The convoy of Majestors ready for the first drive looked imposing, standing tall on the tarmac of Aamby Valley, exuding a sort of quiet menace, highlighted by the monochrome colour palette of black, white, and this grey that you see here. The looks are firmly in line with the global Maxus D90 sold elsewhere in the world, which means slit-like LED DRLs, with triple vertically stacked headlamps. The grille is large enough to warrant its own postcode, which adds to the imposing road presence of this behemoth (it measures more than 5m in length and over 2m in width). The 19-inch wheels are shod with proper high sidewall (55 aspect ratio) tyres, which gives it a proper off-roader stance. Overall, it looks a lot better and more modern than the Gloster, which I feel is primarily due to the lack of chrome on the grille, which is black and has an intricate pattern. 

MG left no stone unturned in its quest to load the Majestor up to its gills with features, and really, if I were to list every single one of those, I’m going to run out of pages, so here are the best ones. There’s three-zone climate control, along with ventilated seats for the front row. The middle row also has access to a 220V domestic power outlet, something which is rare on an ICE-powered car. Every row gets reading lights too, and the interior, finished in carbon fibre and brushed aluminium, looks really good. Unfortunately, there are still some fit and finish issues, particularly with the stitching, with frayed loose ends, and misalignment. Also, the hard plastics don’t do justice to a nearly half-crore rupee car (estimated), and the worst bit is that almost all the touchpoints are where you’ll encounter them. I feel that if MG spends a little more time with the interior and upholstery, it will elevate the in-cabin experience to a whole new level.

The in-cabin experience that leaves no room for improvement is insulation, as the potent turbo-diesel doesn’t intrude into the cabin. And what a turbo-diesel it is! It feels gutsy and muscular, propelling the nearly two-and-a-half tonne behemoth of this three-row SUV to rapid paces with very little elapsed time. Yet, when crawling off idle, the 2.0-litre motor’s 478.5Nm makes progress feel effortless over rugged terrain. It does make 215PS too, in case you wondered. But that near 500Nm is what grabs the headlines, and keeps shaking it until it has spilled all its secrets (that was a bit too violent an imagery, wasn’t it?). The 8-speed automatic does a really good job of keeping the engine in the meat of the torque plateau. Speeds rise without much drama, and thus, when you do look down at the speedo, you may get slightly alarmed at the number being displayed. It is quite easy to achieve maximum retardation, though, as the large disc brakes on all four wheels transform the massive kinetic energy into heat and brake dust and bring this moving living room to a quick halt. Also, through spirited cornering and lane-change maneuvers at highway speeds, the Majestor manages to retain its composure and displays a high degree of lack of body roll. On the road, it is easy to forget that it is, in fact, a pukka ladder-framed off-roader.

The MG Majestor comes with a 12-way adjustable driver seat and an 8-way adjustable front passenger seat, with 8 different massaging patterns. But I will hazard a guess that, as you’re reading TURBOCHARGED, you’re not interested in that, so let me tell you about the three differential locks which, when coupled with that monstrous torque, 219mm of ground clearance, and approach and departure angles of 27.6 and 23.5 degrees respectively, the MG Majestor is well nigh unstoppable on the trail. The good folks at MG had a gruelling off-road course set up for us to try out the off-road chops of the Majestor, and if you know when to engage your low-range and diff-locks, you will be able to go through almost anything. The craziest bit is though the CCO, which stands for ‘Crawl Control Operation’, but I think it should stand for ‘Cheat Code On’ — once enabled, it acts as a proper off-road cruise control, making the car climbing over obstacles, reining in the speed during steep descents, and basically making serious off-road driving child’s play. It doesn’t deploy the front and rear diff locks for you, though, and I am glad that some room has been left for the driver’s judgment. 

Yes, the MG Majestor is available as a 4×2, but so many other SUVs are also available as 4x2s that opting for the Majestor and choosing the 2WD version feels like going to the water park with a raincoat — that’s missing the point. The one thing the 2WD Majestor has going for it is the second row with two captain’s seats instead of the bench, which is the only option in the 4WD version. However, having been an off-roading enthusiast since time immemorial, I have also noticed that off-roading enthusiasts have more friends on average than off-roading non-enthusiasts, and an extra seat does make sense! All MG needs to do is price it attractively, and they will laugh all the way to the bank, as regardless of how they price it, it will be the most affordable car in India to come with three diff locks, and off-roaders know that the value of that can’t be measured in gold.

Words Sayantan De
Photography Saidatta Naik

The post MG Majestor First Drive Review first appeared on Turbocharged.

Powertrain-identical to the MG Rakan 4×4 launched in Kuwait, at the heart of the Majestor sits a 2.0-litre twin-turbo diesel engine paired with an eight-speed torque converter automatic transmission and a 4×4 drivetrain, producing 216PS and 478Nm.

The Majestor shares the same platform with the MG Gloster, albeit with a few premium-looking additions. These include (but aren’t limited to) a new blacked-out front grille, vertical headlamps, horizontal LED DRLs akin to the Hector, new alloy wheels, new LED tail lamps, and a dual exhaust along with some new blacked-out cosmetic features. Since the Gloster gets Level 2 ADAS on higher trims, we can expect it to be standard on the Majestor, given its premium positioning.

The price of the Majestor should be north of ₹50 lakh, setting it against full-size SUVs like the Toyota Fortuner and the Toyota Legender. Moreover, if Ford decides to return with the India-bound Endeavour SUV anytime this year, it could potentially rival this newcomer as well.

The post MG Majestor teased ahead of 12 Feb launch first appeared on Turbocharged.

Adding to the familiarity saga, the Majestor has been launched in Kuwait under a different nameplate – the MG Rakan 4X4, as a part of the brand’s global rebadging strategy.

Powertrain-identical to the Rakan, at the heart of the Majestor we can expect a similar 2.0-litre twin-turbo diesel engine mated with an eight-speed torque converter automatic transmission and a 4×4 drivetrain, producing 216PS and 478Nm.

The Majestor shares the same platform with the MG Gloster, except with a few size-enhancing features. These include (but aren’t limited to) a new blacked-out front grille, vertical headlamps, horizontal LED DRLs akin to the Hector, new alloy wheels, new LED tail lamps, and a dual exhaust along with some new blacked-out cosmetic features. Since the Gloster gets Level 2 ADAS on higher trims, we can expect it to be standard on the Majestor, given its premium positioning.

The price of the Majestor can be estimated to be north of ₹50 lakh; but at that price point, it may burn into the Gloster’s sales. Furthermore, it will be set against seasoned rivals like the Toyota Fortuner and the Toyota Legender. BONUS point: if Ford decides to return to India with the Everest SUV anytime this year, it could potentially rival this newcomer as well.

The post MG Majestor India launch date confirmed first appeared on Turbocharged.