The MG Hector has launched in India with an introductory price of Rs 12.18 lakh. Competing with the likes of the Tata Harrier, Jeep Compass and Hyundai Creta, the Hector's USP is its "Smart SUV" claim.
The rise of smart features in the automotive segment has brought options ranging from being able to locate your car to being connected to the internet and even being 5G-ready. Here are some of the top features of the MG Hector.
1. Embedded-sim: The future of autonomous vehicles will rely on the ability of machines to talk to each other. The MG Hector has a machine-to-machine (M2M) 5G-ready SIM inside it, allowing it to communicate with your cellphone and even the MG servers remotely.
2. 10.4-inch touch screen: One of the things Tesla-owners loved most about their car was the large screen kept in the centre of the interface. Taking a cue from this, MG has incorporated a 10.4-inch touch screen at the centre of the dashboard. This allows the driver to access all the information about the car as well as about their own driving habits v ia the “Smart Drive” feature which will display driver analytics such as whether they are braking to harshly, how long the engine is left running idle and the drive time and routes taken.
3: Remote control: If you've ever parked your car in the sun and returned to find it too hot to sit in, this feature will come in handy. The Hector's AC unit can be turned on remotely via the mobile app. Furthermore, the boot and sunroof can both be activated via phone.
4. 360-degree camera: Parking sensors in most consumer vehicles usually just have a video feed from the back. In India's congested parking scenarios, this may not always protect your vehicle from being scratched on the side by a shoddily-parked bike's mirrors or the likes. The 360-degree camera feature gives a birds-eye view of the car and its surroundings. This means that if you still end up scratching the Hector while parking, you will not be able to blame the car.
5. Emergency call: If the Hector's airbags are ever activated, it triggers the "E-call" feature, which alerts various "Pulse Hubs" set up by MG around the country. The Pulse Hub will promptly call the driver and owner to make sure everything is OK and offer assistance. In addition, there is an "I-Call" button that can be pushed for immediate general assistance.
6. Find my car: It happens to everyone. You lost your car. While this is usually the cue for jokes referencing the 2000 Ashton-Kutcher film Dude, Where’s My Car, in a Hector, it means you will just have to hit the ‘find my car’ icon on the mobile app — which will then give you directions to your missing mobile.
7. Stop a thief: The Geofencing lets owners set a safe radius for the car which, if crossed, will result in the owner being sent an instant message. MG have not mentioned whether this includes the ability to remotely deactivate the car, however, which would have been more useful.
8. “Ok, Hector”: Like the OK Google, Cortana and Siri AI assistants, the Hector’s own assistant can be activated with a single voice command. There include actions like setting the radio station, finding a location, reducing the AC temperature and even making phone calls.
9. Software suite: The Hector was released in partnership with a host of software companies, from Microsoft for its data privacy to AccuWeather for its weather features.
10. Power: There are three engine options for the Hector: A 1.5L turbocooled petrol-hybrid, which used the energy generated by braking to power the electricals and a regular petrol engine, both of which make 143 PS (141 bhp). The 2L diesel engine makes 173 PS (170 bhp) paired with a whopping 350 nm of torque. On the mileage front, MG claims the petrol-hybrid will give you 15.8 kmpl, the petrol 14.16 kmpl in the manual transmission variant and 13.96 in the Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT) version, and the diesel a healthy 17.4 kmpl.
All these features add up to make the Hector an interesting entry to the midsize SUV segment. If you would like to read a full review of the Hector, how it drives and what its smart features feel like to use, check out the review here.