Purchased 2023 MG Hector Plus Facelift: 15 reasons why I shouldn't have

I really wanted to buy another Kia Seltos GT Diesel (it’s a wonderful car) but due to the long waiting period, we took the delivery of the Hector Plus 6 seater.

BHPian Dcsastudent recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Here is my ownership review of the 2023 MG Hector Plus Facelift 6 seater Petrol AT. The variant is Sharp Pro.

I’m not attaching any photos/videos of the car since they are available aplenty on the net. If anyone wants any specific photos or videos to substantiate what I have written below, I’d be happy to click them for you.

We were looking for a car in this segment, and although I really REALLY wanted to buy another Seltos GT Diesel (It’s a wonderful car), due to waiting times, we took delivery of the Hector Plus on the next day after booking the car (booked on 24th Jan, got delivery on 25th Jan). The reason we didn’t go in for the top variant was that we didn’t want to waste 2L on ADAS – which to me is a gimmick since we already have the XUV700AXL. I have driven the car for 1152 Km till now, and here’s the no holds barred version.

The Positives

1. The car is good-looking from all sides. The rear lights look awesome!
2. Interiors are very good-looking (but painful to operate, more on that later).
3. The ride quality is good and the cabin is very quiet under 60-70kmph. Above 70ish, there is a good amount of road noise.
4. Turbo Flutter – from day 1, if I lightly press the accelerator and then stop pressing it, I hear the gorgeous stututu sound from the turbo. Now I don’t know whether this can damage the turbo or not (internet searches are confusing), but yeah this happens. I love listening to it, but I don’t know if I’m going to be in trouble later.

The Negatives

1. The main screen is painfully slow – so much so to the point that I once timed the screen from a cold start to full functionality – it took 36 seconds! 36 full seconds before I could push any button on the screen.
2. AC Recirculation – the ventilation system switches from internal ventilation to external ventilation every time you start the car. Every time! And then you have to painfully wait for the screen to start working, then click on the AC controls, and then click on the ventilation mode – which is a pain again since even if you click on the button properly, you have to push on it 2 or 3 times to get the desired response.
3. AC vents position – The position of the central vent for the driver is behind the steering – so you will never get a straight draft of air on your face. It will hit the steering only – all this just to have a big screen.
4. Fuel Lid – there is a very very small (maybe 5-6mm long) notch to hang the fuel lid – without it touching the body. This is not such a big issue but can lead to scratches on the body in the long run with the fuel lid hanging on the body.
5. Gear Shift delay – When you shift from P to either D or R, or from R to D and vice versa also, you have to wait for about 4-5 seconds and then it shifts into the proper gear. Very irritating!
6. Steering Wheel is very thin – doesn’t have any meat to it. Feels very weird and uncomfortable.
7. Since the central screen is so big, it is a distraction all the time. Best option is to switch it off by long pressing the home button, but if you do that, you can not operate the steering wheel volume buttons or skip songs/change FM stations if the screen is off. You have to again switch on the screen to do anything.
8. Seat Lumbar Support is horrible. For the first 10-12 days, my back ached terribly after having driven the car. It has become better by now, but I’m guessing that is due to me getting used to it, or maybe the seat lumbar support getting a bit pushed down.
9. Second row seats don’t tumble – which means in order to get to the third row, you have to climb the cabin, bend down and walk between the 2 captain seats and into the third row.
10. Fuel Efficiency is shown only on the app, and not in the car – which I feel is weird!
11. Rear camera shows a delayed picture – it’s not a delay in showing the real situation behind your car. When you shift to R, it shows you a “static” view for about 2 to 3 seconds – which was the view 1-2 seconds before you shifted to R – and not what it currently is. I’ll explain: If I shift to R, and there was nothing behind the car before I shifted to R, it will show me empty space on the camera. If I immediately proceed to press the accelerator, there are chances that I will run into something which could have come behind my car in the last 3-4 seconds.
12. High-speed warning – The high-speed warning on 80 and 120 is shown on the driver’s screen (behind the steering). It shows the warning constantly non-stop till you come below 80. During that time, you can not see your tyre pressure, cruise control settings, and all other things on that screen. Extension to this point – suppose you are coasting in D, the speed will gradually reduce. The 80 speed warning does not go away till about 67 – 68.
13. Fonts – To a person with good eyesight, it looks good but there is a mix-up between 5, 6 and 8 for people with reading glasses. Mom pressed on the brake pretty hard one time – thinking that she had reached 80 – where in fact she was on 50-something.
14. Body roll is a big concern above speeds of 60-70kmph.
15. The “Turn Traction Control OFF” button is conveniently placed between the hazard lights button and the co-passenger seat ventilation button. Since we use seat ventilation extensively, it has happened once that I accidentally pushed the traction control off button. Placement of this very dangerous button should have been at a hard-to-reach place.

All in all, if I could go back a month, I would not buy this car, and I would strongly suggest everyone experience these issues in person before deciding to book/buy the car.

Here’s what BHPian Tanmay_868 had to say about the matter:

I own a 2021 Hector. In my case, if I press the ‘OK’ button the warning disappears both for 80 and 120.

And regarding AC Recirculation I think you have kept your AC on ‘Auto’ mode. Maybe that is the reason.

Here’s what BHPian kadanaJ had to say about the matter:

Some of the points from this list are simply terrifying.

Points 2,5,7,11,12,13,15.

Especially points 7,11,15. Those are enough to make the car quite unsafe.

Here’s what BHPian the.dogfather had to say about the matter:

These are major issues, and I think the gear shift delay would be quite difficult to live with and something not easily fixable.

The high-speed warnings, and rear camera delays might be things that might be fixed later with software updates, but the gear shift delay is a really painful one.

In some AMTs I have noticed a 1-2s delay and even that I feel is too much. It becomes a real pain in 3-point turns and in situations where you are pulling onto the main road from parking.

I cannot understand the reason for this delay here in a CVT. I usually drive a Toyota Corolla Altis CVT and have driven the CVTs by Honda. In both of these, the gear change is immediate from R-D or P.

Keyword: Purchased 2023 MG Hector Plus Facelift: 15 reasons why I shouldn't have