MG Motor India launches Gloster SUV at Rs 28.98 lakh

British marquee brand MG Motor India today launched the Gloster SUV at introductory price starting at Rs 28.98 lakh. The premium SUV is being offered in four trim levels – Super, Smart, Sharp and Savvy.

The base Super trim variant priced at Rs 28.98 lakh, comes only with a seven-seat configuration (a bench seat in the second row). It gets a lot of standard equipment, such as six airbags, ESP, traction control, hill hold, cruise control, auto headlights and wipers, a 6-way manually adjustable driver’s seat, a 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system and more.

The Smart trim priced at Rs 30.98 lakh, adds features like a sunroof, paddle shifters, 3-zone climate control, MG’s ‘i-Smart’ connected car tech, and Android Auto and Apple CarPlay support, to name a few. It can only be had in a six-seat configuration, with captain seats in the middle row.

Coming to the Sharp trim (priced at Rs 33.68-33.98 lakh), it can be had in either a six- or seven-seat configuration. Some key features over the Smart trim include a panoramic sunroof, a powered driver’s seat with heating, ventilation, massage and memory functions, a 12-speaker sound system, 360-degree parking cameras, blind spot monitoring system and more.

The top-spec Savvy trim (priced at Rs 35.38 lakh) can only be had as a six-seater and gets the suite of ADAS (advanced driver assistance system) features, like forward collision warning, autonomous emergency braking, lane-departure warning, adaptive cruise control and hands-free parking.

Rajeev Chaba, president and MD, MG Motor India said, “We believe that Gloster will establish new benchmark while combining matchless luxury, technology, and off-roading experience in its segment. The customised My Mg Shield aftersales packages will further provide more alternatives to customers and ensure a complete peace of mind. All of these features are in line with our philosophy of doing more than our customers’ expectations.”

The MG Gloster gets two diesel engine options. The first is a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine which churns out 163hp and 375Nm of torque. This engine is only available in the Super and Smart trim levels.

The second engine option, a twin-turbo version of the same engine, is offered on the higher Sharp and Savvy trims. It makes 218hp and 480Nm of torque. This setup also gets on-demand four-wheel drive with selectable drive modes.

Both engine options come paired with an 8-speed automatic gearbox; there is no manual option.

MG’s flagship SUV competes in the full-size segment against other 7-seat ladder-frame SUVs. This means, its key rivals include the Ford Endeavour, Toyota Fortuner and the Mahindra Alturas G4.

At this price point, entry-level Gloster prices are lower than the Fortuner's by a sizable Rs 3.55 lakh and even undercut the Endeavour by Rs 1 lakh. The top-spec Gloster is a bit costlier than the Toyota and the Ford though. The Alturas G4 is more affordable than all its rivals at both ends of the spectrum.

Nonetheless, the Gloster's introductory pricing makes MG's full-size SUV seem like quite a value for money proposition thanks to the impressive space and equipment on offer.

*Introductory price valid until October 31, 2020 or first 2,000 customers