MG Cyberster GT-Car of the year 2025 (2025) Review

TRY as I might I just couldn’t avoid driving EVs last year.The result was an internal conflict because they really are great to drive, just a pain to live with.A home-charger would make all the difference, of course, but as Podpoint requested 9K for the privilege – because my car park space is 60m from my electricity supply, apparently – I have to make do with public supplies. Frankly, I get sick of sitting in supermarket car parks and even more resentful of having to pay 70-80p a KW when the home supply would be 28p or even 6p overnight.

The annual league table for 2025 looks like this: 16 EVs; 13 hybrids; 12 pure petrols; and seven diesels. Vehicles ranged from a £16,000 Leap electric city car to a £500,000 Ferrari Purosangue and everything else in between. But the one car that stood out was an electric sportscar from Chinese makers MG, the Cyberster.

I loved this car on every level from its traditional badge which evoked memories of yesteryear, to Ferrari-beating performance at a 10 th of the price.Driving home across the Yorkshire Dales the Cyberster was as quick as my motorbike and just as agile, easily and safely squirting by slow movers in a way no other car can manage. Its looks are glorious, its interior peerless and the power-to-weight ratio of 503PS and 725Nm to under 2,000KG goes some way to explaining its 0-60mph sprint time of just three seconds. Add all-wheel-drive, tenacious grip and accomplished handling and you have a car that is pure joy to drive. It’s a sports car so it’s never going to be that practical but I simply do not care, there’s nothing to match it for the price.

In other sectors there are vehicles definitely worth a mention. In the area of mid-size SUVs, a sector I pay to inhabit, the Toyota C-HR shines brightly, which is why I own one.

Fabulous looks, easy to understand controls that see a return to buttons, and stunning economy from the 1.8 litre hybrid make it an obvious selection. I drive a lot of cars and many are two, three and even 14 times as expensive but it always feels great climbing back in the Toyota which boasts particularly excellent ride and handling. That says a lot for the car.

Big off-roaders remain as popular as ever and this throws Land Rover’s Defender into the mix but sees the Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster and the legendary Toyota Land Cruiser battle it out for top spot.

The Toyota is slightly easier to live with and the Ineos is let down by slightly idiosyncratic steering but the interior and cool image take some beating. China has been hurling new models at me all year long and when you consider that also includes Volvo and Lotus it is easy to see why European car makers are so worried, especially as there are a lot more to come and they are all good to exceptional.

It’s fitting then that my Car of the Year should also come from China, albeit with a helping hand from good old British engineers, and why shouldn’t we enjoy decent motoring at an affordable price for a change? I can’t help thinking that 2026 is going to be an interesting ride.

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