I think I'm going mad - I'm considering an MG ZS! Any opinions welcome

[Rwac]

part of my dads company that (and before you ask, nah probably cant get you discount )

:O I may be visiting him in the future (1-3 years) when i have my lotus elise =p

PTP are definately one of the companies at the forefront of K series tuning

 

[D4VE]

get a Mondy ST200 instead

I doubt he can if the insurance is too much on the V6 ZS.

The 1.8 is quite torquey (on paper not sure about in real life) so it might be surprisingly good

 

[Rwac]

I doubt he can if the insurance is too much on the V6 ZS.

The 1.8 is quite torquey (on paper not sure about in real life) so it might be surprisingly good

It is quite fun to drive once its going

 

[James_N]

I doubt he can if the insurance is too much on the V6 ZS.

Depends. He hasnt posted his age/NCB up but its £1k for me at 21 with 0NCB on the ST200 which i think is pretty cracking for a group 17 (?) car.

 

[djbenjo]

Whilst the Toledo may look bland, it's actually a very competent, very decent car.

The MG ZS is pretty much the opposite, really, with the possible exception of the V6.

This alone tells me you have never driven one

 

[[TW]Fox]

This alone tells me you have never driven one

How different can it be from a Rover 400 though given.. it is one?

 

[Muncher]

How different can it be from a Rover 400 though given.. it is one?

It is vastly different to drive, absolutebly nothing like the 400.

 

[N3M]

Ive been in both the ZS and the ST200, slightly different cars but as far as a 4 door saloon goes, the mondeo blows it away in every aspect... I love the power delivery of the ST200. With rover/MG all over the place has this effected their parts prices at all?

The mondeo is far more practical in terms of size inside, those Recaros are gorgeous to sit in, i actually like sitting in the back

Ive also owend a Rover 218 (K Series Engine) Coupe... worst thing i could have bought, there was ALWAYS something wrong, and when you were giving it beans i never had ANY confidence in it. Dont get me wrong, it was exciting wondering whether i was about to pop another headgasket or my water pump would sieze up for the 3rd time

My encounter with Rover/MG was a bad one, not to mention a very good friend of mine was killed after a car ploughed into the back of his ZR, his car folded killing him almost instantly...

...Go with the St200 man, we know best

N

 

[Pug]

It is vastly different to drive, absolutebly nothing like the 400.

indeed. So completely different if it wasnt for the similar interior features you wouldnt think they're the same car, and i havent been in an ST mondeo, but you but i have driven a normal mondeo and dont make comparisons between the mondy and the ST (even though it is a "normal" mondy) as you lot seem to between the 400 and the ZS

besides which the ZS (180ps) is actually quicker than a Mondy ST200, albeit slight.

 

[Pug]

:O I may be visiting him in the future (1-3 years) when i have my lotus elise =p

PTP are definately one of the companies at the forefront of K series tuning

by all means, he'll certainly haelp you in some way if not financially then by overseeing the work or something (assuming they still do it at his dealership - not sure now i think about it)

 

[N3M]

indeed. So completely different if it wasnt for the similar interior features you wouldnt think they're the same car, and i havent been in an ST mondeo, but you but i have driven a normal mondeo and dont make comparisons between the mondy and the ST (even though it is a "normal" mondy) as you lot seem to between the 400 and the ZS

besides which the ZS (180ps) is actually quicker than a Mondy ST200, albeit slight.

Hes after the 1.8 K Series model, the Mondeo St200, would blow it out of the water performance-wise (and in every other way).

The 2.5 v6 ZS is 0.6 seconds quicker to 60. But the top end on the mondeo is +10odd mph, booked at 141 but ive had 2 mates on flat motorway @ 155ish mph (autobahn of course )

 

[James_N]

but ive had 2 mates on flat motorway @ 155ish mph (autobahn of course )

INDICATED speed is always higher than ACTUAL speed when going that fast. the faster you go, the more inacurate the speedo will be.

 

[Rwac]

Hes after the 1.8 K Series model, the Mondeo St200, would blow it out of the water performance-wise (and in every other way).

Then why are YOU comparing a 1.8K with an ST200, surely you would be comparing a ST200 with the V6.

I would say the ST200 is probably the nicer car, i do like the look of it. But you'd get a newer, lower mileage ZS180 for the same money as a ST200. The ZS180 has already taken massive depreciation so there wouldn't be too much worry about losing a lot of money on it. If anything, if/when MG begins producing again 'confidence' in the brand will increasem which would slow down depreciation further on Phoenix4 MG models.

 

[Fireblade2K4]

besides which the ZS (180ps) is actually quicker than a Mondy ST200, albeit slight.

