Best EV Car – New Electric Car Reviews

A SHOCK RESULT! NEW MG4 Urban vs Renault 5 vs Inster review

What's the very best little electrical vehicle you can buy in 2026? The brilliant Renault 5 has been our undeniable class champion for more than a year, however it deals with tough new competition. Can the NEW MG4 Urban or the heavily affordable Hyundai Inster steal its crown and provide an authentic shock outcome?

To learn, we take these three budget-friendly EVs on a 215-mile journey from London to Oxford and the Surrey Hills. We test them in the city, see how fast they can truly charge and even drag race them to discover which is fastest!

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In this evaluation, we also take a close take a look at their interiors and learn the number of luggage fit in their boots. Finally, we crunch the numbers to work out their real-world efficiency and potential optimum ranges before picking a winner!

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#MG 4Urban #Renault 5 #HyundaiInster #ElectricCars #ev

Video chapters:
0:00– Intro
0:45– What's the strategy?
1:53– The cars and trucks: rates, grants & battery sizes
5:34– Driving in Oxford
7:18– Very first charging stop
8:51– Interior review: Renault 5
11:12– Interior review: Hyundai Inster
14:26– Interior review: MG4 Urban
18:25– Boot space & usefulness
20:52– Country road driving
23:31– Drag race
25:38– 0-60mph and quarter-mile times
27:15– Journey costs, performance & real-world variety
30:07– Other costs, security & final verdict

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Comments

37 responses to “A SHOCK RESULT! NEW MG4 Urban vs Renault 5 vs Inster review”

  1. @Isaak__ Avatar
    @Isaak__

    ¿Cuando vais a poner subtítulos en Español?

    Reply
    1. @clownworld-honk410 Avatar
      @clownworld-honk410

      Mañana ! 😊

      Reply
  2. @andreasausmuc Avatar
    @andreasausmuc

    I’m NOT in the market for a small EV – and yet I love your comparisons!
    Thanks for all the effort you put into your videos and greetings from Munich, Germany 👋

    Reply
  3. @whatcar Avatar
    @whatcar

    Which of these small EVs would you buy with your own money? 🏆⚡

    A) MG4 Urban (I want the space, safety, and range) 🔋
    B) Renault 5 (I don’t care about rear space – it looks incredible and it’s the most fun to drive!) 🇫🇷
    C) Hyundai Inster (Give me the sliding seats and quirky styling) ✨

    Let us know your pick below! 👇

    Reply
    1. @pilotmatthew Avatar
      @pilotmatthew

      I bought a Renault 5 last year. I’ve had it a year now and its brilliant. Rear space is actually fine, I had 2 adults in the back last week.
      I also think the range thing is a bit disingenuous as I’m getting 240 miles range at the moment.

      Reply
    2. @Trifusion1 Avatar
      @Trifusion1

      For me, you’ve missed some of the key selling points.

      The MG is the only one with an LFP battery, so you can regularly charge to 100% sort of extending the range, at least of your day to day usage.

      The R5 is the only one with V2G capability. This could be a huge saving and potentially removes the need to buy a home battery. In fact, this is the reason I’d pick the R5.

      Reply
    3. @ernestoditerribile Avatar
      @ernestoditerribile

      Just based on looks I would Choose the Renault 5.
      I also hate Korean and Chinese products, both the opponents are ugly as hell and just look like some minoritised SUV’s So boring.

      Reply
  4. @JonBushell Avatar
    @JonBushell

    They are all stylish, quirky and look classy. Apart from the MG.

    Reply
    1. @stephenwensley Avatar
      @stephenwensley

      The days of MGs that you’d want to be seen in ended decades ago. It appears this one won this comparison because the modern British population are zombies, anyone with a soul is choosing the R5

      Reply
    2. @vladmihai306 Avatar
      @vladmihai306

      Yeah, unfortunately the style isn’t great, but technically it is the best option here.

      Reply
    3. @stepheng8779 Avatar
      @stepheng8779

      Are you a hipster Jon?

      Reply
  5. @keech100 Avatar
    @keech100

    Mg4 urban is a proper car – as long it’s not broken. So many bad stories from MGs stops me from going near them

    Reply
    1. @Missy1gonk Avatar
      @Missy1gonk

      I’ve had one for 3 years and have had completely trouble free motoring. There was an issue with an overactive lane departure but it was recalled and fixed.

      Reply
    2. @Danmarcussinclairtay Avatar
      @Danmarcussinclairtay

      We had a MG ZS EV, soooo many problems with it. Ended up swapping for a peugot e2008.

      Reply
  6. @ISuperTed Avatar
    @ISuperTed

    I’d go R5, but the Urban is pretty good. Do remember though that the Urban is likely to have massive discounts available for delivery mileage one’s in a few months, so that might sway it.

    Reply
  7. @kurttidmore4576 Avatar
    @kurttidmore4576

    The reason the MG doesn’t let you set an 80% limit on the charging is that it has an LFP battery, and LFP batteries aren’t damaged by charging them to 100% I really think all EV reviews should include info on the battery chemistry for the same reason ICE cars tell you how many cylinders the engines have. It’s IMPORTANT for vehicle life, charging speed, and range.

    Reply
    1. @paulhayes2189 Avatar
      @paulhayes2189

      Great comment

      Reply
    2. @vladmihai306 Avatar
      @vladmihai306

      perfect detail and another extremely important advantage of the MG, a great car IMO

      Reply
    3. @The77Game Avatar
      @The77Game

      From what i have heard from battery experts, it’s not actually true that charging it to 100 doesn’t harm the LFP battery. It’s just much less than other batteries. And keeping it at 100% is also still bad for it.

