UK pricing suggests a six-figure starting price for Chinese brand’s upcoming electric sports car
The 2024 MG Cyberster will be priced from about £55,000 ($A103,030) in the UK, where the two-seat electric roadster will be released in the middle of next year, suggesting a $100,000-plus price tag Down Under.
Few concrete details have been announced for the striking new Cyberster – MG’s first roadster since the mid-engined rear-drive MG TF was discontinued in 2011 and the world’s first electric convertible since the original Tesla Roadster was axed in 2002.
But the EV sports car’s $100K-plus starting price in the UK was accompanied by confirmation of a two-variant line-up comprising a 231kW rear-drive single-motor version and an all-wheel drive dual-motor flagship that’s now tipped to output close to 400kW.
The opening £55,000 figure refers to the single-motor version, which will have no direct rivals, but with the Mazda MX-5 priced between $38,460-$52,170 and the Audi TT Roadster no longer available here, that would position the MG Cyberster between the entry-level BMW Z4 20i M Sport ($97,600 plus ORCs) and Porsche 718 Boxster ($124,800 plus ORCs) in terms of both price and power.
MG executives have hinted the dual-motor Cyberster will retail for around £10,000 ($A18,722) more than the base version, upping the kiloWatts per dollar ratio by a significant amount.
The equivalent of $122,000 isn’t enough to purchase either a Z4 M40i or a base Boxster, the former of which only offers 71 per cent (285kW) of the Cyberster’s claimed output.
Aussies wanting close to 400kW from a two-door sports car will have to spend upwards of $150,000 on a combustion-powered coupe, but those that desire that sort of power from a performance EV can pay as ‘little’ as $99,590 plus ORCs for the Kia EV6 GT – which is classed as an SUV.
The closest option in terms of a sporty aesthetic for similar money is the BMW i4 M50i electric sedan, which offers a four-door fastback silhouette and 400kW/795Nm outputs for $133,900 plus ORCs.
Realistically, the Cyberster’s main rival will eventually be the next-generation Porsche 718 Boxster, which will be available with a full-electric powertrain after its global debut sometime next year, and the 2026 Polestar 6.
However, the Porsche and Polestar electric roadsters will almost certainly command significantly higher starting prices than the first sports car developed by MG since it was bought by the Chinese state-owned SAIC Motor conglomerate following the collapse of the MG Rover Group in 2005.
MG Motor has since built a new identity around affordability and value, but there’s little doubt the Cyberster will be the most expensive MG product of the modern era, even with the high-performance dual-motor MG4 hatch looming on the local horizon.
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Keyword: 2024 MG Cyberster could cost more than $100K