MG Hector

The MG Hector is one of the biggest cars you can buy in its price and apart from its size, it brings good features, great space, and cabin premiumness. It goes up against some serious competition in the form of the Tata Harrier and Mahindra XUV700. It has now received a facelift with subtle cosmetic updates and new colour options.

Despite the update though, the Hector is now beginning to show its age a bit. Still, it continues to offer a compelling package and here's why you should or shouldn't consider the Hector. Note: The facelifted Hector's diesel powertrain has been removed from the lineup for now, but will be made available in early 2026 again.

MG has updated the Hector's design slightly for this latest update and you can have a detailed look at all the visual changes in this story. The Hector has always had a bold and upmarket road presence which it gets from its size and premium design. Anyone can recognise this car from a distance mostly due to its large grille, that gives the Hector its signature look. 

Even with the new update, the grill continues to catch a lot of attention due to the excessive use of chrome. Some might like it, some might not. The front also houses sleek LED DRLs, large split LED headlamps, and a slim bumper with more chrome inserts. 

The profile highlights its size and while it does not have many cuts or creases, the chrome used here on the door handles and cladding does add some contrast. It sits on 6-spoke 18-inch alloy wheels, which do look good, but bigger 19-inch ones would have suited the car’s size better. Lower variants get 17-inch steel wheels with covers and alloys.

The highlight of the rear profile is the connected LED tail lamps setup, which adds a sense of modernity. Here you do see some creases on the boot, and just like the front, the rear also has a lot of chrome under the tail lamps and on the bumper. The “Hector” badging is also finished in chrome. But with this new update, the bumper now gets a cleaner look than before.

MG offers the Hector in 5 shades: Pearl White, Glaze Red, Aurora Silver, Starry Black, and Celadon Blue. Out of all these colours, the Glaze Red and Starry Black stand out the most.

The Hector does look good and you do get a sense of premiumness from its size and design elements. That being said,I feel it would have looked much better if it had a little less chrome, and that is something that MG could've done with this new update.

Design & Quality

Getting in and out of Hector is reasonably easy. It is a tall SUV so ingress and egress will be a little difficult for elders. But for most people, getting in and out will not require much effort.

The Hector is just as upmarket on the inside as it is on the outside. Inside, you get a black and white cabin theme with leatherette seats that makes it look classy and airy. On top of that, you get soft-touch padding on the dashboard, which makes the cabin feel more premium.

You also get soft touch padding on the doors, and just like on the outside, you get chrome inserts in the cabin on the AC vents, door pads, and centre console. 

The quality of the materials could have been better, especially in the centre console, where elements can easily be moved with little pressure. Save for this, the overall quality of the cabin is good and feels like money well spent.

Front Seats

Hector gets a height adjustable driver seat and tilt adjustable steering wheel from the base variant onwards, so finding an ideal driving position is very easy. Telescopic steering adjustment is available in the top two variants.

Getting to the front seats, they are spacious, and you can sit here comfortably for hours. Also, to add to this comfort, the front seats are powered and come with a ventilation function. However, due to the white colour of these seats, they will easily get dirty and you’ll have to put in extra effort to keep them clean.

On the visibility front, there are no major issue blind spots. Both front and rear windshields are wide which offer good overall visibility. Due to the height of the seat, you also get a commanding view of the road. 

Rear Seats

This is where the Hector shines. Its rear seats offer ample amount of headroom, legroom, knee room, and a good amount of underthigh support as well. Three adults can sit comfortably here without rubbing shoulders and the rear seats also recline for added comfort. The rear seats of the Hector are ideal for a chauffeur-driven car as you can easily stretch your legs here and sit comfortably.

Also, due to the space, white cabin theme, and big windows, you get good visibility from the rear seats and you never feel cramped inside the car.

Storage Options

The Hector comes with 1-litre bottle holders on all doors, 2 cupholders in the centre console, storage in the centre armrest, a decent sized glove box, seatback pockets, 2 cupholders in the rear armrest, and a tray to keep your phone or wallet under the rear AC vents.

Charging Options

However, the charging options in the Hector are not as much as they should be. Apart from the wireless phone charger, it only gets 2 USB charging ports and a 12V socket in the front, and only one USB charging port in the back. MG should have at least added type-C charging ports in the Hector.

Apart from the inconsistent cabin quality in some places and less charging options, the rest of the cabin has a premium feeling which makes you think you’re sitting in an expensive car. The great space on offer is a cherry on top.

Features

The feature list of the Hector may not be as large as its newer rivals, but the must haves are more than covered. 

