2023 MG Hector gets both petrol and diesel engine options while rivals like Safari and Harrier only offer diesel
MG Hector is the British brand’s first-ever offering in India. It is known as Baojun 530 in China, Chevrolet Captiva or Wuling Almaz in some South Asian countries. In India, it is sold under the MG brand. Now, MG Motor India is set to launch an updated version of this feature-loaded SUV to recreate its initial magic.
Why the update? Well, Hector was losing out on sales. One of the reasons behind that could be the lack of features against the newly launched XUV700. Speaking of XUV700, it comes with ADAS features – that were never heard before in this segment.
Post the launch of XUV700, sales of Hector as well as Harrier / Safari have declined. Now, MG and even Tata are getting ready to launch ADAS enabled versions of their respective SUVs in this segment.
2023 MG Hector Brochure
For some, MG cars would come off as a little overdone. 2023 Hector will get a revised front fascia along with a new chrome grille. LED headlights and LED DRLs are now a lot sleeker and handsome looking. At the rear, Hector will get a new set of LED tail-lights too. Side profile remains the same, and so does the alloy design.
On the inside, 2023 MG Hector gets a 14” HD vertically mounted Infotainment system and supports “Next-Gen i-SMART” to deliver a responsive, accurate, and seamless experience. To add convenience, MG has also offered features like wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.
Driver’s instrumentation is now a fully configurable 7” cluster offering a wide FOV. Also on the inside, MG now offers a pretty dual-tone Oak White & Black Interior. But given Indian conditions, it would be tough to keep it impeccable.
It also gets a brushed metal finish, for a sense of luxury. Dashboard is designed with horizontal lines and also neatly integrates chrome-lined AC vents and looks neat. Ambient lighting makes it look classy too.
2023 Hector will get ADAS systems. These include automatic emergency braking along with pedestrian protection, blind spot detection with front and rear cross-traffic alert, adaptive headlights, radar-based adaptive cruise control and guided parking assist. Even the Astor is equipped with these features and now, the new Hector gets them too.
Powertrain & Competition
Mechanically, it will be the same as the outgoing model. 2023 Hector will be powered by a 1.5L turbo 4-cylinder petrol engine making 141 bhp and 250 Nm coupled to either a CVT or 6-speed MT with mild hybrid tech. And a 2.0L turbo-diesel engine making 168 bhp and 350 Nm and is mated to only a 6-speed manual transmission.
Hector is the only one that doesn’t offer an automatic transmission option with diesel engine while rivals donning the same Stellantis-sourced engine like Safari, Compass and Harrier do. Even the XUV700 and Scorpio N offer diesel automatic.
2023 Hector launch is expected in the coming days, with deliveries to start soon after. It will be offered in 5-seat, 6-seat and 7-seat options. The latter two will be launched as 2023 Hector Plus. Take a look at the official brochure scans in the gallery below.
