The Winner Of This 'Best Cheap Small EV' Test Is A Nice Surprise

Affordable, smaller EVs are catching on across the world. This road trip put three of the most promising ones to the test.

MG Citroën BYD Test

Photo by: InsideEVs

Patrick George

By: Patrick George

Dec 7, 2024 at 12:00pm ET

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Here in the United States, our selection of small, affordable electric vehicles is pretty small. (I'd argue that our selection of small, affordable cars period is small too and that's a big part of the problem.) It's likely to improve in the next few years with the rebooted Chevrolet Bolt EUV, Kia EV3 and a few others. But in Europe and the United Kingdom, buyers have a better range of choices right now than ever before.

But which one is the best choice? The folks at the UK's What Car? put three promising examples to the test and besides being valuable for any consumer looking to break up with gas and not go bankrupt in the process, their evaluation also says a lot about how the European automakers are squaring up against ones from China these days.

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The conders are the MG MG4, which is from a historically British brand now owned by China's SAIC and a surprising sales hit in Europe; the BYD Dolphin, which is even cheaper than the MG4 and probably needs no introduction given BYD's huge success in the EV world lately; and the Citroën e-C3, which I think is the most interesting car in this showdown.

Why? Because the first two are from China and built with Chinese EV tech, while the Citroën is from Stellantis, made in Europe (Slovakia, if you're curious) and it's cheaper than the other two.

We've spent a lot of internet ink this year on how hard Europe's automakers, Stellantis and Volkswagen in particular, are getting rocked by competition from Chinese newcomers. Generally, China's EV and battery tech is far beyond the West and until tariffs get in the way they can be sold at far lower prices. So the e-C3's inclusion in this video is a test of whether Stellantis can adequately hit back or not.

First, let's talk specs. The MG4 here is an entry-level SE model that starts at £26,995 (about $35,000 U.S. at current exchange rates) and it's got a 50.8 kWh battery with up to 218 miles of range. The BYD Dolphin they test is £26,195 and uses the smaller available 44.9 kWh battery to get up to 211 miles of range.

Citroen e-C3

Photo by: InsideEVs

Then there's the Citroën, which undercuts the other two at £21,990 (about $28,000 U.S.) and this range-topping Max model has a 47.3 kWh battery good for 199 miles of range. All range figures are on Europe's WLTP testing cycle. While those range figures aren't super impressive to us road-trip-loving Americans, they fit the use case for many—if not most—European drivers whose primary goals are city driving and short trips. "Most of these cars will spend their lives puttering around towns and making short journeys," one presenter even says after the spec rundown.

European EV Road Trip

Photo by: InsideEVs

But the best way to put them through their paces was still a 200-mile road trip. They do so under the same weather conditions, with the air conditioner on and all settings on automatic. The differences between the three become readily apparent. For starters, the MG and the BYD are built on dedicated EV platforms, while the Citroën uses a flexible "do-it-all" platform that can also accommodate internal combustion; this means it's a bit more awkward in terms of packaging and cargo space.

The BYD seems to be the clear winner on software and infotainment with a bright, rotating screen, but it curiously only works with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto in landscape mode. The Citroën is a bit more cramped and old-school-feeling than the others but it has a nice, upright driving position. Its software is "not particularly great," however. The MG4 is the one to beat because it's the current sales champ—inside it's "acceptable but not special" and has some confounding climate control issues. But it's probably the athlete of the trio, while the Citroën feels "lazy" and "gutless" by comparison.

The Citroën is also the first to drop off to charge on the motorway, while the MG and the BYD are able to go the distance a bit longer before plugging in at 20%, as they agreed at the outset.

MG4 EV Road Trip

Photo by: InsideEVs

During charging, the Citroën went from 17% to 80% in 38 minutes. The MG4 boasts a faster charging speed so it went from 4% to 80% in the same timeframe. And then BYD Dolphin in that spec isn't a very fast-charging EV; it took a disappointing 52 minutes to go from 4% to 80%. However, the Dolphin was also the cheapest to charge and most efficient overall.

WhatCar? EV Road Trip

Photo by: InsideEVs

So which one does WhatCar? recommend most? In the end, it's the MG4—a car that's received considerable praise in the automotive press and is proving to be a super-popular electric choice in the UK. It's the best balance of price, range, running costs and charging here. They said at the outset that the MG would be the benchmark here, and in the end, it showed us why.

But as they note in closing, the test was very close; it's also proof that European automakers do have a shot at outpricing and outgunning their Chinese competition. And that's a story we'll be watching closely in 2025 and beyond.

What do you think?

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Check out What Car?'s full test above for even more insights.

Contact the author: patrick.george@insideevs.com

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