Apart from these features, you also get a 14-inch touchscreen, which is the highlight of this cabin. This is less of an infotainment touchscreen and more of an Android tablet which has its own pros and cons.

The good thing is that in this segment or in this price range, you won’t get a touchscreen bigger than this. It gives the cabin a premium look and makes you feel like you are sitting in a pretty expensive car. Also, it supports wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. This infotainment system previously used to suffer from slight delays and lags when switching between different menus. But with the new 10GB RAM, the experience feels smoother than before. It hasn't eliminated lag entirely, but definitely feels better to use. 

This update has also brought some relief in using basic features like changing temperature or fan speed and controlling your media -- the functions of which are still in the infotainment itself. But you now get gesture controls to change them with the swipe of two (climate) or three (media) fingers across the screen. Nothing beats physical controls, but this is pretty intuitive to use and will make it easier to access/change these things while driving the car. 

There’s a 7-inch digital driver’s display, which functions as intended. It’s easily understandable, displays all the information you need, and has a dedicated section for ADAS. Oddly enough, it does not display the fuel efficiency.

Lastly, MG offers a 360-degree camera which comes with a blind view monitor. The camera quality is good, there are no frame drops, and it works well in low light conditions as well. The blind view monitor is also a good addition as it displays the feed of your blind spot on the touchscreen once you indicate. But I wish this feed came on the driver’s display as it takes up the entire touchscreen.

Standard safety features of the Hector include dual front airbags, rear parking sensors, ABS with EBD, electronic stability program (ESP), traction control system, all-wheel disc brakes, hill hold control, and ISOFIX child seat anchors.

Higher variants get up to 6 airbags, a tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS), a rearview camera, front parking sensors, electronic parking brake with auto hold, and a 360-degree camera with a blind view monitor. It also gets Level 2 ADAS (both camera and radar) features like adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist, and autonomous emergency braking.

The MG Hector has not been officially crash tested by Global NCAP or Bharat NCAP.

MG has not revealed the official boot space figures of the Hector but it gets a good amount of boot loading capacity for all of your luggage. You can easily store a trolley bag set here: large, medium, and small, with space left for 2 soft bags. 

In case you need to keep more luggage or you’re shifting and have a lot of bags with you, its rear seats can be folded with a 60:40 ratio and become a flatbed, where you store all your stuff. On top of that, you also get a powered tailgate, so after you store your luggage, you can close the boot with the push of a button.

The MG Hector gets two engine options, one turbo-petrol and one diesel. While the petrol gets both manual and automatic transmissions, the diesel is available solely with a manual.

With the latest facelift, MG hasn't revealed prices for the Hector's diesel engine, but has confirmed that it will be launched sometime in early 2026. 

1.5-litre Turbo-petrol

This engine is responsive, smooth, and packs a good amount of power. The power is delivered pretty smoothly so you don’t feel any jerks and this engine is well refined which limits any harsh vibrations.

City Performance

Driving the Hector petrol in the city is easy as there is more than enough power for cruising around and sudden overtakes don’t take much time. Even driving through bumper-to-bumper traffic is calm, given there’s no sudden surge of power. 

Driving the manual is effortless due to the light clutch and well defined gear slots, but if you want driving convenience in the city, pick the CVT.  It's neither slow, nor harsh. It's a balance between getting a smooth drive and getting urgent acceleration when you need it. So we would definitely recommend it over the manual transmission.

However, the low fuel efficiency is a big drawback of the Hector petrol. In our tests, while driving in normal conditions, we found that this engine offers around 6-8kmpl inside the city

Highway Performance

On the highways, you get to triple digit speeds easily and overtaking others around you is no hassle. At triple digit speeds, however, overtakes do require some additional time as the engine takes some time to build up speed.

Here, the CVT will not be able to provide a very fun or exciting driving experience as it will build up speeds at a slower pace. It’s simply not as exciting as to drive. 

Fuel efficiency on the highway will be around 10-12kmpl, and slightly more if you’re just cruising around.

2-litre Diesel

If you want better fuel efficiency along with more power, the diesel engine should be your pick. It does bring in some additional vibrations, but the power is delivered smoothly and in a linear fashion.

City Performance

Inside the city, the overall drive experience is similar to the petrol. You can easily cruise around in 2nd or 3rd gear without needing to change gears often, overtaking others around you is easy, and bumper-to-bumper traffic can also be handled effortlessly.

But, you only get a manual with the diesel and the clutch is fairly hard, which makes long city drives a little tiresome. As for fuel effi ciency, you can get a mileage of around 12-13 kmpl in the city.

