What percentage of the cars on the road does a particular vehicle have to make up for it to be classed as ‘rare’? 10 percent? Five percent? One percent? Half a percent? Well how about 0.0001265 percent, because of the 33.2 million cars on the road in Britain, just 42 of them are MG XPower SV-Rs like the one above.
That rarity inevitably adds to the value of cars like the SV-R, a car which, when it was launched in the early-2000s was a sort of hodge-podge of different mechanicals melded together.
The chassis, or its platform if you will, was previously used by a Qvale Mangusta and De Tomaso Bigna, Italian projects that didn’t make it off the ground. Meanwhile the engine was a derivative of the V8 found in the then latest iteration of the Ford Mustang.
However, whilst the mechanicals may have been borrowed the aesthetics were bespoke, coming at a time when MG was running cars such as MG-Lola EX257 at the Le Mans 24 Hours. The MG XPower SV, and the more powerful R version photographed here, were part of the roadgoing presence to back up the British company’s on track intentions.
So unique was the SV that it made it onto Top Gear and into the hands of Jeremy Clarkson who described it as “poised”, “balanced”, “hard riding”, “hard charging”, and said that it went “like a jet fighter”.
So how does this MG XPower SV-R stack up 21 years after it was first released to the public in 2004?
The version I drove, provided by DM Historics, had an astoundingly low mileage of 10,500 miles which means that in two decades of driving the car had done an average of just 500 miles per year.
The results and experience were…mixed. On the surface the MG still looks terrific, with a design that looks like it could fit into a semi-cyberpunk world with its wide arches and muscular design.
On the inside, the cabin is refreshingly devoid of screens with old fashioned knobs, dials, and even a manual ‘fly away’ hand brake. The fact you have to harness yourself into the belts adds a sense of occasion as you turn over the car and near-400bhp Ford behemoth upfront burbles into life.
It’s once you get on the road that things begin to feel a little bit out of sorts.
Yes, the engine is very powerful and sounds lovely, but it doesn’t seem very eager to go when you poke it with a stick.
Maybe the rise of instant EV acceleration has gotten us used to split second responses, but this engine didn’t seem in the mood to be rushed; my friend’s electric Mercedes EQA SUV felt like it had more get up and go than this.
And then you get to the steering and suspension. The latter is hard and firm and very definitely holds the car in place as you ply your way along British B and A roads, but the steering is light and feel fades in and out.
Meanwhile, the gearbox is lovely with a short throw, but there’s nowhere to put your left food once you’re done with the clutch. The suspension and terrific gearbox seem at odds with the unenthusiastic engine and slightly vague steering.
As a result, you have a car which is one of contrasts, its looks and stiff suspension suggest it is a ‘racing car for the road’, but then you hit that road and half the car’s components doesn’t feel matched up to the other.
This isn’t to say the XPower SV-R hasn’t been looked after properly, DM Historics have done a terrific job, but you’re left wondering what it’s for.
It really is a case of ‘Instacar vs Reality’.
