MG Motors India Pvt. Ltd., the local unit of the British car maker, now owned by China’s SAIC Moto Corp. Ltd, is set to mark its entry in India. The company plans both hybrid and electric vehicles, with the first among these being the Hector SUV.
MG Hector is a connected SUV. Its internet capable features were explained today at a specially organized event in Delhi. ‘Drive.IN – Introducing India to Internet of cars’ is a car event which sees participation from Microsoft, Cisco, TomTom and Gaana.
These new age technologies will make the new MG Hector completely connected to the internet via onboard network connections and wireless internet to other devices inside the SUV, thus making the new MG Hector the first connected car to go on sale in the country.
“The integration of internet with cars opens up a gamut of features that can ensure a seamless and updated ownership experience for MG customers in India. With an embedded SIM card and OTA, the MG Hector promises to do a lot more over time with constantly-expanding capabilities, to create a seamless driving experience, throughout the life of the car,” said Rajeev Chaba, President & Managing Director, MG Motor India. “Furthermore, with the advent of 5G connectivity in India, MG cars will have the potential to add new, breakthrough features to further enrich the car driving experience,” Chaba added.
In its alliance with Microsoft, MG Motors targets the security concerns of its customers. It will be able to safeguard customer’s privacy which was explained by Travis Lench from Microsoft. Where the MG Motors association with Cisco is concerned, Krish Inbarajan explained on the go connectivity services being offered by the company while Kulmeet Bawa from Adobe explained the digital customer facilities being offered on the Hector SUV.
MG Motors has also entered into an alliance with Gaana wherein Prashan Agarwal details the music app while TomTom advanced navigation system which will also be used on board the Hector. Steven Hayes details the digitally connected customer benefits offered by SAP while Tsjerk-Friso Roelfzema offers an insight into navigation through traffic related solutions.
Drawing attention to the connected services offered on the MG Hector will also be Jürgen Hase, CEO, UNLIMIT who will expand customer’s knowledge in terms of connected mobility and smartphone capabilities while MG Motors alliance with Nuance Communications will see Charles Kuai speak about the bond between the driver and his car. Powering all these features, is the iSMART tech, a glimpse of which is seen in the video below. It is something like Apple’s SIRI or Google Assistant or ALEXA.
Apart from these new technologies and outstanding connectivity features to be seen on the MG Hector, the new 5 seater SUV will also come in with several segment first features. MG says it will beat every other car in the segment, in every department – be it features, driving dynamics, power, performance, etc.
MG Hector will get a 10” infotainment system, largest in class panoramic sunroof, remote keyless entry, auto dimming IRVMs, quad LED projector headlamps, LED tail lamps and a honeycomb mesh grille. The Hector gets an eSIM card embedded, connecting the vehicle to India based Internet services; with updates on car health status, biometrics, traffic information, AI assistance and navigation etc. All these features will be updated via OTA. The MG Hector SUV is expected to be priced at Rs.13-16 lakhs and will take on the Tata Harrier and Jeep Compass upon launch in India.