Highway Performance

With more power under the hood, you get a better and a more exciting drive experience on the highways. Power is delivered in a smooth surge and overtaking takes little time. It can reach triple digit speeds quicker and overtaking at those speeds is also easier compared to petrol.

Fuel efficiency on the highway will be around 16-18kmpl, more if you cruise around at 80-90 kmph.

Ride Comfort

While you do have to compromise on fuel efficiency, you don’t have to do the same in your ride comfort. The suspension feels soft and cushiony as it absorbs bumps with ease. Driving over broken patches inside the city will not give you jerks inside the cabin, but you will feel a little side-to-side movement.

Handling

On highways, at high speeds, the Hector remains stable, but the rear seat passengers will feel some movement when going over bumps. Also, for an SUV of this size, the Hector has some 

expected body roll, which you’ll feel while taking sharp turns or when driving on hill stations. 

Drive in a relaxed manner, and you’re unlikely to ever be uncomfortable in the Hector. 

The MG Hector is offered in 5 variants: Style, Select Pro, Smart Pro, Sharp Pro, and Savvy Pro. Save for the Style and Select Pro variants, all others get the automatic transmission with petrol engine. You can find a detailed breakdown of the Hector's variant-wise features in this story. 

Style

• Exterior gets halogen headlamps, halogen + LED tail lamps, and 17-inch steel wheels with covers.

• Cabin gets fabric seats, a height adjustable driver seat, and silver inside door handles.

• Features include electrically adjustable ORVMs, all power windows, bluetooth audio, and 4 speakers.

• Safety kit gets 6 airbags, electronic stability program (ESP), hill hold assist, and ISOFIX child seat anchors.

Select Pro

• Gets LED projector headlamps, LED DRLs, full LED tail lamps, front and rear fog lamps, and 17-inch alloy wheels.

• Feature additions include a single-pane sunroof, a 7-inch digital driver’s display, wireless phone charger,  and cruise control.

• Gets an infotainment package with a 14-inch touchscreen, wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, and a 6-speaker sound system.

• Safety kit gets a rearview camera.

Smart Pro

• Comes with 18-inch alloy wheels and chrome finished outside door handles.

• Gets a dual-tone white and black cabin theme with leatherette seats.

• Feature additions include connected car tech, drive modes, push button start stop, electrically folding ORVMs, an infinity tuned 8-speaker sound system, and a panoramic sunroof.

• Front parking sensors, tyre pressure monitoring system and electronic parking brake (CVT only) bolster the safety kit.

Sharp Pro

• Features more chrome inserts inside-out.
• Additional features include connected car technology, 6-way powered driver seat, auto dimming IRVM, auto headlights, front ventilated seats and 4-way powered passenger seat.
• Offers better flexibility with telescopic steering adjust, 50:50 split third row, slide and recline second row and captain seats (6-seater)

• Safety kit gets rain sensing wipers.

Savvy Pro

• Only adds Level 2 ADAS features and a 360-degree camera.

CarDekho Recommends

• Pick the Select Pro variant if you’re on a budget. It gets a premium infotainment package along with all the basic amenities. For budget automatic, Smart Pro is a good option.

• Sharp Pro should be your pick if you want a more upmarket experience with some flashy features. Pick the Savvy Pro only if ADAS is a priority, otherwise skip.

This car has a lot to offer: great road presence, a spacious and comfortable cabin, a good set of features, an ample amount of boot space, and acceptable performance. It has the makings of a good family SUV. However, the fuel efficiency of its petrol engine is substantially low, its cabin fit and finish could have been better, and the lag along with the impracticality of its touchscreen will irritate you.

If you can overlook these drawbacks and prioritise space and comfort for your family, or if you are looking for a car that gives a good chauffeur-driven experience, then you should consider the MG Hector. Also, if low mileage is a big problem for you, then you can always consider the diesel engine, which has better fuel economy. 

Other Options To Consider

Mahindra XUV700

Reasons To Consider

• Option of diesel automatic powertrain

• Gets an AWD setup 

Reasons To Ignore

• High waiting period in some cities

Jeep Compass

Reason To Consider

• Feels more premium with better build quality

• More sophisticated 9-speed automatic transmission

• Gets an AWD option

Reason To Ignore

• Limited rear seat space

• Much more expensive

Tata Harrier

Reasons To Consider

• More premium inside and out

• Better feature package

• Gets a diesel automatic powertrain

Reasons To Ignore

• No turbo-petrol engine option

• Less rear seat space