MG Cyberster Road Test Review – Cybertron’s Own?

Can the MG Cyberster transform the view that electric vehicles can’t be true-blue driver cars?

“Electric vehicle” and “driver’s car” are terms that don’t usually fit into the same sentence for me. However, when “topless” and “scissor” are also in the same paragraph as well, the latter being the sporty doors, of course, things can get quite enticing.

Enter the Cyberster. The first two-door, convertible electric sports car India has ever seen. And with the Porsche 718 Electric reportedly already dead on arrival, I honestly hope things stay that way. Convertible cars have a different aura. Even more so in red. Apart from school kids yelling the (other) F-word before noticing the “MG” octagon and not a horse on two legs, there is much more to the equation. Yes, it may have green reg plates but it does evoke a different kind of emotion. That said, let’s delve into the details.

Its styling is sharp, curvaceous and, squint hard enough, and it could appear like a 3D-printed MGB for 2026. But I kid, there are some genuinely sporty lines and proportions that, hide the plates, and one would never guess there was a set of electric motors powering it and a slab of cells for a floor. The weight, then, is a 50:50 split—one motor each front and rear, with battery pack in the middle keeping it well distributed and also keeping the mass centre low. Very low. The ride height is less than 120 millimetres and, with a wheelbase of 2,691 mm, that meant going sideways, even crabbing over most speed-breakers; and there were plenty of those heading out from the city towards the hills.

A quick tap on the button and the door opens by slowly swinging outward and then upward. There is even a sensor which pauses the action should someone be standing a little too close. Tap the button on the inside and it soft-closes itself making a right cocoon of the cabin. Gasps galore as I take in the interior. The steering wheel is red! And it has both dials and buttons on it. Yes, as I settle in I notice the space is snug, even tight, but it sure looks exciting. Push the start button and the digital dials and, much to my indifference, three displays in total all come alive.

The shift controls takes the form of buttons stacked on the right of the centre console. Thankfully, there are more than a few buttons for various controls making it easy to quickly get to what I wanted and focus more on the drive. Before I proceed, I am warned by the MG representative to sideways it over the edge as I exit the parking garage. Sports car-like low ground clearance? Indeed.

The eyeballs that turn as I hit the road is what the Cyberster seems to be mostly about. If you want gawking kids and adults stopping mid-sentence on a phone call as you pass by, this is indeed a very unique option. The thing is, it does it in complete silence.

Heading out of the bustling city centre, the steering feels quick and responsive, and it also makes for a tighter turning circle. It’s easy to carve through slow-moving traffic and just as easy to dart diagonally to avoid a sudden pot-hole or stone right in the middle of the road—a necessity for this. It has expensive bumpers loaded with sensors. That brings me to the ADAS. It supports Level 2 autonomous driving capability which means there is a fully-functional adaptive cruise control with intelligent assist, lane-keep and departure warning, forward collision warning and auto braking, plus a complement of rear-side assistance including lane-change assistance with blind-spot warnings as well as rear cross-traffic alerts; quite useful when manoeuvring in narrow spaces or around a multitude of children who keep coming in waves to get a close-up of the two-door red sports car. Overall, it did keep me interested with more than just the Bose premium audio and the many systems.

The MG Cyberster in India is based on the “GT” specification so it’s the all-wheel drive version with two electric motors so it’s properly quick. The rear motor is the more powerful of the two—for a 60:40, more rear-wheel-drive sports-car feel—with 250 kW (340 hp) and 475 Nm, matching some old V8 engines. It also explains the 20-inch wheels with mixed Pirelli P-Zero rubber with rear tyres 30 mm wider than the fronts. The front motor produces a lower but still potent 150 kW (204 hp) and 250 Nm. The total torque peak is 725 Nm and it peaks from the get-go, while the total system peak output is a hefty 375 kW (510 hp). Both motors use single-speed transmissions and the performance on tap makes for a sprint from zero to 100 km/h in just 3.2 seconds and a top speed of 200 km/h. This is possible because the MG Cyberster weighs in at less than two tonnes.

A big portion of that weight comes from the 77-kWh battery on a 400-volt system provides enough juice and bandwidth for both performance and range; the latter of which is rated at 580 km—significant for a rather compact two-seater. While that sort of range can mean it is capable of one long trip, it could well do 15-20 short trips within the city on a single charge before needing to be juiced. And it seems like more of the latter will be the usual for this thing.

Given the space for both occupants and luggage is limited, with two seats, and a boot volume of 250-odd litres—roof up or down—means that practicality is not all that bad. It will fit a couple of big bags easily and accommodate a few small ones as well. I didn’t spend as much time in it to give a long drive verdict, but it seems quite capable of comfortably touring good distances. I did see an indicated 443 km range on a full charge with as low as 19 kWh/100 km or around 5.2 km/unit. It can charge at up to 144-kW DC and doing so means a 10 to 80 per cent charge takes 40 minutes.

It’s easy to not talk about the piercing LED headlights, the distinct arrow-shaped LED tail-lights or even the stylish 20-inch wheels when the focus is on driving and exploring the breadth of its capablites, including the drive modes and the various onboard systems because they’re not just present but also work as intended.

The Cyberster costs Rs 75 lakh (ex-showroom) and, to be honest, that is quite an appealing tag for 510 electric horsepower and that silhouette. It seems to have found takers and it’s easy to see why. If anyone wants a sports car that is outrageously unconventional and wants to go electric at the same time, this MG should tick many boxes on their list. For those who doubt its capabilities, it may just act as a transformer there, too.