Now that’a a BIG statement! MG promises IM Motors electric luxury IM5 and IM6 will be the most “advanced cars anyone will be able to buy in Australia this year”.

April 15, 2025April 14, 2025 Bruce Newton 1045 Views 0 Comments IM Motors, IM Presented By MG, IM5, IM6, mg

MG is launching its IM Motors electric luxury sub-brand in Australia with two models, five variants and rhetoric that’s super-heated even by the standards of auto industry marketing spiel.

“These cars are the most advanced cars anyone will be able to buy in Australia this year,” promised MG Motors Australia chief commercial officer Giles Belcher.

“The technology in them is unbelievable.”

Belcher was speaking at the Melbourne motor show where the IM5 saloon and IM6 SUV (pictured top) debuted under the brand’s local name – IM Presented by MG – ahead of going on-sale in the next few months.

The localised name itself is an indicator of the challenging road ahead for the IM Motors brand in Australia.

IM Presented By MG IM5 at the Melbourne motor show.

Closely associating with MG Motors, which has now become a top 10 seller in Australia, is one way to try and accelerate local awareness of IM.

Another is pricing, which is guaranteed to be pitched under $100,000. That means the $120,000-plus Cyberster will remain MG’s local flagship.

In its Chinese home market, IM Motors is a stand-alone brand developed by MG’s parent SAIC in a joint venture with partners including the technology company Alibaba.

Only founded in December 2020, its first concepts were presented at the Shanghai auto show in 2021 and its first model went on-sale in 2022.

Australia is only the second country outside China were IM Motors has been launched.

Belcher explained the arrival of IM was meant to add lustre to the entire MG line-up.

IM Presented By MG IM6 interior at the Melbourne motor show.

“It’s a halo car. It’s the same with Cyberster. We launched that with a nod to the past and this is a nod to the future.

“You look at the technology, the AI interfaces in the car, it really is a future-focussed car.

“It just helps people look at the brand in a different way. I think it will have an effect on the whole brand.”

The three IM6 models are the RWD, the Platinum RWD and the Platinum AWD. There are two IM5 models; the Platinum RWD and Platinum AWD.

The IM6s measures up at 4904mm long, 1988mm wide and1669mm high. The IM5s are 4931mm/1960mm/1474mm. Both models roll on the same 2950mm wheelbase.

IM6 RWD gets a 75kWh battery while all other models get a 100kWh battery standard. NEDC range varies from a low of 505km (IM6 RWD) to 755km (IM5 Platinum RWD).

IM Presented By MG IM5 badging at the Melbourne motor show.

The IM6 RWD makes 217kW/450Nm from its solitary e-motor, while the Platinum RWDs up that to 300kW/500Nm. The AWDs make 200kW+372kW/302Nm+500Nm.

IM claims a spectacular 2.74 0-100km/h time for the IM5 Platinum AWD, while the IM6 equivalent does it in 3.48 secs. The RWDs are spaced in the 4.6-6.4 sec bracket. Claimed top speed is as high as 240km/h for both AWDs and as low as 200km/h for the base model.

Key technical innovations include 12-degree four-wheel steering with Crab Mode so the cars can move diagonally.

Artificial Intelligence aids with parking and driving safely on wet nights with the aid of surround view cameras.

Inside, the IMs feature a 26.3-inch driver’s touchscreen and second 10.5-inch central screen, a 20-speaker sound system and even magnetic accessories to attach devices such as tablets.

Belcher stressed the fundamental change and model overhaul the MG brand was going through in Australia away from its current value positioning would help acceptance of the IM Motors models.

Incoming models include hybrid and plug-in HS medium SUVs, the U9 ute, the QS seven-seat SUV and the MG7 sedan.

“As a brand we are growing,” Belcher explained. “We started off in the value end of the market and that’s the truth.

“But I think if you look at the new iterations of all those models they’re a massive leap forward in sophistication and design and tech.

“So the vehicles you see [at the show] – and the IM is probably the pinnacle from the technology point of view – just fills more of that brand promise.

“By the end of this year we will start to see that ladder of products all the way through for different people in different lifestyles. By the end of the year you will see that it will make sense.”

MG has set ambitious sales growth targets for itself in Australia. It wants 60,000 sales in 2025, top five in the market by 2027 (roughly 75,000) and top three by 2030 (90,000-plus).