Cyber attack

MG is back on the international stage and now trying to return to its sports car roots. MATT SAUNDERS sees if the Cyberster EV can match up to a rival from the present and a relation from the past

- MATT SAUNDERS

Resurrecting the MG brand-known and beloved by so many sports car owners throughout the UK and beyond - to its former glories looks like rather a tall order. It might even be an impossible task, in light of the kinds of cars that have become its bread and butter in this electrified era. But be that as it may, for the moment, MG Motor looks determined to try.

The Chinese manufacturer's latest debutant, the Cyberster electric convertible, has a suspicious quantity of 'wow' factor, doesn't it? Studiously imitative but undoubtedly pretty styling and scissor doors that motor up at the touch of a button on the key fob, ready to stun anyone approaching its orbit into slightly confused silence.

Can this really have come from the same company that brings us the ZS, HS and 3-the supermini that was until fairly recently one of the UK's cheapest new cars? The positing of that question within the minds of anyone who sees a Cyberster seems almost to justify the existence of this car all on its own.

The decision makers at the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) must be reasonably convinced, however, that the halo effect of a £60,000 convertible can be brought to bear to motivate buyers of compact hatchbacks and crossovers in 2024. Beyond the bubble of its introduction, MG Motor UK is said still to be unsure whether it will sell 500 a year, 50 or five. But whichever is the case, you can bet that there will still be a shiny Cyberster sitting proudly in the corner of every major showroom.

For now, here we are, sitting in a brand-new Cyberster, with a combustion-engined BMW Z4 for company. Now to find out exactly what MG is seeking to achieve with this car, who it's aiming at and how accurately it's doing so.