a car<br />
Withsomuchfocusonfuel<br />
type,Ididn’twanttoforgetthat<br />
anelectriccaristheretodo<br />
whatanyothercardoes:<br />
conveyyou,yourpassengers<br />
andyourluggagefromone<br />
placetoanotherinrelative<br />
comfort.TheMG5iscertainly<br />
comfortableand,whilemy<br />
focuswasprimarilyonthe<br />
ELECTRIC CARS<br />
A long time coming, affordable electric vehicles are now a reality.<br />
While the environmental pros and cons are complex, editor Robert<br />
Zarywacz broadly welcomes the concept and took up an invitation<br />
from Blights Motors in Bideford to test drive the new MG5 EV SW<br />
road,Ifeltcompletelyateasein<br />
thedrivingseat.Ialsotookthe<br />
opportunitytositintherear<br />
seatsandfeelthatitwouldbe<br />
spaciousandcomfortablefor<br />
mostpassengersonalong<br />
journey.Whenyou’respending<br />
hoursinacar,thismakesall<br />
thedifferenceand,asa<br />
passenger,I’veexperienceda<br />
fairfewcarsthathavefelt<br />
crampedevenwhenmaking<br />
shortjourneys.<br />
AsthefirstEVestateonthe<br />
market,theMG5has464litres<br />
ofbootspace,increasingto<br />
1,456litreswiththerearseats<br />
foldeddown.Asforequipment,<br />
theMG5EVincludesmostthe<br />
ofthefeaturesyouwould<br />
expect,includingrearparking<br />
sensors,airconditioning,6-<br />
speakeraudiosystem,satellite<br />
navigation,andApple,Android<br />
andBluetoothconnectivity.The<br />
ExclusivemodelIdrove<br />
includeskeylessentrywith<br />
The MG5 EV is the first EV estate on the market. Photo: Robert Zarywacz<br />
push-buttonenginestart,<br />
heatedfrontseatandfolding<br />
doormirrors.<br />
The MG experience<br />
Aswellasmyfirsttimedriving<br />
anelectriccar,thiswasalsomy<br />
firstexperienceofthelatest<br />
incarnationoftheMGmarque.<br />
OwnedbySAIC,MGcarsare<br />
nowdesignedinMarylebone,<br />
Londonandmanufacturedin<br />
China,supportedbyengineers<br />
inLongbridge.<br />
Thecompanyisheavily<br />
committedtotheUKmarket<br />
andDanielGregorious,headof<br />
salesatMGMotors,hassaidin<br />
Autocarthat“Britishnessisa<br />
vitalcomponentofitsoffer”.Its<br />
UKsuccesswasdemonstrated<br />
whenitsecuredpre-ordersfor<br />
itsfirstbatchof1,000ofitsZS<br />
EVmodelinjusttwoweeks.<br />
Aswellasleveragingthe<br />
marque’slongmotoringhistory,<br />
MGisachievingcurrent<br />
successthroughitscars’high<br />
leveloftechnology,affordability<br />
andseven-yearguarantee.<br />
Verdict<br />
Ihadnopre-conceptionsbefore<br />
testdrivingtheMG5EV,either<br />
aboutelectriccarsorMG.On<br />
theday,Iwasimpressed.<br />
Thecontrolsareclearand<br />
welllaidout,therideissmooth<br />
anditmanoeuvreseasily.While<br />
itsvisualappearanceandfeel<br />
aresomewhatlowkey,atthe<br />
endofmyshorttestdriveIwas<br />
sorrytohandbackthekeys.<br />
It’snotsurprisingthatwith<br />
theMG5EVExcitemodel<br />
listedatjust£24,495onthe<br />
road,WhichEVrecently<br />
selecteditfortheirBestValue<br />
EVAward2020andTotallyEV<br />
namedittheirBestBuy<strong>2021</strong>.<br />
The future is electric<br />
It’sclearthatelectriccarsarein<br />
theirinfancyandthatwe’llsee<br />
rapiddevelopmentaswe<br />
approachtheGovernment’s<br />
deadlinetoendsalesofnew<br />
petrolanddieselcarsby2030.<br />
Muchworkisstillneededto<br />
reducetheenvironmental<br />
impactofallvehicles,from<br />
manufacturetouseand<br />
eventualdisposalorrecycling.<br />
EncounteringtheMG5EV<br />
demonstrateshowelectriccars<br />
arebecomingpartofourlives.<br />
■ Detailsmg.co.ukorBlights<br />
Motorson01237472282or<br />
blightsmotors.co.uk<br />
@businessactionm | <strong>April</strong> / <strong>May</strong> <strong>2021</strong> | business action 19
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