MG Comet EV review — Dodging rickshaws, turning heads in purani Dilli!

‘yeh mohabbat ki chai hai, iske paise nahi puchte,’ Mobin ji tauntingly said. Mobin ji was one of many friends that I made during my time with the Comet. As I finished the tea, clicked some more pictures, and made my way into the car, the kind man halted the traffic outside Jama Masjid and helped us out of the parking space. He waved ‘goodbye and see you again’, with more emphasis on the latter. 

A word of caution — if you’ve already made up your mind about buying one, all the time that you’ll save zipping through those traffic jams is likely to be spent answering questions that passersby are going to bombard you with. And if you aren’t sure about the car yet, feel free to keep reading.

As we were on the topic of friends, you’ll make quite a few everyday if you’re in a Comet, and even more if you happen to pick one of those funky colours. As soon as I got the keys to the car at the Dwarka metro station, I was swarmed up with autowalas. The usual concerns about the price and range were discussed, and one of them said, ‘Yeh gaadi yahan utni nahi dikhti, iss colour mein toh pehli baar dekhi hai.’ And just then, the idea of taking her to Old Delhi came up to me. 

I started early the next morning, hoping to get some less busier frames in what otherwise would have been a bustling Sunday setup. My first stop was at Hanuman Mandir in Connaught Place. Not having to take the key out of my pocket to lock the car came up to be a boon here, with my friend’s phone almost getting snatched away by a monkey, thanks to the keyless feature. We relished some kachoris, I bid my friends farewell, and made my way to Chandni Chowk. 

As I had expected, it seemed the perfect setting to test the micro EV, with narrow lanes, overcrowded bazaars, and haphazard traffic movement. The Comet masked herself among the rickshaws and auto rickshaws, with other cars stuck behind. It was in those streets that I appreciated the agility of the car the most. Sure, she is not the most comfortable commuter out there, and the comfort on the rear seats is even worse. But you somehow make peace with all that when you get to zip through traffic and get to your destination quicker, all while having fun. 

Despite being so agile, the Sunday crowd made it a bit harder to navigate through the mess and reach Jama Masjid. And the maps weren’t helping either. By the way, you have to really stretch your arm to reach the touchscreen, a problem that you’ll have to face often as most of the controls such as the regen modes, maps, and other settings are to be accessed via the screen. The air-con vents for the driver, too, are placed weirdly, with the left one blocked by the steering wheel stock, and the right one with the cup holder, should you choose to use it.

Maneuvering her through the streets of Purani Dilli, we were finally adjacent to the mosque. But parking was hard to find. Just then, a guy came up to the window, and asked for a picture with the car. I made a deal with him — help me find a parking spot and you can have as many pictures clicked as you like. Not more than a minute later, the car rested in a spot that was previously occupied by a khajoor pushcart, which also belonged to the man. Oh, how foolish of me to not introduce him, he was Mister Mobin. 

He was surprised to see the amount of space inside, so was almost everybody that experienced the car. MG has nailed it with the packaging, credit where it’s due. Even the rear seats feel spacious, and the cabin feels airy, thanks to the large greenhouse area. The door pockets have enough space as well, to hold a decent amount of stuff. What feels missing is any kind of closed storage space; a silly but a big miss in my opinion. 

Getting back to the story, I clicked some photographs for my friends that I made there, and made my way back to CP to pick up another friend. We agreed on going to the Daryaganj Book Market. I looked over her shoulder and made a left turn into Mahila Haat, almost brushing past a pedestrian. There’s a blind spot at the other side, due to the thick and wide b-pillar, and the passenger’s seat. Otherwise, visibility is pretty good in other directions. 

The Daryaganj Book Market, which earlier used to be set up alongside the footwalks, has now been moved into a walled complex. We couldn’t really find any titles that we were looking for, but had a good time exploring the market. Next place to wander was Lutyen’s Delhi. 

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It wasn’t just pedestrians and autowalas who looked at the Comet inquisitively. We got the same reaction from people driving BMWs and those being chauffeured around in Vellfires. The tiny EV does have the wow factor. While cruising through the streets of Lutyen’s, my friend put on some music, but she was quite disappointed with the audio quality. Given the price point at which the car is positioned, it is fair to expect a better sound system. Noise insulation is also poor, and the horn seems to be placed the opposite way, with you hearing it as much as the people outside.

It was almost evening, and while the Comet had enough juice left, we were short on it. On our way back to Connaught place, we took a small detour towards India Gate; how could we not, it was a Sunday evening. Unsurprisingly, it was crowded. And the Comet, being unashamed as usual, stole a lot of eyeballs from the monument. She got a ‘thumps up’ from everybody, and we felt like a tad bit important because of her. 

Getting to the two important questions that almost everybody whom I interacted with asked — How much does it cost? How far can it go in one charge? MG has priced the car between Rs 7 lakh and Rs 9.83 lakh; alternatively Rs 5 lakh to Rs 7.65 lakh if you opt for the BaaS scheme. While the upfront cost seems to be quite high, which it is, the car requires chump change to run. Maintenance is cheap as well. Coming to the range, it can deliver anywhere between 150 to 180 kilometres, mostly depending on how you drive it. The different regen modes work just fine, and you’ll get used to them in no time. 

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Amidst all these questions, we had to answer to the rumbling noises from our tummies too, and off we headed back towards CP. Reflecting on the day over a late lunch, we realised that we had made a lot of friends because of the Comet. She felt just like at home in the streets of Old Delhi, and the latter also welcomed her with open arms, not making her feel out of place. Sure, the Comet EV isn’t the perfect city car, but she is a good one, a very jolly good one. There are niggles, but there aren’t any deal breakers. Well, we did get locked outside the car with the key inside the cabin once, but that’s a story for another day. 

Post our meal, I bid adieu to my friend and zipped back off to my home in Gurgaon, and the Comet could finally get her share of fuel after a good long day of exploring the city. Exploration is even more fun when you have good company, and while I would have usually referred to my friends here, the Comet stole the spotlight, again. It hardly takes a couple of times to get used to the pedals and a missing start/stop button. But it hits harder when you go from the Comet to a bigger, or let’s say, a conventional car. 

Would I take her to the mountains? I must be a mad man to even think of that. Would I take her out for another day of exploring the old city? Hell, yeah! And who knows, we might just bump into Mobin ji again. One thing is for sure, it’ll be another day of adventure, a few new friends, and another story to tell.