      Reply
    4. @hojnikb Avatar
      @hojnikb

      @The77Game yeah, but the real reason why they dont include charge limiter is due to the way BMS calculates SOC. LFP has a very narrow voltage range and not properly calibrating it every charge will cause the SOC to drift away…Not something you want in an EV.

      Thats why most LFP cars wont give you that option. It’s a small tradeoff for much more accurate SOC.

      Reply
    5. @ianfutcher1518 Avatar
      @ianfutcher1518

      However the reason you don’t want to charge beyond 80% when on public chargers is because charging slows down dramatically after 80%

      Reply
  8. @MoorviewMusic Avatar
    @MoorviewMusic

    Very impressive. I’ve just pressed ‘go’ on a Citroen e c3 which is probably worse than all three of these but so much cheaper per month (even without a deposit)

    Reply
  9. @MartinzW Avatar
    @MartinzW

    In city it was completely missed that Inster is easier to park because it’s smaller and you can park up against a wall because there’s no tunnel in between front seats so you can exit the car on the other side.

    Edit: both features that have been useful for us daily in Croatian cities with very tight parkings.

    Reply
    1. @dundas666 Avatar
      @dundas666

      It’s a lot narrower especially

      Reply
    2. @franckb.7582 Avatar
      @franckb.7582

      Nice to see a Croatian EV enthusiast! Statistics suggest you are a relatively small bunch. If you drive an EV there, do you get negative reactions?

      Reply
    3. @MartinzW Avatar
      @MartinzW

      ​@franckb.7582I am Latvian EV enthusiast living in Croatia (my gf is from Hvar island). My GFs father was basically questioning everything around EVs because local other men kept talking poorly of them. Then he tried driving one of mine and is convinced. Croats, including older ones, seem to love brands – Tesla, for example – but somehow get turned away when they find out it’s electric. The common opinions are that of what was common 10 years ago in Latvia, largely skeptical, but because Croats like small cars, Inster has attracted a lot of attention. My GF in Split was approached at least 5 times by local older men asking about the car, showing it off how spacious it is inside despite it being smaller than most other cars. Fast forward to today, and Split parking is using Hyundai Insters as company vehicles and some locals have them too – I’d like to think our Inster helped convince some of those decisions. The larger enthusiast group recently found association in Croatia with participants from all charge network providers and EV Clinic which is well known in Europe – I may be in touch with them in future as I know Eleport (one of networks) pretty well as it is strong in Latvia.

      Reply
  10. @AncientGD Avatar
    @AncientGD

    Renault 4 looks more attractive than Renault 5. However, it is good that Hyundai Inster looks the most spacious in terms of space habitability.

    Reply
  11. @MrSensible2 Avatar
    @MrSensible2

    I for one am really looking forward to the 2026 launches of the Geely EX2, the GAC Aion UT & the MG2.

    Reply
  12. @johngraham1321 Avatar
    @johngraham1321

    I have an Inster as a replacement for a rejected Citroen EC3. It is true that Android auto is wired. But I bought a dongle online for about £6 and now it’s wireless and works really well. The rear space is amazing for the size of the car. I find the brakes perfectly fine. I did find the R5 brakes grabby as mentioned. Plus I find the R5 switches to be rather flimsy feeling. But the Inster’s feel much better quality. I also find the Inster very efficient with up to 5.6-6.0 miles per KWh which would beat the WLTP figure around town in reasonable temperatures and roads up to 50mph. I’ve not done a long motorway trip in it yet. I think the R5 wins out on style hands down! But it’s very low to get into and out of. Ouch. I also found the monthly PCP was so much better on the Inster. By a lot! It’s faster 0-62mph than the official figure and is plenty. But it can’t compete with the R5 in that area. I’ve not driven the MG but it will be interesting to see how this new model does in the reliability stakes as other MGs have not fared well. And I did note that the reviewers mentioned you can only get heated seats on the top R5 model which puts the price up even more (and saddles you with the yellow seats whether you want them or not).

    An interesting comparison video 👍

    Reply
  13. @vhol93 Avatar
    @vhol93

    Really like these comparisons! Great job , regards from Portugal

    Reply
  14. @vladmihai306 Avatar
    @vladmihai306

    graet comparisons!

    Reply
  15. @t8polestarcyan22 Avatar
    @t8polestarcyan22

    In New Zealand, as for Renaults all we have left for brand new vehicles are now vans only! I wish we have the new Renault 5 (EV) in our market.

    Reply
  16. @The77Game Avatar
    @The77Game

    Looking forward to seeing how those cars do against coming cars like Cupra Raval and Kia EV2.

    Reply
  17. @FACT3200 Avatar
    @FACT3200

    I love my wife’s Hyundai Inster! 5 year warranty 160.000 km. Easy to park in town. Easy to drive and very spacious. You can sleep in it with all seats flat! It’s quick and in summer it runs on 14 kW on 100 km! My KIA EV6 GT is a bit quicker! 😁

    Reply
  18. @michaelsamwise1 Avatar
    @michaelsamwise1

    Autotrader today 15th April, Leeds MG dealership, brand new, not a preregistered, MG4 Urban Premium LR for £22,000. It could also offset this videos displayed 3 year ownership costs when you’re actually buying it for £6,000 less than the quoted price for the top model.

    Reply
  19. @chrislockey7706 Avatar
    @chrislockey7706

    What’s happened to doug?

    Reply
  20. @Marc-fr6ls Avatar
    @Marc-fr6ls

    Always nice to watch your test. Greetings from the Netherlands

    Reply

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