Oh dear I don't think this is right, I don't remember one ever passing me, to be honest I don't remember anyone overtaking me yet

All those who love the ST200's you know your right, the performance figures outlined by Ford for the ST200 are totally wrong, they are VERY VERY relaxed, the top speed is higher that 141mph and also the 0-60 time of 7.8 seconds is total rubbish, mine is below 7 seconds and I know that for a fact, also this can all be done in 2nd gear

I think Ford were actually using test dummies when they got the performance figures for this car.

Stu

 

[N3M]

Then why are YOU comparing a 1.8K with an ST200, surely you would be comparing a ST200 with the V6.

Basically any comments, good or bad about spending £5k on an MG ZS are welcome!

Thanks!

im comparing an St200 to the car that the guy wants/deciding on?

the guy has already said he doesnt want the v6

 

[Fireblade2K4]

End of the day any MG what ever it maybe ZT, ZS is still underneath all that cosmetic enhancements a Rover. It will suffer Rover problems, with it being a K-Series engine it is almost a guarantee that the HG will fail no matter how careful with it you are, it will eat rubber bushes for breakfast front and rear, and the cabin will almost certainly develop more rattles that even a baby can shake.

If I had a budget of £5K, the last car I would be looking at would be an MG, with the price of cars now there are a LOT of used on the market to choose from that offer a better build quality and such, I'd steer clear of Rovers and MG's.

Stu

 

[N3M]

End of the day any MG what ever it maybe ZT, ZS is still underneath all that cosmetic enhancements a Rover. It will suffer Rover problems, with it being a K-Series engine it is almost a guarantee that the HG will fail no matter how careful with it you are, it will eat rubber bushes for breakfast front and rear, and the cabin will almost certainly develop more rattles that even a baby can shake.

If I had a budget of £5K, the last car I would be looking at would be an MG, with the price of cars now there are a LOT of used on the market to choose from that offer a better build quality and such, I'd steer clear of Rovers and MG's.

Stu

Well said, why didnt i say that

 

[ajgoodfellow]

Thanks for all of the replies

Im with norwich union, very sympathetic

You can get a 1.8 to VVC upgrade from PowerTrainProjects for around £600/700.

The 1.8K Series is a very light engine, if you can get it VVC specc'd it'd be a very good car to throw about I'm personally not bothering, instead saving up for my next car I do like the look of the MGZT 190

Thanks for that reply. Do they replace the headgasket at the same time? Just think that it's the same price as just replacing the gasket alone so it's a great price for a full coversion. Should boost it up to about 160bhp do you think?

I'll give Norwich Union a call. They were rather expensive from Confused.com but as we all know they don't always give decent quotes!

I hadn't considered a Mondeo. I might look at them - group 17 is rather high but groups seem to mean rather little. As an example, a group 15 Alfa Romeo 147 2.0 costs over £2k, whereas a group 15 Audi A4 2.6 Quattro is only about £1200!

I'm currently 21 with no NCB. The problem is that I have a fault accident with a claim to my name as I wrote my Astra off on the 1st Jan. This really seems to cause the quotes to shoot up - that coupled with the fact that Canterbury seems expensive insurance wise (as does my occupation - using "Engineer" instead of "Student" lowers quotes by about £400 on average. I'll be an Engineer in August when I graduate and start working)

 

[ajgoodfellow]

Ive been in both the ZS and the ST200, slightly different cars but as far as a 4 door saloon goes, the mondeo blows it away in every aspect... I love the power delivery of the ST200. With rover/MG all over the place has this effected their parts prices at all?

The mondeo is far more practical in terms of size inside, those Recaros are gorgeous to sit in, i actually like sitting in the back

Ive also owend a Rover 218 (K Series Engine) Coupe... worst thing i could have bought, there was ALWAYS something wrong, and when you were giving it beans i never had ANY confidence in it. Dont get me wrong, it was exciting wondering whether i was about to pop another headgasket or my water pump would sieze up for the 3rd time

My encounter with Rover/MG was a bad one, not to mention a very good friend of mine was killed after a car ploughed into the back of his ZR, his car folded killing him almost instantly...

...Go with the St200 man, we know best

N

That's worrying - really sorry to hear about your friend there.

 

[ajgoodfellow]

I was hoping that I could prevent a HGF but it does look like I'm delaying the inevitable. I'm not sure but I thought the K-series engines were vunerable as they only have a very low coolant capacity so any leak leads to rapid overheating, causing HGF. I was hoping to avoid this by continually checking the coolant levels

You've definitely given me a lot to think about!



I had to split it up as it had too many similies!!!